Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

By Mark GrabanBusiness Management

Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond episodes

February 23, 2022John Dues on Continual Improvement, Deming, and Process Behavior Charts in Education
Episode page: https://www.leanblog.org/441
My guest for Episode #441 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is John Dues, an accomplished education systems leader and improvement science scholar-practitioner with more than two decades of experience in the sector.
He is the Chief Learning Officer of the United Schools Network (USN) where he directs the network's Continual Improvement Fellowship and serves as an improvement advisor.
He draws heavily on the work of W. Edwards Deming and his System of Profound Knowledge (SoPK) to equip him with the theory and statistical tools by which to perform this role.
Under John's leadership, USN schools have regularly been among the state and nation's highest performing urban schools. In 2013, John was recognized as the Ohio School Leader of the Year by the Ohio Alliance for Public Charter Schools.
John graduated with Honors from Miami (OH) University, holds a Master of Education degree from the University of Cincinnati, and is an alumnus of Teach For America
He is currently continuing his education through the Improvement Advisor program at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in Boston, Massachusetts.
John is the author of a free eBook, Rethinking Improvement.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
“System” – design and then improvement?
Voice of the Customer – who is the “customer” for education? Or customers?
Where did you first learn about continuous / continual improvement practices and principles?
Book Learning to Improve
Carnegie Foundation — “improvement science“
Factors out of your control including poverty, home life instability? Focusing on what you can control?
Learning from IHI?
Deming? Initially turned off by Deming? – hard to understand?
What changed in March 2020?
Applicability into education?
Things Deming said specifically about education?
Alfie Kohn, episode #57
Don Wheeler, also using my book Measures of Success
Use of Process Behavior Charts
What is “engagement” for remote learning? in education?
Signal vs. noise
The trouble with arbitrary targets?
The role of “the system” on performance?
Under appreciation of systems thinking?
What's the impact of spending on individual “professional development”?
Theory of knowledge – why do we do the things we do? So engrained we don't question them?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 1 min
February 16, 2022Interview with Bella Englebach on The Edges of Lean and More
Episode page: https://www.leanblog.org/440
My guest for Episode #440 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Bella Englebach, the Lead Consultant at her firm “Lean for Humans.”
She is also the host of the podcast “The Edges of Lean,” which is part of the Lean Communicators group. Bella is also the author of the book Creatively Lean: How to Get Out of Your Own Way and Drive Innovation Throughout Your Organization.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
Finding the balance between listening to a sensei vs. trying things and experimenting yourself?
Managing to Learn book – pulling back from telling
Working with middle managers caught in the middle
What's your Lean origin story??
Getting out of the “way we've always done it” habit
Six Sigma – didn't work well in R&D — why?
Creative problem solving methodology?
Creative solution generation?
“Don't be so sure!”
Lean – at a company via the phrase “process excellence”
Are we solving the right / biggest problem??
The people side… Meaning behind the name of your company? “Lean for Humans”
Episode 32 of “Lean Whiskey”
Host of “The Edges of Lean” — podcast
Episode 437 Peter Docker
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
59 min
February 09, 2022Prof. Elliott Weiss on Steph Curry Tweaking His 3-Point Shot and Not Reacting to Noise in Other Settings
Prof. Emeritus - Darden / University of Virginia
Episode Page: https://www.leanblog.org/439
My guest for Episode #439 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Elliott Weiss, the Oliver Wight Professor Emeritus of Business Administration, having taught in the Technology and Operations Management area at Darden.
He is the author of numerous articles in the areas of production and operations management and has extensive consulting experience for both manufacturing and service companies in the areas of production scheduling, workflow management, logistics, lean conversions and total productive maintenance.
He's also a co-author of the book The Lean Anthology: A Practical Primer in Continual Improvement.
Before coming to Darden in 1987, Weiss was on the faculty of the Johnson Graduate School of Management at Cornell University. He has held visiting appointments at the Graduate School of Management and the University of Melbourne, Australia, and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
Elliott's degrees are all from the University of Pennsylvania:
B.S., B.A., Math & Economics
MS Operations Research
MBA
Ph.D., Operations Research
I reached out to Elliott to discuss his recent writing:
ON THE (BASKET)BALL: WHAT BUSINESS CAN LEARN FROM STEPH CURRY
He was writing about this excellent WSJ article:
Stephen Curry's Scientific Quest for the Perfect Shot
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
Lean & operations origin story — what sparked your interest in this as a field?
The vanity plate? 0 MUDA — also had one NOMUDA
Elimination of variation, enhancement of the wait, expectations management
Lean applied to teaching? Research?
Taguchi loss function?
Is Curry reacting to noise?
Hoshin Kanri — Application to retirement – mind/body/soul
Book — “The Lean Anthology” case studies
Chapter on using SPC charts to monitor blood sugar & diabetes
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
59 min
February 02, 2022Steel Toes and Stilettos, an Interview with Kathy Miller and Shannon Karels
Episode page: https://www.leanblog.org/438
My guests for Episode #438 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are Shannon Karels and Kathy Miller, the authors of the recently-released book Steel Toes and Stilettos: A True Story of Women Manufacturing Leaders and Lean Transformation Success. Their website is opsisters.com.
Kathy Miller is a Senior Operations Executive who has held numerous global vice president and director roles both in manufacturing and lean enterprise leadership. Kathy is a Shingo Prize Recipient for Large Businesses as a Plant Manager.
She started her career in Operations as a 17-year-old co-op student at a vehicle assembly plant, and progressed through engineering, marketing, lean, and operations leadership roles, working for four large publicly traded corporations in executive roles.
Shannon Karels is a Senior Operations Manager who has led multiple lean transformations and run operations for two large publicly traded corporations across various industries and business models. She started her career in supply chain management and progressed through lean and operations leadership roles.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
What are your Lean origin stories?
Kathy – what was the motivation for Lean– catching up to Toyota? Main goals?
Shannon – starting point, the business was losing money?
The “right way to run a business” – what appealed most to you?
Kathy: how to help break old habits and truly embrace what's being taught?
Other coaches and influences?
Including Chris Harris, John Shook, Jim Womack
How did auto experience translate to first job outside of GM/Delphi?
Story behind the book?
How much of the book is about issues faced by women in manufacturing?
The lean facilitator and the General Manager – how do the roles and responsibilities break down in a lean transformation?
Your passion for safety? Where did that develop in each of you?
Lean in the office? Carpet land?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
59 min
January 26, 2022Retired RAF Pilot Peter Docker, on Leadership From the Jumpseat
Episode page: https://www.leanblog.org/437
My guest for Episode #437 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Peter Docker. He is the author of the book Leading From the Jumpseat: How to Create Extraordinary Opportunities by Handing Over Control.
He was the co-author of the book Find Your Why and formerly a founding Igniter at Simon Sinek Inc. Peter draws on his 25-year career in the Royal Air Force, and over 14 years spent partnering with businesses around the world, to inspire others to “Lead from the Jumpseat.”
There are opportunities today to connect the dots to Lean, as we focus on styles of leadership that are very compatible with Lean.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
Mutual respect… “respect for people” connection
What is jumpseat leadership?
Humility / courage to ask for help — a culture that invites that?
Doing nothing vs. choosing to not intervene
React vs. response
Planning for likely events – checklists
Standardized Work parallel — Mental capacity to deal with the unexpected
Hospitals – sense of belonging – love for others
Eric Dickson example – link to his episode of “Habitual Excellence“
Driven by love or driven by fear? — Fear is not sustainable
“Humble Confidence” — can somebody become more humble? Or do the humble become more confident?
Leadership under pressure?
PROGRESSION AS A LEADER:
Learning to fly
Flying
Teaching others to fly
Leading from the Jumpseat
Belonging – how can leaders create a sense of belonging?
This goes beyond the word “engagement”?
“Learning is a large part of military culture” — what creates that?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr
January 19, 2022Cindy Young, PhD on Knowledge Management and Lean
Founder/CEO of CJ Young Consulting, LLC
Episode page: https://www.leanblog.org/436
My guest for Episode #436 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Dr. Cynthia J. Young, PMP, LSS MBB, CMQ-OE, the Founder/CEO of CJ Young Consulting, LLC.
Cindy helps organizations optimize human-centric knowledge to increase trust and support collaboration and inclusion. She is a TEDx Speaker, an HBR Contributor, and a Veteran (23 years in the U.S. Navy)
She is also a Curriculum Developer and Instructor with Leidos, an engineering and defense contractor.
Cindy is also presenting a webinar on February 10th, part of the KaiNexus CI Webinar series… learn more and register here:
Impactful Methods to Benefit Organizational Knowledge Management and Continuous Improvement Efforts
She is also leading an upcoming “Knowledge Management Bootcamp.”
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
Origin story as a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt? –> In the Navy
Combining LSS, PMP, CMQ-OE certifications?
What is “knowledge management” in the context of organizations? Leadership & technology??
Five Ways to Protect Yourself from a Layoff Using Knowledge Management
We should “Resist hoarding knowledge” — is that counterintuitive?
This sharing had big benefits to you and your career?
Breaking down silos?
Applying KM to Lean and applying Lean to KM?
Waste of capturing knowledge that doesn't get used?
Examples of good practices?
Mistakes people make with knowledge?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
52 min
January 12, 2022Lean in Mental Healthcare with Sunil Khushalani, MD and Antonio DePaolo, PhD
Show notes: https://www.leanblog.org/435
My guests for Episode #435 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are Sunil Khushalani, MD, a psychiatrist who specializes in Addiction Psychiatry and Antonio DePaolo, PhD, a transformation executive and a Baldrige Fellow with over 22 years of experience in improvement science.
My guests today are the co-authors of the new book, released in December, titled Transforming Mental Healthcare: Applying Performance Improvement Methods to Mental Healthcare.
You can order the book through the publisher at a 20% discount, using code ESBAC.
They are a physician (psychiatrist more specifically) and an industrial engineer:
Sunil Khushalani, MD, a psychiatrist who specializes in Addiction Psychiatry
Antonio DePaolo, PhD, a transformation executive and a Baldrige Fellow with over 22 years of experience in improvement science.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
I'm always fascinated to hear your ‘lean origin stories” if you will
Antonio? 16 years in manufacturing, Lean and Six Sigma, GM/Delphi, Sensei Nakao from Shingujitsu
Suni? At Shepard Pratt – Chip Davis, patient safety course, Steve Spear “Fixing Healthcare“, the “Pittsburgh Way” book, “Perfecting Patient Care” with Spear and Paul O'Neill
Antonio coming into healthcare? Via Stiles Associates (our sponsor)
Experts in behavior — lessons in behavioral health?
Ron Oslin webinar on Motivational Interviewing (still trying to find the new location on lean.org)
“Addicted to the status quo” — How does this idea apply to leaders?
“A conservative 30-50% of every step in the mental healthcare process does not help patients feel better or stay better”??
Motivations for Lean then and there?
Sunil: hearing about quality & safety problems?
How did you approach transformation / Lean in the Mental Healthcare setting?
1 in 5 Americans experience a “mental illness” each year — which is most common? How many people don't get access to the right treatment?
When should people reach out for mental health care?
How do you define Lean Daily Management?
Burnout amongst healthcare workers?
Sunil – tell us more about the natural reaction to being told?
Don't blame people for being resistant to change
Pitfalls / lessons learned??
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 1 min
January 05, 2022Ben Bensaou: From Lean Production to ”Built to Innovate”
Professor at INSEAD, author of "Built to Innovate"
Show notes: https://www.leanblog.org/434
My guest for Episode #434 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Ben Bensaou. He is an INSEAD professor and author of Built to Innovate: Essential Practices to Wire Innovation into Your Company's DNA.
Ben earned his PhD at the MIT Sloan School of Management, where I was an MBA student. He was part of Jim Womack‘s research team that studied the auto industry and that group coined the term “Lean.”
He's joining us from Kobe, Japan, where he is on sabbatical.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
I'm curious to hear your memories and reflections of the Womack research era
“Japanese management model”? – how would you describe that?
Jim Womack episode on “Machine Revisited”
Labor / talent shortages — similar challenge in Europe or Japan now?
Was there anything from that research that wasn't widely understood by readers and business leaders?
“It's a mindset” not tools, techniques, and gimmicks
Parallels to innovation? How much is a mindset?
The importance of building trust with suppliers
“Innovation is everybody's job”
“The fundamental is trust in people”
“… permission to innovate” – culture and environment
Is there a spectrum between C.I. and innovation?
Can innovation be taught? Can innovation be a process?
Innovation as a noun vs. innovating as a verb
Why are middle managers so important for innovation and is this surprising to people? Not just the “genius leaders”
“Innovation ambassadors” – coaches working with the middle managers
If people think that Lean (and concepts like standardized work) stifle innovation, what's your response to that?
“The power of process” doesn't stifle innovation… leads to innovation?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
53 min
December 08, 2021Gerard Ibarra on ”Good Decisions, Better Outcomes”
My guest for Episode #433 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Gerard Ibarra, an author, business consultant, speaker, and entrepreneur.
Show notes: https://www.leanblog.org/433
Gerard is the author of the book Good Decisions, Better Outcomes: A Simple, Five-Step Process to Help You Make Important and Difficult Decisions with Confidence and Clarity, available now.
Gerard received his PhD from Southern Methodist University's (SMU) Lyle School of Engineering with emphasis in Logistics Systems Engineering and Operations Research. He has taught graduate courses in logistics systems engineering at SMU, as well as logistics, supply chain management and e-business courses at the University of Dallas' Graduate School of Management.
He's had executive roles in logistics companies, has had his own consulting firm, and was President and CEO of a company from 2008 to 2010. He was also the CEO of Jaguar Logistics, the largest medical on-demand transport company in Texas until acquired by Dropoff in 2018.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
What's your origin story related to continuous improvement? Where and when and why?
The story behind the book — why a book on decision making?
Efficient and effective decision making?
Decision making is not strictly rational, is it? How do emotions influence us and how should we take that info consideration?
What is the P2MODE methodology, in a nutshell?
How much of good decision making is process vs. having the right info?
Evaluating needs vs. wants? How does that enter into decision making?
Group decision making and this framework??
Types of consulting you do — general training? Help with a specific big decision?
My Favorite Mistake guests — often the decision seems like a good one at the time… but later reveals itself to be a “mistake.” How often would you expect this to be the result of a bad decision making process vs. a good process with bad information?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
53 min
November 17, 2021Jamie Flinchbaugh on ”People Solve Problems” - His New Book
Show page: https://www.leanblog.org/432
My guest for Episode #432 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jamie Flinchbaugh, an old friend of mine and a frequent guest (Episodes 5, 6, 10, 64, and 261, plus the two times he's interviewed me, Episodes 50 and 316).
He's also the co-creator and frequent co-host with me on the Lean Whiskey podcast series.
Today, the talk is all Lean, no whiskey. We talk about leadership, problem solving, more today — talking about his new book, People Solve Problems: The Power of Every Person, Every Day, Every Problem. I put Jamie on the spot to coach me through some problem solving I'm doing related to podcast growth, and he makes a lot of great points.
Today, we discuss topics and questions including:
So, we don't need to worry about AI problem solving?
The role of software, like KaiNexus
The story behind the book – after The Hitchhiker's Guide to Lean in '06
Why this book? Why now?
Behaviors drive action — what are some of the key behaviors that drive problem solving?
Testing to learn… testing throughout?
Open to the idea you might be WRONG – humility
Entrepreneur — book is a product that scales – thinking about it like a startup?
Book isn't A3 or PDSA or Kata centered… agnostic about the specific method??
A3 — The importance of a good problem statement?
How do we better understand cause and effect in problem solving?
You can coach without being an expert
The role of intuition vs data?
The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity, and healthcare industries. Learn more.
This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network.
1 hr 2 min

About Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

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Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations features thoughtful, in-depth discussions with leaders, authors, executives, and practitioners who are applying Lean thinking in the real world.