By: Randy Cook and Alison Jenkins, McKinsey & Company When a company engages its people in problem solving as part of their daily work, they feel more motivated, they do their jobs better, the organization’s performance improves, and a virtuous cycle starts to turn. Such an approach can tap enormous potential for the company and […]
By: Randy Cook and Allison Jenkins, McKinsey & Company Most of the leaders we meet pride themselves on their problem-solving ability. But when we watch how they work, we often see them behaving instinctively rather than following a rigorous problem-solving approach. All too often they fail to define the real problem, rely on instinct rather […]
By: Jose Paredes, UL The fall in New England is one of my favorite times of the year. Hues of saffron, paprika and pumpkin speckle the landscape. Combined with the smell of wood-burning fireplaces scenting the crisp night air, and the sound of rustling leaves, it becomes a living masterpiece. When I am not traveling […]
By: Gert Linthout Some years ago, we guided a lean transformation project in a regional hospital. The ambition was to drastically improve the experience of patients in the surgical ‘one-day pathway.’ An in-depth patient survey and analysis of the value stream revealed that missing information for the patient and long and unpredictable waiting times were […]
By: Shingo Institute Staff “What’s the difference between the Shingo Prize® and other similar awards?” It’s one of the questions most frequently asked of the Shingo Institute. The short answer is that it isn’t just a framework for management. The Shingo focus is on organizational culture conducive to having improvements come directly from the mind […]
By: Bruce Hamilton, President, GBMP There is a popular lore provided by Shigeo Shingo that the original name for mistake-proofing (poka-yoke) was “fool-proofing” (baka-yoke). Shingo chided managers at Panasonic for using the latter term, as it was disrespectful to workers, essentially calling them fools. Shingo substituted the word “fool” for “mistake,” because, as he aptly noted, […]
By: Mark Baker Mark Baker will be teaching the Discover Shingo Model™ Workshop at the 28th International Conference this April When I was a young mechanical engineer at Honda Motor Company, Mr. Honda was still alive and he used to always say, “Unless we have 100% of the people in the organization engaged in making the company better, […]
By: Rajinder Singh, Solving Efeso As a child, I remember vividly playing in my grandfather’s workshop that was used to repair and re-tread used, worn and damaged truck and bus tires. As we ran in and out of the workshop we saw employees working hard on different processes – buffing, loading and unloading, assembling, etc. – […]
By: Rick Edgemen Part 1: Hoshin Kanri – Concept Origins Published March 1, 2016 Prior to World War II, the U.S. share of the world export market was approximately 30%. In the aftermath of World War II that share grew to more than 70% – a result of a generally healthy and educated workforce, as […]
By: Alejandro Ponce, Alfra-Opex After serving 14 years at a company dedicated to saving lives, by building reliable safety systems for automobiles such as seat belts and airbags, it is clear that quality is the top priority when we talk about product performance. There is no room for mistakes. With only one chance for those products […]
