Articles
Seeing the Whole to Build Sustainable Organizations
September 8, 2025 – Ana Oliveira
Are we truly “thinking in systems” or merely “seeing systems”? Research and real-world evidence consistently demonstrate that Lean organizations often face challenges over time, in particular a decline in performance and engagement. While reasons for this are often attributed to culture, numerous factors contribute to an organization’s...
Read Full ArticleOvercoming Transformation Failures Through the Shingo Model: A Leadership Centered Approach
August 7, 2025 – Glasson Fonseca
Organizational transformation is often misunderstood as a linear process driven by top-down directives or isolated change initiatives. In reality, meaningful and sustainable transformation demands a deeper, systemic shift — one that aligns strategic intent with operational execution, leadership behavior, and cultural evolution. This te...
Read Full ArticleThe Shingo Institute Welcomes CI Strategies, Inc. as a New Provider of Shingo Workshops
August 7, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
LOGAN, UTAH, August 6, 2025 — The Shingo Institute, a program of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, has partnered with CI Strategies, Inc. to become the Institute’s newest Shingo Licensed Affiliate. This partnership means that CI Strategies will teach the Shingo workshops to groups and individuals intere...
Read Full ArticleKim and Spear Honored with Shingo Publication Award for Wiring the Winning Organization
July 23, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
LOGAN, Utah – July 23, 2025 – The Shingo Institute, a program within the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, proudly announces that Gene Kim and Steven J. Spear have been awarded the prestigious Shingo Publication Award for their book Wiring the Winning Organization: Liberating Our Collective Greatness t...
Read Full ArticleShingo Challenge: Eligibility, Results Requirements, and the Path to Sustainable Organizational Excellence
June 5, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
Since its inception in 1988, the Shingo Institute has been dedicated to advancing the process of improvement by conducting cutting-edge research, offering relevant education, performing insightful organizational assessments, and recognizing organizations committed to achieving sustainable, world-class results. At the heart of this mission...
Read Full ArticleAuthors Honored with Shingo Publication Award for Why Care?
May 27, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
LOGAN, Utah – May 27, 2026 – The Shingo Institute, a program in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, has awarded the Shingo Publication Award to Chris Warner, Caroline Greenlee, and Chris Butterworth for their transformative book, Why Care? How Thriving Individuals Create Thriving Cultures of Continuous Im...
Read Full ArticleLeading Excellence- The 5 Hats of the Adaptive Leader
May 12, 2025 – Chris Butterworth, Stephen Dargan, and Brad Jeavons
As senior leaders working for many years all over the world, we came to realize we were often overwhelmed by the sheer size and complexity of what was expected of us. Today’s leaders face even greater challenges, with a continuing acceleration of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity (VUCA). As then Canadian Prime Minister Ju...
Read Full ArticleJabil’s Tijuana, Mexico, Plant 2 Earns Shingo Silver Medallion for Organizational Excellence
April 17, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
LOGAN, UTAH – April 17, 2025 – The Shingo Institute, a program in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, has awarded the Shingo Silver Medallion to Jabil’s Baja Plant 2 at the company’s Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, site in recognition of its outstanding commitment to organizational excellence. Ken S...
Read Full ArticleVale SA Wheel Exchange and Maintenance Complex Receives Shingo Silver Medallion for Organizational Excellence
March 31, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
LOGAN, UTAH – March 31, 2025 – The Shingo Institute, a program in the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, has awarded the Shingo Silver Medallion to Vale SA, Wheel Exchange and Maintenance Complex São Luis, Maranhão, Brazil, in recognition of its outstanding commitment to organizational excellence. Ken Snyder, ...
Read Full ArticlePsychological Safety: The Foundation for Lean and Continuous Improvement
March 21, 2025 – Mark Graban
In a Gallup poll, only 3 in 10 employees strongly agreed that their opinions count at work. In my work with organizations across multiple industries, there’s a common pattern: companies that actively cultivate psychological safety are the ones that truly embrace continuous improvement and Lean thinking. Without psychological safety—the...
Read Full ArticleCompliance versus Commitment
March 13, 2025 – Douglas Dawson, Leg Up Solutions, LLC
Stephen Jay Gould, former Harvard University professor and leading evolutionary biologist, said, “I am somehow less concerned with the weight and convolution of Einstein's brain, than I am in the certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in the cotton fields and sweatshops.” That is a powerful statement, perhaps suggesting...
Read Full ArticleThe Relentless Pursuit of Mastery
March 10, 2025 – Michael Martyn
Over my 20+ years with the Shingo Institute, I have had the fortune to work with hundreds of organizations on the journey to excellence and coach thousands of leaders in the systems and behaviors that contribute to a sustainable culture of continuous improvement. But after years spent dedicated to designing and building amazing cult...
Read Full ArticleAvoiding Continuous Appearance
March 8, 2025 – Patrick Adams
There are many ways to start a fire, but there are only three ingredients necessary to build a fire: fuel, oxygen, and heat. When even one component is absent the fire goes out. There are also three types of fuel needed to ignite and keep a fire lit. The order in which you add these types of fuel is very important. The first typ...
Read Full ArticleShingo Institute Announces 2025 Rising Star Award Recipients and Academy Inductees
March 7, 2025 – the Shingo Institute
Logan, Utah, March 7, 2025 — The Shingo Academy is a distinguished group of individuals who have dedicated their careers to advancing organizational excellence. Recognized for their leadership and contributions to industry best practices, Academy members serve as ambassadors for the Shingo Institute, promoting the principles of the&n...
Read Full ArticleThe Digital Model Factory: Improvement Sub-Systems Training Aligned to the Shingo Model
March 4, 2025 – Damla Akgül and Doğan Hasan
ABSTRACT The aim of this study is to research and evaluate the alignment and contribution of experiential Lean and digital transformation workshops in the Digital Model Factory in a virtual reality environment to the Continuous Improvement dimension of the Shingo Model and improvement sub-systems, as taught in the SYSTEMS DES...
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