Brad Schmidt, born and raised in Japan, has been a Lean consultant since 1998. His diverse work experience in small businesses and multinational companies within a variety of industries, including manufacturing, logistics, service, and finance, has enabled him to successfully implement performance-increasing programs as well as train and motivate internal leaders for various companies. Mr. Schmidt worked as the Lean manager for Continental Automotive in Japan deploying Lean throughout the company, including HQ functions as well as the engineering center. He also served as a vice president of Metlife Japan, where he effectively rebranded the Lean program, retrained Lean office staff, created an inter-company Lean study session between local governments and non-competing businesses, and lowered costs through increased cooperation between departments. In his current leadership role, Mr. Schmidt has worked to develop Makoto’s Japan Lean Experience tour and hosts various Lean-themed tours of companies in Japan and around the world.