Employee Development · Lean

A Great Lean Waste – the under-utilization of people’s talents

In the 1800’s, I believe that most men were highly skilled craftsmen or farmers and along comes Frederick Taylor and Henry Ford. They simplified work. Set up the assembly line, and gave people repetitive and boring work. But, Ford Motor became the most successful and one of the richest companies in the world. Almost all… Continue reading A Great Lean Waste – the under-utilization of people’s talents

Lean

Inventory is a waste. To Taiichi Ohno inventory was the biggest waste.

Ohno once said, “At Toyota we have no warehouses.” Toyota wants Just-in-time. You deliver what is needed when it is needed in the quantity needed. Ohno once said that it is better for the entire factory to stop when there are external problems than to have any inventory – buffer stock. Yes, the virus has… Continue reading Inventory is a waste. To Taiichi Ohno inventory was the biggest waste.

Customer Service

Without happy customers, you will not be in business very long.

“You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” – attributed to Abraham Lincoln I recommend you stop fooling them. (period) Clearly you should treat all customers with respect, with care and with love. You know… Continue reading Without happy customers, you will not be in business very long.

Communities and Environment

Kamikatsu and the Zero Waste Movement

Kamikatsu is a quaint town nestled in the mountains in Japan. This unsuspecting town has achieved the impossible of producing zero waste. No incinerators, no landfills. Since 2003, they’ve proven that with rigor and focus, the world can ween itself from excessive consumption and waste. We’re often asked for examples of what good likes like… Continue reading Kamikatsu and the Zero Waste Movement