Lean Blog — 544: Chad Diggs on Building Quality Systems, Not Heroes
Why do so many quality programs fall apart the moment the firefighter walks out the door? My guest for this episode of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Chad Diggs, …
Habitual Excellence — When Leaders Decide to Change “The Way We Run the Place”
In this episode of Habitual Excellence, Ken Segel speaks with Dr. James Shamiyeh, Chief Operating Officer at University Tennessee Medical, about the organization’s Everyday Excellence journey and what it takes …
Lean Blog Audio — Calling Someone a “Process Coach” Doesn’t Make Them One
A title change is not a culture change. In this episode, Mark Graban draws on his early experience at GM in the mid-1990s — where “foreman” became “team coordinator” overnight …
My Favorite Mistake — 352: Getting Too Close to What You Love: Joe Hennes (Tough Pigs) on Working at Sesame Workshop
Joe Hennes runs Tough Pigs, the premier Muppet fan site, and for years he also worked at Sesame Workshop — the dream company he had been writing about since 2006. …
Lean Coffee Talk — S2: E 8: NUMMI: GM Wrote It Down in 1987. They Still Didn’t Get It.
Mark Graban and Jamie Flinchbaugh sit down with single-origin coffees and a 1987 GM Confidential report Mark pulled from the Don Ephlin papers at Wayne State’s Reuther Library. The document, …
My Favorite Mistake — 351: Stop Chasing Results, Start Pursuing Peace of Mind – with Deborah Coviello
Deborah Coviello has spent her career walking into businesses with quality crises and operational pressure, and walking out with stronger leaders behind her. In this conversation with Mark Graban, she …
Lean Blog Audio — Still Learning: A Live Event with Elisabeth Swan on May 7
Blog post with links Three years ago, The Mistakes That Make Us came out. Around the same time, Elisabeth Swan published Picture Yourself a Leader. Both books' third birthdays felt like a decent …
My Favorite Mistake — 350: Going Gun-Shy as a New Leader: Jesse Jackson on “We Tried That, It Didn’t Work”
Jesse Jackson, contact center leader and host of Set Lusting Bruce, joins Mark Graban to share his favorite mistake: going gun-shy as a new leader when veterans push back with …
Lean Blog — 543: Why Most People Aren’t Really Thinking — Scott Burgmeyer on Cognitive Biases and Leadership
Most people think they’re thinking. Scott Burgmeyer says they’re mostly just reacting. Scott is the founder and CEO of Become More Group and coauthor of Think: The Road Less Traveled. …
Habitual Excellence — Leading Academic Health Centers for Excellence in 2026
In this episode of the Habitual Excellence Podcast, Ken Segel speaks with Ben Schwartz, MD, a physician leader at Banner Health, about what it takes to lead large academic health …