Lean Blog Audio — Your Current Estimated Alarm Response Time Is… 13 Hours?
The blog post When Mark applied for a burglar alarm permit, he accidentally sent the form to the wrong Newport — Rhode Island instead of Kentucky. The voicemail he got …
Lean Blog Audio — Avoiding the Dunning-Kruger Trap in Lean: Lessons from Early Mistakes
The blog post In this episode, Mark explores how the Dunning-Kruger effect shows up in Lean—especially after a first belt course, workshop, or book. Early enthusiasm can turn into overconfidence, …
Lean Blog Audio — How a Vineyard “Improvement” Nearly Destroyed European Wine — and What We Can Learn from It
The blog post Sometimes an “improvement” makes things worse. The Germans even have a word for it: verschlimmbesserung. In this episode, Mark Graban shares the story of how a well-intentioned …
Lean Blog Audio — Kaizen Alone Isn’t Enough: Why Leaders Must Fix the System for Real Improvement
The blog post Too often, leaders think that if they simply “get everyone doing Kaizen,” performance will automatically improve. While daily improvement is essential, some problems are too deeply rooted …
Lean Blog Audio — Einstein’s Favorite Mistake — and What It Teaches Us About Lean Thinking
The blog post Albert Einstein once called the “cosmological constant” the biggest blunder of his life. But what if that so-called mistake actually holds timeless lessons for leaders today? In …
Lean Blog Audio — Join Me at AME St. Louis 2025 for an Interactive Workshop on Better Metrics and Better Management
the blog post In this episode, Mark Graban previews his upcoming half-day workshop at the AME St. Louis 2025 International Conference: The Deming Red Bead Game and Process Behavior Charts: …
Lean Blog Audio — Beyond Tools: Why Lean Healthcare Depends on Respect and Continuous Improvement
the blog post What does Lean healthcare really mean? It’s more than tools like 5S, A3s, or huddle boards. Lean is a management system that depends on two pillars: respect …
Lean Blog Audio — Three Ways Pressure Warps Performance Metrics–and What Leaders Must Do Instead
The blog post Accurate data is essential in any system–for diagnosing problems, guiding decisions, and driving improvement. But when leaders react poorly to uncomfortable data, the message often gets buried, …
Lean Blog Audio — Almost 17 Years Later: Reflections on Lean Hospitals and the Journey of Improvement
The blog post It's hard to believe, but it's been almost 17 years since the first edition of Lean Hospitals was published–an effort that eventually received the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award and has since …
Lean Blog Audio — Kakorrhaphiophobia: How Fear of Failure Sabotages Continuous Improvement and Innovation
Read the blog post When I first came across the word kakorrhaphiophobia, I thought it might be one of those obscure terms you learn once and never use again. But the …