NUMI as 'New Me'—People-Centered Cultural Transformation

“Change the culture!”

That’s exactly what longtime Toyota leader Isao Yoshino was tasked with during one of the most famous business transformations in history—NUMMI—Toyota’s joint venture with General Motors in the 1980s.

The challenge? 

Take GM’s worst-performing plant—plagued by absenteeism, low morale, and poor quality—and turn it around.

Within just one year, with the same American workforce but under Toyota’s leadership, NUMMI became GM’s best-performing site.

Behind the scenes was Mr. Yoshino, leading the design and delivery of a three-week training program in Japan for hundreds of NUMMI’s frontline and middle managers.

In this episode, Mr. Yoshino shares the inside story of NUMMI’s transformation—how an experiment in a business turnaround became a “New Me” moment for its leaders—and the leadership lessons you can use to influence culture change without relying on authority.

If you’re a lean practitioner or change leader wondering how to truly “change a culture,” this is a rare chance to hear the story directly from the person who lived it.

You’ll Learn:

• Why you can’t force culture change—and what to do instead
• How Mr. Yoshino and his team created  immersive learning experiences that shifted NUMMI leaders’ mindsets in just three weeks
• Why the “Check” step in PDCA is the secret to Toyota’s sustained success 
• How the andon process reshaped leaders’ views on problems—and how a “no problem is a problem” and no-blame mindset fosters learning and continuous improvement
• Why NUMMI’s transformation was as much (or more) about people as it was about performance

ABOUT MY GUEST:

Isao Yoshino, worked at Toyota Motor Corporation for over 40 years—from the late 1960s to the early 2000s—and played an important role in the development of Toyota’s people-centered learning culture it’s now famous for. He was a key part of Kan-Pro senior leadership development program, which embedded A3 thinking as the process for problem-solving, communication, and leadership development across the organization—and has deep expertise in the practice of hoshin-kanri—Toyota’s strategy deployment process. He’s the subject of the Shingo award-winning book “Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn: Lessons from Toyota Leader Isao Yoshino on a Lifetime of Continuous Learning”

IMPORTANT LINKS:

• Full episode show notes with links to other podcast episodes and resources: ChainOfLearning.com/50
• Check out my website for resources and ways to work with me KBJAnderson.com
• Follow me on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/kbjanderson
• Download my free KATALYST™ Change Leader Self-Assessment: KBJAnderson.com/katalyst 
• Learn more about the Japan Leadership Experience: kbjanderson.com/japantrip 
• For an even deeper behind-the-scenes look at NUMMI, read the dedicated chapter in my book: LearningToLeadLeadingToLearn.com 

TIMESTAMPS FOR THIS EPISODE:

03:02 How Isao Yoshino felt to be tasked with changing the culture and attitude of NUMMI leaders

04:27 Creating the space for leaders to experience working in Japan and Toyota’s style

09:21 Positive results from employees changing their attitude mindset themselves without being forced

12:06 The importance of “check” in the PDCA process 

14:38 Making the “check” process a positive experience in learning how to improve systems without blame
18:10 The critical difference between the former GM culture and Toyota with their approach to problems
19:12 The mindset shift of “no problem is a problem” and the impact of pulling the andon cord

20:19 The positive results from lettings others learn and grow without force
23:09 Reflections from Isao Yoshino about being part of the Japan Leadership Experience and continuing to learn something new
24:38 The acronym for NUMMI and the deeper meaning of, “New Me” to become the best version of yourself

Apply for the May 2026 Japan Leadership Experience
https://kbjanderson.com/japantrip/