Lean Blog Audio

the blog postIn 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: Practical Applications for Lean Management.If you’ve ever felt stuck in the exhausting cycle of reacting to every up and down in your performance metrics—or frustrated by red/green scorecards that drive pressure and finger-pointing more than improvement—this session is for you.Mark explains why Process Behavior Charts provide a more thoughtful, statistically sound alternative to arbitrary targets and binary dashboards. He also shares how the famous Deming Red Bead Game makes visible the ways that systems set people up to fail—and how leaders can do better.What you’ll learn in this episode:How to distinguish between signal and noise in performance dataWhy Process Behavior Charts help leaders react less and improve moreThe pitfalls of red/green scorecards and arbitrary targetsHow to connect better data interpretation to Lean management and strategy deploymentWhether you’re a leader, manager, or improvement professional in any industry, you’ll come away with practical takeaways to reduce firefighting and improve decision-making.

the blog postWhat 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 for people and continuous improvement. Without both, attempts to copy Lean practices in healthcare fail.In this episode, Mark Graban—author of Lean Hospitals, Healthcare Kaizen, and The Mistakes That Make Us—explores how the Toyota Way philosophy applies to hospitals and health systems. He shares lessons from Toyota, Franciscan Health in Indianapolis, and other organizations proving that Lean leadership in healthcare is not about cost-cutting—it’s about creating a culture of improvement.What You’ll Learn About Lean Healthcare:Why Lean is a system, not a toolbox of methodsHow respect for people means designing systems that prevent mistakes, not blaming staffHow Kaizen in healthcare develops people while improving quality and safetyWhy suggestion boxes fail and daily improvement succeedsThe four goals of Kaizen: Easier, Better, Faster, Cheaper (in that order)How Lean leadership means coaching, not controllingWhy psychological safety and trust are essential for sustainable improvementKey Quotes from Mark:“Improvement happens at the speed of trust.”“The primary goal of Kaizen is to develop people first and meet goals second.”“A Lean environment doesn’t cut costs through layoffs. It invests in people and meaningful work.”If you’re a healthcare leader trying to reduce errors, engage staff, and build a lasting culture of improvement, this episode provides practical insights you can apply today.

The blog postAccurate 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, and the system loses its ability to learn.When the truth becomes dangerous to report, people stop sharing it. That's when improvement stops too.Just recently, a senior government statistician in the U.S. was abruptly dismissed following the release of a disappointing jobs report. The data was valid. The revisions were routine. But the report didn't support the preferred narrative. So the messenger was blamed.

The blog postIt'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 reached tens of thousands of healthcare professionals around the world.When I wrote that first edition, Lean in healthcare was still new territory. Many leaders were still asking, “Will Lean work in healthcare?” Today, the better question is “How can we make it work–and sustain it?”To mark the occasion, I've been reflecting on some of the key ideas from the book–concepts that continue to resonate with readers, leaders, and improvement professionals.

Read the blog postWhen 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 meaning stopped me in my tracks:an irrational, intense fear of failure or defeat.It turns out, this fear is more common–and more consequential–than we might admit, especially in workplaces that say they support continuous improvement but don't act in ways that support it.

Episode page with links and moreDuring my most recent visit to Japan (as part of a tour hosted by Katie Anderson), we spent time in several remarkable organizations where the focus wasn't just on performance or process… but on people.One company in particular introduced me to a word I hadn't encountered in this context before: kaiteki.Roughly translated, kaiteki means “comfort,” “ease,” or a “pleasant working environment.” But what stood out was how deeply embedded this idea was in the company's culture–and how it shaped their entire approach to leadership and improvement.

Episode page with survey results and moreWhen someone on your team makes a mistake, what happens next?Do they speak up–or stay quiet?Do leaders give feedback that demonstrates curiosity–or do they blame employees?After interviewing over 200 leaders and contributors for my podcast “My Favorite Mistake” and book, The Mistakes That Make Us, one truth has become clear:Speaking up isn't about character–it's about culture.-----And if you're looking for a practical way to bring this conversation into your workplace, I created a free resource:Download The Mistake-Smart Leader's Checklist

The blog postI'm honored to share that my workshop, "The Deming Red Bead Game & Process Behavior Charts: Practical Applications for Lean Management," has been accepted for the 41st Annual International AME Conference, taking place this October in St. Louis.The conference theme--Gateway to the Future: AI and Beyond--is both timely and forward-looking, and I'm grateful to contribute a workshop that brings us back to foundational thinking: systems, variation, and learning.While AI is the shiny new thing, timeless management principles still matter--perhaps now more than ever.

Read the blog postWe all say mistakes are a part of learning. Or at least many of us do, as individuals.But how many organizations actually act that way?Too often, people are punished for systemic errors. So, problems get hidden.When problems are discovered, blame is assigned instead of learning being shared. And we wonder why our teams hesitate to speak up.That's why I created a simple new resource:The Mistake-Smart Leader's Checklist[Download it here]

The blog postThanks to NPR for their recent story about how today, April 23, 2025, marks the 40th anniversary of what is considered one of the biggest business or product marketing failures of my lifetime — the failed introduction of “New Coke.”