The book provides a holistic and practical approach to lean management throughout the business value chain. The lean management framework and tools demonstrate the optimal design and use of methods, tools and principles for companies and organisations. The author describes comprehensively how lean management enables companies to concentrate on value-adding activities and processes to achieve a long-term, sustainable competitive advantage. A wealth of best practices, industry examples and case studies are used to reveal the diversity and opportunities of lean management methodologies, methods and principles. Moreover, the book shows how lean management principles are ultimately applied in industries like automotive, healthcare, education and services industries.

To compete successfully in today’s economy, organizations need to be as good as or better than their global competitors. This goes not only for quality, but also for costs and cycle times (lead time, processing time, delivery time, set-up time, response time, etc.). Lean addresses these needs in its emphasis on teamwork, continuous training and learning, produce to demand (“pull”), mass customization and batch size reduction, cellular flow, quick changeover, and total productive maintenance. Originally applied in manufacturing settings, lean has now migrated to non-shop floor activities: in business support functions, such as sales, customer service, accounting, human resources, engineering, purchasing; within manufacturing firms; and also in purely service areas like finance, government, and healthcare. The intended audience for this book is any quality or operational professional who wants to start their lean journey or enhance their career opportunities. After introducing the concepts of lean and kaizen, various building blocks of a lean enterprise are described. After reading this book, any reader will have a foundation of what is understood today as "lean." All the examples of kaizens presented in the book are from the authors' experience associated with real lean transformations. In addition, the forms, figures, and checklists included as part of this book and also on the accompanying CD-ROM can be customized and used in the readers’ own lean journey when they perform kaizens. COMMENTS FROM OTHER CUSTOMERS Average Customer Rating: (4 of 5 based on 1 review) "This book gives a great introduction to kaizen, along with a sensible "how to" and several case studies across various industries, including for non-manufacturing applications. It also gives a good introduction to Lean in general, and it places enough emphasis on the "human side" of implementing Lean so that the reader walks away with an understanding that the Lean tools may be fairly simple but the implementation of them requires special attention to human nature and the associated challenges. It is easy to read and comprehend. Plenty of pictures and samples are provided. This could easily be used as a training tool for employees who will be serving on kaizen teams." A reader in Bradenton, Florida

In this book, author Sadao Nomura taps into his decades of experience leading and advising Toyota operations in a wide variety of operations to tell the story of radical improvement at Toyota Logistics & Forklift (TL&F). This book tells in great detail what the author did with TL&F, how they did it, and the dramatic results that ensued. TL&F has long been a global leader in its industry. TL&F is part of Toyota Industries Corporation, which was founded by Toyota Group founder Sakichi Toyoda almost 100 years ago. Sakichi Toyoda is legendary in the Lean community as the originator of the all-important "JIDOKA" pillar of TPS, which ensures 1) built-in quality and 2) respect for people through ensuring that technology works for people rather than the other way around. Although TL&F seemed to be performing well, insiders knew that, as the founding company of the Toyota group, it needed to do better, especially in the quality performance of its global subsidiary operations. But improvement would not be easy in a company that already prided itself in its history as an exemplar in providing highest quality products and services. In 2006, TL&F requested assistance from Sadao Nomura. The initial request was for Mr. Nomura to support quality improvement in three global operations that had become part of TL&F through acquisition: US, Sweden, and France. Improvement was expected at these affiliates, but the dramatic nature of the improvement was not. Further, the improvement activities were so powerful that they were also instituted at the parent operations in Japan. Over a period of almost ten years, the company with the name most associated with product quality experienced quality improvement unparalleled in its history. "Dantotsu" means "extreme," "radical," or "unparalleled."

Part of the Lean Tools for Healthcare series, this user-friendly book will help to improve your understanding of kaizen. It describes exactly what a kaizen event is and details all the phases necessary for implementing continuous improvement practices in your healthcare organization.Kaizen Workshops for Lean Healthcare walks you through the steps o

Written by a recognized leader in the manufacturing industry with nearly two decades of experience working for Toyota, this book supplies a firsthand account of the realities behind implementing the Toyota Production System (TPS). The Toyota Kaizen Continuum: A Practical Guide to Implementing Lean presents authoritative insight on how to use the TPS to drive operational value and improvement across all segments of an organization.Highlighting valuable lessons learned directly from the TPS masters at the Toyota factories in Japan, John Stewart provides a time-tested approach for implementing a process of continuous improvement. Delving into his wide-ranging experience that includes time as a team member on the assembly line and managing the vehicle assembly division for Toyota`s largest European operation in the United Kingdom he explains how to get the process started, how to get senior management excited about the possibilities, and details a process for implementing the TPS in your organization. Written by an industry veteran named one of the Top 10 Automotive Executives by Automotive News in 2007 Unveils the methods used within the walls of the worlds premier manufacturing organization Illustrates valuable lessons learned with real-world examples of TPS implementations Describes five simple steps for executing change in any organization The book includes case studies that illustrate real-life successes and failures behind the walls of the worlds largest automobile manufacturing organization. Detailing a five-step process for executing improvement initiatives, it supplies you with the tools and understanding of the core principles of the TPS needed to implement and sustain a culture of continuous improvement in your organization.