Tag Archives: Process Improvement

The First Two Steps in Process Improvement

Most process improvement initiatives fail miserably.  First, they do not improve the processes they were supposed to improve.  Second, they waste managerial and employee time, effort and attention.  Or, third, the process may be improved; but this improvement does not … Continue reading

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2 Second Lean: How to Make Your People and Your Business Better Every Day

I summarize some of the key concepts from the excellent book: 2 Second Lean: How to Grow People and Build a Fun Lean Culture. Written by Paul Akers, 2 Second Lean is a quick and easy ready that will help … Continue reading

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5 Steps to Improving Customer Service

Excellent customer service is a fundamental for success in our businesses. Unfortunately, it is all too often lacking. So, how can we improve customer service in our companies? Hire and Develop Employees that Actually Like People: Customer service starts and … Continue reading

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We Must Impose Limits… On Ourselves

As business leaders, we are constantly being bombarded with distractions, new opportunities, and issues. Everything and everyone screams at us to do more. Yet, to achieve our goals, we must prioritize. By imposing limits on ourselves, we can better focus … Continue reading

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How Not to Waste Time In Meetings

In his book, Meetings Matter: 8 Powerful Strategies for Remarkable Conversations, Paul Axtell gives a strong argument in favor of meetings. Meetings are at the heart of an effective organization, and each meeting is an opportunity to clarify issues, set … Continue reading

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Calm the Rhetoric…Make Molehills

Today, exaggeration and hyperbole are ever-present. Listen to any sports event… tune into any news program…Speak with many of your friends and/or employees… What do you hear? Amazing… incredible… unbelievable The meeting was a disaster…this is crazy… what a collapse … Continue reading

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Simple: Conquering the Crisis of Complexity

Simple: Conquering the Crisis of Complexity, written by Alan Siegel and Irene Etzkorn, is an excellent reminder to all of us to rail against complexity and keep things simple. Even though I summarize some of the key points below, I … Continue reading

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Business Success by the Numbers

What numbers lead to business success? 0 – As in 0 /0 (zero injuries and zero accidents). In any company, the safety of employees and customers each and every day should be of highest concern.   1 – As in … Continue reading

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Building Accountability

A dirty little secret in business is that most organizations lack accountability at all levels from the leader to front-line management to individual employees: Assignments are not completed as promised Problems are left half resolved Phone calls are not returned … Continue reading

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Master These Three Processes First in Order to Thrive in 2013

Every year, countless companies undertake process improvements and change initiatives.  Most fail. Generally, they fail for one of three reasons:

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Manufacturing Made Simple

In their book, All I Need to Know About Manufacturing I Learned in Joe’s Garage: World Class Manufacturing Made Simple, William B. Miller and Vicki L. Schenk lay out the basic principles of low cost, high quality, on-time manufacturing. The … Continue reading

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Fast Track to Waste-Free Manufacturing – Appropriate for Any Process

In his still-insightful 1999 book, Fast Track to Waste-Free Manufacturing: Straight Talk from a Plant Manager, John W. Davis discusses how to improve a manufacturing operation by a simple and relentless focus on waste. The methodology he describes is really … Continue reading

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The Agenda (Michael Hammer): Useful for This Decade as Well

Way back in 2001, Michael Hammer authored The Agenda: What Every Business Must Do to Dominate the Decade. Slightly more than a decade later, the thoughts and insights in this book remain relevant and worth summarizing.  The key assumption in … Continue reading

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