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The Lean Post / Articles / Lean Talks: Are You Making Excuses or Solving Problems?

Lean Talks: Are You Making Excuses or Solving Problems?

Problem Solving

Lean Talks: Are You Making Excuses or Solving Problems?

By Mark Graban

August 15, 2014

In his "lean talk" at the Lean Transformation Summit this past March, lean coach and author Mark Graban shared his perspective on what a culture of continuous improvement really means and requires of us as hopeful change agents. The video concludes with a Q&A with Jim Womack.

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Did Toyota make excuses in the 1950s when they started competing in the global automotive industry? Did they hold themselves back by making excuses about being hampered by relatively a small Japanese market? Did they make excuses about people viewing Japanese products as low quality? No! Instead of making excuses, Toyota got creative. As they developed the Toyota Production System, their Single Minute Exchange of Dies (SMED) methodology helped them produce smaller quantities more affordably. They couldn’t beat GM and Ford at their own game; Toyota found new ways to compete and eventually reached the pinnacle of the industry.

Looking at your own organization today, do you hold yourself back by making excuses or do you get creative and find new ways of doing things? Many organizations aspire to a culture of continuous improvement… at least for a while, until it gets difficult. Leaders say things like, “We don’t have time for improvement.” Is that an excuse that leads you to give up or is that a problem that you can solve with a bit of moxie and creativity?

This was the focus of my lean talk at this year’s Lean Transformation Summit. Watch the video below and I’d love to hear your thoughts.

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Written by:

Mark Graban

About Mark Graban

The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen.” He serves as a consultant to healthcare organizations through his company, Constancy, Inc. and is also the Chief Improvement Officer of the technology company KaiNexus. Mark is the lead blogger and podcaster at his site, LeanBlog.org, started in 2005.

Mark has a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University and an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering and an M.B.A. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Leaders for Global Operations Program.

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