Cara Gabris, Director of Distribution at the Houston Food Bank, and Monte Mitchell of the Lean Enterprise Institute of North America, discuss a six-month project to improve the food bank’s kitchen operations. The project aimed to increase meal production to 10,000 meals daily while maintaining quality and timeliness. The goal was to get consistent results by ensuring […]
Andrew Paris, a process excellence manager at Médecins du Monde (Médair), discussing how lean methodologies are used to improve efficiency and impact within the NGO. He details challenges faced by humanitarian NGOs, such as funding gaps and restrictive donor requirements, and explains how lean principles, including his “seven habits of process improvement,” address these issues. […]
Written by Brion
Bella Englebach interviews Kerry L. Bass about his work with ASQ to help make elections secure and fair. He discusses the variation in state election laws, the challenges of voter registration, long lines at polling locations, and how the Kano Model can explain voter expectations. You can visit “The Edges of Lean” podcast episode page […]
Written by Brion
Krista Schulte is the Assistant Director of Operational Excellence for the University of Michigan. She discusses her background, and how she is helping implement Lean in higher education. They also discuss an upcoming Lean in Higher Education conference in San Diego. She also describes what it was like having Jeffrey Liker as a professor when he was […]
Written by Brion
Andrew Parris shared “A Vision of Process Excellence and Seven Habits for the Journey” in a Lean Frontiers webinar in August 2023. In the webinar, he explains how he merged the approach of Lean Six Sigma and other improvement methods from the corporate world with the vision, mission and values for a humanitarian organization into […]
Written by Brion
The IISE Annual Conference Volunteering Event, organized by the Sustainable Development Division, connects volunteer with a local nonprofit agency in the conference’s host city. The organization selected for 2023 in New Orleans was SBP, which shrinks the time between disaster and recovery. To achieve their mission, SBP takes a holistic approach to disasters—increasing resilience before […]
Written by Brion
I was interviewed by Sean Genovese on his “Distracted Driving” podcast. He is an Industrial Engineer and Lean leader with many years of experience in Aerospace manufacturing. We discuss my work applying Lean Six Sigma to “real” problems like pollution, healthcare, social issues and more in order to have a positive impact on society. We also […]
Written by Brion
Dr. Randal Pinkett is an entrepreneur, innovator, speaker, author, media personality and DEI expert who is leading the way in business, technology and equity for all. He is the co-founder, chairman and CEO of BCT Partners, a global, multimillion-dollar research, training, consulting, technology, and data analytics firm whose mission is to provide insights about diverse […]
Written by Brion
The article is an excerpt from a new book on Lean Government (written in Dutch). It discusses a transformation taking place in the City of Breda. A new law was implemented to make it easier for residents and entrepreneurs to apply for permits by combining 24 regulations into one integrated environmental permit process. They describe […]
Written by Brion
Dr. Eric Cunningham is the dynamic Superintendent for Halifax County Schools in North Carolina. He’s got some inspiring insights on how to build problem solvers in education, and how he drives the use of process maps, fishbone diagrams and 5 Whys. He also discusses how to meet people where they are with process improvement. You […]
Written by Brion