Washington Governor Jay Inslee provided the opening remarks for the 13th annual Washington State Government Lean Transformation Conference. He discussed the value of continuous improvement and Lean during his administration, and how it helped to work more efficiently and effectively to serve fellow Washingtonians. Examples included: The keynote speaker was Marcus Glasper, director of the […]
This podcast interview features Andrew Rowe, a former entrepreneur with AllMed who has transitioned into a community advocate in Portland, Oregon. He discusses the challenges facing Multnomah County and the city of Portland. Drawing on his extensive business background, he discusses how Portland faces a critical juncture where systemic change is necessary to address its complex […]
Written by Brion
One group of people that can greatly benefit from Lean Six Sigma training is military veterans who struggle in their transition to civilian life even though they have valuable skills. Employers and former service members aren’t “connecting the dots” on how the military mindset of continuous improvement translates to the Lean Six Sigma concepts that […]
Written by Brion
Ron Pereira from Gemba Academy interviews a new hire to his organization, Alen Ganic, former Lean improvement specialist with the City of Grand Rapids, Michigan. They discuss his previous experience working 14 years in Grand Rapids in various departments implementing process improvement. He talks about focusing Lean efforts from the customer’s perspective, the importance of […]
Written by Brion
Pennie Saum is a Process Improvement Program Manager at the Port of Seattle with over 20 years of experience in lean and is a certified Six Sigma Black Belt. She focuses on combining process improvement and people development to meet people where they are at. This helps them pull process improvement instead of pushing it […]
Written by Brion
The Six Sigma Racial Equity Institute was founded by Joy E. Mason in spring 2021 as an offshoot of her Optimist Business Solutions company in response to the murder of George Floyd by the Minneapolis Police Department. Since then, the institute has grown into a space for Black women and Black Latinas to increase their […]
Written by Brion
A board retreat is a great way to get alignment of the key leadership positions within a nonprofit organization. Typically, nonprofits hold board meetings monthly or quarterly, while a board retreat is typically conducted once (maybe twice) a year. These retreats allow an organization to step away from the day-to-day management, and instead think more […]
Written by Brion
Sally worked many years in the hospitality industry applying Lean Six Sigma, and she shares her experiences to improve the guest experience. She also shares an example of a project that determined the optimal reward points to get customers to agree to reduced or no housekeeping, which was good for the environment, resulting in less […]
Written by Brion
Lynne Smith, former Director of Business Design at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, discusses the potential and difficulties of applying Lean Thinking to NGOs, and how it can be used to scale impact. She reflects back on the lean transformation at the Gates Foundation with an interview with Steve Bell and Roberto Priolo, and […]
Written by Brion
The panel discussion, hosted by Rod Morgan of RPM-Academy, offers insights and real-world experiences as three seasoned municipal continuous improvement leaders – Brenda Stonehouse (City of Kawartha Lakes), Michael Norman (City of London), and Kenneth Leung (City of Mississauga)– share their journey in deploying Lean methodologies in the Canadian municipal sector. From discussing the evolution […]
Written by Brion