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In The News

• What Is Lean Thinking?
  Lean Thinking is the title of a landmark book by James Womack and Daniel Jones that explains the set of ideas known as lean thinking or lean production. The book explains the thought process underpinning a complete lean system, gives examples of successful lean transformations, and provides an Action Plan for implementation.
• Capsule Definitions of Key Lean Concepts
  Succinct summaries of some critical lean concepts.
• Example of a current-state map
  A current-state map shows the path of a product or service from order to delivery to determine the current conditions. (Source: Learning to See, Lean Enterprise Institute, 1999.)
• Example of a future-state map
  A future-state map deploys the opportunities for improvement identified in the current-state map to achieve a higher level of performance.(Source: Learning to See, Lean Enterprise Institute, 1999.)
• Lean Consumption
  
  "Lean Consumption," the lead article in the March issue of the Harvard Business Review, is “a landmark synthesis of ideas whose implications haven’t been fully understood and a breakthrough to new territory,” according to Editor Tom Stewart. In this letter to the Lean Community, co-author Jim Womack, president and founder of the Lean Enterprise Institute, outlines the concepts in the article, which previews the book on the same subject that will be printed in the fall of 2005. Get a copy of the HBR Lean Consumption article.
• LEI Fact Sheet
  

  A list of what the Lean Enterprise Institute accomplished from its founding by James Womack in 1997 to the time he stepped down as CEO in 2010.

• What Is the Lean Enterprise Institute?
  

  A summary of lean managment and the Lean Enterprise Institute's background and mission

• Ohio Grabs Acura From Japan as Yen Fuels Exodus to U.S.: Cars
  

  Bloomberg BusinessWeek quotes John Shook, Lean Enterprise Institute CEO and author, on  Honda Motor Co.’s choice to build what it described as a racing-oriented “supercar” in Ohio.

• Lean leads the way to Manufacturing Hall of Fame
  

  Lean Directions Newsletter notes that "perhaps best known of the three lean inductees" to IndustryWeek's Manufacturing Hall of Fame is John Shook, chairman and CEO of the Lean Enterprise Institute.

• Honda Civic Seen Loser On Mediocre Design
  

  LEI CEO John Shook talks to Bloomberg abouot the influence of Honda founder Soichiro Honda.

• Going regional to “stop the madness”
  

  "I came across an interesting “e-letter” this weekend penned by John Shook, chairman and CEO of the business-focused think-tank Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI)," wrote Sean Kilcarr in his Trucks at Work Blog.
  

  
   

• Outsourced manufacturing coming back? Conference focuses on ‘Made Lean in America’ as way to lure jobs back
  

  LEI CEO John Shook tells the Hartford Business Journal that companies are learning to strengthen supply chains by partnering with local suppliers.

• Conference on how to keep jobs in U.S.
  

  In an interview with WWLP-TV (Springfield, MA) LEI CEO John Shook notes that the roots of modern lean thinking are traceable to advancements in machining done more than a century ago in Springfield, the site of a conference on how lean protects U.S. jobs. The event, which Shook keynoted, was sponsored by the Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership.

• John Shook on "The big lie about outsourcing"
  

  Paul Levy, a former CEO of a large Boston hospital, posted a summary of John Shook's conferaence keynote on "Outsourcing: thae Big Lie."

• Conference on how to keep jobs in U.S.
  

  In an interview with WWLP-TV (Springfield, MA) LEI CEO John Shook notes that the roots of modern lean thinking are traceable to advancements in machining done more than a century ago in Springfield, the site of a conference on how lean protects U.S. jobs. The event, which Shook keynoted, was sponsored by the Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership.

• Fisher College of Business Interview: Lean Enterprise Institute CEO John Shook
  

  LEI CEO and former Toyota Manager John Shook talks to Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University, about the application of lean concepts beyond manufacturing, common mistakes companies make in implementing lean management, and recent trends in continuous improvement applications. While at Toyota, Shook helped the automaker transfer its management system to the NUMMI joint venture with GM in Fremont, CA.

• AME names five to Hall of Fame
  

  Lean Enterprise Institute Founder James Womack was inducted into the Association for Manufacturing Excellence's Hall of Fame during a ceremony at its annual 2011 conference.

• Gemba Walks: Learn lessons from the author who lived the experiences
  

  AME's Target magazine reviews Gemba Walks by Lean Enterprise Institute Founder Jim Womack, calling it "a great reference to help you reflect on perennial issues that lean leaders face every day." (Scroll down the page to the review.)

• Interview: Lean Enterprise Institute CEO John Shook
  

  In an article in the newsletter of Fisher College of Business, The Ohio State University, LEI CEO and former Toyota Manager John Shook talks about the application of lean concepts beyond manufacturing, common mistakes companies make in implementing lean management, and recent trends in continuous improvement applications. While at Toyota, Shook helped the automaker transfer its management system to the NUMMI joint venture with GM in Fremont, CA.

• National Magazine Inducts 10 Manufacturing Leaders Into the IW Manufacturing Hall of Fame
  

  Lean Enterprise Institute CEO John Shoook is named to the 2011 IndustryWeek Manufacturing Hall of Fame.