

The Nominations Are In: Lean in TV & Movies
by Joshua RapozaBefore we jump into the who's been nominated list, let's take a moment to consider why are we doing this lean tv/film characters tournament at all.
One question I've often struggled with is whether or not Lean is common sense or counter intuitive. I've always erred on the common sense side, but I do see aspects of lean thinking and practice that at first glance seem counter intuitive. See what the community said when we asked them the same question here.
Before learning about Lean and joining LEI, I focused a lot of my efforts on showing my work as visually as possible, so that my team would know what we had to do and what was already in process. We would also document every step of our work to help train others, find ways to improve our speed, and identify mistakes.
I had no idea about Agile boards, Standard Work, or 5S. And I used to think 5S was just a symptom of someone with OCD. I had accidentally been thinking lean for years before knowing what it was. I'm sure there are thousands out there in the same boat.
That's why I wanted to try this experiment out. Where do we see Lean being practiced unintentionally? TV and film seemed like a good place to start. Everyone has a favorite TV show or movie, but have you looked at one of your favorite shows wearing your lean glasses?
So without further muda, check out the list of nominations for the Who's Lean in TV and Movies. The reasons for their nominations will be shared at the head to heads.
Character | Show/Movie |
Adrian Monk | MONK |
Al Borland | Tool Time |
Barney | Barney |
Batman | Batman, Dark Knight |
Bilbo Baggins | Hobbit |
Billy Bean | Moneyball |
Cathy Jamison | The Big C |
Charlie | Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory (1971) |
Charlie | Kinky Boots |
Chuck Bartowski | Chuck |
Clifton Webb as Frank Gilbreth, Sr | Cheaper by the Dozen (1950) |
Coach Boone | Remember the Titans |
Coach Eric Taylor | Friday Night Lights (TV) |
Colombo | Colombo |
Daniel and Mr Miyagi | The Karate Kid |
Daryl Dixon | The Walking Dead |
Dexter Morgan | Dexter |
Doctor Who | Doctor Who |
Dr Temperance Brennan | Bones |
Gene Kranz | Apollo 13 |
General George Patton | Patton the Movie |
Gromit | Wallace & Gromit |
Gregory House, M.D. | House |
Harold Crick | Stranger than Fiction |
Hercule Poirot | Mystery Theatre/Poirot series |
Honeychild Rider | Dr. No |
Hunt Stevenson | Gung Ho |
Indiana Jones | Indiana Jones Movies |
Jack Reacher | Jack Reacher |
Jack Webb | Dragnet |
Jake Sully | Avatar |
Jason Bourne | Bourne Identity/Ultamatum/Supremecy |
Jean-Luc Picard | Star Trek - Next Generation |
Jiro | Jiro Dreams of Sushi |
Juror #8 (Henry Fonda) | 12 Angry Men |
Kuwabatake Sanjuro | Yojimbo |
Kwai Chang Caine | Kung Fu |
Leroy Jethro Gibbs | NCIS |
Lieutenant Frank Columbo | Columbo |
MacGyver | MacGyver |
Mahatma Gandhi | Gandhi |
Micheal Westen | Burn Notice |
Mickey | Trouble with the Curve |
Mickey Goldmill | Rocky |
Miyagi Kesuke AKA Mr. Miyagi | Karate Kid |
Moe Howard | The Three Stooges |
Nanook | Nanook of the North |
Neo | Matrix |
Olivia Pope | Scandal |
Radar O'Reilly | M*A*S*H |
Raymond Babbitt | Rainman |
Rocky Balboa | Rocky |
Rod Tidwell | Jerry McGuire |
Rudy Reudiger | Rudy |
Sgt. Joe Friday | Dragnet |
Sheldon Cooper | The Big Bang Theory |
Sherlock Holmes | Elementary |
Sherlock Holmes | Sherlock Holmes & A Game of Shadows |
Snoopy | Peanuts |
Spock | Star Trek |
Superman | Superman (1971) |
The Architect | The Matrix |
The Bobs | Office Space |
The Man with No Name | A Fistful of Dollars |
The Punisher, played by Tom Jane | The Punisher (movie 2004) |
The Soup Nazi | Seinfeld |
Thor | Avengers |
Tony Soprano | Sopranos |
Tony Stark | Iron man |
Tyler Durden | Fight Club |
Walter White | Breaking Bad |
Watson | Elementary |
Willy Wonka | Charlie and the Chocolate Factory |
Yoda | Star Wars |
Zombie | The Walking Dead |
We will review this list and narrow it down a bit, perhaps separate the fictional and non-fictional characters. Then we'll build the tournament brackets and you can vote each week to determine each week's winner. This character will then move on to the next phase of the tournament.
I've really enjoyed reading your nominations. The reasoning behind each nomination was very compelling, and several were not on my radar. I hope you find some surprises as well. We are all very eager to let the games begin.
Please, share your thoughts on this experiment (and perhaps your thoughts on a character that didn't make it) in the comments section below.
You are not wrong there was an error. But please don't think lean is perfection, lean is the pursuit of perfection.
Reply »
Master Oogway (from Kunfu Panda) did not make the list?
why?
why?
why?
why?
why?
He so reminded me of some (not all) of the sensei that I have encountered from the Shingijutsu Group over my years doing kaizen
http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs41/f/2009/025/d/8/Oogway_by_Skia.png" alt="" />
Reply »
Reply »
Reply »
Reply »