Article

Hoshin at LEI: Connecting More Closely with Our Customer

Whether you’re deploying hoshin in a small nonprofit or a huge organization, the struggles are the same," writes LEI Senior Coach Mark Reich. "How do…

by Mark Reich

Article

Hoshin vs. Chaos

In the latest edition of The Management Brief, Jim Womack reflects on the Toyota hoshin process he observed in 2018 and how it has led them…

by Lean Enterprise Institute and James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

How the A3 Process Developed to Help Build Better Managers, Part Two

In this second of two articles, Isao Yoshino and John Shook explore how A3 emerged as powerful practice at Toyota for developing better managers.

by John Shook

Book

Getting the Right Things Done

For companies to be competitive, leaders must engage people at all levels in order to focus their energy and enable them to apply lean principles…

by Pascal Dennis

Article

Our hoshin plan failed. What do we do now?

Dear Gemba Coach: How do we deal with hoshin kanri when things don’t work out as planned?

by Michael Ballé

Article

Managing on Purpose Excerpt

Get a first look at Managing on Purpose, Mark Reich’s upcoming workbook on hoshin kanri. Learn how to develop strategy, align teams, and grow leaders.

Article

Just-in-Time Roundup: Great Lean Reads from Across the Web (Vol. 3)

LEI editors have gathered another five articles that either teach us something new about lean practice or show us where lean thinking is being applied…

by Lean Leaper

Article

LEI Survey Reveals Management Structures and Outcomes

Explore key insights from our recent survey, including how organizations are applying lean practices, the prevalence of management systems, and the impact on strategic execution.…

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Video

How the A3 Came to Be Toyota’s Go-To Management Process for Knowledge Work (intro by John Shook)

A3 thinking is synonymous with Toyota. Yet many often wonder how exactly this happened. Even if we know A3 thinking was created at Toyota, how…

by Isao Yoshino

Article

What I've Learned About Planning and Execution

By the time I founded the Lean Enterprise Institute in mid-1997, I had been thinking for years about how organizations prioritize and plan. And I…

by James (Jim) Womack, PhD

Article

Once More: What is Strategy Deployment, and Why Should You Care?

Strategy deployment helps keep lean practitioners focused on the prize—creating value for the customer, says Pascal Dennis in the foreword to his Getting the Right…

by Pascal Dennis

Podcast

Problem-Solving Primer 

In this edition of The Management Brief, LEI’s Josh Howell, Mark Reich, and Art Smalley explore how the four types of problem-solving connect to daily…

by Josh Howell, Mark Reich and Art Smalley

Article

It Starts Within: The Lean Journey of CI&T

The lean transformation of Brazilian tech company CI&T was unique in that it began with an implementation of hoshin kanri. In this interview from the…

by Cesar Gon and Bruno Guicardi

Article

Lean Transformation: A Long and Winding Road

In the latest edition of The Management Brief, discover how turning points shaped a years-long lean transformation at Turner Construction. Learn practical strategies to navigate the…

by Josh Howell

Article

Isao Yoshino Reflects on 40 Years at Toyota

In this edition of The Management Brief, Mark Reich sits down with Isao Yoshino, a 40-year veteran of Toyota and a driving force behind the…

by Mark Reich and Isao Yoshino

Article

Make Broccoli (Or Lean) Taste Better Through Experiments

"Whether it’s eating healthy, saving for retirement, or pursuing Lean, we are all biased towards maximizing the here and now as opposed to working towards…

by Brent Wahba

Page

Executive Leadership

Discover a leadership approach that will help you tap into and focus the talents of every individual in your organization toward achieving a strategic vision.…

Article

Santa’s Hoshin Objectives: Driving Strategic Alignment at the North Pole

Read Santa's hoshin objectives to improve how North Pole, Inc delivers happiness to children around the globe.

by Lean Enterprise Institute

Faculty

Mark Reich

Mark Reich spent 23 years working for Toyota, starting in 1988 with six years in Japan in the Overseas Planning Division, where he was responsible…

Article

Managing to Connect the Macro with the Micro

LEI Chairman and CEO John Shook explains management PDCA: improving the way we align people with process to achieve purpose, connecting macro level business objectives…

by John Shook