Thought Leaders
Our Lean Leaders
The latest information and insights from the Lean Community’s foremost coaches and practitioners.

Michael Ballé
Michael Ballé is co-author of The Gold Mine, a best-selling business novel of lean turnaround, and recently The Lean Manager, a novel of lean transformation, both published by the Lean Enterprise Institute. For the past 25 years, he has studied lean transformation and helped companies develop a lean culture. He is an engaging and colorful public […]

Josh Howell
President and Executive Team Leader
Lean Enterprise Institute
Joshua Howell is president and executive team leader at the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI). For over a decade, he has supported individuals and organizations with lean transformations for improved business performance. As a coach, he helps people become lean thinkers and practitioners through experiential learning, believing such an approach can lead to enterprise-wide improvement. Regular e-letters […]

Karen Gaudet
Senior Coach, Lean Enterprise Institute
Karen has over 30 years of experience leading, training, and developing the capability of team members and executives in rapid-growth environments. Most recently, she’s coached clients in various industries as they adopt lean thinking and practices. They include Microsoft (data center construction), Legal Seafood (hospitality); TriMark (distribution); Abiomed (medical research and device manufacturing), and the […]

Dan Jones
Founder and Chairman of the Lean Enterprise Academy in the U.K., Daniel T. Jones is a senior advisor to the Lean Enterprise Institute, management thought leader, and mentor on applying lean process thinking to every type of business. He is the author with James P. Womack of the influential and popular management books that describe […]

Alice Lee
Senior Lean Coach
Continuous improvement leader and coach. Her responsibilities include: Lee served as vice president and special assistant to the president for business transformation at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, a major teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School, from 2004 to 2014. During that time, she approached problems holistically, collaborating with senior leaders, doctors, nurses, and staff, to design care […]

Jim Morgan, PhD
Senior Advisor
Product and Process Development
Lean Enterprise Institute
President, EMC Network
Jim is recognized globally for his expertise in product and process development. His know-how comes from a unique combination of industry experience as a senior executive and rigorous scholarship. His most recent industry role was as the chief operating officer during a critical transition period for Rivian, an electric vehicle manufacturer. Before that, he was […]

Mark Reich
Senior Coach and Chief Engineer, Strategy
Lean Enterprise Institute
During his extensive career, Mark has led lean transformations and coached executives in various companies and business sectors. Clients include GE Appliances and Ingersoll Rand (manufacturers); Michigan Medicine and Mt. Sinai (healthcare systems); Turner Construction; Kroger (retail); Legal Seafood (hospitality); and Microsoft (software). As LEI’s chief engineer, strategy, Mark leads the development of new learning […]

John Shook
Senior Advisor, Lean Enterprise Institute
Chairman, Lean Global Network
John Shook learned about lean management while working for Toyota for 11 years in Japan and the U.S., helping it transfer production, engineering, and management systems from Japan to NUMMI and other operations around the world. While at Toyota’s headquarters, he became the company’s first American kacho (manager) in Japan. In the U.S., Shook joined […]

James (Jim) Womack, PhD
Founder and Senior Advisor
Lean Enterprise Institute
Widely considered the father of the lean movement, Womack has been talking and publishing about creating value through continuous innovation around deep customer understanding for many years. In the late eighties, he and Dan Jones led MIT’s International Motor Vehicle Research Program (IMVP), which introduced the term “lean” to describe Toyota’s revolutionary management system. Based […]