byCraigLarmanandBasVoddeVersion1.6
Pleasesenduscommentsforfutureversions,atwww.leanprimer.com.Note:Checkwebsitefor
latestversion;sharetheURL(ratherthanfile)tokeepuptodate.
CraigLarmanandBasVoddearetheauthorsofScalingLean&AgileDevelopment.
Theyworkasmanagementcoachesinorganizationsadoptingleanthinking.
Forconsultingormoreinformation,pleaseseecraiglarman.comandodde.com.
Note:LeanthinkingandtheToyotaWayarelargesubjects,spanningapplicationto
productdevelopment,service,sales,HR,andproduction,andspanningmanyfunctions:
management,design,delivery,andmore.Weencouragedeeperstudy;seeRecommended
Readingsattheend.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction2LeanThinking:TheBigPicture3Background7Lean
Summary:TheLeanThinkingHouse8LeanGoal:SustainablyDeliverValueFast
9LeanFoundation:LeanThinkingManagerTeachers10PillarOne:Respectfor
People12PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement1414Principles25LeanProduct
Development34
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LeanPrimer
INTRODUCTION
Ihaveenoughmoneytolastmetherestofmylife,unlessIbuysomething.
JackieMason
Leanthinkingisaprovensystemthatappliestoproductdevelopmentand
production,asevidencedbyToyotaandothers.Andalthoughmostoftenapplied
toproducts,itisalsousedinserviceareasbothwithinToyotaandindomains
suchashealthcare1.
Theimageandmetaphorweliketoconveyakeythinkingmistakeand
opportunityisthesportofrelayracing.
Considertherelayracersstandingaroundwaitingforthebatonfromtheirrunning
colleague.Theaccountantinthefinancedepartment,lookingaghastatthis
terribleunderutilizationwasteindicatedinsomereport,wouldprobably
mandateapolicygoalof95%utilizationofresourcestoensurealltheracersare
busyandproductive.Maybehesuggeststherunnerscouldrunthreeraces
at
thesametimetoincreaseresourceutilization,orrunupamountainwhile
waiting.
Funny...butthiskindofthinkingliesbehindmuchoftraditionalmanagementand
processesindevelopmentandotherdomains.2Ofcourse,incontrast,hereisa
centralideainleanthinking:
1.
Forreadersworkinginservicedomains,notethatmostleanprinciplesareverygeneral,
suchascontinuousimprovementmindsetandmanagerteacherswhoareworkexperts
andactasmentors.Someprinciplesrequireminortranslation,suchaslongtermgreat
engineerstolongtermgreathandsonworkers,ornewproductdevelopmenttonew
service.
2.
See,forexample,PRTM[McGrath96,McGrath04]forcollectionsoftraditionaland
unleanproductdevelopmentideas.
2
Watchthebaton,nottherunners.
LeanThinking:TheBigPicture
Doesyourorganizationmeasureproductivityorefficiencyintermsofhow
busypeopleare,ortimespentwatchingtherunner?Or,intermsoffastdelivery
ofvaluetotherealcustomerwatchingthebaton?Whatisthevaluetowaste
ratioinyourwork?Andwhataretheimpedimentstotheflowofvalueandhow
canpeoplefeelinspiredtocontinuouslystrivetoimprovethatflow?Leanthinking
addressesthis.
Thisisasample;ExtremeToyota[OST08]dedicatesachaptercomparingtheir
sustainableperformancecomparedtoothersintheirindustry.Thatsaid,Toyota
isfarfromperfectandthereareuniquethingstolearnfromothersystems(suchas
agilemethodsinsoftwaredevelopment)thatarenotfoundinleanthinking.We
arenotsuggestingthatToyotaorleanthinkingistheonlymodeltolearnfrom,or
tosimplyemulateit.Neverthelessitisalongrefinedmeritorioussystemfroma
relativelyrobustandsustainablecompany.
3.TheoriginalnamewasRespectforHumanitySystem.SomecalleditTheThinking
Way.TheseemphasizedaToyotacultureofmentoringpeopletothinkthroughand
resolverootcausestoproblems,tohelpsociety,andtohumanizework[Fujimoto99,
WJR90].
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commonmisconceptionsaboutlean.Thisprimerstartswithclearing
theseaway.WhatistheessenceandpowerofleanthinkingandToyota?
WhenIfirstbeganlearningaboutTPS4,Iwasenamoredofthepowerof[one
pieceflow,kanban,andotherleantools].Butalongtheway,experiencedleaders
withinToyotakepttellingmethatthesetoolsandtechniqueswerenotthekeyto
TPS.RatherthepowerbehindTPSisacompanysmanagementcommitmentto
continuouslyinvestinitspeopleandpromoteacultureofcontinuous
improvement.InoddedlikeIknewwhattheyweretalkingabout,andcontinuedto
studyhowtocalculatekanbanquantitiesandsetuponepieceflowcells.After
studyingforalmost20yearsandobservingthestruggles[other]companieshave
hadapplyinglean,whattheseToyotateacherstoldmeisfinallysinkingin.
[Liker04](emphasisadded)
WakamatsuandKondo,Toyotaexperts,putitsuccinctly:
Theessenceof[theToyotasystem]isthateachindividualemployeeisgiventhe
opportunitytofindproblemsinhisownwayofworking,tosolvethemandto
makeimprovements.[Hino06]
Management Tools Are Not a Pillar of Lean
Theabovequotesunderscoreavitalpointbecauseovertheyearstherehavebeen
someostensiblyleanpromotersthatreducedleanthinkingtoamechanistic
superficiallevelofmanagementtoolssuchaskanbanandqueuemanagement.
ThesederivativedescriptionsignorethecentralmessageoftheToyotaexperts
whostressthattheessenceofsuccessfulleanthinkingisbuildingpeople,then
buildingproductsandacultureofchallengethestatusquocontinuous
improvement[Hino06].
Reducingleanthinkingtokanban,queuemanagementandothertoolsislike
reducingaworkingdemocracytovoting.Votingisgood,butdemocracyisfar
moresubtleanddifficult.ConsidertheinternalToyotamottoshowninaphotowe
tookwhenvisiting
4.ToyotaProductionSystem(TPS)istheprecursortotheToyotaWay[Ohno88].
4
LeanThinking:TheBigPicture
ToyotainJapansomeyearsago;itcapturestheheartoflean,summarizingtheir
focusoneducatingpeopletobecomeskillfulsystemsthinkers:
Tosimplifyleanthinkingtotoolsistofallintoatraprepeatedmanytimesbefore
bycompaniessuperficiallyandunsuccessfullyattemptingtoadoptwhatthey
thoughtwaslean.
...itwasonlyafterAmericancarmakershadexhaustedeveryotherexplanation
forToyotassuccessanundervaluedyen,adocileworkforce,Japaneseculture,
superiorautomationthattheywerefinallyabletoadmitthatToyotasreal
advantagewasitsabilitytoharnesstheintellectofordinaryemployees.
[Hamel06]
Consequently,LeanSixSigma5isviewedbyToyotapeopletorepresentSix
Sigmatoolsbutnottorepresentrealleanthinking.AformerToyotaplantandHR
managerexplains:
Leansixsigmaisacompilationoftoolsandtrainingfocusedonisolatedprojects
todrivedownunitcost...TheToyotaapproach[...]isfarbroaderandfardeeper.
ThestartingpointistheToyotaWayphilosophyofrespectforpeopleandcontinu
ousimprovement.Theprincipleisdevelopingqualitypeoplewhocontinually
improveprocesses...Theresponsibilitylies,notwithblackbeltspecialists,but
withtheleadershiphierarchythatrunstheoperationandtheyareteachersand
coaches.[LH08]
Waste Reduction Is Not a Pillar of Lean
ThebookLeanThinking[WJ96]wasjustifiablypopularandintroducedsome
Toyotaideastoamuchwideraudience.Werecommenditwhileobservingthat
itpresentsacondensedviewoftheToyotasystem.LeanThinkingdraws
significantlyonresearchfromthe1980sandearly1990sthatfocusedonToyotas
productionsystem[WJR90],andwaspublishedbeforeToyotasownToyotaWay
2001GreenBook,thatsumma
5.LeanSixSigmaisanamalgamoftoolspromotedintheSixSigmamovement
[George02].
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LeanPrimer
rizedthepriorityofthebroaderprinciplesfromaninsidersperspective.The
subtitleofLeanThinkingisBanishWasteandCreateWealthinYour
Organization,andsonotsurprisingly,thosewhohavereadonlythatonebook
oftensummarizeleanasremovingwaste.
Althoughuseful,wastereductionisnotapillaroflean;itisonlymentioned
severallevelsdeepwithintheToyotaWay2001.Plus,inLeanThinking,some
preeminentleanprinciplessuchasGoSee(thatToyotahighlights)aretreatedin
anentertainingbutonlyanecdotalorsecondarystylethatmakeitpossibletomiss
therelativeimportanceofsomeleanprincipleswithinToyota.StudyLean
Thinking,andstudymoreoftheRecommendedReadings.
The Two Pillars of Lean
Whatarethepillarsoflean?ToyotapresidentGaryConvis:
TheToyotaWaycanbebrieflysummarizedthroughthetwopillarsthatsupportit:
ContinuousImprovementandRespectforPeople.Continuousimprovement,
oftencalledkaizen,definesToyotasbasicapproachtodoingbusiness.Challenge
everything.Moreimportantthantheactualimprovementsthatindividualscon
tribute,thetruevalueofcontinuousimprovementisincreatinganatmosphereof
continuouslearningandanenvironmentthatnotonlyaccepts,butactually
embraceschange.Suchanenvironmentcanonlybecreatedwherethereis
respectforpeoplehencethesecondpillaroftheToyotaWay.(emphasisadded)
AndfromToyotaCEOKatsuakiWatanabe:
TheToyotaWayhastwomainpillars:continuousimprovementandrespectfor
people.Respectisnecessarytoworkwithpeople.Bypeoplewemean
employees,supplypartners,andcustomers....Wedontmeanjusttheend
customer;ontheassemblylinethepersonatthenextworkstationisalsoyour
customer.Thatleadstoteamwork.Ifyouadoptthatprinciple,youllalsokeep
analyzingwhatyoudoinordertoseeifyouredoingthingsperfectly,soyoure
nottroublingyourcustomer.Thatnurturesyourabilitytoidentifyproblems,
andifyoucloselyobservethings,itwillleadtokaizencontinuousimprovement.
TherootoftheToyotaWayistobedissatisfiedwiththestatusquo;youhaveto
askconstantly,Whyarewedoingthis?(emphasisadded)
Respectforpeopleandcontinuousimprovementchallengeeverythingembrace
changemindset,thepillarsoflean,areexpandedlater.Ifaleanadoptionprogram
6
Background
ignorestheimportanceoftheseacargocultleanadoption6thentheessential
understandingandconditionsforsustainablesuccesswithleanwillbemissing.
BACKGROUND
TheEnglishtermleanwaspopularizedfortheToyotasystembyMIT
researchersofToyotainTheMachineThatChangedtheWorld[WJR90]to
contrasttheirleanproductionwiththealternativeofmassproduction.The
implicationwasadramaticreductioninworkpackageorbatchsize,andnolonger
competingoneconomiesofscalebutrathercompetingontheabilitytoadapt,
avoidinventory,andworkinverysmallunits.Thetermleanisnowalsoused
withinToyota;forexample,intheirToyotaWay2001internalbooklet.
TwooftheauthorsoftheTheMachineThatChangedtheWorldwentontowrite
LeanThinking,apopularintroductionthatsummarizedfiveprinciples.
RelativelybroaddescriptionsoftheleansystemareTheToyotaWay,TheToyota
ProductDevelopmentSystem,InsidetheMindofToyota,ExtremeToyota,and
LeanProductandProcessDevelopment.AllarebasedonlongstudyofToyota.
TheToyotaWay[Liker04]textisusedbyToyotaforeducation,inadditiontotheir
internalToyotaWay2001.Thisintroductiontoleanissimilartothese
descriptions.
6.Acargocultinatribalsocietyperformedritualsimitatingthebehaviorofnonnative
visitors(oftenfromEurope).Byanalogy,cargocultprocessadoptionsuggestsritualism
andsuperficiality.Cargocultleanadoptionimpliesadoptingleantoolswithoutthe
transformationtoaleanstateofmindandbehaviorbymanagement.
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Sustainable shortest lead time, best quality and value (to people and society), most customer delight,
lowest cost, high morale, safety
Respect for People
Continuous
Improvement
- Go See
- kaizen- spread
knowledge - small,
relentlessretrospectives- 5 Whyseyes for waste
* variability, overburden, NVA ...
Management applies and teaches lean thinking, and bases decisions on this long-term philosophy
LeanGoal:SustainablyDeliverValueFast
suchasRespectforPeopleandContinuousImprovement.Theremainderofthe
primerfollowsthemajorelementsofthediagraminthefollowingorder:
1.goal(roof)
2.foundation
3.pillarrespectforpeople
4.pillarcontinuousimprovement
5.14principles6.leanproductdevelopment
value(tothecustomerandsociety)inshorterandshortercycletimesofall
processes,whilestillachievinghighestqualityandmoralelevelsflowofvalue
tothecustomerwithoutdelay.Toyotastrivestoreducecycletimes,butnot
throughcuttingcorners,reducingquality,oratanunsustainableorunsafepace;
rather,byrelentlesscontinuousimprovement,thatrequiresacompanycultureof
meaningfulrespectforpeopleinwhichpeoplefeeltheyhavethepersonalsafety
tochallengeandchangethestatusquo.
WeseeechoesofthisgoalinthewordsofthecreatoroftheToyotaProduction
System(TPS),TaiichiOhno:
Allwearedoingislookingatthetimeline,fromthemomentthecustomergives
usanordertothepointwherewecollectthecash.Andwearereducingthetime
linebyreducingthenonvalueaddingwastes.8[Ohno88]
So,afocusofleanisonthebaton,nottherunnersremovingthebottlenecksto
fasterthroughputofvaluetocustomersratherthanlocallyoptimizingbytryingto
maximizeutilizationofworkersormachines.
8.Thisallusiontowastesisexploredlater.Wastehasanimportantandspecificmean
inginleanthinking.
Goal
Product
Development
14
Principle
s
Foundation
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LeanPrimer
NotonlydoesToyota(andtheirLexusandScionbrands)manufacturevehicles,
butalsosuccessfullyandefficientlydevelopnewproductsleanprinciplesapply
toproductdevelopment.HowdoesToyotaachievetheglobalgoalintheirtwo
mainprocesses,productdevelopmentandproduction?
Developmentoutlearnthecompetition,throughgeneratingmore
usefulknowledgeandusingandrememberingiteffectively.
Productionoutimprovethecompetition,byafocusonshortcycles,
smallbatchesandqueues,stoppingtofindandfixtherootcauseofproblems,
relentlesslyremovingallwastes(waiting,handoff,...).Thisprimerreturnsto
outlearnandoutimprovelateron.Ofcourse,theseapproachesarenotmutually
exclusive.ToyotaDevelopmentimprovesandProductionlearns.LEAN
appliesandteachesleanthinking,andbasesdecisionsonthislongterm
philosophy.WhenwefirstvisitedToyotainJapan,weinterviewedpeopletolearn
moreabouttheirmanagementcultureandeducationsystem.Oneofthethingswe
learnedisthatmostnewemployeesfirstgothroughseveralmonthsofeducation
beforestartingotherwork.Duringthisperiodtheylearnthefoundationsoflean
thinking,theylearntoseewaste(asubjectwewillreturnto),andtheydohands
onworkinmanyareasofToyota.Inthisway,newToyotapeople...
learnproblemsolvingthroughhandsonimprovement
experiments
learntoseehowleanthinkingappliesindifferentdomains
learnkaizenmindset(continuousimprovement)
appreciateacoreprincipleinToyotacalledGoSeeandgemba
GoSeemeanspeopleespeciallymanagersareexpectedtogoseewiththeir
owneyesratherthansitbehinddesksorbelievethatthetruthcanbelearnedonly
fromreportsornumbers.Itisrelatedtoappreciatingtheimportanceofgemba
goingtothephysicalfrontlineplaceofvalueworkwherethehandsonvalue
workersare.10
Goal
Product
Develop- ment
14 Principles
Foundation
LeanFoundation:LeanThinkingManagerTeachers
MichikazuTanaka,astudentofTaiichiOhno,summarizedthelessonshelearned:
Youcantcomeupwithusefulkaizen[improvement]sittingatyourdesk...We
havetoomanypeoplethesedayswhodontunderstandtheworkplace...They
thinkalot,buttheydontsee.Iurgeyoutomakeaspecialefforttoseewhats
happeningintheworkplace.Thatswherethefactsare.[SF09]
Wealsolearnedthatpotentialexecutivemanagershaveworkedtheirwayup
throughyearsofhandsonleanthinkingpracticeandmentoringtoothers.When
EijiToyodawaspresident,hesaidtothemanagementteam,Iwantyouactively
totrainyourpeopleonhowtothinkforthemselves[Hino06].Notethatthisis
notsimplyamessageofletpeoplethinkforthemselves.Rather,themanagement
cultureismanagersactasteachersofthinkingskills.Toyotamanagersare
educatedinleanthinking,continuousimprovement,rootcauseanalysis,the
statisticsofvariability,andsystemsthinkingandcoachothersinthesethinking
tools.
Fromthis,wecameespeciallytoappreciatethatforsuccessfuladoptionoflean,
therearemanagementqualitiesneededforanymeaningful,sustainedsuccessthe
leadershipteamcannotphoneintheirleansupport.Toyotaisoneoffew
companiesthatseemstodemonstratethesequalities;tosummarize[OST08]:
Longtermphilosophymanyinthecompanyareeducatedinlean
thinkingthroughcoursesandmentoringfrommanagerteachers.
Longtermphilosophyvirtuallyallmanagement,includingthe
executivelevel,musthaveasolidunderstandingofleanprinciples,havelived
themforyears,andteachthemtoothers.
Longtermphilosophymanagerteachershavecultivatedsystems
thinkingandprocessimprovementproblemsolvingthinkingskills,andtheyteach
ittoothers.Thecultureisimbuedwiththementalityandbehavior,Letsstopand
understandtherootcausesofproblems.Managerteacherstheinternalmotto
isGoodThinking,GoodProducts.Howdotheyachievethisgoodthinking
whichformsthefoundationoftheirsuccess?Itisthroughacultureof
mentoring.Managersareexpectedtobehandsonmastersoftheirdomainofwork
(thesayingis,mymanagercandomyjobbetterthanme),areexpectedto
understandleanthinking,andareexpectedtospendtimeteachingandcoaching
others.WelearnedduringaninterviewinJapanthatToyotaHRpoliciesinclude
analysisofhowmuchtimeamanagerspendsteaching.Inshort,managersareless
directorsandmore
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11
LeanPrimer
teachersintheprinciplesofleanthinking,stopandfixright,andkaizen
mentality.Inthisway,theToyotaDNAispropagated[LH08].
AtsushiNiimi,ToyotaNorthAmericapresident,saidthatthegreatestchallengein
teachingtheToyotaWaytoforeignmanagerswas,Theywanttobemanagers,
notteachers.
In[Liker03],amatrixofmanagementculturesispresented;idealleanmanager
teachersareinthetopleftquadrantbottomupconsensusbuildersandreal
teamleaderswhoareworkexperts,andwhomentortheirteammembers:
expertknowledgeofthework
onlygeneralmanagement
bottomup
coach/mentor;builderofalearning
organization
facilitator
topdown
detailedtaskmaster
bureaucrat
Themoreonelearnsaboutlean,themoreoneappreciatesthatthefoundationis
managerteacherswholiveandteachitandhavelonghandsonexperience.The
foundationisnottoolsorwastereduction.
Anyexecutiveteamthatwantstosucceedwithleanthinkingwillneedtopay
attentiontothisbasiclessonthattheycannotphoneintheirsupporttodo
lean.
Foundation
12
Build Partners
- form long relationships based on trust- help partners improve and stay profitable
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13
LeanPrimer
tomakecorrectdecisions,buildconsensus,andachievegoalsatourbestspeed.
[Toyota01]GoSeeisaprinciplenotfoundinmanymanagementcultures.This
principleisdescribedascriticalandfundamental.IntheinternalToyotaWay2001
itishighlightedasthefirstfactorforsuccessincontinuousimprovement.Go
SeeshowsuprepeatedlyinToyotamanagerquotes,inToyotacultureandhabits
[LH08],ineducationontheToyotaWay,andintheresearchdonebyJapanese
analystsofleanthinking(forexample,[OST08]).Allthatsaid,itismissingfrom
somederivativeleandescriptionsandsounfortunatelysomeareunawareof
itsvitalrole.Inaleanthinkingculture,allpeople,butespeciallymanagers
includingseniormanagersshouldnotspendalltheirtimeinseparateofficesor
meetingrooms,receivinginformationviareports,computers,management
reportingtools,andstatusmeetings.Rather,toknowwhatisgoingonandhelp
improve(byeliminatingthedistortionthatcomesfromindirectinformation),
managementshouldfrequentlygototheplaceofrealworkandseeand
understandforthemselves.Thisrealfrontlineplaceofwork(gemba)doesnot
meanproximitytothebuildingwhereworkhappens,nordoesitmeangoingto
visitothermanagers.Itimpliestobeasphysicallyclosetotherealfrontlinework
aspossiblenotsittinginanofficenearby,butbreathingthesameair.Work
inleandoesnotprimarilymeantheoverheadorsecondaryworkofaccountingand
soon,butthevalueaddingworkthatthecustomercaresaboutengineering,
designingacar,producingthings,deliveringcustomerservice.AnexampleofGo
Seeisformanagerstoregularlyvisitandthensitwithhandsonengineersor
servicedeliverypeoplewhiletheyareworking,withtheaimofunder14
Goal
Product
Development
14
Principle
s
Foundation
PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement
standingproblemsandopportunitiestoimprove.Itissimilartotheunfortunately
nowlostHPpracticeofmanagementbywalkingaround.
Inaninterview,ToyotaschiefengineerquotedTaiichiOhno,whoinsistedon
managerspracticingGoSeeatgemba:
Dontlookwithyoureyes,lookwithyourfeet...peoplewhoonlylookatthenum
bersaretheworstofall.[Hayashi08]
TheJapanesetermforGoSee,genchigenbutsu,hasalsobeenbroadlyrendered
asimplyingsolveproblemsatthesourceinsteadofbehinddesks.GoSeenotonly
implieswalkingtothesourcetofindfactsanddecidewithdirectinsight;itmeans
onceyouaretheretobuildconsensusforgoalsandexperimentstochange.
ThefullimplicationofGoSeeisforpeopleespeciallymanagerstofrequently
spendtimeattherealplaceofvaluework,buildrelationshipsoftrustwiththe
peoplethere,andhelpthemfixthings.
Forexample,Figure1.3showsapictureofCraigsofficeinBangalore,Valtech
India:alittledeskphysicallyamonghandsonteams.Hehasspenttimesitting
withtherealworkerswhiletheywork,andattendingtheirkaizenevents.Inthis
way,gettingadirectunderstandingofwhatsworkingandwhatsnotandhow
tobetterhelp.
Figure 1.3 officeGo See attitude
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15
LeanPrimer
Kaizen
Improveforimprovementssake,endlessly.
Kaizenissometimestranslatedassimplycontinuousimprovementbutthatcon
fusesitwiththebroaderleanpillarofcontinuousimprovementanddoesnot
capturethefullflavor.So,wewillstickwiththeJapaneseterm.9
Kaizenisbothapersonalmindsetandapractice.Asamindset,itsuggestsMy
workistodomyworkandtoimprovemyworkandcontinuouslyimprovefor
itsownsake.Moreformallyasapractice,kaizenimplies:
1.chooseandpracticetechniquestheteamhasagreedtotry,untiltheyarewell
understoodthatis,masterstandardizedwork
2.experimentuntilyoufindabetterway3.repeatforever
Step1Chooseandpracticetechniquestheteamhasagreedtotry,untilthey
arewellunderstood(masterstandardizedwork).Theideaisforagrouptofirst
find(hopefully)skillfulbaselinepracticesandlearntodothemwell.Peoplelearn
todo<X>inastandardizedway,withplentyofpractice,coaching,andgood
education.Steponeinkaizenimplieshavingpatiencethroughtheawkward
learningphaseandnotabandoningnewtechniquesquickly.Peopleneedavalid
baselinetoimproveagainst.AndinDemingsterminology,theyneedtobeableto
distinguishbetweencommoncauseandspecialcausevariability.
Thissteponepointofkaizenisthatapersonorteamcannotaccuratelyseeifthey
needtoimproveorchangeapracticeunlesstheyhavefirstmasteredthebasics,
understooditssubtlepoints,andcandoitwell.Haveyoueverseen,Oh,<X>
doesntworkcommentsthatwerebasedoninsufficientskill,practice,or
education?Thereisnopointinimprovingorrejectingbasedon
misunderstanding.
Inleanthinking,standardizedworkdoesnotmeanconformingtocentralized
standardsAgrossmisunderstandingofleanthinkingisthenotionthat
standardizedworkmeansconformancetocentrallydefinedstandards.Thisis
suchaprofoundmistakefromtheleanperspective,yetsoeasilymisunderstood,
thatthispointdeservesspecialemphasis.Rather,theideaisforateamtomastera
baselineagainstwhichimprovementexperimentscanbecompared.Thisbaseline
thestandardis
9.WeavoidJapanesetermsunlessnoEnglishtermworks.
16
PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement
createdbytheteamthemselves(notbyacentralizedgroup)andiseverevolving.
AsOhnosaid:
Itoldeveryonethattheywerentearningtheirpayiftheyleftthestandardized
workunchangedforawholemonth.Theideawastoletpeopleknowthatthey
wereresponsibleformakingcontinualimprovementsintheworkproceduresand
forincorporatingthoseimprovementsinthestandardizedwork.[SF09]
ShareratherthanenforcepracticesToreiterate,thestandardizedworkor
teamnormsshouldnotbemisconstruedtomeanafixedpracticetofollowuntil
notifiedotherwiseoracentralizedtopdownstandardfromacentralprocess
groupthatisforcedonpeopleideascontrarytotheleanpillarofcontinuous
improvement.Toyotapeoplepromoteyokotenspreadknowledgelaterallythat
mayevolveuniquelyindifferentlocations,likeagraftfromatree.Yokoten
meansliterallytounfoldoropenoutsideways.Spreadknowledgeimpliesa
culturethatemphasizeshorizontalknowledgesharing,butnotbeingforcedto
conformtocentralprocessespushedtopdown.10SomequotesfromToyota
people:
Ifwetrytosimplygeteveryonetothecurrentstandardyouaremissing
opportunitiestogetbetter.Youarenottakingintoaccounthowtimesare
changing.Therehastobelotsofflexibilityinallowingcreativityalongtheway...
Standardsarenotdevelopedandthencommunicatedfromheadquarterstoallthe
plants.Rigidstandardswillonlykillkaizen...Itisyokoteneverytimesharebest
practices....Wemustletindividualsfromplantsdecidewhattheywilldotofix
theirproblemsandclosegaps.Wecannothavesomeonefromcorporatesaying
youneedtodoX,Y,Z,becausethisiscompletelycontrarytoToyotaproblem
solving.[LH08]
Communitiesofpracticesomethingwerecommendarecreatedtospread
knowledgelaterally.
Steps2and3Small,incremental,relentlesschangeofanything.Kaizenisan
ongoingactivitybyallpeople(includingmanagers)torelentlesslyand
incrementallychangeandimprovepractices,usuallyinsmallexperiments,though
largescalesystemkaizenisalsoanoption.Almostnopractice,process,orexisting
policyissacredanythingcango.Challengeeverything,inthewordsof
ToyotaPresidentConvis.Also,akaizencultureisnotonewhereonlybig
improvementprojectsbyprocessexpertsareinitiated.Rather,eachteamdoesit
regularlythemselves.
LearnprocessimprovementbydoingKaizenimplies,byceaselessrepetitionand
mentoring,peoplelearnbythemselveshowtomakeproblemsvisible,analyze
their
10.Thereareexceptions,suchassafetyandaccountingstandards.
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LeanPrimer
rootcauses,andimprovebyexperimenting.AndfailureofexperimentsisOK.
Theonlyfailureinkaizenistonotcontinuouslyexperiment.
KaneyoshiKusunoki,anotherstudentofTaiichiOhno,andexecutivevice
presidentatToyota,saidaboutkaizenandmanagementsupport:
AdefiningcharacteristicofthecorporatecultureatToyotaisthatmanagersdont
scoldyoufortakinginitiative,fortakingachanceandscrewingup.Rather,
theyllscoldyoufornottryingsomethingnew,fornottakingachance.Leaders
arenttheretojudge.Theyretheretoencouragepeople.ThatswhatIvealways
triedtodo.Trialanderroriswhatit'sallabout!
InKaizenbyMasaakiImai,heshares:
TheessenceofKaizenissimpleandstraightforward:Kaizenmeansimprovement.
Moreover,Kaizenmeansongoingimprovementinvolvingeveryone,including
bothmanagersandworkers.Thekaizenphilosophyassumesthatourwayoflife
beitourworkinglife,oursociallife,orourhomelifedeservestobeconstantly
improved.[Imai86]
KaizenreflectsthePlanDoCheckAct(PDCA)Shewhartimprovementcycle
(alsoknownastheDemingcycle)[Deming67].InfactmanypeoplewithinToyota
formallyknowPDCAandsometimesdescribewhattheyaredoingasendless
PDCA[LH08].
Kaizen Events
Kaizenmostoftenhappensduringrepeatingteamkaizenevents;aregularand
frequentcadenceofeventsisdesirable,suchasdailyorweekly.Broadly,a
kaizeneventincludesthesteps(1)analyzesomecurrentsituationuntilitiswell
understood,and(2)designexperimentsforimprovement.Duringthisanalysisand
design,focusonactivitiesrathersittingaroundatableandtalking.Trycreative
activitiesatwhiteboards,onflipcharts,andsoforth.
Bewaredeadkaizeneventsinwhichpeoplegothroughthemotions,buthave
burnedoutfromoveranalysisorlackofempowermentandengagement.Avoid
takingontoo
18
PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement
manyimprovementexperimentsatoncebettertofocusononethingwell,than
manythingspoorly.
Five Whys
FiveWhys(usuallywritten5Whys)isasimpleandwidelyusedtoolusedin
kaizen.Ithelpsdevelopproblemsolvingandrootcauseanalysisskills.Inresponse
toaproblemordefect,ateamconsiderswhy?atleastfivetimes. 11These
questionsmayhavemultipleandrelatedanswers,sosometeamscreatea5
Whysgraphofbranchinganswers(seeFigure1.4),oramorestructuredfishbone
(Ishikawa)diagram.
Theimportantpointof5Whysisnotthetechniqueorthenumber5,butthatitis
partofthestopandfixrootcauseproblemsolvingmindsetandculture
pervasiveatToyota.Peoplearetaughttobecomedeepproblemsolvers;tonot
livewithproblems,buttothinkthingsthroughdeeply.Thereisalsoaconnection
betweenGoSeeand5Whys:Itiseasyforpeopletoguesswrongorweakanswers
unlesstheyseethefactsattherealplaceoftheproblem.
Figure 1.4 5 Whys graphpeople changing teams too frequently
Whattoimproveduringkaizen?Inleanthinkingtheanswerrequiresan
understandingofvalueandwaste.
11.Fiveisnotamagicnumber;itismeanttoimplydigdeep.
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19
LeanPrimer
ValueThemomentsofactionorthoughtcreatingtheproductthatthe
customer12iswillingtopayfor.Inotherwords,valueisdefinedintheeyesofthe
externalcustomer.13Imagineacustomerwasobservingtheworkinyouroffice.
Atwhatmomentswouldtheybewillingtoreachintotheirpocket,pulloutmoney,
andgiveittoyou?
WasteAllothermomentsoractionsthatdonotaddvaluebutconsume
resources.Wastescomefromoverburdenedworkers,bottlenecks,waiting,
handoff,wishfulthinking,andinformationscatter,amongmanyothers.
Onekindofanalysisinleanthinkingistoestimateallwasteandvaluemoments
fromconcepttocash.14Fromsuchatimelineonecansumthevaluetimeand
leadtime(concepttocash),andthencalculate
valueratio=totalvaluetime/totalleadtime
Wehavedonemanytimelineswithproductdevelopmentgroupsandhavenot
seenavalueratioinadevelopmentorganizationhigherthan7percent.Inother
words,93percentormoreofthetimeindevelopmentwaswastetime.15
ImprovementbyBanishingWasteAfterhavingdefinedvalueandwaste,we
cometoanoteworthydifferenceinleanimprovement.Othersystemsfocuson
refiningexistingvalueactions;forexample,improvingskillindesign.Aworthy
goalnodoubt.
However,sincetherearetypicallyfewvalueaddingmomentsinthetimeline
maybe5percentthenimprovingthosedoesnotamounttomuch.Butwitha
mountainofwastetimeintheprocess,therearebigopportunitiestoimprovethe
valueratiobyeliminatingwaste.
Forexample,acommonwasteinproductdevelopmentisthewasteof
overproductioncreatingsolutionsorfeaturesnotreallywantedbythecustomer.
Itmakeslittlesensetofocusonmeasuringandimprovingengineeringefficiency
by2percentifthereisamountainofunusedfeaturewasteduetopoordecisions
inproductmanagement.
Asanotherexample,oneofthewastesiswaitingordelaycustomersdonotpay
forthat.Haveyoueverseenthewasteofwaiting...
12.Valueintheeyesofthecustomerpositsanidealizedcustomer.13.Therearesome
quasileandescriptionsthatintroducetheideaofinternalbusinessvalue.Thisisnotpart
ofleanthinking,anditsapplicationcanleadtoadistortionof
improvementbecausethingsthatarewastecanbemislabeledasvalue.14.Thisispartof
theleanpracticevaluestreammapping[RS99].15.Thisisconsistentwithobservationby
others,suchas[Ward06]whoestimatesan
20
average5%valueratioinproductdevelopment.
PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement
forclarification?
forapproval?
foranotherteamtofinishtheirpart?NonValueAddingAction
CategoriesWithinToyotapeopleareeducatedtodevelopeyesforwaste.Asa
learningaid,listsofnonvalueadding(NVA)actionshavebeencreated.Thereis
notonecorrectlistthepointisnotthecategories,buttolearntoseeandbanish
wastefromthecustomerperspective.ThefollowingproductdevelopmentNVA
actioncategoriesaredrawnfromTheToyotaWay,ImplementingLeanSoftware
Development,andLeanProductandProcessDevelopment.
NonValueAddingAction
ExampleorComment
featuresorservicesthecustomerdoesnt
reallywant
1.Overproductionofsolutionsor
features,orofelementsaheadofthenext largeengineeringdocuments,moredetailed
step;duplication
designsthancanbequicklyimplemented
duplicationofdata
2.Waiting,delay
...forclarification,documents,approval,
components,othergroupstofinishsomething
3.Handoff,conveyance,moving
givingaspecificationfromananalysttoan
engineergivingacomponenttoanother
groupfortesting
4.Extraprocessing(includesextra
processes),relearning,reinvention
forcedconformancetocentralizedprocess
checklistsofqualitytasks
recreatingsomethingmade
5.Partiallydonework,workinprogress designsdocumentedbutnotbuiltthings
(WIP)ordesigninprogress(DIP)
builtbutnotintegratedortested
6.Taskswitching,motionbetweentasks; interruptionmultitaskingon3projects
interruptbasedmultitasking
partialallocationofapersontomanyprojects
7.Defects,testingandcorrectionafter
creationoftheproduct
testingandcorrectionattheendtofindand
removedefectsisnotavalueaction;itmay
beatemporarilynecessarywaste
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21
LeanPrimer
NonValueAddingAction
ExampleorComment
peopleonlyworkingtosinglespecialityjobtitle,or...?
8.Underrealizingpeoplespotentialand
variedskill,insight,ideas,suggestions dopeoplehavethechancetochangewhattheyseeis
wasteful?
informationspreadacrossmanyseparatedocuments
9.Knowledgeandinformationscatteror
communicationbarrierssuchaswallsbetweenpeople,or
loss
peopleinmultiplelocations
10.Wishfulthinking(forexample,that Theestimatecannotincrease;theeffortestimateiswhatwe
plans,estimates,andspecificationsare wantittobe,notwhatitisnowproposed.
correct)
Werebehindschedule,butwellmakeituplater.
ImprovingthroughRemovingNVAsThefocusondeliveringvaluethroughwaste
reductionorientsaleanorganizationtowardfollowingthebatonratherthanthe
runners.Noticethattheimprovementstrategyissubtractiveratherthanadditive.
Ratherthan(forexample),Whatcanwegettheworkerstodotoincrease
utilization?,thequestionisWhatcanweremoveorstopdoing?Inour
consultingwehavefoundthistobeamindsetchangefortraditionalquality
assurancepeopleinlargeorganizationswhofocusonconformancetochecklists
andaddingactivitiesforimprovement.
TemporarilyNecessaryWasteversusPureWasteNoteverywastebattlecan
bewongivencurrentcapabilitiesandconstraints.Forexample,itiswickedlyhard
orvirtuallyimpossibletocreateaproductthatneverhadadefecttobeginwith.
Plustherearemanycaseswhereitischeapertoresolvedefectsthroughfeedback
loopswithtestattheendinsmallbatchesandshortcycles,especiallyasmodern
testingtoolsandtechniquesreducethecostandcycletimeofatest.Tobeclear:
Thisisnotarecommendationtowaitandonlytestattheendofdevelopment.
However,manyshortandcheapcyclesofsmallbatcheswithautomatedtesting
maynotalwaysbethecheapestsolutiontothebuildqualityinproblem.
Thusitissometimesprudentornecessary,giventodayscapabilities,totestand
correctaftercreationofasmalliteminaveryshortcyclethewasteofdefects.
EvenToyotadoesthiswastestep,butonlyinshortcycleswithsmallbatchsizes
sothatdefectsdonotlinger,replicate,orpileup.
Becauseofthis,Toyotarecognizestwotypesofwaste:
1.temporarilynecessarywaste...afuturebattle;forexample,testingattheend
ofashortcycle
2.purewaste...inprinciplecanandshouldbeeliminatednow
22
PillarTwo:ContinuousImprovement
IsInventoryAlwaysPureWaste?Acommonviewamongthosenewtolean
thinkingisthatinventoryispurewasteandshouldalwaysbeeliminated.
InventoriesofphysicalthingsorofintangibleWIPsuchasrequirement
specificationsimplyinvestmentwithoutprofitandhiddendefects.Thatsnot
good.However,acommonpracticeinleanimprovementistocreatelevelpull,
removingvariability(oneofthesourcesofwaste)inadownstreamprocessstepby
insertingasmallbufferofhighqualityequallysizedinventoryitemsbeforethat
downstreamstep.
Figure 1.5 three sources of waste
Variability
varying cycle lengths, varying batch sizes of work packages, varying size of one
work package, varying team members or size, varying delivery times, defects
(these introduce much variability), interruption to handle hot defects, irregular
arrival of requests
Resolution?- leveling the work
- cadence; for example, timeboxed 2-week cycles
- decompose large work packages into many smaller ones, so that a more
consistent amount of work is taken each cycle
3 Sources of Waste
Overburden
- overtime for arbitrary deadlines
- one Product Manager having to know hundreds of features in detail
- often seen with specialist bottlenecks and over-dependence on superspecialists
Resolution?- develop eyes to see queues &
bottlenecks and those who are doing too much
- take on less work in cycle; descope- spread the work and skillcross-train
NVA actions
- for example, handoff, waiting, scattered information, partially done work, task
switching
Resolution?- kaizen events, to learn to see it and experiments to reduce
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23
LeanPrimer
FocusonVariability,Overburden,andNVAActionsInadditiontoNVA
actions,intheToyotaWaypeoplearetaughtthreesourcesofwaste,illustrated
andcommentedwithresolutionideasinFigure1.5.16
Toyotapeoplewhoobserveoutsideattemptstoadoptleannoteacommonmis
educationaboutwastethemiseducationtoonlyfocusoneliminatingNVA
actions[LM06a].WithinToyota,allthreeweaknessesaregivenimportance,and
infactvariabilityandoverburdenareviewedasfrequentrootcausesthatgive
risetoNVAactions.Forexample,overburdenedworkerscreatemoredefects.
Perfection Challenge
Thisisthethirdelementofcontinuousimprovementinlean.
DuringavisittoToyotaweinvitedaretiredengineertodinnerinNagoya.After
severalroundsofsake,weasked,Whatdoyoumiss,nolongerworkingat
Toyota?Hereplied,Nolongerdiscussingperfectionwithpeople.
Wesometimesvisitanorganizationtodiscussleanadoptionandsomeoneobjects
withessentiallytheargument,Weremakinggoodmoney,andhaveestablished
processes.Whyshouldwechange?Wedonotthinkyouwouldhearthatquestion
inToyota.Theyarefarfromperfectandwearenotsuggestingsimplycopying
them,buttheircultureistohaveakaizenmindsettohavehighexpectationsand
tochallengeourselves,teammembers,andpartnerstolevelsofskill,mastery,
wastereduction,andvisionbeyondthestatusquo.
Thatspowerful.
No Final Process
In2001,ToyotacreatedaninternalToyotaWaybookletsummarizingthelean
principles.Onhearingtheproposedtitle,chairmanToyodasuggestedrenaming
thebookletToyotaWay2001.Why?Toemphasizethatthereisnofinalprocessin
Toyota(whichwouldstiflekaizen),butrather,continuousimprovementand
change.
Theimplicationofkaizenandspreadknowledgelaterallyisthatthereisnota
finalorcorrectdefinedprocesstofolloweverywherethatiscommunicatedfrom
acentralprocessgroup.Kaizendoesincludelearningandmasteringworking
agreements,butthey
16.ThewidelyusedJapanesetermsaremura(variability),muri(overburden),andmuda
(nonvalueaddactions).
24
14Principles
travelandevolvebythespreadknowledgelaterallymodel.Peoplewhohavethe
mindsetletsdefine(orbuy)thecentralprocess,writeitdown,andthenwe
shouldfocusonconformancetoitwillnotbecomfortablewithleanthinking.To
quotetheToyotaCEO,TherootoftheToyotaWayistobedissatisfiedwiththe
statusquo;youhavetoaskconstantly,Whyarewedoingthis?InToyotaandin
leanthinking,theideaistorepeatcyclesofimprovementexperimentsforever.
14 PRINCIPLES
Thetwopillars,respectforpeopleandcontinuousimprovement,arenotthe
entirepictureliterallyorfiguratively.Thereareotherpotentleanprinciplesthat
formtheoverallsystemoflean,someofwhichrecapitulateelementsinthetwo
pillars.
ToquoteFujioCho,chairmanofToyota:
ManygoodAmericancompanieshaverespectforindi
viduals,andpracticekaizenandother[Toyota]tools.Butwhatisimportantis
havingalltheelementstogetherasasystem.Itmustbe
practicedeverydayinaveryconsistentmanner.[Liker04]
Partofthisbroadersystemiscoveredinthe14principlesdescribedintheToyota
Waybookthatcomesoutofdecadesofdirectobservationandinterviewswith
Toyotapeople.Table1.1summarizestheprinciples,someofwhicharefurther
discussedafterthetable.
Goal
Product
Development
14
Principle
s
Foundation
Principle
Comment/Reference
1.Basemanagementdecisionsona
longtermphilosophy,evenatthe
seelocaloptimizationp.32
expenseofshorttermfinancialgoals.
2.Movetowardflow;movetoever
smallerbatchsizesandcycletimesto
delivervaluefast&exposeweakness.
seep.27
3.Usepullsystems;decideaslateas
possible.
seep.30
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25
LeanPrimer
Principle
Comment/Reference
4.Leveltheworkreducevariabilityand
seealsop.23
overburdentoremoveunevenness.
5.Buildacultureofstoppingandfixing
notonlyfix,butapply5Whysanalysistounderstand
problems;teacheveryoneto
therootcauses,andreallyfixit;seep.19
methodicallystudyproblems.
6.Masternorms(practices)toenable
kaizenandemployeeempowerment.
thesearechangeableworkingagreements,notrigid
organizationstandards;seep.16
7.Usesimplevisualmanagementto
revealproblemsandcoordinate.
seep.31
8.Useonlywelltestedtechnologythat
servesyourpeopleandprocess.
9.Growleadersfromwithinwho
leadersfromwithinmaynotbeagoodideaifyour
thoroughlyunderstandthework,livethe existingcultureisnotleanthepointiseducated
leanthinkingleaders;seep.10
philosophy,andteachittoothers.
10.Developexceptionalpeopleandteams thisreflectstheToyotabuild(leanthinking)people,
whofollowyourcompanysphilosophy. thenproductsmessage;itincludestowering
technicalcompetence
11.Respectyourextendednetworkof
bringpartnersintoleanthinkingaswell;thereisan
partnersbychallengingthemtogrowand
emphasisonsharingknowledgeandopenness
helpingthemimprove.
12.Goseeforyourselfattherealplace
ofworktoreallyunderstandthesituation seep.14
andhelp.
13.Makedecisionsslowlybyconsensus,
thoroughlyconsideringoptions;
activitiessuchaskaizeneventssupportthis
implementrapidly.
14.Becomeandsustainalearning
organizationthroughrelentlessreflection seep.16
andkaizen.
26
14Principles
Flow
Flowsuggestsmakingvalueflowwithoutdelaytothecustomer.Asacounter
example,acustomerrequestwaitsinaqueuewaitingtobeapproved,analyzed,
implemented,reworked,ortested.Thatisnotflow.Rather,asvalueiscreated
inproducts,software,information,decisions,serviceitflowsimmediatelytothe
customer.Itisrelatedtothefollowthebatonmetaphorandtothegoaloffaster
concepttocash.Flowisaperfectionchallenge;zerowasteinthesystemand
immediatecontinuousflowingdeliveryofvalueareprofoundchallenges,probably
neverachieved.Thejourneyisusuallymovingtowardflow.
Intheleanhousediagram(Figure1.1),flowisincludedinboththe14principles
andinthekeyelementsofcontinuousimprovement.Why?Becausetomove
towardflowitisnecessarytoreducebatchsize,cycletime,delay,WIP,andother
wastes.Andthishasthebeneficialsideeffectofrevealingmoreweaknessesand
waste,providingnewopportunitiesforcontinuousimprovement.Thisisan
importantbutsubtlepoint,expandedinthenextsection.
Movingtowardflowisassociatedwithappliedqueueingtheory,pullsystems,and
more.Byunderstandingthese,peoplecanmovethesystemtowardflowby
smallerworkpackagesizes,smallerqueuesizes,andreductioninvariability.
Indirect Benefits of Reducing Batch Size and Cycle Time
Whyworkinsmallbatchsizesandwithmanysmallcycles?Doesntthatincrease
youroverheadbecauseofthetransactioncostassociatedwitheachcycle?People
askingthisquestionmaynotyetappreciatetheadvantagesofsmallbatchesin
shortcycles:
Theoveralllargerreleasecycletimereductionthatcancomeby
eradicatingqueuesandbyapplyingqueuemanagementsothatmanycyclesare
shorter.
Theeliminationofbatchdelay,whereonepartofasolutionis
unnecessarilyheldbackbecauseitismovingthroughthesystemattachedtoa
largerbatchofothersolutions.Eliminatingthisprovidesanotherdegreeof
freedomforthebusinesstoshipasmallerproductearlierwiththehighest
prioritysolutions.
Andlastbutnotleast,thereareindirectbenefitsduetothelakeand
rockseffectdescribednext.
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27
LeanPrimer
Ametaphorsharedinleaneducation:lakeandrocks.Thedepthofthewatermay
representtheinventorylevel,batchsize,orcycletime.Whenthewaterishigh
(largebatchorinventorysize,orlongcycletime),manyrocksarehidden.These
rocksrepresentweaknesses.Forexample,consideraneighteenmonth
sequentialreleasecyclewithamassivebatchtransfer;inefficienttesting,
integration,andpoorcollaborationareallhiddenbelowthesurfaceofsuchalong
cycleandsuchalargebatch.Butifweworkwiththatgroupandsolutionsthatis
potentiallydeliverableintwo
ask,Pleasedeliverasmallsetofweeks,everytwoweeks,thensuddenlyallthe
ineffectivepracticesbecomepainfullyobvious.
Saidanotherway,thetransactioncost(overheadcost)oftheoldprocesscycle
becomesunacceptable.Thatpainthenbecomesaforceforimprovement,because
peoplecannotstandreexperiencingiteachshortcycle,andindeeditmaysimply
beimpossibletodothegoalsofthecyclewiththeoldinefficientpractices.
ThisdynamichasbeencentraltoToyotascontinualimprovementapproach.
Tip:Notallrocksarebigorimmediatelyvisible.Theleanjourneyistostart
withthebigrocksthataremostpainfullyobviousyetmovable,andovertime
workonsmallerimpediments.
ThecausalloopdiagraminFigure1.6illustratesthislakeandrockseffectinterms
ofasystemdynamicsmodel.
28
14Principles
Figure 1.6 indirect and delayed benefits of reducing batch and cycle size
feedback time
O
quality innovation
short term
other key, but not immediately appreciated, opposite reinforcement impacts of reduced
feedback time...- short feedback loops quickly improve quality- after some delay, the
increased innovation
opportunities are exploited and can pay off
lower cycle time leads to higher profits (often); this is an opposite (O) effect
some product groups are unaware that shorter cycle time can have a direct impact on
profit, in addition to the
indirect benefits shown in this model 54
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29
O
LeanPrimer
Pull Systems
Pullversuspush.Consideraprocessformanufacturingandstoringlaptop
computers.Inapurepullsystem17nolaptopisbuiltorstoredininventoryuntil
thereisacustomerorder.Zeroinventory18isagoal,andworkisdoneonlyin
responsetoapullsignalfromthecustomer.Thatisthekeymeaningofpull:
Buildinresponsetoasignalfromthecustomer,andotherwiserestorimprove.
Pullexamples?Printingjustthetwentybookorderorpreparingjustonerestaurant
dish.
Butapullsystemgoesdeeperthanthatthecustomerisnotjustthefinal
customer.Rather,inamultistageprocesswithanupstreamteamdoingpartial
workbeforeadownstreamteam,adownstreamteamisthecustomertotheir
upstreamteam.Inapurepullsystemtheupstreamteamdoesnotcreateanything
unlesspulledfromdownstreamrequest.
Ontheotherhand,inapushsystem,onespeculativelybuildsandstoreslaptopsin
thehopeoforders,andthentriestopushthemtocustomers.Inamultistage
process,upstreamteamscreateaninventoryofpartiallydoneworkfor
downstreamteams.Anykindofspeculativeinventorypizzas,bigdetailedplans,
books,designsformanyfeatureswhosevalueisuncertainarerelatedtopush
systems.
Resourcemanagementstrategiesthatfocusonhighutilizationofworkersa
focusonwatchtherunnersratherthanwatchthebatoncreateanenvironmentin
whichpeoplewillcreatealargeinventoryofthings(analysisdocu
ments,designs,...)inapushmodel.
ExposedefectsIfyouonlycreateonethinginresponsetopullfroma
customerrequest(inthiscontext,yourcustomerisanyonedownstream)andthe
customerconsumesitquickly,anydefectsinthatonethingcreatedeitherby
accidentordesignarequicklydiscovered.Thatcanleadtofurthersystemic
improvementifpeoplehavestopandfixmindset.Ontheotherhand,inpush
systems,defectsarehiddeninanunconsumedinventory(ofdocuments,...).For
example,pushingalargebatchofdesigndecisionswilldelaythediscoveryof
misunderstandingsorproblems,becauseitisalongtimebeforetheyare
implementedandevaluatedbyacustomer.
17.PullisrelatedtoaJustinTimesystemJITimplementspull.18.Inpullsystemsfor
development,loworzeroinventorymeanslessinventoryof
30
detailedspecifications,plans,untesteddesigns,andsoon.
14Principles
DecideaslateaspossibleInpullsystems,youdonotdecideearly,quitethe
oppositeyoudecideaslateaspossibleandcommitatthelast
responsiblemoment[Smith07].Inthisway,youhavethemostinformationto
makeaninformeddecision.Youdonotwasteresourcesmakingunnecessary
inventoryorearlydecisionsthatwillhavetooratleastshouldchangein
responsetodiscovery.
SmallbatchescanleadtoradicalimprovementAsexploredintheIndirect
BenefitsofReducingBatchSizeandCycleTimesectiononpage27.
Thus,inseveralways,pullsystemssupportmovingtowardsflow.
AvoidafalsedichotomyTocategoricallystatethatpullisgoodandpushisbad
wouldbeafalsedichotomy.Usuallybecauseofhardconstraints(forexample,the
speedoftransportation),someinventoryandsomepushmaybeusefula
temporarilynecessarywaste.Toyotadealerships(outsideofJapan)holdsome
inventoryofvehiclesbecauseforeigncustomerswanttosee,buy,andleavewitha
carimmediately.
Stop and Fix
Toyotapeoplearecoachedbymanagerteacherstotakethetimetopausewhen
defectsorproblemsarise.Ratherthancreatingonlyaquickfixresponse(orno
response),ateamwillholdakaizeneventtograsptherootcauses,andthen
initiatestepstowardadeepsolutiononethatideallypreventsthedefector
weaknessfrombeingpossibleandthusbuildingqualityin.
Forexample,Toyotaisfamousfortheirstopthelinepracticeinwhichanyone
canpullacordwhentheyseeadefect,tostopallworkontheline.Thisisstepone
inasystematicresponsetowardbuildingqualityin.Anotherexample:Toyota
encourageshumanfriendlymanufacturingdevicesthatthemselvesdetectafailure,
automaticallystop,andalertpeopletotheproblem.ThiswasinspiredbySakichi
Toyodawhomadehisoriginalfortunebydesigningaweavingloomthat
automaticallydetectedafailureandthenstopped[Hino06].Thisisthelean
practiceofjidoka.19
Simple Visual Management
ToyotaemphasizessimpleandBIGvisualtoolstosignalproblems,communicate,
andcoordinateapullsystem.Therearebigdisplaysonwalls,brightandbig
physicalcolor
19.JidokaisdifficulttorenameinEnglish;itissometimesdescribedasautomationwith
ahumantouch.
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31
LeanPrimer
codedcardsthatpeoplecantouchandmove,andsoforth.Keythemesareeaseof
viewingfromadistance,physicaltokens(suchascards),color,andsimplicity.
Thisistheoppositeofdisplayingmanylittleordetailedelementsofinformation
onsmallcomputerdisplaysfromsoftwarebasedsystems;however,acomputer
displaythatissimplyfilledwithablobofredcolortoshowabrokenbuildisin
thespiritofvisualmanagement.
Theseinformationradiatorsforvisualmanagementareapplicabletoproduct
development,servicedelivery,oranydomaintomakeinformationeasily
accessible.
Akanban(kanvisualsignal,bancardorboard)isusedintosignalapull
event(areplenishmentrequest)inapullsystem.Theclassicexampleisastore
withsomethingforsaleonashelf,suchasonepie.Behindthepieontheshelfis
anorangecardlabeledonepiethewithdrawkanban(card).Whenthepieis
eventuallytakenofftheshelfbyacustomer,thewithdrawkanbanisrevealedand
takentothebakerytogetanotherpietorefilltheshelf.Thisispossiblebecause
thereisonefinishedpieininventoryinthebakerywaitingforthisevent.
Alsoatthistime,acreationkanbanissenttothebakertostartingbakingone
morepie.Asinglepieispulledontotheshelfbythewithdrawkanban,ratherthan
piesbeingpushed.
Anerrordisplay(andon)isavisualaidinToyotatosignaldefectsinthings.
SelfdirectedworkThisisathemefoundineffectiveteamresearch.Noticethat
visualmanagementsupportsselfdirectedworkbecausepeoplecaneasilyseewhat
isgoingon,tocoordinate.Also,theworkofakanbancardisselfexplanatory,
suchasonepieorchangestyleofwebpage.
Visual Management for Queues in Knowledge Work
Queuesofphysicalthingsareeasyforpeopletoperceive,andtoperceiveasa
problem...Mygoodness,theresagiganticpileofStuffqueuingupoverthere!
Makinganymoneyfromthepile?Aretheredefectsinthere?Doesitneedtobe
combinedwithotherstuffbeforewecanshipit?Doweneedandwillwemake
moneywitheachandeveryiteminthepile?
Butwhataboutqueuesinknowledgework?
32
14Principles
InvisiblequeuesInmanyknowledgeworkdomains(andsomeservice
domains)therearealsoqueues,butbecausetheyareinvisible(usually,asbitsona
computerdisk)theyarenotseenasqueuesorkeenlyfeltasproblems.Abusiness
personwhohasinvestedtenmillioneurostocreateagiganticpileofpartially
doneStuffsittingonthefloorcanseeitandwillfeelthepainandurgencytogetit
moving.Butknowledgeworkerspeopledonotreallyseeandfeelthepainoftheir
queues.
Yet,theyarethere.QueuesofwastefulWIPordesigninprocess(DIP)
information,documents,andbitsonadisk.Invisiblequeues.PeopleinToyota
learneyesforwaste.Theylearntoseethingsaswastethattheyhadnot
considered,suchasinventoryqueuesofstuff.Similarly,knowledgeworkers
needalessonineyesforqueuessothattheycanstarttoperceivewhatisgoing
on,anddevelopasenseofurgencyaboutreducingqueuesizes.
Figure 1.7 lean visual management creates physical tokens, such as task cards on a
task board and paper charts on a wall, so that invisible queues can become tangible
really seen and felt
PhysicaltokenstoseequeuesTodevelopeyesforqueuesinanydomain
(service,engineering,...)andasenseofurgentattentiontothequeuesandWIP,
applyvisualmanagementwithphysicaltokens,suchascardsonawall.Why
physical?Puttingthesetasksintotodayscomputersdefeatsthepurposebecause
thesequeuesneedtobeeasilyandnoticeablyvisibleatalltimes,andtheyneedto
bebig.Storageintodayscomputers(forexample,inaspreadsheetlist)makes
themsmall,andnotalwaysvisible.Andhumanswithcountlesseonsof
evolutionaryinstinctworkingwithconcretethingsneedtoseeandfeeltangible
queues20.
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LeanPrimer
VisualmanagementtoseeandlimitWIPOneoftheleanwastesisWIP;as
withqueues,thisishardtoperceiveinknowledgeorserviceworkbecauseitis
oftenintangibleworkwithrelatedartifactshiddeninsidecomputers(suchas
documents).ExperimentwithawallarealabelledWIPandplaceworkcardsin
thatarea.PeopleorgroupscanestablishpoliciestolimittheWIP,suchas,no
morethan2itemsofWIP.Thevisualizationaidsthepolicy.
Toyotapeopleexecutetwokeyprocesseswell,(1)productdevelopmentand(2)
production.UniversityofMichiganresearchersdidathreeyearstudyofToyota
andNorthAmericancompaniesproductdevelopmenteffectiveness[LM06b].
Results?...
Forexample,theaveragedie21designtocompletedurationwasfivemonthsfor
Toyotaengineersandtwelvemonthsforthecompetition.Allthis,while
maintainingthelowestdevelopmenttosalesratioofanymajorautomotive
companyintheworld,duetotheeffectivenessoftheirdevelopmentpractices.
Howdotheydoit?Whatisafocusofleanproductdevelopment?Answer:
Outlearnthecompetition22
20.Physicaltokensareacriticalaspectofleanvisualmanagementthatisnotalways
appreciated.Somepeoplecreatesoftwaresystemsforvisualmanagementandmissthe
purposeofthevisceral,tangibledynamicofusingphysicaltokens.Someday,displays
willbewallsizeandonewillmovecomputerobjectswithphysicalgestures,
stimulatingthisvisceralresponse;thattechnologywillthennegatethispoint.
21.Adieisatemplateforstampingormoldingmetalorplasticparts.22.Coinedby
ToyotaproductdevelopmentresearcherDr.AllenWard.
34
Goal
Product
Development
14
Principles
Foundation
LeanProductDevelopment
WhenToyotadevelopedthehybridPrius,whatdidtheycreate?
thedesignofthecar(andimplementationofembeddedsoftware);in
developmenttheyhaveaknowledgevaluestreamtocreateaprofitableproduction
valuestream
knowledgeorinformationaboutcustomers,alternatives,...Lean
productdevelopment(LPD)focusesoncreatingmoreusefulknowledgeandlearn
ingbetterthanthecompetition.Also,leveragingthatknowledgeandnotwasting
thefruitsoftheeffortbyforgettingwhathasbeenlearned.Figure1.8andFigure
1.9illustratesomeoftheleanpracticestooutlearnthecompetitioninLPD;
followupsectionselaborateafewitems.More-Valuable, Lower-Cost Learning
Notallnewknowledgeorinformationisvaluable;theidealistocreate
economicallyusefulnewinformation[Reinertsen97].Thisischallengingbecause
itisadiscoveryprocessyouwinsome,youlosesome.Ageneralleanstrategy,
basedonasimpleinsightfrominformationtheory,istoincreasethevalueof
informationcreatedandlowerthecostofcreatingknowledge.Highervalue
informationSeveralideashelp.Forexample:
FocusonuncertainthingsChoosetoimplementandtestunclearor
riskythingsearly.Thevalueofthefeedbackishighpreciselybecausethe
outcomesarelesspredictablepredictablethingsdonotteachusmuch.
FocusonearlytestingandfeedbackInformationhasarealcostof
delay,whichisonereasonwhytestingonlyonceattheendofalongsequential
cyclemotivatedbythemisguidedlocaloptimizationofbelievingthatitwill
lowertestingcostsisalmostalwaysunskillful.Itcanbeverycostlytodiscover
duringstressperformancetesting,after18monthsofdevelopment,thatakey
architecturaldecisionwasflawed.Inleandevelopment,shortcycleswithearly
feedbackloopsarecritical;byimplementinglesspredictablethingsearlyandin
shortcyclesthatincludetesting,thecostofdelayisreduced. 23
23.Notethatreducingthecostofdelayofinformationinproductdevelopmentalmost
alwaysrequiresbuildingandtestingsomething.
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35
LeanPrimer
LowercostinformationTheIndirectBenefitsofReducingBatchSizeand
CycleTimesectiononpage27examineshowadoptingleanprinciplesendsup
reducingtheoverheadcostofprocesses.Infact,onecanbroadlylookatthese
methodsassucceedingbyloweringthecostofchangecompetingonagilityor
flexibility.Andthatincludesloweringthecostoflearning.Forexample:
Focusonlargescaletestautomationtolearnaboutdefectsandbehavior.The
costoffrequentlyreexecutingautomatedtestsisusuallyinsignificantincompar
isontothevaluableearlyfeedback.
Focusonfrequentorcontinuousintegrationtolearnaboutdefectsandlackof
synchronization.Andbyintegratingfrequentlyinsmallbatches,teamswilldrive
downtheaverageoverheadcostbythelakeandrockseffect.
Focusonmentoringfromexpertsandspreadingknowledgetoreducethecost
ofrediscovery.
Cadence
Workinginregularrhythmsorcadenceisaleanprinciple,bothinproductionand
development[Ward06].Asteadyheartbeat.Inleanproduction,itiscalledtakt
time.24Indevelopment,itiscalledcadence.Cadenceisapowerfulprinciplein
leanproductdevelopment,sothesubjectisexaminedinsomedetail...
Thereissomethingbasicandveryhumanaboutcadence:Peopleappreciateor
wantrhythmsintheirlivesandworkandappreciateorwantritualswithinthese
rhythms[Kerth01].Mostofusworkinacadenceofsevendayweeks.Thereisthe
Tuesdaymorningweeklymeetingritual.Andsoon.Simply,cadenceatwork
improvespredictability,planning,andcoordinating.Atadeeperlevel,itreflects
therhythmsbywhichweliveourlives.
24.taktrhythmicbeat(German)
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LeanProductDevelopment
Figure 1.8 how to outlearn the competition
New Knowledge
Data-Driven
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37
Cadence
Lean Product
Development Outlearn the Competition
Cross-Functional and Product Mindset
- people and teams emphasize cross- functional integration
- focus on product success over departmental or functional (e.g., test, design)
goals
Onepopularapproachtoimprovecadenceistimeboxing,afixedandusually
shortcycletimeofdevelopmentwork(suchasatwoweektimebox).Teamsare
expectedtodeliverordemonstratesomethingattheendofthefixedduration
ideallysomethingsmallandwelldoneratherthanlargeandpartiallydone.The
durationmaynotchange,butthescopeofworkcanvarytofitthetimebox.
Timeboxingisnotapanaceaforallknowledgeworkproblems,butithas
advantages:
Timeboxingenforcescadence.
Developmentworkisoftenfuzzyunbounded(orweaklybounded)work.
WhentheteamknowsthatthetimeboxendsonMarch15,itboundsthefuzzy
workandincreasesfocus.So,timeboxinglimitsscopecreep,limitsgoldplating,
andincreasesfocus.
Timeboxingreducesanalysisparalysis.
SupposeyouareinuniversityandhaveanassignmentdueonMonday.
Whendoyoustart?Formany,theansweris,ClosetoMonday.Thisiscalled
StudentSyndrome[Goldratt97]andtimeboxingisacounterbalance.
Ifteamsmustdeliversomethingwelldoneinexactlytwoweeks,the
wasteandineffectivenessincurrentwaysofworkingbecomepainfullyclear.
Timeboxingcreatesachangeforcetoimprovethelakeandrocks
improvementeffect.
Timeboxingsimplifiesscheduling.
Humansareprobablymoresensitivetotimevariationthantoscope
variationItwaslateisrememberedmorestronglythan,IthadlessthanI
wanted.Timeboxingreducestheerosionofconfidencethathappenspeoplesay,
yetagain,...maybeinonemoreweekitwillallbedone.Re-use Information
or Knowledge Inadditiontothelongtermshifttowardacultureofmentoringby
masterengineersandmanagerteacherstoreuseinformation,asimplesharing
toolcanhelp.Inourcoachingwehaveseenapatternthatthemoststickyor
successfultoolisawiki.SimplicityandaWeb2.0centrichypertextmodel
seemstowinoutoverolderdocumentcentrictools.
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39
LeanPrimer
Leanproductdevelopmentencouragesateamroom(orbigroombigenough
forateam)withoutinternalpartitionsorwalls,whereacrossfunctionalteam
worksandmeets,andtheentrepreneurialchiefengineersits.Wallsarecovered
withlargephysicaldisplaysofprojectandengineeringinformation,tosupport
visualmanagement.Theteamroomisincontrasttopeopleworkinginseparate
officesorcubicles
withcommunicationbarrierssuchaspartitionsbetweentheteammembers.Fora
moredetaileddiscussion,seetheVisualManagementforQueuesinKnowledge
Worksectiononpage32.
Entrepreneurial Chief Engineer with Business Control
Therearetwokeydomainsinproductcreation:marketingandtechnical.Inmost
productorganizationsthatwevisit,theleadershipforthesedomainsinsplit.For
example,aproductmanagementgroupthatisresponsibleforthebusinessgoals
andfeatureselection,whosemembersarenotmasterengineers.Toyotadoes
thingsdifferently.Theycombinemarketingandtechnicalleadershipinonegreat
entrepreneurialchiefengineerwithtoweringtechnicalexcellencewhoisalso
attunedtoandresponsibleforthebusinesssuccessofthenewproduct,andwho
understandsthemarket.25
Haveyouseendevelopmentasfollows?
1.pickorprototypeonesolutionordesign(oneuserinterface,onearchitecture,...)
2.evolveit3.deliver
25.Wehaveseensuccessfulproductswithproductmanagerswhoarenotmasterengi
neersthoughtheydoneedtobegreatproductmanagerswithdetailedknowledgeofthe
market,product,andexistingcustomers.
40
LeanProductDevelopment
Setbasedconcurrentengineeringisalsocalledsetbaseddesign,andis
different.Forexample,ratherthanoneengineerorteamcreatingonecooling
systemdesign,severalalternativesmaybeexploredatToyotainparallelby
differentteamsandsotooforothercomponents.Thesesetsofalternativesare
exploredandcombined,andgraduallyfilteredincycles,convergingonasolution
fromwhatwasatfirstalargesetofalternatives,thenasmallerset,andsoon.
Theyoutlearnthecompetitionbyincreasingalternativesandcombinations.
Astepinthisdirectionistoexploreatleasttwoalternativefornontrivialdesign
elementsduringdesignworkshops.Forexample,ratherthanallgatheringaround
onewallofwhiteboardsanddoingonedesignasoneteam,splitintotwogroups
andworkattwogiantwhiteboardsatoppositeendsoftheteamroom.Every30
minutesorsovisiteachotherswalldesignsandshowandtellcollecting
ideas.
Can Lean Production Lessons Help Development?
Newproductdevelopment(NPD)orresearchanddevelopmentisnotpredictable
repetitiveproduction(manufacturing),andtheassumptiontheyaresimilarisone
causeofthemisuseofearly1900smanufacturingeconomiesofscale
managementpracticesindevelopment;forexample,sequentialdevelopmentand
bigbatchtransfersofspecifications.
Yet,someoftheprinciplesandideasappliedinleanproductionincludingshort
cycles,smallbatches,stopandfix,visualmanagement,andqueueingtheoryare
successfullyappliedinleanproductdevelopment.Why?Modernleanproduction
isdifferent,thesmallbatches,queues,andcycletimesinpartreflectqueueing
theoryinsight(amongothersourcesofinsight)adisciplinethatwascreatedfor
thevariablebehaviorinnetworksthatismuchmorelikeproductdevelopment
thantraditionalmanufacturing.
Anironyinsomeproductorganizationsisthatthemanufacturingengineershave
revolutionizedandadoptedleanproduction,movingawayfromeconomiesof
scaletowardflowandflexibilityinsmallbatcheswithoutwaste.Butthese
lessonswhichfitwelltoNPDremainunusedbydevelopmentmanagement,
whocontinuetoapplypracticesfoundinoldereconomiesofscalemanufacturing
management.
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41
LeanPrimer
Allthatsaid,acaution:NPDisnotmanufacturing,andanalogiesbetweenthese
twodomainsarefragile.Unlikeproduction,NPDis(andmustbe)filledwith
discovery,change,anduncertainty.Somevariabilityisbothnormalanddesirable
innewproductdevelopment;otherwise,nothingnewisdone.Therefore,lean
thinkingincludesuniquepracticesforNPD.
CONCLUSION
Asyouinvestigateleanthinking,itiseasytoseethatitisabroadsystemthat
spansallgroupsandfunctionsoftheenterprise,includingproductdevelopment,
sales,production,service,andHR.Leanappliestotheenterprise.
Leanthinkingismuchmorethantoolssuchasvisualmanagementorqueue
management,ormerelyeliminationofwaste.AscanbeenseenatToyota,itisan
enterprisesystemrestingonthefoundationofmanagerteachersinleanthinking,
withthepillarsofrespectforpeopleandcontinuousimprovement.Itssuccessful
introductionwilltakeyearsandrequireswidespreadeducationandcoaching.To
requoteFujioCho,chairmanofToyota:
ManygoodAmericancompanieshaverespectforindividuals,andpracticekaizen
andother[lean]tools.Butwhatisimportantishavingalltheelementstogether
asasystem.Itmustbepracticedeverydayinaveryconsistentmanner...
CraigLarmanworksasamanagementconsultantfocusingonlargescaleprojects,
leanthinking,andmentalmodels.Heservedastheleandevelopmentcoachat
Xeroxforseveralyears.
BasVoddehasabackgroundinlargeembeddedsystemsproductcreation,and
leadingtheadoptionofagileandleanprinciplesandpracticesatNokiaNetworks.
Healsoworksasamanagementcoach,consultant,andasadevelopmentcoach.
42
LeanProductDevelopment
RECOMMENDED READINGS
Dr.JeffreyLikersTheToyotaWayisathoroughcogentsummaryfrom
aresearcherwhohasspentdecadesstudyingToyotaandtheirprinciplesandprac
tices.
InsidetheMindofToyotabyProfessorSatoshiHino.Hinospentmany
yearsworkinginproductdevelopment,followedbyanacademiccareer.Hinohas
spentmorethan20yearsresearchingthesubjectofthisbook.Thisisadata
drivenbookthatlooksattheevolutionandprinciplesoftheoriginalleanthinking
managementsystem.
ExtremeToyotabyOsono,Shimizu,andTakeuchiisawellresearched
analysisoftheToyotaWayvalues,contradictions,andculture,basedonsixyears
ofresearchand220interviews.ItincludesanindepthanalysisofToyotasstrong
businessperformance.
LeanProductandProcessDevelopmentbyAllenWardandTheToyota
ProductDevelopmentSystembyLikerandMorganareusefulforinsightsinto
developmentfromaleanperspective.
TheBirthofLean,editedbyShimokawaandFujimoto,conveysaclear
senseofthemindset,principles,culture,andpersonalitiesbehindleanthinking.
ToyotaCulturebyLikerandMichaelHoseus.Hoseushasworkedboth
asaplantmanagerandHRmanageratToyota,bringinganinsidersindepth
understandingtothisbookontheheartofwhatmakesaleanenterprisework.
LeanThinkingbyDrs.WomackandJonesisanentertainingandwell
writtensummaryofsomeleanprinciplesbyauthorswhoknowtheirsubjectwell.
Ascautionedearlier,itpresentsananecdotalandcondensedviewthatmaygive
thecasualreaderthewrongimpressionthattheessentialkeyofleaniswaste
reductionratherthanacultureofmanagerteacherswhounderstandleanthinking
andhelpbuildthepillarsofrespectforpeopleandcontinuousimprovementwith
GoSeeandotherbehaviors.
TheMachineThatChangedtheWorld:TheStoryofLeanProductionby
Womack,Jones,andRooswasbasedonafiveyearstudyatMITintoleanandthe
Toyotasystem.
WorkplaceManagementbyTaichiiOhnoisashortbookbythecreator
oftheToyotaProductionSystem.Itwasoutofprintbuthasbeenrecentlyre
translatedbyJonMillerandisnowavailable.Thebookdoesnottalkmuchabout
TPSbutitcontainsaseriesofshortchaptersthatshowwellhowTaichiiOhno
thoughtaboutmanagementandleansystems.
www.leanprimer.comCopyright(c)CraigLarman&BasVodde2009Allrightsreserved
43
LeanPrimer
BIBLIOGRAPHY
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LeanProductDevelopment
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www.leanprimer.comCopyright(c)CraigLarman&BasVodde2009Allrightsreserved
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LeanPrimer