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One of the highlights of my visit was sharing some of my Wiremold background and discussing lean moonshine with Karl Wadensten, VIBCO President, on the Lean Nation Radio Show.  I mentioned to Karl during the broadcast that being on the radio show was on my ‘lean bucket list’.  I’m grateful to VIBCO’s Linda Kleineberg for the invite…I had a blast.

Click to listen to the Lean Moonshine Podcast.

VIBCO is a shining example of a company that has successfully maneuvered over the ‘employee engagement’ hurdle by involving 100% of the employees in lean efforts with an amazing commitment to their ‘True North’.

Tom Southworth, a lean colleague from Connecticut, recently posted regarding a missing 13-year-old girl from Orange, CT.  This is a link to Tom’s blog where you can get further information. The girl’s name is Isabella Oleschuk, she has been missing since March 20, 2011.  As Tom commented on his blog, my hope and prayer is that Isabella is returned home safe.

Please call the Orange Police immediately (Orange, CT USA) at 203-891-2130 if you have any information regarding Isabella Oleschuk’s whereabouts as of March 20, 2011.

Missing Child - Orange, CT USA - Isabella Oleschuk

Great to see/hear the concerns of many lean friends regarding Japan.  Many of us have professional contacts and friends that spend significant time traveling around the island.  My family just received word that a relative who lives in Tokyo is OK.  Humbling to hear reports of what living (and trying to sleep) on the 19th floor of a Tokyo high-rise is like, with frequent aftershocks causing the building to sway.

A couple nice lean links with our Japan friends, contacts, and family in mind:

• http://www.leanblog.org/2011/03/donations-for-japan-earthquake-relief/

• http://www.evolvingexcellence.com/blog/2011/03/a-little-prayer-might-help.html

Now…I read an interesting write-up by Dr Josef Oehmen, a research scientist at MIT,  which details his take on the Fukushima nuclear reactor incident. Warning – it’s a lengthy read, but gives relevant info on how reactors are built.

[As I'm typing this post: FoxNews Alert - Yumiko Ono (Wall Street Journal) via phone reporting NEW blast at Fukushima site...wow, how's that for timing?  First thing she reports, "...not a lot of information being given."]

As I mentioned earlier, news about the Japan disaster is plentiful.  Having recently expanded my interest in the area of news reporting; I am fascinated by the fact (no pun intended) that much of what is reported, is NOT based on any fact(s) or reliable source.  As a matter of fact (sorry), you might say a new hobby of mine is trying to track-down who was responsible for initiating the news outbreak and comparing the original information with what is later chopped and diced into bite-sized pieces for our viewing/reading pleasure.

Remember the whispering game, ‘Telephone’?  Amazing what we can turn stuff into if we’re not careful.

The link I provided to Dr. Oehmen’s write-up was actually the 2nd link I was ‘sent’.  The 1st link sent me to this WordPress blog.  If you scroll down to the very end of this 1st version, you’ll find this bullet:

This all is only part of a much bigger picture. Emergency response has to deal with shelter, drinking water, food and medical care, transportation and communication infrastructure, as well as electricity supply. In a world of lean supply chains, we are looking at some major challenges in all of these areas.

And once again, lean takes a hit.  Not properly understood…at all.  (The bullet was omitted on the bravenewclimate.com site for some reason)

Didn’t take long to find more.  Read this comment from Benjamin. Lots of opportunities to share a better view of lean.  Lots of opportunities.

Apparently, we Connecticut folk are getting pretty good at growing and selling things like wheat and soybeans.  One little issue however…we don’t.

We don’t what, you ask?  Grow and sell wheat or soybeans.  Not in large enough quantities to justify even a teeny mention in any U.S. Department of Commerce report on state exports anyway.  Unless you’re the Department of Commerce.  Confused?  Read the article.

Two things I learned from listening to Dr. Deming back in ’93 immediately came to mind after I read the article and did a little research:

1. Break down barriers between departments (from Deming’s 14 key principles)
2. “By what method?” (common saying and teaching concept of Dr. Deming)

It should come as no surprise (God bless you if it does) that the U.S. government is composed of, among other things, hundreds of departments and agencies.  A brief visit to the USA.gov website, shows you the only letters from the English alphabet spared from beginning the name of one such organization (their term, not mine) are Q, X, Y, and Z.

In an attempt to keep from hopping down an unproductive rabbit trail, I will not comment here on what I feel would be a better number of departments or agencies…perhaps another post.  I will mention however, that it is quite apparent to me that there is not a whole lot of communication happening between these groups, and that opens things up for some wholesome reminders on what can occur when we allow irrational and/or improper thinking to fog our lean minds.

“Show me the data”.

Sounds so good, doesn’t it?  We’re the chosen few who have been taught that real solutions are only possible when we can see and hold the data.  We gather the data, we sort the data.  Then, my personal favorite, we create pivot tables.  A few clicks later, out spits what we think is the correct answer.

“Garbage in, garbage out”.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for data driven processes; but unless we validate any data we see by physically going to the place it was gathered from, we run the risk of being driven to nothing but frustration or confusion.  Even worse, we buy into misrepresentations of the truth.

As stated in the article, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce, the #2 export from Connecticut was wheat.  Wheat!  Coming in at #5 was soybeans.  Maybe the headings on the excel spreadsheet were screwed up and we got switched with Iowa?  #6 on their list was oil.  If the crises in Egypt, Libya, and other neighboring countries were not in full swing, I could start a new comedy stand-up career on that one.

I live in the gemba called Connecticut.  I’ve spent over 30 years of my life ‘in the CT gemba’.  You can drive from one corner of our beautiful state to any other within two hours.  You’ll see lots of hay fields, but not any wheat fields.  You’ll drive past quaint grist mills here and there, none of which are currently in production mode, due to the fact that wheat hasn’t been grown in large quantities in CT since 1830 (see the article).  Every so often, one of the local mills puts on a demonstration showing how wheat was ground into flour.  I don’t think we include any of the resulting product in our annual report of state exports though.  Besides, they buy the wheat at Walmart and I think it comes from Canada.  That shouldn’t count, should it?

Driving through Connecticut, you will see a few small patches of soybeans.  Emphasis on the word small.  You sure as heck won’t see any oil rigs.  Not even next to a Walmart.

All kidding aside, it boggles my mind at how messed up data can be reported from very large institutions.  I think it’s safe to say that when information conflicts with other information from within our own organization, there’s opportunity to eliminate some waste.

For example, if the Dept. of Commerce had access to the Dept. of Agriculture’s (USDA) reports on state export data for the past 5 years, neatly broken out by state and commodity group I might add, they would have quickly realized that perhaps there’s an error in one or more of their pivot tables…at least regarding the state of Connecticut.

From the USDA report:  Commodity group – Wheat.  State – Connecticut.

• 2005 exports: 0.0
• 2006 exports: 0.0
• 2007 exports: 0.0
• (sensing a trend?)
• 2008: 0.0
• 2009: 0.0

As Terri Long, data dissemination specialist at the Commerce Department so wonderfully concluded in the article; “Interesting. Wow.”

Commodity group – Soybeans.  State – Connecticut.

• 2005 exports: 0.0
• 2006 exports: 0.0
• 2007 exports: 0.0
• (hmm…)
• 2008: 0.0
• 2009: 0.0

What’s great about the USDA data is the consistency.  No need to carry any decimal points or divide by the square root of pi.  I came out with a nice clean standard deviation…did you?  And I bet you didn’t even use a pivot table.

Also, their data holds a tight correlation to what you actually see being produced around the state; feed grains (hay, etc.) and broad leaf tobacco for example.

So how did the Dept. of Commerce manage to come up with numbers so far off from their colleagues at the USDA?  Glenn Barressey, chief of the special projects branch in Foreign Trade, offered his views (stunning as they are) regarding some of the issues:

1. “Maybe the owner of a warehouse in Connecticut accepts shipments of soybeans from states that grow it, and then sends those combined shipments to another state before they leave the country.  The Commerce Department relies on the paperwork exporters fill out about origin of movement. Could someone have reported the wrong state? Absolutely.”
2. (Barressey acknowledges it’s just a guess)  “You’re introducing logic to a situation where sometimes logic doesn’t work.”
3. (Near the end of the article)  “We can’t really tell whether exports from a state are increasing at all.”
4. (In conclusion) “I completely agree, we have that problem with a lot of states,” he said. “It can be misleading.”

With comments like that, I’m simply left with but one thought; “what the heck (revised thanks to WordPress spellcheck) is the value of the Commerce Dept. report?  It can be misleading?!  Shame on me for trying to introduce logic, I guess.

The sad fact is, this kind of fodder (sorry) causes damage.  As Mara reported in her article,

When the government reported last month that Connecticut exports increased by almost 15 percent in 2010, state economic development officials were delighted.

A few news outlets reported that the value of the state’s exports was over $16 billion, more than recovering what was lost during the recession.

Then we all spend countless days and weeks calculating and recalculating the figures, trying to make sense out of data that leaves us thinking, “We can’t really tell whether exports from a state are increasing at all.”

I can’t help but think there’s more than a few ‘number crunching folks’ deep within the walls of our state government buildings trying to figure out exactly where the error is in the pivot table.

While I’m almost certain those involved upfront in pursuing such a worthwhile endeavor agreed that the improvements were needed to keep the business thriving, I’m not so sure they were all on the same page.

Excuse me...how much for the Plus?

Apparently, the Extended Weather Canopy Dept. was not properly synchronized with the folks responsible for Visual Management.

Don’t worry everyone…it probably looks OK from the street, where drivers will be viewing our shiny new sign from, as they decide in 1.2 seconds or less whether to pull in…or not.

How long has that telephone pole been there?

Crap.  At least they’ll know we’re charging $3 something…

Isn’t that the way things end up when we focus on just getting things done…rather than focusing on the PROCESS?

Too often I hear stories from lean leaders about how management is simply interested in getting things done.  “Never mind worrying about the standard work…just get me the Value Stream Map!”  Huh?

As lean leaders, part of our responsibility is informing management that silly pursuits, such as the one just mentioned, do not lead to anything sustainable.

I can already hear the comments…”Excuse me Mr. ThinkShack, I’ve been there and done that.  My boss is only interested in results.”

He or she should be. That’s what implementing lean ideas is all about…isn’t it?

Some questions are in order.  Why bother?…

• measuring takt time
• work on reducing cycle time
• documenting standard work
• shaving 5 or 6 seconds off that setup time
• posting that shiny new piece of visual management

If we don’t have a PROCESS and the proper METRICS in place to showcase results, good or bad, we lose our way and folks start focusing on just getting things done.  No vision, no plan, no teamwork…just get it done.

The bad news is, it seems to work for a while.  After all, everyone’s busy.  That’s good, isn’t it?  “Look at all the projects we’ve got lined up.”  “Isn’t Bob doing a great job on the weather canopy?!”  “Yeah, and I hear the new sign is ready to go up tomorrow!”

And we look across the street and watch all the people pumping gas.  Sad.

What process do you have in place that enables everyone you work with to consistently achieve great results?

How simple is the process?  How long does it take for newcomers to join the fun?

According to those you work with…Is it fun?

I remember telling this fact to a school teacher of mine (when I was young and naive), but never could quite get the story to be told in the ‘proper’ way.

“My mom and dad got married on the same day I was born”, I told my teacher.  Although I was telling the truth by stating what I knew to be an obvious fact, the message I was trying to convey was not being heard in the context mom and dad would have preferred.

“Oh…really?…Stevie”, would be the normal reply.  “Well I guess that makes you a special little boy, now doesn’t it, Stevie?”

Darn straight I’m special.

Mom, and especially dad, always loved me most due to the fact I was born ‘just in time’ before the end of the year (I was destined to wind up working in the field of lean).  They only had to deal with me for just a day or two, before claiming me as a tax write-off for the entire year.  No offense to my brother or sisters…facts are facts.

For the record, I was born Dec. 30, 1964.  My parents were married Dec. 30, 1961.  “See teacher?…I was born on the same day my parents got married!”.

Isn’t that just how some of our communications get messed up when we’re trying to teach lean?  Or anything else for that matter!  We think we’re saying all the right words, or providing the right training; but something goes awry in the translation.

As we head into 2011, let’s make sure the message we’re working so hard to proclaim is received clearly.  There’s nothing magical here.  Just remember in order to present a clear message you need:

1. a clear mission - what exactly do you want your audience to learn?  How big is the scope of knowledge you wish to unveil during this opportunity to learn?  Knowing the answers to these simple questions will allow you to include all the right stuff, and keep out the things you don’t need.
2. a clear vision – think of your audience.  Is there anything that needs to be better understood before you pursue the mission?  Don’t be afraid to ask your audience questions.  Are we alright?  OK to proceed? Knowing your audience is ready for the mission gives you a confidence boost and allows you to deliver the message with conviction.
3. a clear strategy - don’t assume having a clear vision means your audience is ready for everything you’ve got!  Let them know how you plan on unfolding the mission.  Yes…I said plan!  Plan out ahead – How many steps or sections should the material be divided into?  What’s the best order to communication these steps?  Answering these straightforward questions helps provide a clean outline to follow.

Since the holidays are in full swing and we’re so close to New Year’s, I’ll throw in a lean communication bonus tip – Use the PDCA cycle to improve your communication skills.  Plan a clear strategy as described above.  Do your best to communicate the ‘mission’ by presenting a clear strategy and vision.  Check with some (or all) of your audience soon after your presentation.  Ask what could make your message and methods better.  Act on your audience’s suggestions!  Experiment with implementing the feedback you get.

You might be surprised at how clear your communication becomes.

Have any stories (lean, or other) that involve mixed-up communication?  I’d love to hear them!  Have more tips on better communication?  Share them with a comment!

theThinkShack’s very first post, written in May 2010, was Lean Baseball – Playing For Keeps.

I just re-read the post and still feel the message is worth promoting and still relevant (still 3-0, now in the 8th inning.)  With theThinkShack being a new blog on the lean block, this first post never received any comments.  I’m hoping things can be different the second time around.

Any thoughts? (Update…now 4-0, bottom of the 8th)

Phase I of my dream was, of course, the planning stage.  Not wanting to take this step lightly, I committed serious time to ensuring every potential situation being painstakingly thought out and debugged.  Five minutes later, my list of required provisions was complete:

1. Assortment of snacks (my assumption was this may be a lengthy trip)
2. A flashlight (for traveling at night – this would enable me to make good time)
3. A compass (I knew I needed to keep heading North)

Looking back, I’m glad I never made the trip.  I can’t quite recall what stopped me from pursuing such a noble task…maybe when I woke up I realized it was a school day.  Regardless, I likely would have been very cold and traversing Northern Canada would have proven a significant challenge.

Lean thinking can no longer be categorized as a new ideal.  Lean manufacturing concepts, considered to be cutting edge in the 80′s & 90′s, have spread globally at a steady pace; paving the way for today’s lean thinking frontiers such as healthcare, service delivery, and project management.

With this vast history of lean implementation trial and error now fading from view in the rearview mirror, one would think we have amassed enough data points along the lean journey curve to avoid the unsuccessful attempts we witness today.

I’m amazed at just how many organizations still view a lean implementation strategy as a ‘one-time’ event:

1. Assortment of snacks (the kick-off meeting should be entertaining and appeal to a wide audience)
2. A slide show (magical beams of light to keep everyone focused)
3. Unveil the ‘Lean Compass’ (announce we’re heading True North)
4. Done

Sound and/or look familiar?  Where are we heading?

It is hard to believe there are managers, directors, VP’s & CEO’s still today that believe if they hand someone (or a newly developed team of ‘A-players’) a lean compass (metaphor) with the directive of leading the masses from point A to point B arriving at the promised land of reduced costs, better productivity, and improved customer service that the person or group will actually succeed long-term.  Toys for everyone, and we all live happily ever after.

After devoting nearly twenty years of my career to lean thinking and having the good fortune to work alongside some very talented folks implementing lean ideas, I would like to uncover the two major reasons I’ve found as to why this strategy so often fails, rather than succeed:

1. You’re on your own – this is what you or the group realize after being handed the compass as you step out into the cold, then watch the manager, director, VP or CEO retreat into the warmth of their office.  This action has the following consequences:
   1. Other folks in the organization now have a choice.  Support new lean efforts, oftentimes in cold (difficult, unclear, uncertain) conditions with little help and visibility from management OR retreat into the warmth of their busy schedules.
   2. You end up spending (wasting) too much of your time providing reports, presentations, and status updates to all those who sit by the fires of unaccountability and non-respectfulness RATHER THAN spending time implementing value-added ideas.
2. Those responsible for handing you the compass think the journey ends – lean thinking is supported by two pillars; Respect For People and Continuous Improvement.  It’s not about getting from point A to the North Pole.

I believe with serious conviction that the difference between successfully implementing lean anywhere and failure, involves just one simple thing…

Changing your thinking.

Do you know why you can’t find Santa’s workshop using a compass?  He wisely built it at the geographic North Pole.  A compass always points to the magnetic North Pole.  Yes, there’s a difference, and the magnetic North Pole (along with the South Pole) keeps moving.  Don’t believe me?  Read all about it here…maybe it will help start the process of changing your thinking.

Leaders today who think they can simply hand someone a compass to get to the ‘lean North Pole’ set themselves and their organizations up for failure.  Customer needs and economic conditions are moving targets that require and challenge us to continually readjust our lean efforts to better match those we serve.  Lean will always be about a continuous journey.  Long-term success is only guaranteed when those under our authority have our full respect and know they are not in it alone.  Working together we can accomplish anything that comes our way.

Who knows…we may even get a tour of Santa’s workshop.  Dare to dream.

PDCA…Plan, Do, Check, Act

I like the PDCA cycle for three reasons:

• It’s simple
• It provides a pathway for teaching
• It works

I love teaching. For me, seeing the light bulb over a lean student’s head illuminate for the first time is highly rewarding. Because of this disposition, early years of my lean journey were filled with many moments of frustration. If co-workers entrusted to me by management did not become fully engaged with the topics at hand, training sessions would lack enough enthusiasm to gain success. Without proper training and understanding of key concepts, lean initiatives would oftentimes stagnate. As a lean leader, this trend became personal…a little learning only gives a little reward.

During my years of learning, sharing, and teaching lean concepts, these situations led me to an important discovery. Not everyone asked to become part of a lean transformation is personally on-board …especially at the beginning.

Thinking through this over time, I found that my teaching/coaching success could be greatly increased by purposefully ‘tweaking’ what I was teaching so it could be absorbed by those involved personally.

To help illustrate the idea, here’s how I best relate to the PDCA cycle:

PLAN: Can I be honest? I’m not very good at planning…at least in the way I’ve been forced to plan projects throughout my career. Too much office time…I need to be in the trenches. For me, planning is better understood as Scale or Shape. I PLAN best by making a simple SKETCH.

DO: Now we’re talking. Skip plan, let’s DO something! What does DO mean to me? Perform, Persist, Practice, Pursue? Maybe…but I get more things done when I’m having fun. I’d rather PLAY.

CHECK: Seems too easy. We all know the importance of measuring what we’re trying to improve. Inspect and Investigate. Lots of things to look at, including people involved. In order to CHECK what people are doing, I need to INQUIRE.

ACT: Not the final act! The process only works if we keep going through the cycle. Numbers are set, and we Negotiate. That’s fine, but unless I NOURISH what’s been discovered, the cycle stops.

My personal ‘SPIN’ on the PDCA cycle: Sketch, Play, Inquire, Nourish. Those four words I relate to personally…so I enjoy going through the process again and again.

Sometimes life is easier when you’re dizzy.

What’s your SPIN?

This lean PDCA story was originally shared on the Lean Career Compass, a private and professional platform that is free to those actively involved in lean transformation.