Thursday, February 26, 2009

Leadership Lessons from Lean Manufacturing

I have been learning more about Lean Manufacturing at work and was introduced to the booklet The Toyota Way as part of the training. The booklet describes the 14 principles of the Toyota Production System also known as Just In Time Production. This corporate philosophy may be a key reason for the success of Toyota.

In looking at the 14 principles, I was struck by how many of them were focused around good leadership. The very first principle, "Base your management decisions on a long-term philosophy, even at the expense of short-term financial goals," emphasizes the importance of having and following a strong vision. Building a strong vision is the first principle of a good leadership approach.

I am always amazed at what I find when I look for lessons outside my normal scope. Take some time to learn some leadership lessons in the 14 Principles of the Toyota Production System.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

I like Womack & Jones better as an intro to lean, because of the examples.

Ken Flowers said...

Thanks for the pointer. The value that The Toyota Way has from being short is also a weakness.

Anonymous said...

Hi.

I read a same topic 2 month ago. The topic helps me to improve my competency.

Apart from that, below article also is the same meaning

Lean manufacturing terms

Tks again and nice keep posting
rgs

Ken Flowers said...

Thanks for visiting, John.