Lean Transformation

What is it?

Lean Transformation is a systematic approach to acquiring and applying a shared way of thinking within an organization. It does not start with a list of tools to change the way things are done. It starts with a change in the way everyone in a company thinks about what they do, how they do it and why it matters. It proceeds from there to permeate and change the whole business, from the boardroom to the last link in the supply chain. Ultimately, lean is a human system, not just a collection of tools, that governs how you run a business now and into the future.

Lean is about a set of rules that provides the lens for how an organization looks at every activity, every connection and every flow path. Lean is also about a set of beliefs and common thinking that drives behavior toward a desired result. The formula is simple: "thinking (beliefs) drive behaviors and behaviors determine results". The goal of any lean transformation is to provide the experiences that establish those beliefs. For example, waste walks by senior management are experiences that would lead people to believe that waste elimination is important and leadership is committed.

A transformation (defined by Webster's as "change the nature, function and condition of; convert") is about growing and sustaining a change. Ultimately, it is a collection of "lean experiences" that will mold the lean transformation. Unfortunately, many companies have failed on this journey because they only recognize lean as the application of popular, and often very effective, tools and don't recognize that lean is truly a human system and the tools are simply aids to support that system.