Hello Lean Leadership Nation!

I am really excited about today's guest! We always have awesome guests on the podcast that challenge me and hopefully you to become better leaders and to improve our thought process around leadership. Today's guest did exactly that. Today we are joined by Glenn Uminger, Principal at Uminger and Associates, and a retired Toyota Executive with 27 years of experience in multiple roles throughout the enterprise. Starting in 2012, Glen was Toyota’s Executive in Residence, University of Kentucky, where he led the Lean Systems Program which supports companies working to improve their understanding and application of Lean. He has worked with Leadership of numerous organizations from various industries. He continues to serve as a key advisor to the program.

Today you will here Glenn and I discuss various topics like:
The need to spend time IN your operation
Learning cycles and improving from the learning
Seeing beyond processes that seem to work well but face new challenges
The benefits of having points of control closest to the people in the operation.
The roles between lean and six sigma

Glenn will be one of the speakers at the upcoming Summit on Lean Leadership in Atlantic Beach, FL Oct 5-6.
Favorite Lean Quote:

Setback in their Lean Journey:
Glenn shares with us a moment when he was part of a startup when the principles of a lean management system didn't quite fit the practices of their long distance supply chain. He also talks about how they were able to look ahead and see the potential obstacles and work those into the learning cycles.
Lean “A-Ha!” Moment:
Glenn shares with us a story about how he saw the power of point of control in the operation in the lean management system.
Advice for the person starting out with Lean/Continuous Improvement:

Advice for the journeyman professional in Lean/Continuous Improvement:

Book Recommendation:
Theory Z by William Ouchi

Toyota Production System: Beyond Large Scale Production by Taiichi Ohno

 

 
Interview Links:
 

Connect with Glenn on Twitter

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