I would like call call your attention to a small (98 page) but important book that I co-authored called Kaizen Forever: Teachings of Chihiro Nakao.
While few in pages, the book is a giant in delivering to readers the mindset that created Toyota’s Production System and their overall management system. Â Mr. Nakao co-founded the Shingijutsu Company in 1987 at the behest of Taiichi Ohno to teach the principles and practices of the Toyota Production System to a wider audience. He has over 50 years of of genba kaizen experience. Nakao-san is an amazing teacher.
So, why should you care out this book, which might seem to you to be irrelevant to teaching. No so! Nakso-san’s teachings are relevant to what we do as professors, in the classroom, in service work, and in research too. The book is also highly relevant to improving administrative processes.
My formal training with Shingijutsu began when I worked in industry in the mid-1990s and ended in the late 199s. I lost touch with them for some years, until recently. Based on what I learned from Shingijutsu kaizen consultants 20 years ago, along with my more recent interactions with Nakao-san to produce this book, it has inspired me to think more deeply about how to improve my teaching and create better learning outcomes for students.
Kaizen Forever will give you a much better understanding of kaizen and give you dozens and dozens of practical teachings on how to improve the work that you do as a professor or administrator – from department chair to president to trustees. I hope you are curious to learn more.