Below is a summary of my significant original contributions to the body of Lean knowledge as author or co-author. My primary focus has been Lean leadership and Lean management, as well as Lean in higher education, Lean in supply chain management, and the history of progressive management. It includes the best book ever written on Lean transformation and the most thorough and detailed analysis ever written on why most leaders reject Lean management. These contributions are written from a perspective unlike any other author, informed by my work as a Lean practitioner, professor of Lean management, executive trainer, and long-time student of TPS and Lean. Click here to view my curriculum vitae.
Books (n = 21)
- Irrational Institutions: Business, Its Leaders, and The Lean Movement
- Eliminating Waste in Teaching: Timeless Lessons for Improving Teaching and Training
- The Triumph of Classical Management Over Lean Management: How Tradition Prevails and What to Do About It
- Conversations with Taiichi Ohno: Management Insights for the Digital Age
- Critique of Lean: Pathway to Improvement
- Speed Leadership: A Better Way To Lead In Rapidly Changing Times
- Shingijutsu-Kaizen: The Art of Discovery and Learning
- Lean Is Not Mean: 68 Practical Lessons in Lean Leadership
- Lean University: A Guide to Renewal and Prosperity
- Lean Teaching: A Guide to Becoming a Better Teacher
- Kaizen Forever: Teachings of Chihiro Nakao
- Moving Forward Faster: The Mental Evolution from Fake Lean to REAL Lean
- REAL LEAN: Unsolved Problems in Lean Management, Volume 6
- REAL LEAN: Strategies for Lean Management Success, Volume 5
- Principles of Mass and Flow Production: Special 55th Anniversary Reprint Edition
- REAL LEAN: Learning the Craft of Lean Management, Volume 4
- REAL LEAN: The Keys to Sustaining Lean Management, Volume 3
- Practical Lean Leadership: A Strategic Leadership Guide for Executives
- REAL LEAN: Critical Issues and Opportunities in Lean Management, Volume 2
- REAL LEAN: Understanding the Lean Management System, Volume 1
- Better Thinking, Better Results: Case Study and Analysis of an Enterprise-Wide Lean Transformation
Book Chapter (n = 1)
“Ohno’s Insights on Human Nature” in Taiichi Ohno’s Workplace Management: Special 100th Birthday Edition
Peer-Reviewed Research Papers (n = 25)
- “Engaging Faculty in Lean Teaching,” International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, Vol. 6, Issue 1, 2015
- “Henry Gantt: Lean Before There Was Lean,” Lean Management Journal, Volume 4, Issue 7, September 2014, pp. 12-13
- “Music as a Framework to Better Understand Lean Leadership,” Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 34, Issue 5, 2013, pp. 407-426
- “Lean and the HMRC,” Management Services: Journal of the Institute of Management Services, Vol. 55, No. 4, Winter 2011, pp. 13-15
- “The History of Flow,” Lean Management Journal, September-October 2011, pp. 28-31
- “Frank George Woollard: Forgotten Pioneer of Flow Production,” Journal of Management History, Volume 17, Issue 1, 2011, pp. 66-87
- “Standardized Work for Executive Leadership,” Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 29, No. 1, 2008, pp. 24-46
- “Improving Management Education,” Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 14, No. 4, 2006, pp. 363-384
- “Origins of Lean Management in America: The Role of Connecticut Businesses,” Journal of Management History, Vol. 12, No. 2, 2006, pp. 167-184
- “Leaders Lost in Transformation,” Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 26, No. 5, 2005, pp. 370-387
- “Using Kaizen to Improve Graduate Business School Degree Programs,” Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 13, No. 1, 2005, pp. 37-52
- “Using Value Stream Maps to Improve Leadership,” Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 25, No. 8, 2004, pp. 622-645
- “Improving Business School Courses by Applying Lean Principles and Practices,” Quality Assurance in Education, Vol. 12, No. 4, 2004, pp. 175-187
- “Is Management Education Beneficial to Society?,” Management Decision, Vol. 42, No. 3/4, 2004, pp. 481-498
- “Linking Leaders’ Beliefs to Their Behaviors and Competencies,” Management Decision, Vol. 41, No. 9, 2003, pp. 893-910
- “A Mathematical Logic Approach to the Shareholder vs. Stakeholder Debate,” Management Decision, Vol. 39, No. 8, 2001, pp. 618-622
- “Redefining the Focus of Investment Analysts,” The TQM Journal, Vol. 13, No. 1, 2001, pp. 34-50
- “The False Promise of ‘What Gets Measured Gets Managed’,” Management Decision, Vol. 38, No. 9, 2000, pp. 612-615
- “The Oath of Management,” Management Decision, Vol. 38, No. 4, 2000, pp. 261-262
- “Cracking the Code of Business,” Management Decision, Vol. 38, No. 2, 2000, pp. 60-79
- “Supporting Small Businesses in their Transition to Lean Production,” Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 5, No. 2, 2000, pp. 66-70
- “The Making of a Lean Aerospace Supply Chain,” Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 4, No. 3, 1999, pp. 135-144
- “Lean Behaviors,” Management Decision, Vol. 36, No. 9, 1998, pp. 615-631
- “Continuous Personal Improvement,” Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol. 10, No. 1, 1998, pp. 29-38
Insightful Blog Posts (n = 590+)
Workshops for Leaders and Corporate Event Speaking
Wow!
Thank you Bob!
Bill Bryant
You’re welcome. It’s been a wonderful 20 year experience of Lean catchball: Daily kaizen, teaching, studying, and writing.
Such a large body of work and always giving an advanced perspective different from the mainstream universities and training companies are giving — not just repeating what others have said already but really picking out the parts that are most relevant to the world of work in the 21st Century.
Thank you John. I’m glad you recognize my efforts to be an independent voice offering unique perspectives, and focusing on the parts of TPS and Lean that people struggle with the most.
Hi Bob,
Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge. This is what real mentors do! You are an example for others to follow – a true Leader
Bob, outstanding and so much needed contribution – thanks for keeping the Lean community honest!
Thanks Ovi. Keeping the Lean community honest is a necessary but thankless task.