My guest for Episode #529 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Scott Gauvin , CEO of Macresco and co-creator of the Respect for People Roadmap . Episode page with video, transcript, and more With 30 years of experience leading operational transformations across sectors including biotech, pharma, agriculture, and manufacturing, Scott brings both a systems mindset and a people-first philosophy to his work. His journey into Lean began with frustration over leadership that blamed people rather tha...
Jun 25, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Season 1Ep. 529
My guest for Episode #528 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mark Reich , a Senior Lean Coach with the Lean Enterprise Institute and former Toyota leader with over two decades of experience. Episode page with video, transcript, and more Mark spent six years working in Japan, including helping launch the Lexus brand and later leading Hoshin Kanri strategy processes during Toyota's rapid growth in North America. He also played a pivotal role at the Toyota Supplier Support Center (TSSC), helpin...
Jun 11, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 528
My guest for Episode #527 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Dave Fitzpatrick , co-founder of Zenkai Improvement Partners and a 30-year resident of Japan. Dave brings a unique perspective as a Canadian Lean practitioner who has worked extensively in both manufacturing and healthcare, guiding international leaders on immersive study experiences throughout Japan. Episode page with video, transcript, and more In this episode, Dave and I share details about a new collaboration we're leading toge...
May 13, 2025•27 min•Season 1Ep. 527
My guest for Episode #526 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Bill Canady , a seasoned global business executive, U.S. Navy veteran, and current CEO of Arrowhead Engineered Products. Bill has led over 30 operating companies and thousands of employees across the industrial and consumer products landscape. Formerly CEO of OTC Industrial Technologies, he helped drive impressive growth-boosting revenues by 43% and earnings by 78%. Bill is also the author of The 80/20 CEO and the upcoming From Pan...
Apr 09, 2025•57 min•Season 1Ep. 526
My guest for Episode #525 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Christopher R. Chapman . He's an experienced agile coach and consultant with a background in software development and agile transformation. Episode page with video, transcript, and more Since founding Derailleur Consulting in 2010, he has guided teams and leaders in adopting agile frameworks like Scrum and Kanban while integrating applied systems thinking inspired by Deming and other thought leaders. Christopher is also known for c...
Mar 19, 2025•59 min•Season 1Ep. 525
My guest for Episode #524 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is John Willis , an accomplished IT management expert with over 45 years of experience. His extensive body of work includes contributions to Deming's Journey to Profound Knowledge and co-authoring The DevOps Handbook . See video, transcript, and more Hosts a podcast that I was recently on, " Profound ." John focuses his current research on DevOps, DevSecOps, IT risk, modern governance, and audit compliance. Over the course of his care...
Mar 12, 2025•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 524
My guest for Episode #523 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mike Eisenberg . He's been a filmmaker since 2010 with his production company, Tall Tale Productions , after completing his B.A. in Journalism at Marietta College in Ohio. Episode page with video, transcript, and more Mike’s father, Dr. John Eisenberg, was a leader in national patient safety efforts as the director of the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality (AHRQ) until his passing in 2002. His legacy is prevalent througho...
Feb 20, 2025•48 min•Season 1Ep. 523
Episode page with video, transcript, and more My guest for Episode #522 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jacquie Maupin. She joins the podcast to discuss her upcoming workshop at the Healthcare Systems Process Improvement Conference (HSPI) hosted by the Society for Health Systems. She and her co-presenter, Lauren Todd from HCA Healthcare, will lead a session titled " From Analysis to Action: Bridging the Gap with Effective Presentations " on February 19. This interactive workshop is design...
Feb 13, 2025•45 min•Ep. 522
Here's a musical holiday treat for my regular Lean Blog readers and podcast listeners, a song parody, originally released in 2009... remastered a bit in 2022. https://www.leanblog.org/2022/12/gemba-claus-comin-town-song/ Gemba Claus is Comin' to Town Lyrics by Mark Graban Performance by Steve Sholtes Oh, you'd better watch out You'd better kaizen You'd better not pout, I'm tellin' ya then Gemba Claus is comin' to town He's making a list Just checking it once Doin' it twice would waste a whole bu...
Dec 20, 2024•1 min
Welcome to this bonus session of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast , originally recorded as a LinkedIn Live event! In this conversation, I partnered with Rebecca Michalik from AME Australia to discuss my upcoming workshops in Australia and New Zealand in March 2025 . Episode page with video, transcript, and more We’ll dive into key themes like psychological safety as a foundation for continuous improvement and how to make smarter use of performance metrics through process behavior charts. Even if...
Dec 11, 2024•37 min
My guest for Episode #521 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is José R. Ferro, PhD , a Senior Advisor with the Lean Enterprise Institute and the Founder and President, Lean Institute Brasil. Episode page with video, transcript, and more By founding Lean Institute Brasil in 1999 to disseminate the principles and practices of lean thinking to Brazilian companies, Ferro helped catalyze a global movement to establish lean institutes in other countries, which ultimately grew into the Lean Global Net...
Dec 04, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 521
My guest for Episode #520 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Bill Remy , CEO of TBM Consulting . Episode page with video, transcript, and more Bill is both an accomplished business executive and leader who is frequently called upon for his credible voice, honesty, and pragmatism — and for his ability to leverage operational excellence and continuous improvement for long-term profitable growth. As former president of Thayer Aerospace, Bill doubled revenue in six years, expanded into Mexico, i...
Nov 20, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 520
My guest for Episode #519 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jarvis Gray, the Managing Director of The Quality Coaching Co . He offers more than 16 years of strategic planning, quality improvement, and operations leadership experience in the healthcare industry. Episode page with video, transcript, and more Through his firm, The Quality Coaching Co., Jarvis and his associates help healthcare organizations foster cultures of system-wide quality improvement by offering customized Lean Six Sigm...
Nov 06, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 519
My guest for Episode #518 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jerry Wright, author of the new book The Insanity Trap: What Your MRP Consultant Won't Tell You . Jerry M. Wright, PE, MBA, is an accomplished operations executive and teaching professional with over 39 years of experience in the manufacturing and service sectors. His extensive career spans various industries, including aerospace, consumer goods, healthcare, medical devices, diagnostics, and industrial sectors, where he has held le...
Oct 30, 2024•56 min•Season 1Ep. 518
My guest for this bonus episode of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Bruce Hamilton , who is joining me on the show for the first time. Bruce is a renowned figure in the Lean world, serving as the President of GBMP Consulting Group and Director Emeritus for the Shingo Institute. As a senior examiner and certified workshop facilitator for the Shingo Prize, Bruce brings a wealth of knowledge and experience. He is also a past recipient of the Shingo Prize in both business and academic categories ...
Oct 23, 2024•16 min
My guest for Episode #517 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jacob Stoller, a journalist, speaker, facilitator, and Shingo-Prize-winning author of The Lean CEO . We talked about that in Episode 221 . Episode page with video, transcript, and more His latest book, Productivity Reimagined: Shattering Performance Myths to Achieve Sustainable Growth , was just released by Wiley on October 8th, 2024. Jacob has published hundreds of articles on technology and business management methods, and is kno...
Oct 16, 2024•48 min•Season 1Ep. 517
In this episode of Lean Blog Interviews, Mark Graban welcomes Roberto Priolo, the Managing Editor of Planet Lean, the publication of the Lean Global Network. Based in Barcelona, Roberto has a background in journalism and extensive experience in covering Lean and continuous improvement topics. Mark and Roberto discuss the upcoming Lean Global Connection event, happening on November 21st and 22nd, 2024, which is a free, 24-hour virtual event designed to bring together the global Lean community. Ep...
Oct 09, 2024•14 min
My guest for Episode #516 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jenn Christison , founder and principal consultant at Seven Ways Consulting . Episode page with video, transcript, and more Jenn has spent more than 15 years leading continuous improvement efforts across a variety of industries, including aerospace manufacturing, healthcare, non-profit, pharma, and tech. Guided by the principles of Respect for People and Continuous Improvement, Jenn brings a wealth of experience to her work, helpin...
Oct 02, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 1Ep. 516
My guest for Episode #515 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Jim Morgan , senior advisor at Lean Enterprise Institute and a board member at Adrian Steel. Jim’s most recent industry experience was as Chief Operating Officer at Rivian, an electric vehicle manufacturer. Episode page with video, transcript, and more He was previously a guest in Episode 109 back in 2011. Before joining Rivian, Jim spent a little over ten years at Ford Motor Company. He began by leading the development of the Glob...
Sep 18, 2024•55 min•Season 1Ep. 515
My guest for Episode #514 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Hugh Alley , an author and consultant. He divides his time between coaching senior operational leaders in continuous improvement, training front-line leaders in core supervisory skills, and designing industrial facilities. An industrial engineer, he has run three manufacturing and distribution firms, and a department in a government agency, teaching skills to over 1,000 front-line leaders. He has written two books: Becoming the Sup...
Sep 05, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 514
My guests for Episode #512 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are two of three co-authors of the upcoming book “ Leading Excellence: 5 Hats of the Adaptive Leader ” - Brad Jeavons and Stephen Dargan. Episode page with video, transcript, and more Stephen Dargan A diverse and inclusive, customer-centric, driven transformational leader with 20+ years of leadership experience spanning Australia and Europe. Stephen is a Shingo Institute Alumni, Shingo Facilitator and Examiner. He is a graduate of th...
Aug 21, 2024•58 min•Season 1Ep. 513
My guests for Episode #512 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast are Steve Pereira and Andrew Davis , authors of the new book Flow Engineering: From Value Stream Mapping to Effective Action . Blog post with video, transcript, and more Steve Pereira has spent over two decades improving workflow across various organizations. His experience spans tech support, IT management, platform and infrastructure engineering, product management, and serving as a founding CTO for an enterprise SaaS company. Curr...
Aug 07, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 512
In this special live-streamed bonus episode of the Lean Blog Interviews podcast, host Mark Graban is joined by Paul Critchley for an impromptu experiment in recording a live podcast. The episode begins with a brief introduction and a discussion about the decision to try a live format. Paul Critchley, a seasoned Lean consultant, shares his background, detailing his journey from a mechanical engineer in the automotive industry to his current role as a Lean practitioner and consultant. He highlight...
Jul 31, 2024•34 min
My guest for Episode #511 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Sam Yankelevitch , a distinguished global operations executive who has dedicated his career to advancing Lean principles, effective communication, and innovative problem-solving. Sam's journey began with managing international projects and optimizing processes in various industries. His expertise and passion for continuous improvement have made him a sought-after speaker, workshop trainer, and corporate coach. Episode page with vid...
Jul 24, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 511
My guest for Episode #510 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Karen Martin , Founder and CEO of TKMG and TKMG Academy, appearing for the fifth time. Episode page with video, transcript, and more She is the author of books including The Outstanding Organization , Clarity First , and Value Stream Mapping . In this episode, we discuss mistake-proofing in lean practices, exploring its significance in various industries. The conversation begins with a light-hearted discussion about the "five-timer...
Jul 10, 2024•59 min•Season 1Ep. 510
I'm very happy to be participating in Jared Thatcher ‘s “ Global Lean Summit ” event this September in Indiana. I'll be there to network and learn, which includes time visiting a Toyota Material Handling factory (an entire day!) I'll be speaking and facilitating: A workshop on Psychological Safety as a Foundation for continuous improvement A learning session featuring Dr. Deming's “ Red Bead Game “ A fun keynote talk on warning signs and mistake-proofing Learn more and register Here's a 13-minut...
Jul 05, 2024•14 min
My guest for Episode #509 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Ankit Patel , the founder of My Business Care Team, a BPO company providing services for optometrists, and co-founder with his wife Classic Vision Care, an optometry group in Atlanta. Episode page with transcript and more With a strong background in Lean methodology, Ankit has worked as a Lean consultant at Dell and the Cleveland Clinic, driving process improvements and coaching executives. He holds a Master's degree in Positive Or...
Jul 03, 2024•53 min•Season 1Ep. 509
My guest for Episode #508 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Mike Hoseus , Executive Director of the Center for Quality People and Organizations and President of Lean Culture Enterprises. Episode page with video, transcript, and more He supports organizations in their lean journey, focusing on leadership and cultural aspects of the lean transformation. He is an adjunct professor with the University of Kentucky's Center for Manufacturing. Michael Hoseus developed his TPS skills at Toyota Moto...
Jun 19, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 508
My guest for Episode #507 of the Lean Blog Interviews Podcast is Wendy K. Smith, co-author of the book Both/And Thinking: Embracing Creative Tensions to Solve Your Toughest Problems . She’s also one of the keynote speakers at this year's AME (Association for Manufacturing Excellence) annual conference . Episode page with video, transcript, and more Enter to win a copy of the book! Wendy is the Dana J. Johnson professor of management and faculty director of the Women’s Leadership Initiative at th...
Jun 12, 2024•54 min•Season 1Ep. 507
In this live stream episode, host Mark Graban introduces a panel of experts discussing the upcoming Future of People at Work Symposium . The event is co-sponsored by nine organizations, including the Lean Enterprise Institute, GBMP Consulting Group, and the Shingo Institute. Panelists Josh Howell, Bruce Hamilton, and Ken Snyder share their perspectives on the symposium's goals, emphasizing the need to address the evolving workplace and workforce dynamics. They highlight the importance of focusin...
Jun 07, 2024•32 min
