Engineering for the Future: A Conversation with MIT D-Lab Founder Amy Smith
In this episode of WLEI Podcast, we welcome Amy Smith, Founding Director of MIT’s D-Lab, an innovative university-based program in international development and a senior lecturer in Mechanical Engineering at MIT.
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28:07
Socially Responsible Design Meets Lean Product and Process Development: A Conversation with Cynthia E. Smith
In this episode of WLEI Podcast, we welcome Cynthia E. Smith, Curator of Socially Responsible Design at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and author of Design for the Other 90%. Cynthia speaks about design as a catalyst for change and what it means, as she says, to be in “the collective work of building capacity and agency in communities across the world.”
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27:33
Isao Yoshino Reflects on 40 Years at Toyota
In this edition of The Management Brief, Mark Reich sits down with Isao Yoshino, a 40-year veteran of Toyota and a driving force behind the company’s success with hoshin kanri. Yoshino shares the impact that hoshin kanri and A3 problem-solving has had on him professionally and personally.
Key takeaways include:
· Multiple roles over four decades at Toyota shaped Yoshino’s management beliefs and career.
· Yoshino discusses working directly with Mikio Sugiura, who was instrumental in developing Toyota’s hoshin kanri process.
· Hoshin kanri can positively impact a company as it has Toyota, notes Yoshino, but it’s not without a few challenges.
· Delivering bad news first and an earnest desire to learn from failures were commonplace for Yoshino and Toyota executives and fostered the improvement mindset that still thrives in the company today.
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30:53
Driving Continuous Improvement through Frontline Supervisors: A Conversation with TRQSS President Mark Dolsen
In this episode of the WLEI podcast, we sit down with Mark Dolsen, President of TRQSS, a seat belt manufacturer that supplies Toyota and other automakers in North America. Mark shares insights into TRQSS's lean journey and the critical role of frontline supervisors in driving continuous improvement.
Key takeaways include:
TRQSS has evolved its lean practices over decades, starting with the influence of Japanese coordinators and later adopting TWI principles.
The company's "TPS for Team Leaders" program focuses on developing supervisors' capabilities in areas like flow, standardized work, and kaizen.
TRQSS's quality management approach is rooted in the principle of "mizenboushi" — proactively maintaining process conditions to ensure good parts every time. Read more about how TRQSS applies mizenboushi in this paper.
Mark's leadership philosophy emphasizes coaching, teaching, and empowering employees to make decisions and contribute to the company's lean culture.
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47:21
Building a Resilient Business with Hoshin Kanri and Problem Solving : A Conversation with Grand Rapids Chair CEO Geoff Miller
In this edition of The Management Brief, Mark Reich sits down with Geoff Miller, CEO of Grand Rapids Chair, to discuss his company's lean transformation journey. Geoff shares how the adoption of hoshin kanri and A3 problem-solving has helped the company maintain strategic focus and build organizational capability. Geoff offers a candid reflection on his leadership transformation, underscoring the importance of perseverance and continuous learning, even in the face of significant disruption.
Key takeaways include:
Hoshin Kanri enabled Grand Rapids Chair to build stability in critical daily management measures like safety, quality, and reliability.
The catchball process for cascading strategic goals fostered alignment and buy-in across the management team.
A3 problem-solving empowered employees across departments to tackle large, complex challenges and drive meaningful change.
Sustaining a lean transformation requires personal commitment from leadership to model the problem-solving mindset and tools.
Developing human capability in problem-solving is essential for realizing the full benefits of lean.
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