The blog post

In this episode of Lean Blog Audio, Mark Graban reads and reflects on his post “Fred Noe of Jim Beam: Leadership Lessons on Mistakes, Innovation, and Long-Term Thinking.”

What can a seventh-generation master distiller teach us about leadership, experimentation, and learning from mistakes? Quite a lot, as it turns out. Drawing on two in-person encounters with Fred Noe—at the Jim Beam Distillery in Clermont, Kentucky, and at a Bourbon Society event—Mark shares timeless lessons from a leader who practices Lean principles without ever using the jargon.

Fred’s stories about 4,000-gallon “small batch” experiments, revisiting brown rice Bourbon years later, and guiding his son Freddie through failed blends show how humility, patience, and long-term vision create both great whiskey and great organizations.

🎧 In this episode, you’ll hear insights on:

• How to design systems for learning, not perfection

• Why small-scale experiments fuel large-scale innovation

• How psychological safety allows teams to take smart risks

• Why Suntory’s decade-long mindset echoes Toyota’s long-term philosophy

• How legacy leadership means passing on curiosity, not certainty

Whether you’re leading a distillery, a hospital, or a startup, Fred Noe’s approach reminds us that the best results come from respecting the process—and the people—behind it.

Hashtags:
#Leadership #LeanThinking #Innovation #Mistakes #PsychologicalSafety #ContinuousImprovement #Bourbon #JimBeam #Suntory #LearningCulture

The blog post

In this episode of the Lean Blog Audio podcast, Mark Graban reads and reflects on one of his classic posts: “The Biggest Lean Six Sigma Myth: ‘Lean Is Just About Speed.’”

Far too often, consultants and trainers claim that “Lean is for speed” while “Six Sigma is for quality.” Mark calls out this false dichotomy and explains why both Lean and Six Sigma—when properly understood—aim to improve quality, flow, safety, cost, and morale together.

Drawing on his own experience in manufacturing and healthcare, Mark reminds listeners what Toyota has always taught: quality and productivity go hand in hand. If someone tells you Lean is about “making bad stuff faster,” that’s your cue to run the other way.

🎧 Listen to learn:

• Why the “Lean = speed” narrative misrepresents Toyota’s intent

• How “quality at the source” and “flow” reinforce one another

• Why misunderstanding Lean leads to failed transformations

• How to correct common Lean Six Sigma misconceptions

Lean is not about efficiency alone—it’s about building systems where people, quality, and improvement are inseparable.

Hashtags:
#Lean #SixSigma #ToyotaProductionSystem #ContinuousImprovement #QualityAtTheSource #PsychologicalSafety #LeanThinking

The blog post

In this episode of Lean Blog Audio, Mark Graban reads his reflection, “I’m Still Dreaming About My Meal at Sukiyabashi Jiro’s Sushi in Tokyo.”

Join Mark as he shares a rare dining experience at the legendary Sukiyabashi Jiro — the Michelin-starred Tokyo restaurant made famous by Jiro Dreams of Sushi. Beyond the extraordinary craftsmanship and taste, Mark explores what this meal revealed about efficiency, flow, and the subtle trade-offs between speed and hospitality.

Was the meal a marvel of Lean precision, or a reminder that even the best systems can become too efficient for the human experience?

This thoughtful story connects sushi-making to leadership, quality, and the meaning of service in any industry — from restaurants to hospitals to manufacturing floors.

Listen for insights on:

• The difference between cycle time and takt time — and how it shapes customer experience

• Why optimizing for efficiency can unintentionally reduce satisfaction

• The balance between process excellence and personal connection

• What Jiro’s disciplined craftsmanship can teach us about Lean thinking

The blog post

In this Lean Blog Audio episode, Mark Graban explores two silent killers of improvement—fear and futility—and how leaders can dismantle both to unleash the full potential of their teams.

Drawing from his book Lean Hospitals and more recent research by organizational psychologist Ethan Burris, Mark explains how fear (“What will happen if I speak up?”) and futility (“Why bother? Nothing will change.”) combine to silence ideas, suppress learning, and stall continuous improvement.

Through real-world healthcare examples—including Virginia Mason Medical Center’s Patient Safety Alert system and Allina Health’s Kaizen program—Mark shows what it looks like when organizations replace fear with trust and futility with action. The results? More engagement, faster problem-solving, and safer care for patients.

Key themes include:

• Why “Respect for People” must go beyond posters and become daily practice

• How psychological safety grows when leaders respond with curiosity, not criticism

• The link between timely follow-up on staff ideas and sustained Kaizen participation

• How Lean thinking offers practical antidotes to fear and futility

This episode is a reflection on what’s still holding many organizations back—and how leaders can make it safe and worthwhile for people to speak up, share ideas, and improve the systems around them.

Listen and ask yourself:
What invisible barriers might be silencing improvement in your workplace?

The blog post

In this episode of the Lean Blog Audio podcast, Mark Graban shares a story that perfectly captures the human side of Lean leadership—how a CEO’s shaved head became a powerful symbol of trust, empowerment, and respect for people.

At IU Health Goshen Hospital, Lean wasn’t just a set of tools; it was a cultural transformation. Starting in 1998, their staff-driven improvement program generated over $30 million in savings by 2012. But one moment in 2009 stood out: CEO James Dague’s promise to shave his head if employees could achieve $3.5 million in improvement savings. They didn’t just hit the goal—they doubled it.

That public act of humility wasn’t about theatrics. It represented a deep cultural shift where improvement was owned by staff, not dictated from above. For more than 17 years, Goshen avoided layoffs, reinforcing psychological safety and building a workforce that trusted leadership enough to take risks, speak up, and continuously improve.

Mark reflects on what organizations everywhere can learn from Goshen’s story:

• How leadership visibility builds credibility

• Why psychological safety drives real innovation

• And how celebrating small wins every day sustains a culture of improvement

Lean isn’t about tools—it’s about people. And sometimes, it’s about hair.

Listen and reflect on what your leaders might do to show their true commitment to continuous improvement.

The blog post

Halloween might be about ghosts, zombies, and monsters -- but those same creatures sometimes show up in our organizations all year long. They lurk in old processes, mindless routines, and fear-based management habits. Here's how to spot the spooky stuff in your systems -- and how Lean thinking helps us drive the fear out of improvement.

Halloween monsters are fun when they stay in movies. They're less fun when they show up in your workplace.

• Ghosts of outdated processes.
• Zombie routines that waste energy.
• Monsters born of fear and blame.
• Frankenstein systems cobbled together without purpose.

The blog post

Too many organizations treat Leader Standard Work (LSW) as a scheduling tool — a calendar filled with Gemba walks, meetings, and routines. But Lean leadership isn’t about how you plan your time — it’s about how you show up.

In this episode, Mark reads and reflects on his LeanBlog.org article, “Leader Standard Work Is About Behavior, Not Just Your Calendar.” He explores what it means to make leadership a daily practice of intentional behaviors — listening, asking, thanking, reflecting — instead of just checking boxes.

You’ll hear about:

• Why a color-coded schedule doesn’t make someone a Lean leader

• How mindset and presence define real Leader Standard Work

• A behavior-based checklist for leaders to use as daily reflection

• The connection between psychological safety and consistent leadership habits

Read the full post: leanblog.org/2025/10/leader-standard-work-is-about-behavior-not-just-your-calendar

Learn more about Mark’s work, books, and speaking: MarkGraban.com

#LeanLeadership #LeaderStandardWork #LeanCulture #PsychologicalSafety #ContinuousImprovement

In this episode, I revisit a classic post—Coaching vs. Berating: Lessons from Football for Better Leadership.

⁠The blog post⁠

With Brian Kelly recently fired as LSU’s head coach, it’s worth contrasting his sideline outbursts with the calmer, teaching-oriented approach of Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald. Years ago, Kelly’s tirades at Notre Dame raised questions about what real coaching looks like—and those questions still matter today. Whether it’s football or the workplace, leaders who coach build confidence and learning; those who berate only create fear.