Lean Roundup #138 – November 2020

A selection of highlighted blog posts from Lean bloggers from the month of November 2020.  You can also view the previous monthly Lean Roundups here.

Five 5 Why Fallacies to Avoid - Jon Miller shares five fallacies related to 5 why analysis that need to be avoided for more effective problem solving. 

Why should you have a Chief Engineer? - Jamie Flinchbaugh explains the importance of having a Chief Engineer role in you organization

Practical Problem Solving – Proving Cause & Effect - Pascal Dennis explains how to overcome a common failure point in problem solving that can be avoided by proving cause and effect.

(Value Stream) Map Your Way to a Better Post-Covid Future - Dan Makrovitz shows that value stream mapping is the tool that will help you become faster and more nimble post COVID.

“Red / Amber / Green” Charts Are Not State of the Art, Are Not Effective Visual Management - Mark Graban illustrates how bowling charts are problematic and states why process behavior charts are better.

The Value of Building Granularity into Product Development - Jamie Flinchbaugh explains the benefits of additional granularity can have on product development.

Move Over Lean! - Bob Emiliani discussed the impact COVID has had on process improvement previously centered on human technology pushed aside now in favor of machine technologies.

Lean Thinking and the Swiss Cheese Model - Jon Miller discusses how multiple safeguards are better than hoping on a single one when it comes to COVID, quality, Lean and more.

The Deeper Purpose of Problem-Solving - Regis Medina says PDCA is a better way to root out misconceptions and fix the glitches in our thinking. 

Why Lean Is the Strategy We Need For Today's World - Michael Ballé & Dan Jones explains that Lean is an upside down strategy for an upside down world.

Lean WX – An Rx for Making Things Better - Josh Howell explains how standardized work enables a purposefully designed work experience where everybody, every day, is learning and improving through doing value-creating work. 

The Benefits of Kaizen Learning vs. Traditional Problem-Solving - Art Byrne says Lean's emphasis on kaizen offers a fundamentally different approach to problem-solving than most companies practice today. 

Debunking the 'Time Drives Costs' Myth with Lean Financial Thinking - Nick Katko explains why in Lean Accounting, we want to stop allocating costs based on time because it isn’t an accurate way to understand costs. 

Why Value Stream Mapping is Essential to Product and Process Development - John Drogosz describes how product development value stream mapping has been a useful technique to help teams really see how they do their work and how their work fits together.