Episodes

  • GA 568 | Lean and Talent Development with Sarah Tilkens

    GA 568 | Lean and Talent Development with Sarah Tilkens
    Feb 20 2025
    This week's guest is Sarah Tilkens. Ron and Sarah discussed The KPI Lab (which Sarah founded), why talent development is critical, what leaders can do to help, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote Sarah likes (2:14) Her background (3:19) About the KPI lab (4:27) Why talent development is critical (5:23) What leaders can do (8:38) Combining lean and talent development (12:18) What it's been like working on the KPI lab (17:01) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Sarah on LinkedIn GA 275 | Leading vs. Serving with Sarah Tilkens GA 408 | Lean and Life Coaches with Sarah Tilkens GA 474 | Integrating Coaching and Lean with Sarah Tilkens Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What does it mean to combine lean and talent development?
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    21 mins
  • GA 567 | Developing Human Skills with Thomas Gelmi

    GA 567 | Developing Human Skills with Thomas Gelmi
    Feb 13 2025
    This week's guest is Thomas Gelmi. Ron and Thomas discussed Thomas's unique background, how he helps leaders develop their "human" skills, navigating different personalities at work, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote Thomas likes (2:48) His background (4:16) What "human skills" refers to (7:33) Why how we feel about ourselves matters (10:29) Navigating personality differences (16:36) His opinion on why developing human skills is good for business (21:38) A leader's ability and willingness to be vulnerable (27:48) Thomas's final words of wisdom (32:53) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Thomas on LinkedIn Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? Why is it important to develop human skills (aka soft skills)?
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    36 mins
  • GA 566 | Managing With Your Eyes with Alen Ganic

    GA 566 | Managing With Your Eyes with Alen Ganic
    Feb 6 2025
    This week's guest is Alen Ganic. Ron and Alen discussed visual management, examples of visual management they have seen and created, dealing with any resistance you might meet, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote Alen likes (2:46) His background (3:12) What visual management is (5:28) Examples he's seen and created (6:20) A story about Ron's time at FlowServe (11:08) Alen's story about how he helped saved a company (15:35) Dealing with resistance (20:23) The practical mistakes people make (25:26) Tips for getting started (27:26) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Alen on LinkedIn Lean Case Study: The City of Grand Rapids GA 521 | Celebrating Quick Wins GA 544 | Flow Efficiency vs. Resource Efficiency Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? How do you describe visual management?
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    32 mins
  • GA 565 | Continuous Improvement in Higher Education with Dr. Brad Miller

    GA 565 | Continuous Improvement in Higher Education with Dr. Brad Miller
    Jan 30 2025
    This week's guest is Dr. Brad Miller. Ron and Dr. Miller discussed what it's like to teach Lean and Six Sigma at a university, the business lessons that can be learned from academia, his grocery store simulation, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote that inspires Dr. Miller (3:01) His background (4:29) How he started working at a university (6:51) What students are like these days (9:07) How he structures his classes (13:53) About his grocery store checkout simulation (18:37) How mixing different personalities works (21:39) Balancing "getting it right" with experimenting (32:38) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Brad on LinkedIn Brad on YouTube Brad on the University of Houston Site Inside Brad's Classroom GA 111 | How to Teach Continuous Improvement GA 310 | The Role of Motivation in Continuous Improvement Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What else can we learn from the way continuous improvement is taught at the university level?
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    45 mins
  • GA 564 | ISO 9001 and Continuous Improvement with Ridha Dhrifi

    GA 564 | ISO 9001 and Continuous Improvement with Ridha Dhrifi
    Jan 23 2025
    This week's guest is Ridha Dhrifi. Ron and Ridha discussed ISO 9001, how it aligns with lean manufacturing, balancing compliance with operational efficiency, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: Ridha's favorite quote (3:01) His background (4:29) The alignment between ISO 9001 and lean manufacturing (5:49) About ISO 9001 (7:09) Industries interested in ISO 9001 (8:31) Making sure it's an authentic certification adding real value (10:42) How lean thinking can help and harmonize (12:45) How current and future state works in ISO (14:16) Combining ISO and lean (16:30) Advice for a quality manager on balancing compliance and operational efficiency (20:03) How long it takes to realize ISO 9001 certification (22:49) The order of operations (25:44) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Ridha on LinkedIn Integration of the Lean in ISO 9001 Integration of the Lean in Chemical Industry Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What are the upsides to combining lean and ISO? The downsides?
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    30 mins
  • GA 563 | Habits Over Resolutions with Ron Pereira

    GA 563 | Habits Over Resolutions with Ron Pereira
    Jan 16 2025
    This week's guest is Ron Pereira. In this new years-themed episode, Ron explains why forming new habits is often more effective than keeping new resolutions, how to form those habits, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: Why resolutions fail (3:20) Outcomes versus the process (4:51) Ron's habit of exercising (7:05) Creating standard work for habits (8:14) Lean and new habits (11:06) Define value (11:20) Start small (12:07) Measure your progress (14:22) Eliminate waste (15:15) Standardizing the approach (16:22) Sustaining these habits over time (17:50) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 GA 261 | Building the Habit of Excellence with James Clear Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What are some new habits you'd like to form this year?
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    23 mins
  • GA 562 | Lean in the Prison Industry with Brandon Bunn

    GA 562 | Lean in the Prison Industry with Brandon Bunn
    Jan 9 2025
    This week's guest is Brandon Bunn. Ron and Brandon discussed what it looks like to leverage lean and continuous improvement inside prison facilities, some of the obstacles that arise, and how other lean leaders can get involved. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote that inspires Brandon (3:06) Brandon's background (4:06) Why he got into the prison industry (7:45) What a "Day in the Life" looks like (9:05) The improvements that are being done (12:13) Some of the obstacles (18:28) The role that motivation plays (26:02) Brandon's advice for those in similar situations (28:33) How lean leaders can get involved (30:45) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Brandon on LinkedIn Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? How else can lean be used to change lives in profound ways?
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    36 mins
  • GA 561 | People and Process Integration with Beau Groover

    GA 561 | People and Process Integration with Beau Groover
    Jan 2 2025
    This week's guest is Beau Groover. Ron and Beau discussed people and process integration, lean leadership, Beau's "GSD" system, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you'll learn: The quote Beau likes (2:52) His background (3:16) What people and process integration is (5:54) Why it's so important and why it's difficult (7:42) What it means to be vulnerable (10:16) Where we're "missing the mark" (14:10) Some practical tips (17:14) An example of improvement Beau has seen (23:46) Beau's final words of wisdom (27:29) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Beau's Website Beau on LinkedIn Building a Kick-Ass Culture: 20 Effective Steps Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What are some other challenges of people and process integration?
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    30 mins