Lean Resources

Websites (* indicates free webinars/tools)
Articles
Publications
Books
Videos
Lessons in Leadership series

Websites

• *Lean Enterprise Institute Free webinars include:
  • Managing to Learn: Part 1 - How Lean Leaders Create Productive Problem-Solvers
  • Managing to Learn: Part 2 - Conversations with Lean Leaders About the Real Impact of the A3 Management Process
• *Honsha
• *Impact Washington
• *Karen Martin & Associates
• LEAN Government Center
• The Lean Library
• *Montana State University
• The Toyota Production System

Government

• Iowa
• Maine
• Maryland
• Minnesota
• Ohio
• Oregon
• Wisconsin
• US Environmental Protection Agency Lean Government
  

Articles

• Lean in Iowa State Government: An interview with Teresa Hay McMahon
• Eight Workable Strategies for Creating Lean Government
• Lean Government Publications (case studies)
• Lean Government Case Study: Connecticut Governors Redouble Commitment to Lean Government

Origins and history

• A Brief History of Lean
• Just in Time, Toyota Production System & Lean Manufacturing
• Lean Manufacturing History & Timeline
• Walking Through Lean History

Publications

• Getting Started with Lean for Washington state government leaders
• Lean in Government Starter Kit

Books

• Lean for Dummies, Natalie J. Sayer and Bruce Williams, provides a comprehensive description of the principles of Lean as well as the methods and tools to put Lean into practice.
  • Click here to access online book review materials.
• Creating a Lean Culture: Tools to Sustain Lean Conversions, David Mann, a must read for leaders at all levels of state government. Implementing Lean tools is only part of the Lean transformation journey; this book give practical guidance on implementing a Lean Management System.
• Lean Thinking, James P. Womack and Daniel T. Jones, Based on The Toyota Way, explains Lean principles and offers guidance on how an enterprise can create value while eliminating waste
• Learning to See: Value Stream Mapping to Add Value and Eliminate MUDA, Mike Rother, John Shook, Jim Womack, Dan Jones, Handbook and reference for creating current & future state maps using Value Stream Mapping
• Lean Production Simplified, Pascal Dennis, offers a clear presentation of Lean history, thinking, and tools that will help practitioners from novice to expert.
• Gemba Kaizen, Masaaki Imai, explains how to daily put into practice a commonsense, low-cost approach to managing the workplace.
• Leading Change, John P. Kotter, A comprehensive 8-step framework for leading change
• Managing to Learn: Using the A3 Process, John Shook, Using the A3 management process to identify, frame, and act on problems
• The Machine That Changed the World, James P. Womack, Daniel T. Jones, and Daniel Roos, Reveals the elements of the Toyota Production System that led to Toyota becoming the world's largest auto maker
• The Toyota Way, Jeffrey K. Liker, Explains the foundational philosophy and management principles of The Toyota Way
• The Toyota Way Field Book, Jeffrey K. Liker and David Meier, Companion book to The Toyota Way – gives details and examples of applying the philosophy of The Toyota Way
• The Toyota Way to Continuous Improvement: Linking Strategy and Operational Excellence to Achieve Superior Performance, Jeffrey K. Liker and James K. Franz, Explains the underlying thinking about why an organization needs to take a disciplined approach to continuous improvement – reveals how Toyota improves performance and develops employees – detailed case examples from many industries
• Transforming Health Care: Virginia Mason Medical Center's Pursuit of the Perfect Patient Experience, Charles Kenney, An account of VMMC's journey – adapting Lean to health care and achieving results that are transforming the health care industry
• Understanding A3 Thinking: A Critical Component of Toyota's PDCA Management System, Durward K. Sobek II and Art Smalley

Videos

• Presentations from the 2012 Washington State Government Lean Transformation Conference are available on the conference Day 1 and Day 2 materials pages.
• Lean Overview for Leaders, presented Jan. 25, 2012 to Washington state agency leaders.
• Watch these videos produced by our private sector partner Cimira Studios about Lean in Washington state government:
  • Lean in Washington State Government (an introduction to how Lean was started in Washington and highlights of some early wins).
  • Impact Washington's role in helping Lean efforts in Washington state.