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Hi, it's Mark Raven here. 
Welcome to 2022. 

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Happy New Year. 
I have been a little negligent 

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in doing some blog posts. 
Recordings here, I've been 

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blogging less during the 
pandemic I plan on doing more 

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blogging in 2022. 
But anyway here is a post. 

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This is going back to November 
17th 2021, you can find this 

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post at lean blog dot org, slash
audio 31 Eight, the title of the

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headline on the post says this 
Wall Street Journal article 

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about lean isn't terrible via GE
and Larry Culp. 

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So the Wall Street Journal 
unfortunately has an epic track 

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record when it comes to just 
always getting it wrong when 

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they write about lean or the 
Toyota production system, they 

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always focus on the just-in-time
pillar. 

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They get a lot of that wrong, 
but they ignore Concepts the 

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other pillar of the Toyota 
production system judoka or 

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built-in quality. 
There's a link to the Toyota 

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production system page on 
Toyotas own website in the post 

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again lean blog dot org slash 
audio 318 the the journal you 

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know sadly usually ignores many 
other aspects of TPS like the 

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culture and the management 
style. 

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I've linked to a number of posts
I've written over the last 15 

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years. 
Looking at that Wall Street 

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Journal track record Eluding, 
some reason articles about 

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pandemic Supply chains where 
they really mischaracterize just

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in time again, you're normally 
better off reading about lean 

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from the source, and I would 
point you to Toyota's website on

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that, but I'll give credit to 
the journal when they, they did 

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better in this article from 
November 20 21 about General 

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Electric and their CEO Larry 
call somebody who knows lean 

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very well from his time as CEO. 
Dana, her eye. 

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He's been announced as one of 
the keynote speakers at this 

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year's AME conference. 
Later 2022 in Dallas. 

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Hopefully, I'll see you there 
and we'll hear Larry called 

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speak. 
So the headline from the 

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journal, said Larry call 
pre-wired GE and then he Unwound

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it. 
So the link to the article 

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should be a free link that 
allows you to read the article. 

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Even if you're not a subscriber 
to most you, No, the big news is

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the quote, unquote unwinding of 
GE splitting up in the separate 

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companies as was announced 
recently. 

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Recently, when it was November, 
I'm more interested in the 

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rewiring of GE, you know, the 
history of GE is that they 

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really got in the Six Sigma in 
the Jack Welch era. 

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Then they Embrace lean in more 
recent years. 

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Larry Culp is, it seems, you 
know, a die-hard lean or TPS 

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guy. 
And I'm not trying to turn this 

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into Eileen versus Six Sigma 
debate, but it said in the 

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article you before, Larry 
called, decided to break up GE, 

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he had to break it down. 
And as the article details 

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called wasn't focused on, you 
know, kind of old, you know, 

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kind of GE approaches to 
financial engineering. 

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He was visiting factories and he
was inspiring, if not leading 

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Improvement at an operational 
level. 

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So the first example, from a 
factory in South Carolina, it 

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said this in the article using 
white green yarn, the group 

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traced, the Journey of a skill 
blade through the miniature 

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plant, they discover the blade, 
which had been piling up at some

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stations traveled, nearly three 
miles on its 85 day. 

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Journey Through the plan, the 
solution was clear, rip out the 

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old machinery and rearrange, the
production line to shorten, the 

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green string in the process. 
GE upgraded. 

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The machines to help stop the 
log jams, when finished in early

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22, the blade traveled just Feet
and production time was cut by 

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42 percent. 
So again to recap they reduce 

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they reduce the distance from 
three miles to 165 feet. 

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So the meaningful detail here is
core is of course not the idea 

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of using light green yarn. 
Let's not all rush out to buy 

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light green yarn. 
The key point is that they 

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traced out the flow and realize 
that rearranging machines can 

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reduce travel distances. 
Which also reduces lead times 

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and inventory levels in the 
article again. 

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It said in the process call 
played bear an organization that

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belied its reputation for 
operational and managerial 

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Excellence pouch. 
So you know GE generally has an 

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amazing reputation when it comes
to operational and managerial 

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Excellence, I had to look up the
word belie to make sure it meant

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what I thought it did. 
The word belie means. 

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To give a false impression of, 
to present an appearance, not in

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agreement with or to show 
something to be false or wrong. 

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So again out, I mean, there's 
there's reputation and then 

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there's the reality, the shop 
floor level and that doesn't 

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always line up with reputation 
or perception again from the 

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article. 
It says mr. 

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Culp arrived at GE with 
reputation as a high priest in 

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the world of lean manufacturing.
I mean a management philosophy 

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that seeks to cut. 
Up waste and create a culture of

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continuous Improvement. 
So ah thank you. 

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Thank you, Wall Street Journal 
for mentioning, the idea of a 

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culture of continuous 
Improvement lien is usually 

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portrayed, as you know, the 
risky elimination of inventory 

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in that esteemed publication 
there their actual writing about

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just in time belies their 
reputation as a knowledgeable 

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business. 
Publication, again, back to this

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article, though, it said, one of
cops first exposure, The lean 

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management was in the early 
1990s when he worked in an air 

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conditioner, Factory in Japan 
for a week as part of a training

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exercise. 
He said there's nothing like 

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being screamed at in a language.
You don't understand. 

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It's a tough love environment. 
So the key Point again, is not 

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screaming at people, that's a 
decidedly old-school. 

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Shinjitsu approach Jolene, 
that's not practiced by Toyota 

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people. 
Today when they go to work with 

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suppliers or nonprofits through 
their tsst, Regroup, but it's 

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great. 
I think that Culp is quote 

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addicted to lean Improvement. 
As the article says, again, back

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to the article, they wrote the 
concept of lean manufacturing 

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was unofficially invented in the
middle of the last century out 

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of the work of a Toyota engineer
named. 

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Taiichi Ohno who was tasked with
making production more efficient

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in the post-world war two years 
in Japan, the system centers on 

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an approach called Kaizen, which
focuses on seeking continuous 

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Improvement through in-depth 
sessions. 

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Is to assess to assess employees
progress, that's easier. 

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That's difficult to read out 
loud, in-depth sessions to 

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assess employees, progress, it 
eventually became the Toyota 

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production system. 
So, again, I'm glad that the 

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journal is, mentioning the 
Kaizen approach to continuous 

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Improvement. 
It's not always, you know, 

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sessions, if you will it, it 
happens in small increments 

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every day. 
But I'm happy that the journal 

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is passing along. 
Corpse expertise, you know, in 

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an art and it said, you know, 
they're they're kind of 

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directly, citing him of how mr. 
Culp described lean or Kaizen, 

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that there's three core ideas at
work, one focus on the customer 

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to elimination of waste 3, 
ruthless prioritization of work.

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Now that third phrase, that's 
not something I've heard from 

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Toyota folks before some of 
that. 

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And I'm not exactly sure what he
means. 

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That said, in a typical strategy
deployment approach that that 

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management concept companies or 
Healthcare organizations shift 

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away from everything being a top
priority to being more 

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selective, you know, it's better
to get a few key, things done in

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the move on to more, rather than
trying to do 200 or 300 

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projects. 
All at once, this is Something 

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I've seen a Doctor, John Tucson 
has described in his writing and

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teaching for healthcare. 
I'm also happy that the journal 

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pointed out. 
Lean isn't just about Factory 

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operations. 
They used to term. 

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I love. 
And I've heard it recently from 

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some folks carpet land. 
So, again, in the article, it 

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says danaher eventually used the
lean philosophy to run more than

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its factories. 
Its usefulness stretched into 

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quote carpet, land is office 
based activities, were called 

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when Even a task such as 
processing, an invoice or 

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preparing a regulatory. 
Document can become more 

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efficient in time. 
Expended in resources used, And 

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I'll add, you know, it's not 
just a matter of efficiency. 

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I mean, quality matters and 
improves also through Lane, 

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there's another cult than lean 
success story in the article, it

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said in early October, mr. 
Culp spent five days of the GE 

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Aviation plan in Lynn 
Massachusetts, whereas Kaizen 

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assignment, put him with a small
team studying, a military engine

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part that was hurting on time. 
Deliveries, the problem turned 

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out to be an issue with welding 
on the part leading. 

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The change has a twin from 
yielding. 

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Usable part 59 percent of the 
time to 100% of the time, nine 

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different teams and Lynn that 
week made changes the cut costs 

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by two million dollars and 
reduced production Time by 62 

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days, according to a memo mr. 
Culp sent to employees. 

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So, again, it's great to hear 
that, that mention of quality, 

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it's great that Culp understands
lean and that he's leading the 

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culture change. 
I think it's fantastic. 

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They just willing to participate
in Kaizen events as John 

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Toussaint, did Himself as a 
healthcare CEO. 

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So you just hope that culture 
change and the lean methods 

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scale beyond the CEO being 
directly involved. 

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The article shares culp's view 
on standard work where he says. 

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A basic concept of lean 
management is to create standard

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work processes in order to 
continuously improve at the same

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job is done differently. 
Every time or varies by worker 

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there was no basis for finding 
Improvement, the same job must 

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be done the same way. 
Every time no detail is too 

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small. 
It says, quote, according Culp 

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standard work is simply 
identifying the work steps 

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required and the sequence of 
those steps the time required 

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for each that go into making a 
process repeatable. 

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Cops said this in 2020. 
I'm getting toward the end of 

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the article in the end of my 
post here. 

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I'm also happy to hear Larry 
called talk about the 

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application of lean to diversity
equity and inclusion efforts as 

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people like my friends, 
Christopher, Chapman Diandra, 

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Wardell and Joy Mason or doing. 
It said in the article. 

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Mr. Culp is said that lean 
processes are helping GE find 

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ways to improve the diversity of
its Workforce. 

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I love to learn more about that.
Final thing may be a bit of a 

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fun Point does Larry called 
practice lean at home. 

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It says no quoting Culp in the 
article if you came and looked 

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at my garage or my closet, you 
wouldn't see anywhere near the 

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orderliness that you might see 
in a factory that I've been 

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associated with. 
I usually end my training 

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sessions with quote, but don't 
try this at home. 

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I mean it's that's funny. 
I mean you look you my view is 

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that you can apply lean mindsets
and practices at home if that 

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suits you and if it makes life 
better or easier for You but you

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know culpas have his hands full 
with Dana her and now GE I won't

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fault him for leaving lean 
thinking at the office or the 

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factory. 
I'm so if you want to read the 

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full Journal article there's a 
link. 

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You should again be able to read
it without a subscription by 

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going to lean blog dot org. 
Slash audio 318.