Insights

Budget season is just around the corner. How much money should you put in your budget for training and developing continuous improvement and process improvement professionals? And where should you spend that budget money in order to get the biggest impact from those...

Continuous improvement programs are absolutely vital to the success of an organization. These programs help establish and drive a culture of everyday continuous improvement. They are the heart of the organization that leads the company to finding more efficient ways...

In-person, focused  improvement events like Rapid Improvement Events, Kaizen Events, and GE Work-Outs are some of the most effective tools in the improver's toolbox.   The power of an in-person improvement event is tremendous. First, you have the team's undivided...

At the end of a hard day, sometimes I sit back and wonder why I’ve chosen such an incredibly difficult profession. When you’ve had one of those days where you feel like you’ve accomplished absolutely nothing, you feel like you’re pushing rope, or maybe you feel like...

Every job has its challenges and frustrations, but I argue that continuous improvement and process improvement jobs are some of the absolute hardest jobs to have in an organization. Here’s why: Indirect InfluenceFirst of all, process improvers are typically in an...

As continuous improvers, we should completely reject the idea of returning to “normal”. We should be embracing the idea of returning to a better way. We know that COVID-19 has created some unparalleled, unprecedented stresses on our businesses. Businesses have had to...

We're entering a new age of continuous improvement. Daily improvement is becoming so much more critical. We need to keep our focus on CI everyday, because we have the power to help our organizations weather this storm. Even the most experienced continuous improvers...

The Good Idea Fairy  We’ve all had that experience. You know the one: you have something that happened, whether it’s in or out of your control, that leaves a visible mark.   Run and hide After my foot surgery, I had to use a knee scooter for a month. I couldn’t run...

I'm a continuous improver AND a beauty pageant winner (and loser). I certainly cannot ignore the parallels between two of my favorite things – making ugly processes better and walking on-stage in 5" high heels and a swimsuit. Stay with me here.... Lesson 3 of 3 -->...

I'm a continuous improver AND a beauty pageant winner (and loser). I cannot ignore the parallels between two of my favorite things – making ugly processes better and walking on-stage in 5" high heels and a swimsuit. Stay with me here.... Lesson 1 of 3 --> Butt...