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Artwork for Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

Mark Graban
Continuous Improvement
Lean Management
Psychological Safety
Healthcare
Leadership
Lean Principles
Toyota Production System
Lean
Manufacturing
Lean Leadership
Lean Thinking
Operational Excellence
Lean Manufacturing
Lean Six Sigma
Kaizen
Mistake Proofing
Dynamic Work Design
Lean Accounting
Boeing
Leadership Development

Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations features thoughtful, in-depth discussions with leaders, authors, executives, and practitioners who are applying Lean thinking in the real world.

Hosted by Mark Graban—author of Lean Hospitals, Measures of Success, and The Mistakes That Make Us—the podcast explores Lean as a management system, a leadership philosophy, and a people-cent... more

PublishesTwice monthlyEpisodes614Founded20 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
ManagementBusiness

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Artwork for Lean Blog Interviews: Real-World Lean Leadership Conversations in Healthcare and Beyond

Latest Episodes

Episode page with video, transcript, and more: leanblog.org/551

My guest for Episode #551 of Lean Blog Interviews is Darril Wilburn, a senior partner at Honsha.ORG, a founding partner at niwaki, and a former Toyota team member. Darril joined... more

YouTube

Counting how many teams run the Agile ceremonies tells you people are doing things. It doesn’t tell you anything got better. Elisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi call that “change theater,” and it’s one of the illusions their new book is built to take... more

YouTube

Accounting teams see problems every day. As my returning guest Nick Katko puts it, they fix them, but they don’t necessarily solve them.

Nick is president and owner of BMA, a CPA, and the author of The Lean CFO and co-author of Practicing Lean Accou... more

YouTube

How does a Lean team of 11 people support a management system for 35,000 associates? Emily Swaney, Vice President of Operational Excellence at OhioHealth, explains that the team spends its time developing about 1,500 leaders as problem-solving coache... more

YouTube

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Recent Guests

Darril Wilburn
Senior partner at Honsha, founding partner at niwaki, and former Toyota team member
Honsha
Episode: Courage, Humility, Kaizen: Toyota Leadership Lessons from the Georgetown Turnaround - Darril Wilburn
Elisabeth Hendrickson
Founder of Curious Duck Digital Laboratory, former VP of R&D at Pivotal, and author of Explore It!
Curious Duck Digital Laboratory
Episode: Change Theater, Open Loops, and Story Points as Opinions: Elisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi
Joel Tosi
Co-founder and CTO of Dojo & Co. and co-author of Creating Your Dojo and Coaching for Learning
Dojo & Co.
Episode: Change Theater, Open Loops, and Story Points as Opinions: Elisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi
Nick Katko
President and owner of BMA; Lean Accounting expert
BMA
Episode: Nick Katko: Continuous Improvement in Accounting
Emily Swaney
Vice President of Operational Excellence at OhioHealth
OhioHealth
Episode: Emily Swaney on OhioHealth's Lean Management System
Karen Martin
Management consultant specializing in lean management
Karen Martin & Associates
Episode: Karen Martin: Five Conversations Over 20 Years
Norman Bodek
Founder of the Quick and Easy Kaizen approach, pioneer in Lean implementation
Original Toyota-related Kaizen work, author
Episode: 20 Years of the Lean Blog Podcast: Norman Bodek on Quick and Easy Kaizen
Thomas Cox
Co-founder of the Transformative Leadership Lab; self-described management bench builder
Transformative Leadership Lab
Episode: Preconditions for Lean: Psychological Safety and Model 1 vs Model 2 Leadership with Thomas Cox and Andre DeMerchant
Andre DeMerchant
President of DeMerchant Healthcare Solutions; former Toyota-style practitioner
DeMerchant Healthcare Solutions
Episode: Preconditions for Lean: Psychological Safety and Model 1 vs Model 2 Leadership with Thomas Cox and Andre DeMerchant

Host

Mark Graban
Author of Lean Hospitals, Measures of Success, and The Mistakes That Make Us

Reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars from 76 ratings
  • Failure as Fuel

    If you grew up in a family like mine, where mistakes were never acknowledged and apologies didn't happen, this podcast will feel like a breath of fresh air. Mark Graban's guests share real stories about the mistakes that shaped them—not as signs of weakness, but as turning points for growth.

    It's refreshing, honest, and surprisingly liberating. Whether you're already fearless about failure or still learning to embrace it, there's wisdom here that challenges the old "never admit you're wrong" m... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Amy Rasdal
    United Statesa year ago
  • Brilliant conversations

    I really enjoyed the episode where you talk with Michele Smith about Management behaviors that lead to the continuous improvement culture. I would highly recommend this podcast to anyone interested in Lean in manufacturing, healthcare, and startups.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    I value the unique angle
    Austria4 years ago
  • Direct and Informative

    This podcast is always professional and business like. Mark is an excellent host who guides his guests with a very realistic approach to their subject matter. Lean Blog Interviews is straightforward, informative, and definitely worth a listen.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    TK21LL
    United States5 years ago
  • This was the first podcast that I ever listened to and it inspired me to start my own podcast. Mark always has interesting guests and asks really great questions that are engaging and entertaining. If you are interested in Lean, Continuous Improvement or leadership and management this is definitely worth the time to listen and be inspired!

    Podchaser
    5
    Chris Burnham
    5 years ago
  • Empowering, insightful and actionable! 🙌

    Whether you’re well established as someone who can translate Lean energy into the impact you want to have on the world, or just getting started as a catalyst for change - this is a must-listen podcast for you! Mark does an incredible job leading conversations that cover a huge breadth of topics related to the ins and outs of building a Lean enterprise and life you can be proud of - with leaders who’ve actually walked the path. Highly recommend listening and subscribing!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    JoshCrist
    United States6 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

The conversations are described as informative and useful across healthcare, manufacturing, startups, and other sectors.
Listeners value candid stories about mistakes, learning, and continuous improvement.
Mark is praised for respectful, well-guided interviews that draw practical insights from guests.
Listeners say the ideas are actionable and worth revisiting, even for people without formal Lean training.
Reviews describe the production as professional and the discussions as straightforward and engaging.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Courage, Humility, Kaizen: Toyota Leadership Lessons from the Georgetown Turnaround - Darril Wilburn
Q: What did Hiro do to help break the cycle of people coming in from Japan to fix things and then going home?
He required leaders to relearn TPS through jishuken, strengthened communication and Hoshin Kanri, and focused on transferring experienced workers' knowledge into teachable systems so the plant could solve problems more independently.
Courage, Humility, Kaizen: Toyota Leadership Lessons from the Georgetown Turnaround - Darril Wilburn
Q: What really happens when somebody pulls an andon cord or pushes an andon button?
Workers and leaders receive extensive training on when to signal and how to respond. The signal alerts a team leader, who tries to contain the issue within the team's work area; escalation can stop sections of the line and, in some circumstances, eventually the plant.
Change Theater, Open Loops, and Story Points as Opinions: Elisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi
Q: Why can't you fix fear by telling people to be brave or not to be afraid?
People judge safety by leadership's actions and the consequences they have seen or fear, so verbal reassurance cannot override signals that speaking up may put their jobs at risk.
Change Theater, Open Loops, and Story Points as Opinions: Elisabeth Hendrickson and Joel Tosi
Q: What does it mean to run open loop?
It means continuing without feedback or a way to compare the intended result with observed reality; a closed loop uses feedback to reconcile the two.
Chad Diggs on Building Quality Systems, Not Heroes
Q: What is the core message you want listeners to take away about leadership and quality?
Quality is everyone's responsibility and leadership should empower rather than suppress. Effective leaders walk the floor, listen deeply, and invest in people and processes so improvements outlast tenure.

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Frequently Asked Questions About This Podcast

What is This Podcast about and what kind of topics does it cover?

In-depth interviews on applying Lean thinking as a people-centered approach to leadership and continuous improvement. Host Mark Graban talks with executives, practitioners, authors, consultants, and researchers about how organizations improve work in healthcare, manufacturing, technology, accounting, and other sectors. Conversations focus on leadership behavior, psychological safety, learning from mistakes, operational systems, and practical problem-solving, with guests sharing both successes and setbacks from their own work.

The emphasis is on durable changes to culture and management systems rather than tools used in isolation. Episodes often connect foundational Lean ideas, including Toyota-influenced practices, to current challenges su... more

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this podcast launched 20 years ago and published 614 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on this podcast?

Recent guests on this podcast include:

1. Darril Wilburn
2. Elisabeth Hendrickson
3. Joel Tosi
4. Nick Katko
5. Emily Swaney
6. Karen Martin
7. Norman Bodek
8. Thomas Cox

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