TRIZ – For People Who Struggle with Open Innovation

Prepare yourself to start looking at TRIZ from a few different viewpoints. Next week’s Business901 Podcast is with co-author Ellen Domb, Simplified TRIZ: New Problem Solving Applications for Engineers and Manufacturing Professionals, Second Edition, and founder of the PQR Group, a TRIZ training & consulting. Besides the book, they offer a good way to start  Read More …

Growth is about People, not Process or Product

If you can build a culture of PDCA, a culture of learning, growth becomes part of everyone’s job. It is this aspect I believe that separates good companies from great companies. There is not an internal factor that will be more limiting or more expansive than the people within the organization. Building a learning culture Read More …

We want People to Go See for Themselves

“We want people to go see for themselves and come up with something new and innovative and learn from someone else, see how that could be applied to their own industry.” – Bob Petruska Bob Petruska of Sustain Lean Consulting was my guest this week on the podcast. We discussed his new book, Gemba Walks Read More …

The Lean Concept of Respect for People

Someone recently asked me the best way to start Lean? Since it was on Twitter, and I only had 140 characters, I replied: “Best way 2 start #Lean? Practice Respect 4 People & Continuous Improvement after that it is all window dressing.” Now that I have an entire blog post to comment on, I believe Read More …

Engaging People in Healthcare with Kaizen

In next week’s podcast, I have authors Joe Swartz and Mark Graban discussing their new book, Healthcare Kaizen: Engaging Front-Line Staff in Sustainable Continuous Improvements. The book centers on healthcare, however, I believe many of the “lessons to be learned” can be applied to anyone in continuous improvement. An excerpt from the podcast (Listen to Read More …

Can People Change?

Barbara Fredrickson describes how people can change on a fundamental level by changing how they interpret their lot in life. Dr. Barbara Fredrickson is a world renowned researcher and in her latest book, Positivity: Top-Notch Research Reveals the 3 to 1 Ratio That Will Change Your Life gives you lab-tested tools necessary to create a Read More …