If you want an improvement culture, 20 expressions to avoid

From 40 Years, 20 Million Ideas: The Toyota Suggestion System:

1. Everyone understands that!
2. We've never done that before, there's no point in trying.
3. I tried to do that before, and I know it won't work.
4. This isn't up-to-date enough.
5. Is this within the budget?
6. There are just too many plans being made -- I'll take a look at your opinion when I have time.
7. Let's talk about this some other time.
8. Let's wait a while and see how things turn out.
9. Why do you want to change? Aren't things going okay now?
10. There is a rule on this, so it's no good doing it that way.
11. I don't think that's technically feasible
12. This idea is really off the wall, the manager will never agree to it.
13. That's just not done at this company!
14. That might work somewhere else, but not here!
15. The real world is more complicated than that.
16. You don't really understand the situation, do you?
17. Your suggestion is good, but the company can't afford it.
18. This will create problems later on.
19. Even if I give you advice, there's still no way.
20. What is this suggestion? Can't you make it a little better?

Via Mark Graban

Lean Times Require Lean Thinking

A presentation I did with Paul Heaton of KM&T about Lean:

Lean Times Require Lean Thinking

View more presentations from ThoughtWorks.

The world is full of fools, except for me, of course

I watch people laughing at situations and I'm noticing that it is often perceived by observers as laughing at them for getting into that situation. And the result of this is predictable.

I worry that in many, if not most, cases that this perception is accurate. I suspect that this is what the person laughing believes: The world is full of fools, except for me, of course.

But perhaps I'm succumbing to fundamental attribution error.

Retrospectives should not be about sharing pain

Retrospectives should not be about sharing pain and venting.

Retrospectives should be about getting better.

Things not to do when setting up an andon system

Jon Miller blogs about the nuts and bolts of setting up an andon system.

Things NOT to do:

• Get rid of all buffer in the line
• Stop the line for every little problem.
• Set a lower limit on the size of a problem that requires workers to pull the cord.
• Keep the support resources comfortably in their offices.
• Design the escalation system around the schedule of the support staff.
• Just pull the cord and expect the world to come running.
• Spend more time and money on the hardware and software than on the humanware.

A culture of adaptation and improvement is the essence of Agile

I missed this post by David Anderson when it was originally written and only recently stumbled upon it. I find it quite interesting as I'm a fan of Jared Diamond :

To (perhaps overly) simplify, the Greenland Norse were a conservative culture. They stuck to what they knew. The continued to do things the way they always had and they hoped it would see them through adversity. In the end, this conservative approach that was resistant to change and preferred the status quo was what killed them. Had they been a liberal culture, ready to embrace new methods and open to the influence of other people and their ideas, then the Norse may well have adapted and eventually assimilated with the Inuit and lived harmoniously with them. But they didn't. Refusal to adapt to change killed them. They ceased to exist in the 14th Century.

So, this brought me to the conclusion that the ideal circumstances for Agile to thrive and gain adoption were in cultures that have both high social capital (high levels of trust) and are liberal (small "l") in thinking and open to new ideas, new thinking and influence from outsiders.

A lesson from skyscrapers about integration

Traditional "big bang" deployments are like stacking up a pile of beams and girders, throwing them into the air, and expecting them to stick together in the shape of a building.

Michael Nygard, "Skyscrapers Aren't Scalable", 97 Things Every Software Architect Should Know

Leaders don't matter that much

Bob Sutton does an interview at Inc about the re-publication of The Peter Principle .  Best part below:

Q: "Competent leadership" doesn't exactly inspire awe. Leadership is supposed to be exalted, and competent smacks of low expectations. Maybe we should rehabilitate the word. In Search of Competence! Where's Tom Peters when you need him?

A: [Management professor] Jim March argues that simple competence -- having people who are willing and able to do their jobs -- is what really makes organizations run. Leaders don't matter that much. They are like light bulbs: You've just got to find one that works.

An over-focus on tools can sometimes lead to an under-focus on people

Just wanted to quote the answer to question 4 by Pete Abilla in a short 5 question interview at Evolving Excellence :

I believe the most misunderstood aspect of Lean is an over-focus on the tools used in Lean.  Large consulting houses and a "lean subculture" has developed, mostly focused on the tools used in Lean -- this is both sad and misguided.  The principles remain, but the tools are just that -- tools. 

For example, Kanban exists because there isn't anything better or simpler.  But when something is developed that enables flow, pull, low inventory requirements, and allows for better visual management, then that will become the new tool.  But, the principles remain; tools change.

Another example: I sometimes see job postings for "Value Stream Manager" -- when I first saw this, I had to laugh.  What in the world is that?  At Toyota, the phrase "value stream" doesn't exist.  The tool is called "information and material flow analysis" and that tool was popularized as "value stream" by Womack and company -- but, it is a tool used for a very specific purpose.  Creating a full-time position of "Value Stream Manager" is something I consider an act with good intentions, but one that is a little bit misguided.

Another aspect I find troubling is that an over-focus on tools can sometimes lead to an under-focus on people.  In fact, that's what I've seen it that behavior runs counter to Lean Thinking.