The Going Lean Fieldbook: A Practical Guide to Lean Transformation and Sustainable Success - Tapa dura

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Stephen A. Ruffa (Oak Hill, VA) is an aerospace engineer, researcher, and business consultant specializing in applying lean principles to overcome the challenges of dynamic business conditions. A winner of the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Research, he is the author of Going Lean (978-0-8144-1057-8).

De la contraportada

Based on lessons of real-life firms from different industries that have successfully implemented lean methods, The Going Lean Fieldbook gives you a logical structure and practical advice for creating powerful results that will stand the test of time. Building on the concepts and lessons introduced in Stephen A. Ruffa’s ground­breaking Going Lean, this down-to-earth manual, illustrated by compelling cases and clear examples, shows you how to take a closer look at what’s really going on in your business. It describes how to move beyond visible waste to the underlying problems that cause it to accumulate, create the necessary insight and buy-in throughout your workforce to drive real transformation, and stay lean even in times of unexpected change.

Praise for Stephen A. Ruffa’s Going Lean:

“­[An] extremely well-written book. . . . [a] useful resource for those interested in oper­ations management, business policy, and related topics.”— Choice

“Stephen Ruffa’s new book, titled Going Lean, is very timely. In this time of the eco­nomic crisis when recession has plagued the world’s economic arena, Going Lean teaches us how to live and adapt with change. . . . This book is a must read.” — Sixsigma.com

“Unique and important insights into entering and sustaining—forever—a lean journey of waste reduction and continuous improvement . . . ” — Cutting Tool Engineering

“In Going Lean, Stephen A. Ruffa spotlights examples from the automotive, airline, and retail industries, offering potent lessons on how companies drive innovation, promote sustainability, and create value in the face of uncertainty. The backbone of the book lies in the well-thumbed ideologies of the Toyota Production System.” — T & D magazine

“With excellent timing, considering recent events in the global economy, this book demonstrates how companies can use lean principles to help them steer through tough times. Using examples from successful companies that survived crises such as 9/11 and the resulting economic downturn, as well as the oil crisis of the 1980s, Ruffa shows how the techniques those companies used can be employed to help weather a crisis.”— Houston Business Journal

“Should be read by manufacturing executives and their staffs . . . shows how to introduce innovation during downturns, strive for perfection, and deliver excellent performance.”— Quality Progress

De la solapa interior

Today’s business managers have come to recognize the value of leaning out their operations to remove sources of waste—excess activities, delays, defects, or materials that consume time and resources but don’t contribute to bottom line value. Yet many organizations seem to have stumbled in their efforts, leaving workforces deeply disillusioned and cynical of popular theories and techniques that may provide temporary improvements, but ultimately prove short-lived.

In Going Lean, author Stephen A. Ruffa introduced the groundbreaking principles of Lean Dynamics—a proven formula for business improvement that is as compelling as it is timely. Using examples from some of today’s most successful corporations, he described why creating dramatic, sustainable results requires more than targeting the waste that is most visible today. Instead, it means taking a fresh look at the business, the corporate mindset, and the complex and sometimes chaotic environment in which an organization operates, and then building in mechanisms for sustaining smooth flow—dampening the disruption that is a major cause for waste to accumulate in the first place.

The Going Lean Fieldbook is a practical follow-up to Going Lean, providing in-the-trenches advice for applying lean principles throughout your organization. Valuable as a companion guide or as a stand-alone resource for how you can utilize the power of lean dynamics in your organization, this book charts out a set path toward reaching a series of critical transformation levels, detailing the activities and the hazards that can derail the journey at each point along the way. You’ll learn how to promote stability, consistency, and innovation by first conducting a dynamic value assessment and attaining the buy-in that is critical to making business improvements work.

Based on lessons of organizations from different industries that have successfully implemented lean methods, this book gives you strategies allowing you to:

• Eliminate disconnects in your operations, decision-making, and information for tangible, measurable gains

• Create organizational flow by expanding your workforce’s insight and involvement, and putting it in the driver’s seat for overcoming operational complexity and addressing pressing customer and business needs

• Promote innovation as the heart of your improvement efforts

• Build in the means for turning customer insight into new business strategies and leveraging your company’s lean progress to create and act on new opportunities

• Gauge tangible progress in advancing through distinct plateaus in lean maturity and keep from backsliding when business conditions shift

The Going Lean Fieldbook gives you a logical structure and practical advice that will help organizations of all types sort through complexity and change and identifies key focal points for guiding your company’s transformation. It describes a deliberate methodology to keep from stagnating as your organization advances in lean maturity, maintaining focus on attaining strong, sustainable corporate and customer value that can withstand the test of time. It’s the one guide you need to turn your organization into the lean, innovative money machine you know it can be.

STEPHEN A. RUFFA is an aerospace engineer, researcher, and business consultant specializing in applying lean principles to overcome the challenges of dynamic business conditions. A winner of the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Research, he is the author of Going Lean. Contact him at www.goinglean.net.