A quick recap of activities from a recent Lean Manager Certification for Services Week 3. Week 3 is the final week of the program which takes place on the campus of The Ohio State University. The program includes 25 modules focused at developing Lean managers capable of leading your organization’s improvement initiatives. Here’s a look inside…
Monday
It was an interesting day, which started with participants recapping the Lean methodologies taught in the previous sessions and discussing when to apply each and for which purpose.
Next, we welcomed a guest speaker from Nationwide Insurance who delivered a case study on their Lean implementation. The program, which started in the IT department and is expanding throughout the organization, highlighted the importance of involving leaders at every level in the company in the effort and provided excellent examples of leader standard work, visual management, and team work. It was an excellent opportunity for the program participants to see the techniques they have been learning in use. There were plenty of great questions!
Tuesday
This day’s focus was on Leadership and Policy Deployment. We covered two major elements of Lean Transformation:
- how to build a Lean management system, how to develop leaders at every level of your organization and how leaders need to behave differently in a Lean environment (lead vs. manage)
- how to align individual and team efforts so daily work and improvement projects directly support the objectives of the organization – getting everyone rowing in the same direction!
Using a case study to help illustrate hoshin-kanri, participants built a policy and objectives matrix. The exercise proved challenging as participants worked to develop a solid matrix. Despite the intensity, the exercise was a lot of fun too!
Wednesday
The day began with role playing as we experimented with developing some Lean leadership routines for different organizational levels and conducted mock ‘gemba’ walks. Next, we discussed Lean Finance and Lean Accounting.
We then had an intense afternoon listening as each participant delivered the final presentation on their LMAC projects. Each individual showed excitement for the gains they achieved and how their teams became engaged in the process. Many were surprised with how quickly they saw positive impact (quick wins) from applying the Lean techniques. Presentations ended with a discussion on what still remained to be done and how they saw next steps. There were many good questions and helpful suggestions from the other participants.
The day ended with the realization that the program was nearly complete! Tomorrow would be the final exam!
Thursday
The final day. Participants came early, for a 30-minute review, with some excitement and concern about the final exam. The layout of the room had transitioned overnight from one set-up to create a team dynamic, to one that allowed for individual focus and concentration. The exam began and would go for 3 hours…
After completion of the exam, while I was busy reviewing and grading, the future LMAC graduates went on a guided tour of The Ohio State University Stadium. It was a very cold and windy day, but they enjoyed the time away from the classroom and the chance to see a part of the campus, though concern about “did we pass or not,” was high. During the tour, I phoned the guide to have word passed along that everyone passed! The new LMAC Grads were ecstatic and the tour continued with a sense of relief and a time to relax.
The graduation dinner was held in the Executive Education Board Room, and participants received their certification diploma from Peter Ward, the Senior Associate Dean of the Fisher College of Business. Peter did the honors of handing out the certificates and taking photos with each of the grads. We terminated the week and the entire Lean Manager Certification session with a nice dinner.
One of the things that always amazes me about the Lean Manager Certification Program, is how the participants arrive at the program as strangers but leave as friends. It happens at every session!
The next stage for each of them will be the hardest, to expand the good work started during their LMAC project throughout their organizations!
We wish each one great success and look forward to hearing about their progress.
Be part of our next LEAN MANAGEMENT CERTIFICATION FOR SERVICES program and be instrumental in transforming your business. Click here for more details.