ABSTRACT
Seeing is believing. Toyota promoted this concept by asking managers to "Go to Gemba," which in Japanese means to go to the actual place of work where value is created. Gemba walk is designed to allow leaders to identify existing safety hazards, observe machinery and equipment conditions, ask about the practice standards, gain knowledge about the work status, and build relationships with employees. Promoting the same philosophy, "Go See Learn" was coined at Hospital Heal, where the operational leaders and the senior executives were encouraged to move out of their offices and go to different areas across the hospital; meet with staff and patients; and observe, listen, and learn about their work. Hospital Heal arranged site visits to ThedaCare in Appleton, Wisconsin, one of the pioneers in implementing Lean in healthcare, for senior leaders, physicians, directors, and select managers to create buy-in on the transformational journey.
