ABSTRACT
One of the most emphasized aspects of any successful
Lean implementation is the importance placed on peo-
ple in making it all work-what is known in the Toyota
Production System (TPS) as respect for people. Without
the cooperation and input of people, in particular those
people who do the work, we will not get the buy-in nec-
essary to see that needed changes in fact take place and
are sustained over time. It is easy to become enamored
with technology and tools-aspects of the Lean transfor-
mation that we can actually touch, see, and do-while
overlooking or neglecting the less obvious, but more
demanding aspect of the people involved. David Mann,
author of Creating a Lean Culture, believes that in a truly successful Lean conversion, 20% or less of the actual
effort goes into physical changes in the production pro-
cess in terms of things like new layout to establish better
flow of materials and people, pull systems to synchro-
nize production, visual tools that reveal abnormalities
in work, and so on. In fact, Mann feels that this is “the
easiest fifth of the process!”* What remains is how we
deal with people in managing daily routines and the
communication and problem-solving processes. These
things make up the management system so crucial for
the long-term success of any Lean implementation.
