21st Century Business

“On the road to exceeding customer expectations in the 21st Century, organizations must be;  flexible, adapatable, fast learners, know where they are headed, and how to get there. Yet, everyone from the CEO to the hourly employees must be aware that everything could change in the blink of an eye and are prepared to meet any new challenge faster than the competition.”

Richard R. Hibbard

So many great ideas fail because of execution, not because the idea was bad. It is the same with Lean Leadership principals and programs. There are many opportunities for success - pushing your business to new heights with record profits. There are also opportunities to add cost without seeing a return. I have seen how six-sigma programs, TQM, Leadership Programs and other processes have both helped and hindered companies. As the leader of your organization you must be sure you understand and internalize your path to success. This blog is intended to help you understand the areas to focus on, the tools needed, where to find help, and to recognize when you really do need to seek expert advise. This blog and its many posts can help you follow a path to understanding. Along the way you will learn many things, however be ever aware that few can go it alone! We can always learn from the experts and often they are the only ones who can push us along to achieve our goals. The path to "Lean Leadership" is not a walk in the park. However there are many opportunities to take advantage of principals and tools which can be implemented in a logical order over a period of time. Keep in mind that Lean Leadership is a process, not a single action. You need to start somewhere, why not here.

Training and continuous Learning are the keys to success. Everyone in the organization must be challenged constantly. Training and Learning opportunities must be made available to encourage new thinking. Implementing the ideas in this blog along with support and training where needed will get you on your way to success with limited costs. Try for some small successes before taking on a complete culture or organization change. Look for some 'quick fixes' to use as learning opportunities.

The main thing is not to take on too much until you and your organization have a solid foundation in the process tools you will use. There are so many "tools" out there that you can get lost in the process. Be careful when hiring consultants to help you. Many of them are great and are really there to help... because they enjoy seeing people and companies succeed. However, others are there to just generate cash flow for themselves or their company. There are many one or two person consultation groups out there at very reasonable costs to work with you. These individuals will have a personal, vested interest in your success. Give the 'new guy or the lone consultant' a chance to provide you with the services you need. These folks often have very reasonable daily/hourly rates that can be one half of the big guys rates and will provide focused results. They will not have all the fancy 'glossies' but will have the knowledge.

Try out some of the principals and processes outlined in this blog such as those shown on pages:

1. Strategy Factors
2. Success Path
3. Process Tools
4. How to...?
5. Lean Leadership

These pages will link you to many other posts that will show you the path! It is also important to review many of the archived posts and subscribe to this blog to get the latest posts on your path to success.