Book Description

Discusses the best training techniques, including icebreakers, audio and visual aids, group interaction, and much more. ... Read more

Book Description

At the heart of this book are twelve key service/quality improvement areas-or cylinders-that include: signaling commitment; listening to internal/external customers; education and awareness; hiring and orienting; improving processes, and more! ... Read more

Book Description

Believe it or not, you can gain the cooperation of employees and co-workers using five simple steps. If It Wasn't For the People...This Job Would Be Fun provides executives, managers, and supervisors with the techniques needed to ensure that employees willinglyand consistently perform to ever higher levels of expectation. ... Read more

amazon

Jordan D. Lewis contends that creative collaboration between independent entities is the route to success in our increasingly complex global marketplace. However, he says these collaborations can be initiated properly only when both sides truly trust one another. After helping corporations worldwide implement such alliances for more than three decades, he explicitly shows in Trusted Partners how leading companies go about it. Simultaneously, he offers a road map for readers who also hope to negotiate this potentially rewarding but always slippery slope. Lewis looks first at the nature of trust, then describes ways to build it between internal factions, allies, and even competitors. He insists clear identification of "a single purpose" is key--for instance, as Mobil and British Petroleum did before forging a successful European joint venture using only BP's brand name (both firms accepted this, he notes, because they knew it would stem market-share erosion at each company). Conversely, he reveals how IBM and Sears failed to adequately align their organizations and purposes before uniting to form the ill-fated Prodigy online service. A final section offers rules for moving negotiations from preliminary discussions to agreement; guidelines for sharing benefits, costs, and risks; and other process-aiding tools. --Howard Rothman ... Read more

Reviews (8)

AN EXHAUSTIVE COMPILATION OF IDEAS
Brilliantly written, "Trusted Partners: How Companies Build Mutual Trust and Win Together" contains all the essential directives for building, sustaining, and harnessing the succulent fruits of a harmonic coalition.
This 319-paged book is an exhaustive compilation of both ideas and pieces of advice. Its logical arrangement ensured that all those crucial information remain dynamic. This is an important text for anyone who is into (or tends to go into) any form of corporate alliance or similar association.
Every important ingredient required for building, improving, and nourishing partnerships is in this book. Most of them were illustrated with examples.
This is a sound Management book. It is all about winning. Almost perfect! But I did wish that it provided clues on how to constructively repair a partnership that has been damaged by egoistic tendencies.

New Territory
Lewis has ventured into governance territory where few have trod--for example, asking how to structure boards of various types of alliances. To my knowledge, no other book has this type of material, which makes this book an excellent choice for corporate directors. (I am familiar with this audience, because I am the Editor-in-Chief of Director's Monthly, the official newsletter of the National Association of Corporate Directors, Washington, DC).

Practical and Profitable Wisdom
The basic premise is obvious: There can be no solid"partnerships" without trust. As the subtitle indicates, Lewisexplains "how companies build mutual trust and win together." It is imperative that individuals be worthy of trust. They must earn it and then sustain it with behavior based on core values. We all know that values derive from character (or the lack thereof), that values determine attitudes (both negative and positive), and that such attitudes are revealed by behavior.

My guess is that those in greatest need of this book will encounter the greatest difficulty when attempting to follow Lewis' suggestions. "Trust is at the heart of the knowledge economy....Rather than being a matter of blind faith, trust must be cone step at a time. Further, building trust between organizations is all-encompassing. It involves their people, politics, priorities, cultures, and structures." Organizations become untrustworthy when those within those organizations are untrustworthy. Over the years, all of us have been victimized by fraudulent claims, intentional misrepresentations, corrupt "politics", "a hidden agenda", broken promises, etc. If trust is to be built between organizations, there must be interpersonal as well as intrapersonal relationships based on trustworthiness.

Lewis's book is divided into three parts: Trust Leads to High Performance, Alliances with Key Partner, and Tools for Trust: A Guide for Practitioners. He follows a step-by-step process within each part, providing an abundance of observations, suggestions, and caveats. Who will derive the greatest value from this book? Here are my nominees:

1. Decision-makers who have the authority (not simply the responsibility) for their organization's cultural transformation.

2. Owners/CEOs of start-ups who are committed to building trust as well as sales and profits.

3. Those involved in M&A initiatives whose due diligence includes evaluation of cultural capital as well as material assets.

One of the book's most valuable sections (Chapter VII in the Third Part) summarizes "actions that establish trust-building habits." Note the use of the word "habit." Lewis is quite correct when insisting that time and effort are required to build and then sustain trust. Conversely, trust can be quickly compromised by a single act betrayal.

In this final section, the "trust-building habits" are classified as follows: Trust Conditions; Recruiting, Training, and Rewards; Management Behavior; and Other Activities. Once you have read the book, selected what is most appropriate to your own organization, and then begun the difficult task of implementation, it would be a good idea to re-read Chapter VII in the Third Part. The counsel Lewis provide will help you formulate your own tasks and objectives within the framework of the eight trust conditions and related practices.

If those within your organization are unwilling and/or unable to make a sincere and steadfast commitment to building and then sustaining trust, find another organization. And consider this fact: The companies which dominate their respective industries are the same companies which are rated the best companies to work for. Coincidence? I don't think so...and neither does Lewis.

Trusted Partners....a book to share with others
If trust is the glue that holds organizations together then you can trust that Jordan Lewis' new book Trusted Partners is an essential element of that glue. I have enjoyed Jordan's other books but find this one the most practical in its ability to translate wonderful stories about the business world into practical day to day applications. In addition, the final seven chapters of the book provide a guide for practitioners which we have incorporated into our evaluation of all our business partnerships.

While reading the book I needed to pause on frequent occasion and fit many of our current business relationships into his case examples. One of its greatest value may be to learn from others' mistakes and successes, and improve on this essential element for every organization.

Outstanding Book on Alliances - A Must Read!
Among the many books I've read on alliances, Trusted Partners stands far above the rest. This book deals directly, constructively, and in detail with the many realities of companies working together. Along with our partners, we have used Trusted Partners as an essential guide to every step along the way-starting when we first consider the practical merits of allying. The book has become an essential tool in helping us clarify our objectives, establish effective joint leadership, work through conflicts constructively, and align our organizations. It has been equally vital in our setting up and managing alliance governance, and has shown us how to strengthen an alliance-and how to avoid the traps - once it is underway. I particularly liked the chapters on selling alliances to customers, allying with rivals, and cooperation between internal groups. This is the most useful material I have ever seen on these important topics. Trusted Partners will be a lasting and valued resource in our company. ... Read more

Book Description

The Quality Management Division of the American Society for Quality has put together the ultimate preparatory guide for the Certified Quality Manager Exam. The Certified Quality Manager Handbook thoroughly describes each portion of the exam, providing insights, definitions, and sample exam questions.Each part also includes a bibliography for further reference.In addition to helping them pass the exam, quality managers will find the book very helpful as a desk reference.

Written in a collaborative effort by the Quality Management Division of ASQ, the Certified Quality Manager Handbook is one of the most comprehensive books ever on the subject of quality management, specifically on the Certified Quality Manager Exam.The book helps those seeking certification by providing a collection of study questions and answers, simulating those found on the actual exam.The included study questions are conveniently packaged in a separate removable booklet, meaning the main text can be brought into the exam and used in the open-book portion.In addition, the book features an in depth glossary providing definitions to terms that are crucial to the complete understanding of quality management and the passing of the certification exam.

The Certified Quality Manager Handbook does more than provide the information needed for passing the exam.It is also an excellent desk reference for those who want to learn more about quality management, including professionals who may already be certified.Written by a team of experts with years of experience in Quality Management, this book will be a great source of information for quality professionals, even years after completing the exam. ... Read more

Book Description

From Chaos to Coherence explores a provocative and inspiring model of organizational and individual intelligence. Called Inner Quality Management (IQM), the model helps unravel the intricate relationship between the individual employee and the organization. The book looks at how organizational systems have adapted to modern day chaos, and the strain that this adaptation is having on the inner workings of an organization and it's people. The book proposes a new technology, grounded in science, for building people and organizations that respond gracefully to change, crisis, and challenge. It covers themes of coherence, leadership, self-management, authentic communication, emotional virus, organizational climate, the drain of overcare, male/female balance and quantum management.A book of tools, insights and common sense intelligence. ... Read more

Reviews (7)

Eye opening with bright ideas on personal management
Most editorial and Amazon reviews praised this book of its value on organisational management. To me, this is more a personal management book which I learnt some new ideas and revisited some present ones, all in a highly comprehensible, interesting and easy reading manner. Some points for your reference are:-

1) The heart is not just an organ for pumping blood, but with the second largest amount of neuron (the same type of cell for the functioning in our brain). We do have a lot of it in our digestion system as well, a possible explanation to our heart and gut feelings.

2) Stress affects our production of hormones and drains our energy. Extended period of stress leads to maladaptation and thus premature aging and health problems. I like the author's refering to the fish in the highly contaminated Hudson River.

3) The analogy of the natural frequency in nature (ref the resonance for string instructment) to the need for dynamic balance inside a human and thus an organisation for optimal performance.

In short, though I dont believe the approach prescribed by this book can help much to improve the culture of many big corps, I do regard this as a very good book and I do recommend this to any business person who still has the heart for improvement.

I've Tried It -- It Works
Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer have identified a simple blueprint that I think will be the key to changing existing corporate cultures and organizational climates into what they will need to be to survive in the 21st century. Leaders like Jack Welch of GE and Steven Covey have already told us that what will be critical to success in the future is "soft stuff with hard results" and From Chaos to Coherence shows us how to do that with ease, grace, and success!

For any CEO, VP, Manager, Staff, Front Line worker- the simplicity of the concepts, the scientific foundation of the technology, and the ratio of success achieved by major organizations makes this book worth the read.

The simple premise of exercising, on a consistent basis, the innate positive qualities of basic human nature is consistent with the success we see Fast Companies having. With the increasing mental and emotional chaos written about in many articles, business magazines, newspapers, and management books, this book by Childre and Cryer is not only refreshing, but also provides practical solutions carefully laid out in what they call the four dynamics of inner quality management.

I have already started applying their simple processes to my life and my business problems and am experiencing immediate improvements in my mental clarity, productivity, and emotional state, particularly in high pressure situations. As the phrase inner quality implies, I believe we have to take care of ourselves internally first so that we can take care of business!

More than a 5 star book!
Balance and Coherence in the corporate world? Ha! Then I read the book.... As an Executive Assistant with over 18 years of experience I wish that each and every Manager, Director, and VP that I have supported read this book - AND practiced the methods that Childre and Cryer describe. I will be buying copies of this book for all my "bosses".

This model (Inner Quality Management) is the antidote!
I am a business consultant. As I read this book the words "This is it" kept running through my brain. These principles of Internal self-management are the antidote to the illness I see in too many organizations. Very talented individuals with a desire to do their very best are losing their spirits and hemorrhaging under the perception that they "can't manage the pace" anymore. Stress and overwhelm feed cynicism which quickly leads to breakdown. Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer have show us the map to restore and sustain organizational vitality and wellness. How to thrive as individuals and then thrive as teams and organizations. I clearly see that these tools are practical, have scientific underpinning and have been field-tested and proven. Imagine the impact on quality, climate and profits if an organization was able to transform even 15% of its Chaos into Coherence. If each organization has a "collective brain", it should be processing its information coherently and creatively, and the lifeblood of that organization (the spirit of its employees) should be coursing thru this oganism with full hearts. Bravo to Doc Childre and Bruce Cryer for showing us how to enter the 21st century with the tools to make this a reality. I'm recommending that every business manager, CEO, VP, administrator and politician study this book, learn the techniques for themselves and bring this to their organizations.

Best tools to make our day to day life at work easier.
If you want to take care of your self while taking care of the bottom line of your division, the four dynamics taught in From Chaos To Coherence do it fast.

The Freeze-Frame tool quickly showed me how NOT to react and really listen to my staff. It's in chapter 5 ...go staight there.

It's better than a coffee break....... ... Read more

Book Description

Waste-eliminating, performance-improvement weaponsDiscover the best ways to overcome todayÆs most stubborn business issues: waste of resources, personnel, and opportunity. Performance Improvement Methods, by H. James Harrington and Kenneth C. Lomax, details the 85 most effective performance-enhancing weapons you can use to get the most from the least, and get the jump on your competitors. You'll learn about activity-based costing...design of experiments...failure mode and effect analysis...matrix data analysis...process benchmarking, redesign,and reengineering...QFD...simulation modeling...the six-sigma system...value-added analysis...and all the other strategies performance experts have identified as the best ways to promote efficiency and productivity, and maximize opportunities in every arena. This book/CD-ROM package gives you ready-to-download sample forms, agreements and analyses, plus exercises, games,definitions, case histories and more that help you put these creative and efficient tools to work. ... Read more

Book Description

Are you a Mess Maven suffering from Paperosis Misplacea? Do you work with a Deadline Deadbeat or have Phone-o-phobic clients? Have you ever felt overwhelmed or overloaded?

For anyone struggling with too many projects, too little time, and too much paper, organizing guru Harriet Schechter -- aka The Miracle Worker -- offers innovative methods for conquering the five types of workplace chaos: Time, Memory, Communication, Information, and Projects. And she shows you how to handle the real Chaos Creators:

* Bosses who expect you to cover for them
* Coworkers who leave messes for you to clean up
* Assistants who are even more overwhelmed than you are
* Clients who won't return your phone calls

No matter who or what is creating the chaos that drives you crazy, Conquering Chaos at Work has the practical, easy-to-adopt solutions you need to overcome disorganization now...and forever. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Too obvious for me
I think this is best for people who have some major blind spots when it comes to other people's responsibilities and to their own boundaries. Yes, it gives examples and solutions. But it all seemed obvious.
I don't think I had any "ah ha" moments. If you agree that it's for people with major blind spots, I think you'll agree it should address the readership as well, since such big blind spots generally come with other issues that can get in the way of following the advice in this kind of book.
In my corporate experience, it is usually the more subtle behaviors that don't get addressed and fester, or problems that are more systemic and pervasive as part of the company's culture. But The Addictive Organization it isn't. If it went farther, it could be a codependence recovery book about deeper changes that have to happen to deftly handle the situations it addresses.
If the folks that gave those five star reviews can come back a year later and say that their work lives were really changed, then I'd be more open to the idea that this book is relevant.

Not just a time management book
A lot of books about organizing only deal with time management. In this book, the author deals with other types of disorganization. I had to laugh when I read the part about the deceptive chaos creating boss. I now think of that former boss as only a guy with nothing more than a clean desk and a leather Day-Timer. On the surface, he looked organized, in reality, he was never prepared for many of the meetings.

I am saved.....
At last!!!! Harriet Schecthter's inspirational book "Conquering Chaos at Work" is here and it's a gem, providing practical, no nonsense solutions to those organizational challenges that frustrate us daily at work.

"Conquering Chaos at Work" fills a gaping void in previous organizational literature by not only addressing and resolving where our personal attempts to get organized may have failed, but also providing vital suggestions and systems to encourage and help the organizationally impaired people around us who may impact negatively on our own effectivess.

"Conquering Chaos at Work" is a must for anyone who aspires to becoming more effective at work and at life.

Do yourself and your organization a big favour and pop one in your shopping trolley now!!!!

Great Book!
Harriet Schechter's Conquering Chaos at Work is fun to read and very comprehensive. It covers different types of chaos creators and provides methods to deal effectively with these habits, whether they exist in ourselves or other people. In describing the way that people can contribute to unnecessary disorganization, the book does more than describe general behavior and various tips to overcome these tendencies - she gives interesting case histories as well. This is part of what makes it fun to read! It has just the right balance of substance and light-heartedness. I highly recommend it as an easy read that is well worth referring to again and again.

Common-sense Organizing
Without a doubt, this is one of the best organizing books I have read in quite some time! From the very beginning, the author defines CHAOS to make sure the reader understands exactly what she is talking about; the rest of the book is common-sense organizing written in a humorous style. A very easy read.

If I had to choose one specific topic I liked most in CHAOS, it would be the fact that most of our disorganized lives come from outside sources, and this book teaches us exactly how to resolve that chaos. Put that way, it seems very simple doesn't it?

Help is on the way. Ms. Schechter provides a Chaos Questionnaire, and gives the reader permission to skip to problematic topics first without reading the book cover to cover. Anytime I read this, I am relieved, because this is truly a time saver that we all welcome.

Conquering Chaos at Work targets time and paper management that we all face, reminding us that we are not alone in our efforts to organize our workday, constantly resolving challenges that others create. No wonder we all have such a problem getting things together. After reading this book, you will be able to identify, classify, and conquer the chaos creators in your own life; and if you can smile and heave a sigh of relief along the way, all the better! ... Read more

Book Description

During the past decade Japanese companies have derived many of their competitive advantages from streamlined work-flow processes. Desperate to replicate the Japanese systems, American managers have bought into countless theories advanced by management consultants which, lacking a methodology, have proved fruitless and frustrating. Now, from inside a world-renowned learning organization, comes that methodology.

Continuous Process Improvement (CPI) is an improvement and problem-prevention system created and developed by George Robson to "empower" natural work teams in three General Electric businesses. Composed of a logical set of steps, at the heart of which is "Process Flow Diagramming," CPI focuses on and simplifies the critical elements of work flow processes and eliminates those parts that add no value.

Not only has this methodology helped these GE businesses save in excess of $35 million during the first two years of implementation, but similar techniques are now being employed by leading-edge companies throughout the world. CPI is a transportable system that not only has profoundly changed manufacturing practices, but has been applied with equal success in all areas of a business. Robson shows how the "Iceberg Phenomenon" can identify the measurable benefits of accurately accounting for direct and indirect costs by carefully tracking expenses. Planning for the true costs of customer service, marketing concessions, and retraining can turn unplanned losses into short- and long-term returns on investments. Robson focuses on activities that are critical to quality in design and production and demonstrates how non-value-added work can be eliminated. The staggering cost of re-work, calculated in "The Rule of Tens," is reduced by catching mistakes before they escape to subsequent stages of handling. The CPI system, which has been widely praised within General Electric, will be of broad interest throughout the business and university communities. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Goes straight to the heart of CPI
You can buy any number of books on continuous improvement or process design and become quickly mired in overwhelming detail. This book, on the other hand, goes to the heart of what a process is, the true meaning of 'continuous process improvement' (a frequently misused term in my opinion), and the steps needed to achieve it.

Chapter 1 starts by explaining continuous process improvement, its business benefits, and some simple tools that will get you started. This chapter is so well written and makes so much sense that if this were a novel it would be considered to be a 'grabber'. The next two chapters get you started by showing you how to map and evaluate a process.

I like the way you are quickly led to focus on what's important through problem statement and analysis. Chapter 4 introduces the real tools for continuous improvement - statistical process control charts - and manages to cover this daunting topic without losing the reader. This is no mean feat because the material isn't simple in nature. The treatment is brief and will probably raise more questions if you are not familiar with statistical process controls. If that's the case you will probably want to read "SPC Simplified: Practical Steps to Quality" by Robert T. Amsden (or if you are in the service industry, "SPC Simplified for Services" by Davida M. Amsden, which is the same boom with an emphasis on services). The final chapter wraps up by giving advice about implementing corrective action, project management considerations, and managing teams and meetings.

This is the best introduction to continuous process improvement, in my opinion, and one that I recommend highly to anyone who is new to the subject. I also recommend "Solve That Problem!: Readymade Tools for Continuous Improvement" by Steve Smith (ISBN 0749424826), which expands on the basic CPI tools that this book introduces. ... Read more

Book Description

Statistical Process Control, or SPC, is one of the most misunderstood and underused tools in modern business practice. SPC: Practical Understanding of Capability by Implementing Statistical Process Control, third edition debunks the myth that SPC is only for engineers or technical managers. In fact, SPC is the proper set of tools for any operation where a product is created using a continuously repeated process. This is true for both manufacturing and service industries (sometimes the "product" is actually a service to people.) Author James Abbott uses everyday language to explain WHAT makes SPC work, WHY it will work for every situation, and HOW it fits into the overall decision-making process. This third edition of SPC is the result of years of feedback and refinement. An expanded appendix provides complete glossaries of terms, constants, formulas, and a practice question and answer section. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Excellent, self-paced program
This book, along with the Self Study
Guide, are excellent self paced learning materials. I highly recommend these materials to anyone whose job demands a thorough knowledge of Statistical Process Control.

Self-paced learning materials
The SPC " Practical Understanding of Capability by Implementing Statistical Process Control" along with the Self Study
Guide are excellent self paced learning materials. I highly recommend these materials to anyone whose job demands a thorough knowledge of Statistical Process Control.

This author doesn't know the first thing about statistics
I think that it is sad that a book of such extremely poor technical quality, which the author believes is "practical understanding", fools so many people who do not understand statistics themselves.If you have not been exposed to statistics for sometime, or have always wanted to learn statistical methods, then this should not be your first book.Anyone who has been exposed to a good book on statistics, or attended a class or seminar on statistics, will quickly see that this book contains numerous incorrect definitions and interpretations of statistical terms and methods.A book review of this book by noted statistician, Lloyd Nelson (who is an ASQ Fellow and Shewhart medalist) appeared in the April 2001 issue of the Journal of Quality Technology.

As an example, the author defines the binomial distribution as one which has two modes, which he has confused with the biMODal distribution.The range is defined as the (data point - average), which would produce both positive and negative values.Of course, the range is known (by everyone else except the author) as the difference between the largest and smallest values of a set of data, so it can never assume a negative value.His discussion of control charts also demonstrates a lack of understanding as to their use and the underlying distributions on which they are based.For instance, his statement that the binomial and Poisson distributions are a special case of the normal distribution is blatantly incorrect.The list of examples goes on and on, and many more can be found in Nelson's book review.

The best advice this reviewer can give someone shopping for an easy to read and credible book on statistics is to pass this one up, save your money, and keep looking.If you subscribe to one of the journals of ASQ (American Society for Quality), namely the Journal of Quality Technology and Technometrics, then read their book reviews.The reviewers are very knowledgable and are composed of Senior Members and Fellows who have considerable practical and theoretical knowledge.They can offer valuable information on which books give the best value for the money.

Worst book for SPC users
This text is one of the worst in terms of technical merit and correctness.The author obviously does not have much of an idea about statistics and how to implement SPC....

"Practical"
" The word practical in the book's subtitle says it all. The book has a decision making focus (still has the math).This really clarified everything for me.Not just a math book but a how to make SPC work for you. The idea of different tools for strategic and tactical decisions was new and refreshing." ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Quality is Personal
This is a life-changing guide to quality in simple relatable terms. I always thought Quality was an enterprise thing and it didn't relate to me, the individual. It has helped me address everything from responding to requests on time to routine exercise and weight control. A must read for anyone who believes in quality principles. Everyone talks quality but to apply it personally is to truly understand the word. ... Read more

Book Description

Thinking about Six Sigma, but worried about the exorbitant costs?

The Small Business Guerrilla Guide to Six Sigma will show you why the conventional "big business" strategy for implementing Six Sigma is wrong for small business. So how can small businesses out fox the big ones? By doing the opposite:

- To get big benefits fast, set big hairy audacious goals, not incremental ones
- To boost return on investment, narrow your focus
- To increase adoption of Six Sigma, reduce the number of people involved
- To accelerate Six Sigma, get commitment from your informal leaders, not the formal ones
- To maximize learning, minimize training

According to the SBA, small businesses:
- provide 75 percent of the net new jobs added to the economy
- represent 99.7 percent of all employers
- employ 50.1 percent of the private work force
- provide 40.9 percent of private sales in the country.
- account for 39.1 percent of jobs in high technology sectors in 2001
- account for 52 percent of private sector output in 1999
- represent 97 percent of all U.S. exporters

If Six Sigma is truly yielding huge savings for the companies that use it, then it stands to reason that small businesses need Six Sigma in order to achieve the kind of cost savingsand increased profitability enjoyed by large-company Six Sigma practitioners. - Dirk Dusharme. ... Read more

Book Description

When was the last time your company improved productivity from 20 percent to 60 percent—in only four days? Or cut inventory by 50 percent in the same amount of time? Remarkable results like these were delivered by teams of employees and those who participated in the Association for Manufacturing Excellence Kaizen BlitzSM events. Using the Kaizen Blitz, employees learned how to work as a team to tackle problems from the shop floor and, most importantly, how to solve them quickly.

That's what The Kaizen Blitz can teach you. Simply translated as "continuous improvement," kaizen is a highly focused process aimed at producing incremental performance improvements in narrowly targeted areas. The Kaizen Blitz is a powerful technique that delivers breakthrough improvements throughout an organization—fast. This book will show you how the Kaizen Blitz works and how to bring the extraordinary benefits of this approach to your company. Coauthored by executives of the AME, the book provides a frank discussion of what kaizen will and won't do, the preparation necessary, obstacles to be wary of, and the results you can expect.

The Kaizen Blitz involves everyone across an organization—managers and workers alike. 44t is a low-cost, hands-on process, where all team members are equal and everyone gets their hands dirty. This thorough guide explains how your company can put together your own Kaizen Blitz teams to rapidly develop, test, and refine solutions to problems, leaving a new process in place in just a few days. It outlines how employees can work side by side to implement the best of their ideas for reaching common business goals, such as inventory reduction, capacity expansion, cost reduction, and leveraging capital investments. You will discover how the application of a few simple tools in a straightforward, common-sense approach can bring about real and profound change, provided that management is fully committed and ready to lead the process.

In addition, the authors of this important book:

• Help you determine whether your organization is ready to attempt the Kaizen Blitz
• Outline what you need for an initial Kaizen Blitz project—and what to avoid
• Explain why software package-driven process change has limitations
• Cite results and applications in top U.S. manufacturers.

If you are committed to adopting lean manufacturing; if you want an effective tool to address specific problems in your company; if you need radical change to happen now, The Kaizen Blitz will deliver beyond your highest expectations.

The Association for Manufacturing Excellence has pioneered a powerful version of kaizen—a process for achieving continuous improvement in an organization—called the Kaizen Blitz.SM This book will show you how to use this remarkable tool to deliver breakthrough improvements in your company in areas like productivity, inventory reduction, capacity expansion, and much more. You'll learn how to assemble a kaizen team that will determine solutions to your company's specific problems by designing new systems, correcting mistakes quickly and moving on, running and refining procedures, and ultimately demonstrating a new process in place in just a few days. You'll also read about top U.S. manufacturers who have successfully used the Kaizen Blitz to bring about radical, positive change. If your company is ready to achieve dramatic results by implementing new processes—not just proposed, but in place and functioning—in a matter of days, the Kaizen Blitz is the way to make it happen. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Disappointed!
Did NOT help us run Kaizen events. An overview and story.
Author has never implemented Kaizen, only told about others' successes.
Not a "how to do it" book.

"Continuous Improvement" of What?
As you probably know already, the word "kaizen" is a Japanese term meaning "to make better" with the implication that such effort should be continuous, indeed intensive and unrelenting. Since 1994, the Association for Manufacturing Excellence (AME) has developed a series of educational initiatives known as the "Kaizen Blitz." In the Introduction to this volume, Jon Brodeur observes: "We think non-consultant-driven events -- training and on-the-floor work by the experts, the hands-on employees who have experienced the power of the Kaizen Blitz -- will continue to be a welcome addition to any organization's arsenal of improvement approaches. Small- and medium-sized companies can do it as well as larger ones and they may have an advantage if operations are small enough in scope to get their arms around." However, positive and significant results can only be achieved with an appropriate combination of leadership at its highest level, acceptance (indeed enthusiasm) throughout all other levels, and tenacious involvement about attaining 20 percent to 50 percent improvement (or greater) in performance in a short time and in narrowly targeted areas. The effective Kaizen process must be top-down, initiated and sustained by teamwork, and focused entirely on doing "whatever needs to be done" ASAP. The authors of this book explain both how and why.

The material is organized within 11 chapters whose titles correctly suggest the nature and extent of coverage: The Power of AME's Kaizen Blitz: Learning by Doing; The Roots of Kaizen; Improvement Strategy: Implementing the Big Picture; Getting Ready for Kaizen; Time Prints and Takt Times; How to Tell If There Is Improvement: Adding Value, Subtracting Waste: Uncovering the Flows: Establishing and Clarifying Process Flows; Forms, Charts, and Measurements; Sustaining the Gain: Lean Leadership; and finally, Never Look Back. Throughout the book, the authors reiterate the imperative that Kaizen Blitz initiatives must be sharply focused, task oriented, results driven, measurable and -- meanwhile -- FAST. Hence the relevance of the concept of "blitz," which gained worldwide prominence prior to and then during World War II when Fascist and then Allied forces attacked enemy positions with unprecedented velocity. As the AME Kaizen Blitz has demonstrated so convincingly, the same strategy (with obvious modifications) can effectively be implemented within any organization, regardless of size or nature.

Obviously I think highly of this book because it offers a sensitive, flexible, thoughtful and rigorous program to achieve what the subtitle correctly describes as "accelerating breakthroughs in productivity and performance." If these brief comments suggest that this is a program your organization needs, I strongly recommend that all of its decision-makers read it. Then, schedule an offsite meeting during which the book becomes the agenda for collaborative efforts to formulate and implement a Kaizen Blitz appropriate to your organization's specific needs and interests. If there is a need for additional resources, I strongly suggest Breyfogle's two books as well as one written by Pande and his co-authors.

I've Never Done This Before, But Let Me Tell You How.
Three contributers, three more "experts" trying to tell us how to do something that they have never done themselves.
A lot of references and notable people and companies are mentioned, but where is the real hands-on "How to do it?"
This book is a story book and should be classified as FICTION.
This trio are writers, not "Lean Manufacturing" implementers.

Good second book.
Mr. Laria has compiled an interesting book that certainly should be read by those contemplating using kaizen blitzes. It is enlightening and when combined with the "Kaizen Event Implementation Manual" makes a complete, theory to actual application set.

What about the detail?
The book is a good overview, but lacks the details necessary to implement. It is obvious that the authors have never implemented Kaizen themselves! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Keep Looking
This book is extremely long on what, but strangely short on how. So if your aim is to learn about ISO 9001:2000, by all means, this is the book for you. But if you're interested in implementation, keep looking.

Wonderful intro & unique approach to documentation
I like this book for two reasons: (1) it steps you through what it takes to implement a quality system based on ISO 9001:2000, and (2) it shows how to develop your quality manual and documentation using Information Mapping techniques.

First, the approach to ISO 9001:2000. The author clearly explains what ISO 9001 is and what to expect in the certification process. If you're new to ISO 9001 (or 9002 or 9003) then the comparison in Chapter 2 between the 1994 and 2000 versions can be safely skipped, but if your organization is already certified, or wish to move from 9002 or 9003 to 9001, then the explanation of the differences is extremely helpful. Chapters 3 through 8 are standard fare that you would expect to find in any book about ISO 9000-series. What sets this book apart is the clear writing and ease of finding information. If you've read other books on the subject you know how dry they can be. This book is as lively as the subject matter permits (believe me, *any* book on the subject is going to be ponderous reading).

Chapter 9, Transition Planning, stands out as among the most valuable in the book (or any book about ISO 9000 in my opinion) because it covers the make-of-break issues for achieving certification. As an Information Mapping practitioner I especially liked the discussion of documentation considerations. I've long been convinced that Information Mapping and quality documentation should be integrated. With respect to ISO 9001 there has been much reluctance on the part of companies pursuing registration to stray from the rather ugly standard format of quality documentation. I hope this book changes that because the approach that the author proposes will add value to the quality manual by making it easy to read by all levels in your company, while keeping it 'assessor friendly' for certification and re-certification purposes. ... Read more

Book Description

Human resource management is a particularly challenging role, both domestically and globally. This challenge can be viewed either as an opportunity or as a threat. As an opportunity, the principles and practices of total quality presented in this book can help human resource professionals or anyone who manages people, transform institutionalized mediocrity into organizational excellence.The focus of this book is on managing the difference TQ makes in human resources. Whereas the traditional nature and scope of responsibility for most human resource professionals has been that of staff support geared to administrative compliance, the total quality approach offered here reveals the keys to developing and sustaining commitment to world-class performance. These keys include strategic input and continual improvement of the human resource system to enhance internal and external customer satisfaction both now and in the future. The full meaning of these new TQ role demands is explored in light of the driving forces reshaping the HR environment into the 21st Century.In addition, this book offers practitioner assessment instruments, practical TQ tools, and specific implementation steps to take in order to make the TQ difference in managing human resources domestically and globally. ... Read more