Jim Womack in Great Form

Jim Womack, co-author of The Machine that Changed the World and Lean Thinking, joined Greg Howell and me and dozens more for a 75 minute concall. Right off the bat Jim teased us with his announcement that a new book is in the works to be published in the fall. No title as of yet, but he's dealing with the subject of lean consumption. What he means by that will have to wait. (I hope to offer a preview on this page.)

We did record the session. You can listen by calling 405-244-4000, Box 199. The recordng will be available until the next teleconference. (Sorry for the first few minutes of confusion on the recording.)

Jim acknowledged his inattention to the world of projects. Even so, he offered insights that are instructive to all of us attempting to do our projects more reliably and without waste. Two comments stood out for me. First, even the best intentioned companies struggle to accomplish a lean transformation. The "common sense" of economies of scale, mass production, and the pursuit of local productivity gains pervades. Second, just getting something started takes lean leadership — someone with enough respect and clout bringing a sense of urgency — otherwise you can expect just curious experiments.

One of our questions was about the eighth waste. Jim and Dan Jones have been quoted as changing their view. Not so. In the first edition of Lean Thinking the authors called the eighth waste providing something that the client didn't value. In the second edition the authors spoke about the underutilization of human potential as a key concern. In no way did they intend to give the impression that they were abandoning the described eighth waste.

Those are my highlights. Now let's hear from some of the other participants. Please leave your comments.

Next up: Rob Galford and Anne Seibold Drapeau speaking about their book The Trusted Leader. Read this review. Mark your calendar for June 24th, 1:00 - 2:15 PM Eastern. If you haven't signed up for the series then do so now by visiting Conversations with Project Authors. I had the pleasure of meeting Rob at a breakfast session. Not only will the conversation be practical it will be provocative.

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