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The Principles of LEAN

The Principles of LEAN

February 17, 2016 Written by mbayer

LEAN is based on two simple principles.

Voice of the Customer. Nothing is done except in response to the voice of the customer. The purpose of any organization is to serve its customers in the way they want to be served and are willing to pay for. All actions taken must be in response to the voice of the customer and not to what we think the customer said or wanted. I have worked for over 15 years in the healthcare sector. I have lost count of the number of times I have seen process improvement teams institute change with few or even negative results. Why? Because they were serving themselves and not their patients. When confronted with the data, they go into data denial, claiming the data is faulty. The fault is their refusal to listen to what the data or voice of the customer is telling them.

Respect. Every action is done with respect. Respect for the customer, patient, family member, employee, manager. The most valuable asset an organization has is its employees. When we engage in problem-solving exercises, we often discover problems that have gone on for a long time. Our tendency is to blame the individuals engaged in the process for not realizing the problems sooner and fixing them. That’s not respect. Finding a breakdown in a process, engaging those doing the work to help fix the problem and then letting them fix the broken process, that’s respect.

Michael developed a LEAN program for our hospital. This involved training both managers and front line staff in LEAN and its application in every department. Two LEAN projects were conducted in an effort to reduce inventory. There was a reduction of $135,000 in pharmacy inventory and $200,000 reduction in OR inventory."
Richard E. D’Alberto, FACHE
President & Chief Executive Officer
Laurens County Hospital

"Michael is a great speaker. He is inspirational and knows his trade."
Lynn Yarbrough
OR, JMRC

"Great quality- appreciate his openness to field question on the spot"
Rita Jones
CEO, Dundy County Hospital

"Michael is an outstanding, knowledgable speaker, keeps the flow going an involve the audience well."
Stephen Stewart
CEO, Artesian Valley Health System

"I like the process in implementation"
Brad Langdorf
VP Clinical Services, Community Hospital

“Michael is an excellent speaker. Content is exciting and educational.”
Mollie Heisel
Human Resource Coordinator
Brown County Regional Health Care

“Very good; usable; informative; real; encouraging”
Valerie Gigolyk
Supervisor
Loewen Windows

“Without your personality, coaching and spirit, we wouldn’t have made it so far.”
Ann Corrigan, RN
VP of Patient Services
Henry County Health Center

“We are utilizing the information on a regular basis. It has been exciting to see this growth.”
Pat Hales , Director of Quality and Educational Services Misericordia Health Center

“Excellent speaker- funny yet seriously important to improve our daily lives.”
Rebecca Ricartti, HR Director
Pacific Alliance Medical Center

“Michael is fantastic. Keeps the learning Entertaining and interesting.”
Stephen Stewart CEO
Artesian Valley Health System

“Great. Enjoyed the session.”
Curtis Hawkinson CEO
Community Memorial Healthcare

“Very clear and concise presentation. Always includes stories that make you think.”
Heather Greenwood, Med Tech
CHI St. Alexius Health

“Michael is a great presenter and presented he content in a manner that made it interesting and useful.”
Lynne Yarbrough, OR Director
Johnson Regional Medical Center

“Knowledgeable and energetic.”
Valerie Hangman, QI Coordinator
Providence Medical Center

I was impressed by the content and the clarity of the speaker.”
Jennifer Russell
Government of Manitoba

“Excellent quality, excellent information & keeps his agenda enthusiastic and timely.”
Terri Davis, RN
Providence Medical Center

“Dynamic speaker who leads the group to discover the answers for themselves.”
Jeff Dolan
Canada Cases Ltd.

“Mike is inspirational. A Great Motivator.”
Glen W. Buckler
President Two Small Men with Big Hearts 

“You have to see Michael Bayer’s presentation.”
Lois French
 Investors Group

“Excellent speaker with an important message”
Rob Vineberg
Regional Director General
Citizenship & Immigration Canada

“Excellent speaker- funny yet seriously important to improve our daily lives.”
Rebecca Ricartti,
HR Director
Pacific Alliance Medical Center

“Fantastic! My cheeks hurt from laughing so much, yet I also gained so much knowledge too! Thanks!”
Daiva Griese
One Legacy

“Excellent, worthwhile. It was as good as it gets.”
Stephanie Bloodworth
Case Manager, New Directions

“Fantastic speaker. Great for any industry.”
Ron Farmer
Personal Banker, CIBC