one80too! Audie Penn, March 15, 2024April 24, 2024 182 Critical Concepts for Operating Executives Practicing Operational Excellence My operational excellence journey began in 1991 when I participated in a joint project lead by Japanese sensei Nakao-san of Shingijutsu fame. I had no idea then what that simple experience would create. I have practiced and learned with more sensei… Continue Reading
Number 80 – Tools to Set Strategy Audie Penn, March 25, 2025February 15, 2025 Use Planning Tools to Set Strategy and Direction Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic The dictionary definition of planning is an important starting point to better understand what using planning tools to set strategy and direction is encouraging from us. Planning – the act or process of making a plan (that… Continue Reading
Number 105 – Ensure Alignment Audie Penn, March 15, 2025February 15, 2025 Use processes like Hoshin Kanri and tools like A-3 to ensure alignment and track progress regularly. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic The key to this idea is found in understanding the purpose and relationship between processes and tools. Whether the objective is strategy deployment or managing a project, we have… Continue Reading
Number 71 – Stability and Standardization Audie Penn, March 6, 2025February 15, 2025 Define stability and standardization expectations. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic When I read define stability and standardization expectations, I immediately think about a conversation I had with an executive vice president. He had sent me out to assess his plant performance. As I moved from plant to plant exploring SQDP… Continue Reading
Number 8 – Letting Go Audie Penn, February 24, 2025February 15, 2025 Create learning environments by developing others through delegation and “letting go” to stretch and grow protégés. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic One of the most destructive behaviors a sponsor can undertake is to hold onto the ownership of the work of their teams. Whew! I’m gonna get some push back… Continue Reading
Number 22 – Respect Decision Making-Processes Audie Penn, February 7, 2025February 12, 2025 Respect decision-making processes and understanding the importance of driving consensus. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic Everything we do is the result of a process. One of the key ideas in operational excellence is that everything we do is the result of a process, including making decisions. How we make decisions is… Continue Reading
Number 4 – Changes in Leadership Shouldn’t Disrupt Performance Audie Penn, January 28, 2025February 12, 2025 Create processes that will continue to thrive despite changes in leadership. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic The concepts that reside within the scope of responsibility at the strategic level should always be considered from the enterprise level. I have also modified the statement slightly. It initially read ‘create a process’… Continue Reading
Number 69 – Practice Problem Solving Audie Penn, January 15, 2025February 12, 2025 Practice problem-solving activities. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic This might seem like another obvious idea, but how many of our teams have had any training or guidance on root cause problem solving. How often do we practice problem solving when we want to teach our team something about their processes?… Continue Reading
Number 6 – Recognize and Reward Audie Penn, December 23, 2024February 12, 2025 Recognize and reward appropriate efforts and behaviors. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic This seems obvious but challenging the way it is presented. Obvious because acknowledging appropriate effort and behavior should come naturally. We must learn to recognize and reward the right behaviors. I will often lead this concept with a… Continue Reading
Number 120 – Transactional and Administrative Processes Audie Penn, November 17, 2024February 12, 2025 Apply basic lean tools such as 5S and kanban in transactional and administrative processes. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic My own lean journey exploded when I stepped into number 120. I had many years of practice with basic lean tools in the production environment, and many people still believe today… Continue Reading
Number 13 – Sustainability Needs a System to Succeed Audie Penn, October 12, 2024February 12, 2025 Sustainability Needs a System Embrace, support, and promote effective environmental and safety systems. Practitioners: tactical, integrative, and strategic Sustainability has become a buzz word today. Unfortunately, from my perspective, it has also lost its meaning and importance. Protecting our environment means avoiding contamination that could injure or harm ourselves or… Continue Reading