Lean Management is:

• defining the purpose of the organisation in terms of customer value i.e., consumption problems of customers  it is required to solve
• designing and executing the right value streams and processes for achieving the purpose
• and aligning the people touching the process and building problem solving capability in them

It is now proven that Lean is applicable in any sphere of human activity, and a variety of industries – small and large from Retail, Office and Service industries have begun to appreciate the benefits of Lean Management and are transforming themselves. Many companies from Banking & Financial Services, Healthcare, Retail, Hospitality, BPOs, Call Centre & ITES and Software Industries have already embarked on a Lean Programme or are evaluating and seriously considering one. This is apart from Manufacturing Industries realising that Lean Management is more than applying tools and techniques in the factory operations.

Every industry needs to move away from the Alfred Sloan School of Management through Quarterly Rear View Mirrors that it has consciously or un-consciously adapted to the Eiji Toyoda School of Management in order to solve their customer's problems better? Toyota did not need to do anything fundamentally different in 50 years. A Toyota Manager starts his career solving problems at the actual work-site using observation and the fundamental Plan-Do-Check-Adjust and continues solving problems. So why do initiatives have shelf lives in companies?

Source: Adapted from Dr. James Womack’s presentation at Lean Management Summit, India 2008