This is the first of my two contributing installments to John Hunter’s fifth annual review roundup. In this post, I am honored to review Bruce Hamilton’s Old Lean Dude blog, “a blog about understanding TPS and gaining its full benefits, brought to you by ‘The Toast Guy’." Bruce is the President of the Greater Boston Manufacturing Partnership (GBMP), is Vice Chair of the Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence, and all-around lean evangelist.
While Bruce has been blogging for just two years, his lean thought-leading presence has been around for many years. I have met Bruce personally several times and have listened to him speak on a handful of occasions. My consistent experience can be summed up as follows:
- Wow, what a humble, unassuming, down-to-earth person!
- He just expanded my lean-thinking (again)!
- Bruce lives and embodies the GBMP tag line of people-driven improvement, “Everybody. Everyday.”
Make no mistake, Bruce may be known as the Toast Guy (I have used the Toast Kaizen DVD for training purposes nearly 100 times), but he is really a sensei…and I reserve that term for very, very few folks.
Oh yes, Bruce’s blog…
Bruce has been a busy blogger. There is a ton of great content, written in his own inimitable style.
While I can only share a few his posts (below), you will do well to explore Mr. Hamilton’s blog.
- They Assessment. Bruce gets the reader to reflect about culture and an organization’s use of the word “they.” Lean transformations are by no means immune to us versus them thinking. In fact, “they” word counts and lean success is inversely proportional.
- What Does 3p Stand for? There’s the technical side of 3P and the people side. Hamilton shares both within the context of a real-life example. Great stuff!
- WIP It. Two things: 1) the Old Lean Dude and his team are great at didactic entertainment, and 2) Bruce can’t sing! Check out the post and check out the video below. Can anyone say, “Lean Devo”?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJd2TaMftcY&feature=youtu.be
- High Level Ignorance. Remember the 8th waste? Bruce provides insight into perhaps the root cause behind that waste. Hint- it ain’t the “low level employees.”
- Too Happy Too Soon. Bruce just posted this one today. Here, he shares a real life experience around SMED with a deeper learning about when to expand beyond pilot-mode. Our impatience can limit our level of improvement.
I truly hope that you visit Bruce Hamilton’s blog. The Old Lean Dude can teach the willing student new tricks!
Also, please check out ALL of John Hunter’s 2012 Management Blog Carnival activity right here.
Related posts: Management Improvement Carnival #126, Blog Carnival Annual Roundup: 2011 – Steven Spear, Blog Carnival Annual Roundup: 2011 – Lean Blog, Blog Carnival Annual Roundup: 2011 – A Lean Journey