Principal's Bio

Mark Hamel speakingPrincipal of Talcott Ridge Consulting, Mark R. Hamel is an award-winning author, consultant, and speaker. Over his 38-year career, he has played a transformative role in lean implementations across a broad range of industries including aerospace and defense, automotive, building products and infrastructure, business services, chemical, durable goods, electronics, electric power, energetic materials, insurance, healthcare, medical devices, paper, printing and flexible packaging, precision machining, retail, and transportation. Mark has successfully coached lean leaders and associates at both the strategic and tactical levels to achieve sustainable breakthrough financial and operational results and develop internal capabilities.

Kaizen Event book coverIn his 19-year pre-consulting career, Mark held executive and senior positions within operations, strategic planning, business development, and finance. His lean education and experience began in the early 1990s when he conceptualized and helped launch what resulted in a Shingo-Prize-winning effort at the Ensign-Bickford Company.

Mark holds a B.S. in mathematics from Trinity College in Hartford, CT, M.S. in professional accounting from the University of Hartford, and an M.A. in theology and M.A. in philosophy from Holy Apostles College and Seminary. He is a CPA in the state of Connecticut, dual APICS certified in production and inventory management (CPIM) and integrated resource management (CIRM), and Juran-certified as a Six Sigma Black Belt.

Lean Math book coverMark’s thought leadership is evidenced and extended through his position as a Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) faculty member as well as his speaking and writing. He is the author of the 2010 Shingo Publications-award winning Kaizen Event Fieldbook: Foundation, Framework, and Standard Work for Effective Events, and co-authored the 2017 Shingo Publications-award winning book, Lean Math: Figuring to Improve. Mark is the founder of the lean blogs, Gemba Tales and Lean Math and was formerly a regular columnist for Quality Digest and has been published in the Journal of Cost Management.  He was a national Shingo Prize examiner for eight years and helped develop exam questions for the AME/SME/Shingo Lean Certification.