Reviews: The Elusive Lean Enterprise (2nd Ed.) - by Keith Gilpatrick and Brian Furlong [P

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The Elusive Lean Enterprise (2nd Ed.) [ebook]
[9781897326664]

$17.95

Displaying 1 to 4 (of 4 reviews)

Result Pages: 1

by Peter Square

Date Added: Wednesday 09 April, 2008

I have just finished this book and it is excellent! This is not just another book on Lean. This is an indictment of executives, managers and concrete heads in organizations that aspire to mediocrity.

These authors have obviously been in the trenches and understand what most of us go through as we try to implement this process. There is great advice and hard-hitting commentary on why companies are failing to get the full benefits of Lean. Check out the Lean Math Chapter where Offshore Outsourcing is compared to a Lean alternative.

Executives and managers have a huge responsibility and they are not (from what I exerience) living up to it. The authors explain why engagement is critical as well as commitment. Management should read this book and then ask themselves a lot of tough questions. Also, the whole discussion on education and institutionalization is right on the money.

This book shows why you need to change and how to do it. It focuses on the whole Enterprise and not just Manufacturing and explains why Lean is not a new fad and why it will not go away.

You are going Lean or you are not going anywhere, and this book shows why you need to do it before you are forced into it by your customers or your competition.

I hope these guys write another book. This is a breath of fresh Lean air.

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

by K. Airulla

Date Added: Wednesday 09 April, 2008

This is a very easy read but is packed with everything you need to know to go through the lean transformation AND avoid the mistakes many make.

I would highly recommend this book!

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

by Marilyn from PPI

Date Added: Wednesday 09 April, 2008

This is the book! If you are the person in your organization who needs to get the job done, not just discuss the theory, then this is the book. The authors tell how a Lean Enterprise looks, how to get there and the pitfalls to look for along the way. They tell you where you will find the most benefit, and where you will find the money when you become a Lean company. It is readable, understandable and it is excellent. The pages in my copy are marked up in yellow, underlined and dog-eared. If you were afraid to try Lean before you read the book, you will put this down at the end thinking, "I must do this." And, having read the book, you will say, "And now I know how."

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]

by Reader Views (Cherie Fisher)

Date Added: Tuesday 08 April, 2008

This book is not just another book on why Lean Enterprise works; it is more of a how-to manual. It became clear very quickly that the authors have expertise in Lean through working with many, many companies. The book is heavily focused on manufacturing in the beginning but moves to non-manufacturing and healthcare later in the book.

What is Lean Enterprise? The authors answer this question in Chapter 1, “Lean is a process improvement strategy comprised of Elements, Rules and Tools. Lean focuses primarily on the elimination of waste from all business processes. A smaller, yet no less important portion of Lean, involves specific concepts that are intended to provide excellent quality products, delivered on time, at the lowest total cost, and only on the specific demand of the customer.” Or, I like the way that the co-author Keith Gilpatrick describes Lean on page 43 “Some say the glass is half full; others say the glass is half empty. Lean thinkers challenge the size of the glass.”

I found this book to be an easy-to-read, no-nonsense approach to Lean. The authors have found that many companies that claim to be Lean are not and attribute this to the management. They start the book comparing the difference between Leaders and Managers. Guess which one works best in Lean? They explain why all people in the company need to be involved in Lean to make it successful and not just the management level.

I especially liked the description of successful Standard Work (page 80) that the authors used. “Albert Einstein quotes ‘To repeat the same thing over and over and expect that the results will change is insanity.’ We use this quote early in our introduction to Lean to make the point that management cannot expert different results if they do not change the way they do business. The quote also applies in reverse: if you create a process that is repeatable, the results will not change.”

Other chapters include how to institutionalize Lean, Lean math and the 7 habits of Lean people, just to name a few. As a business owner, I found “The Elusive Lean Enterprise” to be full of translatable information that would work in almost any business. I highly recommend it for leaders who are considering Lean in their company or companies that have not successfully implemented Lean in their enterprise.

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]