A journey that began more than 10 years ago for SBA professor Gene Fliedner has culminated in the publication of a textbook devoted to Lean business principles, one of the first textbooks written specifically for stand-alone courses on the Lean philosophy.
Fliedner, associate professor, operations management, SBA’s Decision and Information Sciences department, wrote Leading and Managing the Lean Management Process with the support of a fellowship from the OU Pawley Lean Institute, awarded in the spring of 2011.
The book was published in November 2011 and recently selected for the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award from the Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence, which is part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University.
The Shingo Prize strives to foster excellence in organizations by applying universally accepted principles of operational excellence to empower people and transform organizational culture.
“I'm thrilled about the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award,” Fliedner says. “I view this award as the most prestigious award recognizing Lean research publications.
“The list of previous awards reads like a ‘who's who’ for contributors to the Lean body knowledge,” he continued. “It is truly an honor for the book and its supporters, including the Pawley Lean Institute and Oakland University School of Business Administration, to receive this recognition.”
Fliedner will receive his award during The Shingo Award’s 25th annual Shingo Prize International Conference May 6-10, 2013 in Provo, Utah.
Lean principles tie in with the concept of “kaizen,” Fliedner explains, with “zen” meaning good and “kai” meaning change. Kaizen calls for continuous changes for the better.
Fliedner’s interest in Lean principles began about 16 years ago, while he was teaching project management. He came to the conclusion that essentially two things affect a business’ bottom line: increasing revenue and eliminating waste.
From there, Fliedner began learning everything he could about Lean business principles and what goes into a sustained business model that removes and avoids wasteful practices.
In 2002, Fliedner completed the training course offered by the OU Pawley Lean Institute. Since then, he has shared the knowledge and understanding he gained by consulting with a number of corporations.
It was also during this time when Fliedner identified the need for a practitioner-oriented book on Lean principles and started drafting one.
He believes the textbook he has now completed can be used in both undergraduate and graduate Lean courses.
The book describes Lean as a system that requires leadership, organizational culture, teamwork and a variety of practices and tools. Fliedner devotes a chapter to each of these areas. He begins with Lean leadership, he says, because all of the other areas rely on it.
“It’s up to leadership to create a culture that embraces change,” Fliedner says. “Leadership provides the foundation for kaizen, for continuous improvement.”
The book also includes chapters on total quality management, the history of Lean principles and what Fliedner sees as Lean’s future: the accurate and timely exchange of information across the supply chain.
The OU Pawley Lean Institute provides a summary of the book on its Web site. “The book provides a concise, straight-forward overview of the aspects of Lean, including leadership, culture, team and tools,” the site states.
Fliedner says he’s extremely grateful for the encouragement he has received from the SBA, its dean and the Pawley Lean Institute. “The institute has essentially created incentives for the time I invested in this book. I’m really pleased to have received their support.”
Leading and Managing the Lean Management Process is available through Amazon and at Kresge Library.
A journey that began more than 10 years ago for SBA professor Gene Fliedner has culminated in the publication of a textbook devoted to Lean business principles, one of the first textbooks written specifically for stand-alone courses on the Lean philosophy.
Fliedner, associate professor, operations management, SBA’s Decision and Information Sciences department, wrote Leading and Managing the Lean Management Process with the support of a fellowship from the OU Pawley Lean Institute, awarded in the spring of 2011.
The book was published in November 2011 and recently selected for the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award from the Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence, which is part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University.