November 2014 Newsletter: Mac-OU INC Positive Impact: "Mac-OU INC's Lean Green Belt Program Wraps Up at the State of Michigan for 2014"

The Lean Diversification Green Belt certificate program 2014 calendar year contract with the State of Michigan wrapped up this month with the completion of the third cohort. Endorsed by the Michigan Lean Consortium, the program is intended for business managers looking to develop excellence, nurture innovation, efficiently allocate resources and eliminate waste.

As an initiative of the State of Michigan's Good Government Leadership Team, chaired by Lt. Governor Brian Calley, more than 100 State employees were trained in Lean through the Macomb-OU INCubator's Green Belt program over the past two years. The goal for the employees is to bring Lean principles to their respective departments for immediate implementation.

The Good Government initiative has a four-fold core focus of performance management, service/process optimization, employee engagement and change management. Through a competitive bid process, the State chose the Macomb-OU INCubator's Lean Green Belt program to support their Good Government mission.

Julie Gustafson, executive director of the Macomb-OU INCubator, says her team is excited to witness State employees putting Lean principles into action.

"We commend the State of Michigan for their Good Government Initiative and all that it aims to accomplish," Gustafson said. "We are proud to partner with the State by providing Lean training that focuses on continuous improvement in government processes and look forward to hearing about how staff attendees implement change."

For more information on the Macomb-OU INCubator's Lean Diversification Program, including Green Belt, Black Belt and Startup Lean, visit oakland.edu/diversify.