Respect for People—The Fundamental Lean Manufacturing Principle for Improving Operations

Respect isn’t a nice-to-do practice to make employees feel better, it’s the critical component to engaging your workforce to tackle inefficiencies and drive continuous improvement.

This webinar was originally broadcast on August 17, 2023. Now Available On Demand!

Summary

Respect for people, one of the most critical lean principles, is also one of the most misunderstood. Without respect, a lean culture of continuous improvement is impossible. Everyone nods in agreement with such statements, but our understanding is typically superficial and likely doesn’t change behaviors.

In this webinar, we explain how respect is critical to employee engagement and how without it, efforts to drive massive operating improvements will likely fail. Key components include:

Clarifying what it really means to respect people within a lean culture
Explaining why, without alignment with this principle, a lean culture will not exist
Understanding specific behaviors required for alignment with this principle
Applying this principle as the catalyst for employee engagement and ongoing improvement

Speaker

Dave Rizzardo | Associate Director | Maryland World Class Consortia (MWCC) | Lean Consultant | Author

As Associate Director of the MWCC, Dave’s lean experience predates the time when lean became synonymous with business excellence. Dave co-developed the Lean Peer Group service, which helps organizations develop a lean culture. He currently facilitates multiple groups and works directly with organizations in helping them on their lean journeys. His book, “Lean - Let's Get It Right! How to Build a Culture of Continuous Improvement,” addresses the root causes of why many lean transformations fail to meet expectations, and he provides the information needed to turn things around.