Knowledge Centre
Links
See links to various online resources to learn more about Lean Thinking and Practice both locally and globally.
We are constantly learning so please let us know if you find any other sites you think should be added.
Research
Most research conducted by the Lean Institute Africa is done in association with MBA students of the UCT Graduate School of Business. To access free copies of MBA research reports, please contact GSB. Here is a recent list of Lean-related Research Reports.
Books
The Lean Institute Africa is the local, authorised distributor of the Lean Enterprise Institute (LEI) in the USA and as such, distributes books, DVDs and training materials on their behalf.
Newsletters, Articles and Webinars
Doing is understanding: A3 … a profound Lean tool
By Professor Norman Faull I have before me a book entitled Understanding A3 Thinking (Durward Sobek and Art Smalley, Productivity Press 2008). In meetings with American and European Lean practitioners this book seems to be respected universally as an introduction to...
A visit to Thedacare: A mile deep AND a mile wide – March 2015 newsletter
One of the privileges of my job is that I get to go on study visits to organisations with mature lean management systems in operation. It is not only a privilege, but also therapeutic in that the work of Lean Institute Africa (LIA) mostly involves helping...
LIA Helping Gauteng Hospitals Get Lean
The GDoH and Lean Institute Africa (LIA) have initiated a programme to improve staff efficiency and reduce patient waiting times in provincial hospitals. The Gauteng Department of Health (GDoH), in collaboration with the Lean Institute Africa (LIA), has initiated a...
A match made in healthcare improvement heaven
Written by Charmaine Cunningham I’ve been collaborating with the Lean Institute Africa for the past six months and the collaboration has now been formalised. As such, Lean Institute Africa will be posting some of my blogs on the news section of their webpage. A bit...
Toyota Kata – the key to sustained improvement
The first ever Toyota Kata conference took place two weeks ago in Florida, USA. I was very fortunate to attend, and particularly that Mike Rother gave me ‘Kata Geek’ status to be on the inside track of the learning. Why am I interested enough to fly across the world...
Harmony – should lean organisations strive for this?
Written by Charmaine Cunningham Paging through textbooks on how to manage people I noticed how much time is dedicated to the importance of establishing harmony within the workspace. The picture is painted of the utopian workspace where everyone is in agreement on...
Fin24 interview: Prof Norman Faull talks about initial successes in the GDoH project
To read more about our service delivery improvement project with Gauteng Department of Health and Thinking People, please see our February 2015 newsletter here. Would you like to join our mailing list?
Gauteng Department of Health project: Encouraging first steps – February 2015 Newsletter
Excited by what I saw going on before me, I took this photograph and the LIA team posted it on our digital media, along with this text: Lean Institute Africa. We are working in partnership with Gauteng Department of Health & Thinking People on a service delivery...
Analysing organisational rhythm: shock advised…charging
Written by Charmaine Cunningham Place two fingers on the inside of your wrist, just the below the thumb, and feel your heartbeat. Every 0.8 seconds your cardiovascular system completes a cycle of complex interactions enabling it to pump 60 – 100 times a minute. The...
LIA Collaborator Blog: Sorting to the point of discomfort
Written by Charmaine Cunningham Have you ever joined a queue not knowing whether you are in the right queue because there is no signage….whilst simultaneously fighting the urge to jump in and sort and simplify the workspace? You see many papers, duplications,...
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News
Lean Management Relieves State Healthcare Headaches
A ground-breaking project in which lean management is being applied in South African state hospitals is delivering impressive results in various departments – including reducing patient waiting times by up to 86%, an 80% reduction in neo-natal...
Rose Heathcote: Setting Managers up to Succeed in Healthcare
Newly appointed CEO of the Lean Institute Africa (LIA), Rose Heathcote talks about the significance of applying ‘Lean Thinking’ to improve outcomes aligned with the purpose and strategy of healthcare organisations. Read the full article here.
Natural Born Problem-Solvers or Are We?
Could it be that we are Natural Born Problem-Solvers? Asks Tshepo Thobejane in the June Newsletter. 'We could debate that not all of us have the same ability to problem-solve or we may disagree on the problems that deserve our attention. Empowering employees to become...
Piece of Mind
Would you do me a favour? Would you pause for a moment and consider this question?: What preoccupies you; what thoughts, concerns, hopes and fears drift about and ‘occupy’ your mind? Read more of our April 2018 newsletter
Day Zero and the Waste of Water
Cape Town, the city where the Lean Institute Africa is based, faces the very real probability that it will run out of water due to an unprecedented drought. “Day Zero”, the day when the taps will be turned off - because there will not be enough water supply in the...
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