How Culture Impacts Lean Practices

“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” — Peter Drucker Post #22: Audit Cultural Signals In times of volatility, your culture isn’t just a backdrop—it’s a mirror. It reflects what your team really believes, how they behave under pressure, and whether they’ll rally or retreat. That’s why the best CEOs don’t just manage culture—they audit it, especially when things get hard. Because during turbulence, your people hear everything louder: + That missed deliverable? A signal about standards. + That silent exec in the all-hands? A signal about alignment. + That "one-time exception"? A signal about what’s really non-negotiable. We once faced a moment where performance expectations were rising, but so were signs of burnout. Execution was strong, but engagement was slipping. We ran a cultural audit—not a survey, but a deep look at the behaviors, rituals, and signals we were sending. Here’s what we found (and fixed): + Meeting tone had shifted from focused to transactional—we reset how leaders showed up. + Wins were being celebrated inconsistently—we reinforced recognition as a cultural ritual. + Leaders were unintentionally rewarding effort over impact—we clarified what “great” actually looked like. + Teams lacked visibility into decisions—we tightened internal comms with clarity and candor. The result? Re-engaged teams, restored trust, and a culture that could carry the strategy—not drag behind it. If you're not actively managing your culture, you're passively accepting whatever's taking shape. To audit your cultural signals: + Watch your meetings—they are the heartbeat of your culture. + Listen between the lines of employee feedback. + Ensure leaders model the values you’ve committed to—not just recite them. + Reinforce the behaviors you want more of—and address the ones you don’t, fast. + Treat culture like an operating system, not a wallpaper. Culture won’t save a bad strategy. But even the best strategy will break under the weight of cultural drift. Next up: Post #23 – Reassess the Tech Stack #CEOPlaybook #CultureAudit #LeadershipSignals #ValuesInAction #LeadershipInTurbulence

🚫 Stop trying to copy Toyota. I say that with the utmost respect for Toyota and the incredible system they’ve built. I have seen in first-hand in the US and Japan! But here’s the truth: what works at Toyota won’t work the same way in your organization. Yes, the principles behind continuous improvement—respect for people, problem solving at the source, standard work—are universal. But the way you apply them? That has to fit your people, your culture, and your priorities. Every time I help a company roll out a CI program, the first thing I do isn’t hand them a roadmap. It’s this: I listen. I walk the floor. I get to know the team and I do a cultural assessment. Because culture eats strategy—and definitely eats templated Lean rollouts—for breakfast. Too many organizations skip this step. They try to bolt on tools and ceremonies without building trust or tailoring the approach. Then, when it doesn’t stick, they say: “See, Lean doesn’t work here.” But it can work—if you make it yours. ✅ Start with your people ✅ Respect the current culture ✅ Adapt the rollout to your maturity level ✅ Lead with purpose, not just tools CI is not a copy-paste system, it’s a way of thinking—and that has to grow from the inside out.

Ever noticed how the star recruits from Toyota and Danaher sometimes stumble outside their home turf? 🤔 Here’s the thing: recruiting talent from Toyota and Danaher, the industry giants of Lean and continuous improvement, seems like a no-brainer. But why do these powerhouses occasionally falter when placed in a different environment? 🤷♂️ The truth is, success in Lean isn’t just about knowing the Toyota Production System (TPS) or the Danaher Business System (DBS). It’s about adapting those principles to diverse business landscapes, manufacturing models, and unique situations. 🌍 At Toyota, Lean thinking is embedded in every fiber of their automotive-centric culture. Similarly, at Danaher, DBS thrives because of the deeply ingrained support mechanisms that nurture and drive it. 🚗🔧 When these experts step into new industries without the same cultural infrastructure, the result is often disappointing. They’re not failing because they lack skill or knowledge. They’re struggling because Lean isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution. It’s a philosophy that demands customization, thoughtful application, and an intimate understanding of the new environment. 🧩 Imagine transferring a saltwater fish to a freshwater aquarium. It doesn’t fail because it isn’t a good swimmer; it fails because the environment isn’t suited to its needs. Similarly, Lean experts from Toyota and Danaher struggle because the new business environment isn’t conditioned for their expertise to flourish. 🐟💧 As a company, it’s time for you to rethink your expectations. Bringing in a Toyota or Danaher veteran isn’t a magic bullet. To truly harness their expertise, you need to foster a culture that supports Lean principles and provides the right tools and frameworks. It’s about creating an ecosystem where Lean can thrive in any context. 🌱 Challenge yourself to build those environments and watch as true transformation unfolds. 💥 For more on how to build a supportive Lean culture, check out my article: "4 Key Roles: Building a House on Your Lean Journey" 👉https://lnkd.in/gaV9UPaT #LeanThinking #ContinuousImprovement #Leadership #BusinessTransformation #CultureMatters #LeanInAnyIndustry

My friend Stephen Shapiro argues that best practices are stupid. It’s not that he believes they can’t be useful, in fact in areas of low-competence they can be very helpful in helping a team get up to speed. Yet Steve’s point is that you can’t separate a practice from its context. Copying Netflix’s Culture Deck or Amazon’s six-page memo is unlikely to improve your performance if you don’t develop the norms and rituals to support them. Bob Sutton and Hayagreeva Rao explained in "The Friction Project" how organizations will cling on to rituals, such as processes and paperwork, in ways that are so nonsensical they are almost comical, because they support norms embedded in the culture. Often, stakeholders compete for power over norms and rituals because they signal status and create privilege. Consider the expense authorization ritual. The ability for a clan to deny an authorization gives them power, which they can barter for other goods, such as respect, deference and maybe a favor here or there. They can then, in turn, give deference to other powerful clans, building up clout with which they can use to gain power over other rituals and rites. That’s what makes cultures so hard to transform. You can’t change behaviors without changing norms and rituals that underlie them. We are, as much as we may hate to admit it, evolved to signal identity and seek status. These truths rarely make it into PowerPoint charts or quarterly strategies, but they lie at the core of every enterprise. Culture is, among other things, deeply rooted in norms and rituals and, if we aim to change behaviors, that’s where we need to start. .

📢 Every year I am in the industry, it becomes more and more evident that the power of culture trumps whatever training and education is in place for new employees. On paper and in theory, organizations know training and education on proper techniques and behaviors are important for preparing new manufacturing employees. However, it is what comes after that defines whether that knowledge is put into action. Your frontline oversight and management will set the tone for the culture and even the best training programs can be overshadowed by a poor organizational culture and work environment. 🔍 Culture shapes how employees interpret and apply their training. When a new manufacturing employee enters a workplace, their initial eagerness and adherence to taught techniques can be significantly influenced by the prevailing cultural norms and environmental factors. If the culture does not support or reinforce the learned behaviors, the effectiveness of training can diminish quickly. 📊Social proximity, or the closeness and quality of relationships among individuals, plays a crucial role in maintaining the desired behaviors and techniques. Humans are social creatures and we’re all highly influenced by the people around us each day. There’s little you can do to control it because it’s simply a characteristic of humans; this is how we learn and how we relate to one another. Who you spend your time with will have an impact on the way you behave. A supportive and positive work culture can reinforce training, while a toxic environment can lead to shortcuts, non-compliance, and ultimately, errors and inefficiencies. 🛠️ To drive the right behaviors and techniques, consider the following strategies: *Open Reporting Culture: Encourage employees to report near-misses and potential error traps without fear of retribution. This proactive approach helps in identifying and addressing system issues before they escalate. *Human-Centered Design: Ensure that tools, procedures, and the work environment are designed to support optimal human performance. This includes clear instructions, ergonomic workstations, and intuitive interfaces. *Continuous Learning and Improvement: Cultivate a learning culture where feedback is used constructively to improve processes. Regular training updates and simulations of critical steps can keep skills sharp and relevant. *Align Goals and Rewards: Align organizational goals with individual performance metrics. Recognize and reward teams that consistently follow procedures and contribute to a positive culture. #manufacturing #HOP #HuP #humanperformance