The Lean Manager (NL)

Implement Lean. We'll give you six months.

This is how Andy Ward's story begins in "The Lean Manager." A young plant manager is tasked with saving a struggling factory using Lean. He has read the theory. He wants to do it right.

But reality is stubborn.

Middle management sees it as "just another program." The shop floor is suspicious. Headquarters wants quick results. And Andy's own boss, an experienced lean sensei, forces him not to tell, but to learn to see.

This novel by Freddy and Michael Ballé is perhaps the most realistic book about lean leadership. It is not a success story on thin ice, but an authentic portrait of the struggles, breakthroughs, and growth of a manager who learns to live lean.

What you experience:

✓ How to learn to observe the gemba and ask the right questions
✓ Why standard work and visual management are so difficult (and why they work)
✓ How to deal with resistance without losing your integrity
✓ What it means to develop people by coaching rather than solving problems

"The Lean Manager" demonstrates that Lean is not a toolkit, but a transformation of yourself as a leader. Relatable, confrontational, and deeply human.

This book is part of a trilogy that also includes 'The Gold Mine' and 'Respectful Leadership', both of which are also available for purchase via our webshop. 

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