Learning to See (EN)

You know there’s waste in your processes. You can feel it. But you don’t see it. Not really. And you can’t improve what you don’t see.

That is exactly the problem that Leren Zien solves. Most improvement initiatives focus on isolated bottlenecks: a slow department here, a queue there. But the real cause of waste lies deeper in the mismatch between how materials and information flow through your organization. As long as you can’t see that mismatch, you’re solving symptoms instead of causes.

What do you learn in "Learning to See"?

Learning to See introduces Value Stream Mapping: a method for mapping the entire flow of materials and information in your processes. Not process by process, but as a single, cohesive system. From raw materials to the customer.

Step by step, you’ll learn how to draw a Current State Map that shows where the actual mismatch occurs. Next, you’ll design a Future State Map: a concrete picture of what your value stream should look like after improvement. Finally, you’ll create an implementation plan to achieve that future state step by step.

This isn’t just process mapping in a different guise. Value Stream Mapping cuts across departmental boundaries and reveals what brown-paper-session discussions tend to overlook.

Why should I read *Leren Zien*?

Learning to See is the first workbook ever published by the Lean Global Network. To this day, it remains one of the most widely used Lean workbooks worldwide. Not because it’s an easy read, but because it works.

The book dispels a common misconception: that systems thinking means “looking at the process from start to finish.” In practice, this leads to action lists full of isolated areas for improvement. *Learning to See* teaches you to identify and address the underlying systemic causes.

It is therefore a standard component of the Lean Black Belt training program offered by the Lean Management Institute. It also serves as the foundation for the workbooks that follow: How to Create Continuous Flow and How to Create a Leveled Pull System.

Who is *Leren Zien* written for?

•        Lean practitioners and process improvement specialists who want to go beyond isolated improvement initiatives
•        Team leaders and managers who want to get a handle on the workflow in their processes
•        Anyone who is currently enrolled in or has completed a Lean Green Belt or Black Belt course
•        Organizations that are serious about their Lean transformation

What do fellow writers think of this book?

"Learning to See was the first workbook published by the Lean Enterprise Institute. It set the standard for all the workbooks that followed—practical, visual, and immediately applicable in one’s own work environment." — Jim Womack, founder of the Lean Enterprise Institute

Additional Information

About the authors

Mike Rother is a researcher, author, and Lean thinker, known for works such as Toyota Kata and Toyota Kata Practice Guide. He developed Value Stream Mapping together with John Shook as a practical tool to make Lean thinking directly applicable on the shop floor.

John Shook was the first Western manager to work for Toyota in Japan, where he learned how the Toyota Production System works in practice. He co-authored Seeing Is Believing and later served as CEO of the Lean Enterprise Institute. His work focuses on translating Lean principles into concrete, everyday practice.