New Book Provides Critical Analysis of Lean Enterprise Leadership

Morro Bay, CA, February 3, 2007 - Evolving Excellence: Thoughts on Lean Enterprise Leadership by Kevin Meyer and William Waddell analyzes the success and failure of lean enterprise and lean manufacturing methods, processes, culture, and leadership on companies and organizations.

The book is a 450-page categorized compilation of favorite posts from the Evolving Excellence blog (www.evolvingexcellence.com), the most widely-read lean manufacturing blog. This book offers different—even outright contradictory—viewpoints that explore various aspects of lean enterprise excellence. In the shared desire to see American manufacturing thrive, the authors have poured their knowledge, opinions, and ideas into their blog for the past two years. Sometimes tongue in cheek, usually provocative, occasionally humorous, but always passionate, they point out the failures of companies, organizations, and individuals in the manufacturing industry while also lauding those that understand true excellence.

Ross Robson, Executive Director of the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing has called Evolving Excellence “the most insightful blog I have ever read.” Pat Cleary, Senior Vice President of the National Association of Manufacturers said “If you love manufacturing, then we hope you’re reading Evolving Excellence. It’s a must-read for manufacturers and those who dream.” Bob Emiliani, author of Shingo Prize winning Better Thinking, Better Results, said “The authors are knowledgeable and they tell it like it is.”

Topics include “the false god of the almighty algorithm,” which discusses the pitfalls of relying on software solutions to manufacturing problems, the myths and realities of people and culture, playing the long shot with the innovation buzzword, and how some companies can win awards for excellence yet find themselves in bankruptcy court. The authors tip their hats to the great thinkers who helped create lean management, scoff at the ignorance of outsourcing lemmings who believe they can’t compete from U.S.-based factories, and dive into the problems associated with traditional cost accounting which reward laying off thousands of years of knowledge and experience to save a couple dollars an hour on labor costs. Meyer and Waddell conclude with some pointed comments directed at politicians and consultants while exploring how lean methods are transforming non-manufacturing enterprises.

Kevin Meyer said “Some of the articles will challenge you to think in different ways; some you may find to be completely off-base and offensive. We hope you do think about and react to our writing, as we feel rather strongly that the lean movement requires some introspective analysis.” Bill Waddell adds “You’ll note that we occasionally disagree with each other, and from time to time even contradict ourselves. This is the inevitable result of our differing perspectives, as well as our own ability to learn and change over time.”

About the Authors

Kevin L. Meyer is President and Founder of Superfactory Ventures LLC and has over twenty years of experience implementing lean manufacturing and lean enterprise at Osram/Sylvania, Abbott Laboratories, Newport Corporation, and Specialty Silicone Fabricators. He is on the advisory boards of a lean consultancy and two startup technology companies, and is a long-time board member of the Association for Manufacturing Excellence where he currently serves as Vice President. Kevin currently lives in the seaside village of Morro Bay, California.

William H. Waddell is President and Founder of Best Manufacturing Practices, and is a lean writer and speaker. Over the past twenty years, he has helped many companies achieve a breakthrough with operations, including Copeland Corporation and United Defense. Bill also played a key role in the turnaround efforts at Cincinnati Microwave and McCulloch Corporation. Bill was the keynote speaker at the 2006 Lean/Six Sigma Conference and presented at both the 2005 and 2006 Lean Accounting Summits. He has also lectured at the U.S. Air Force Institute of Technology, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Dayton, the University of Wisconsin and in various other professional and academic forums. Bill is co-author of Rebirth of American Industry. He currently lives in Tucson, Arizona.


More information including image files can be found at: http://www.evolvingexcellence.com/book.html