The Best of Lean Leadership: Our Top 5 Recordings & Resources

As we consider today’s economic landscape, the need for lean leadership has never been more pronounced. In recent conversations with many of our member organizations, we’ve heard time and again of cost-cutting measures, far-reaching impacts of the pandemic, and ongoing hiring and restructuring challenges that have resulted in smaller workforces. Leaders are being challenged to do more with less.

We know that lean principles promote efficiency, waste reduction, and continuous improvement, allowing organizations to optimize their processes and resources. By embracing lean leadership, we can foster cultures of adaptability, innovation, and productivity that keep our teams resilient and position our companies to weather economic storms.

Below you’ll find a curated list of recorded sessions and resources on lean leadership from COE’s Digital Content Archive. As we look ahead and strategize for the new year, I hope that you find wisdom and inspiration in looking back on this collection of lessons shared by lean leaders.

Explore top sessions on lean leadership from COE’s Digital Content Archive:

1. Sustaining Excellence: Leveraging the Power of Leader Standard Work – Emily Jackson

One of the most-loved COE events of 2023, this webinar described techniques of Leader Standard Work to help lean leaders engage in work at the frontline, address root causes, and be alert to improvement opportunities. Emily Jackson, Vice President of Patient Care Services & Chief Nursing Officer of NewYork-Presbyterian Hudson Valley Hospital, provided personal examples to discuss the benefits and obstacles of implementing effective Leader Standard Work.

2. Lead with Respect: Practices to Enable Engagement, Teamwork, and Accountability – Mike Orzen

In this popular 2021 webinar, award-winning author and lean coach Mike Orzen shared on the importance of leading with respect for organizational transformation and performance. By describing seven core practices in the Lead with Respect model, Orzen explored how to improve the connected areas of relationships and business results. Watch this session to learn more about practices including Go and See for Yourself, Create a Meaningful Challenge, Listen to Understand, and more.

3. Lean Journey: Advanced Drainage Systems – Darin Harvey and Ricky Richardson

Hear the story of one COE member company’s journey to lean transformation in this well-rated 2021 webinar. Darin Harvey and Ricky Richardson of Advanced Drainage Systems presented a case study that includes the origins of ADS’s OpEx journey, lean management systems and tools used, and challenges and best practices that emerged along the way. This session contains great examples and insights for anyone looking to strengthen their lean leadership.

4. Lessons in Lean, Lessons in Leadership – Robert Martichenko

As we near the end of 2023, this COE session from 2017 remains a great source of wisdom on lean leadership, decision-making, and reflection. Lean thought leader and advisor Robert Marticheko drew from his personal and professional life experiences to address the challenges of constant disruption and to share lessons learned while building organizational cultures focused on relentless business improvement.

5. Building Lean Leader Capabilities Across the Organization – Whitney Mantonya, Jill Treece, and Lanny Rubin

This unique webinar combined Fisher College of Business insights on lean leadership with real-world examples from longtime COE member company Nationwide. Learn about lean systems, culture, and capabilities from Fisher senior lecturers Whitney Mantonya and Jill Treece. Then, gather new ideas for training and embedding a lean culture from Lanny Rubin’s discussion of Nationwide and Ohio State’s Lean Leader Academy partnership. 

Get Started on the Members-Only Digital Content Archive 

Not a member? Reach out to Annie Platten, COE’s Member Relations Manager, at platten.6@osu.edu to learn more about the benefits of COE membership.