THE DEMING INSTITUTE BLOG
Appreciation for a System
|Seeking Creative Solutions Using an Appreciation for Systems
Guest post by John Hunter, founder of CuriousCat.com. Want to reduce wildfires and drought? Leave it to beavers. A dry California creek bed looked like a wildfire risk. Then the beavers went to work. “It went from dry grassland… to totally re-vegetated, trees popping up, willows, wetland plants of all types, different meandering stream channels …
Seeking Creative Solutions Using an Appreciation for Systems Read More »
Deming Community, Deming Legacy, Support Deming
|Start 2022 with positive momentum – a message from Kelly Allan
I started my consulting firm nearly 40 years ago and have spent my career helping organizations implement change. I could also say, I’ve helped companies—small and large, and across many industries—”do Deming.” There is no shortage of trends when it comes to organizational development, leadership theories and improvement methods. However, as these formulas come and …
Start 2022 with positive momentum – a message from Kelly Allan Read More »
Deming Community, Deming Legacy, Support Deming
|When your aim is your name – A message from Trustee Keith Sparkjoy
As a lifelong learner, I draw insight and inspiration from many writers, teachers, and thought leaders. In 2004, together with some good friends, we cofounded a wonderful company called Pluralsight whose aim is to democratize professional technology learning. During my decade there, I studied organizational health, with a focus on the work of Dr. Deming. I …
When your aim is your name – A message from Trustee Keith Sparkjoy Read More »
Customer Focus, data, Deming Philosophy
|Knowing What Your Customers Think Requires Proactive Effort
Guest post by John Hunter, author of the Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog (since 2004). Don’t think customers will let you know if there are problems. Some will, most won’t. Even internal customers are often quiet. Learning the voice of the customer requires proactive effort. Doing so also requires designing your organization to seek out …
Knowing What Your Customers Think Requires Proactive Effort Read More »
Deming Community, Deming Legacy, Support Deming
|Build Caring Teams – a message from Trustee Paula Marshall
People are often surprised that the mission statement of Bama Companies, an international food manufacturer, is “People helping people be successful through caring and accountability.” When a heart attack prevented my father from continuing to run Bama Companies, a family business, he asked me to take over. It was 1984, and I was young and …
Build Caring Teams – a message from Trustee Paula Marshall Read More »
Continual Improvement, Customer Focus, Deming Community, Deming Today, Deming's Ideas in Action, Support Deming
|Trustee Steven Haedrich’s Deming Journey
So many of us strive to be a force for good—for our families, businesses and communities. Dr. Deming’s teachings helped me understand how I could lead a company through crisis with compassion. That’s why I joined The Deming Institute’s Board of Trustees, to help others do the same. My Deming journey began in 1996 when, …
Appreciation for a System, data, Deming Philosophy
|Confusing Improving A Proxy Measure with Actually Improving the System
Guest post by John Hunter, author of Management Matters: Building Enterprise Capability. Using data to access and guide improvement efforts is extremely useful. Data must be used appropriately, however. Thought must be given to understand the systems being studied and what the data actually indicates. It is easy to be misled if you are not …
Confusing Improving A Proxy Measure with Actually Improving the System Read More »
Deming Community, Support Deming
|Reflections on the Deming Community from Diana Deming Cahill
Often, when the days grow shorter and holiday preparations are underway, I find myself taking time to reflect. Not just on the year that is coming to a close, but on the Deming community that I have been a part of for more than 40 years. I began to accompany my father, Dr. W. Edwards …
Reflections on the Deming Community from Diana Deming Cahill Read More »
Uncategorized | 2 Comments
|2021 Deming Prize Winners
Guest post by John Hunter, founder of CuriousCat.com. The Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) has announced the 2021 Deming Prize winners. 2021 Deming Prize Toyota Boshoku, Kariya Plant and Unit Production Engineering Center (Japan) From the 2020 Toyota Boshoku annual report We are now tackling the challenge of winning the Deming Prize, but …
data, Deming on Management, Deming Philosophy, Understanding Variation
|Deming on Management: Data
Guest post by John Hunter, author of the Curious Cat Management Improvement Blog (since 2004). This post is part of our Deming on Management series that aims to provide resources to help those transforming their management system to one based on Deming’s management ideas. Many people link Deming’s management ideas to only the use of …