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Hal Macomber
Hal did his first production system project in the summer of 1974 in the butcher department of a supermarket. He followed that with a two-year stint in the operations research department of the Bank of Boston in 1976 - 1978. Hal was selected to study quality and just-in-time production in Japan in the mid 1980's. That began the formal introduction to Lean which spanned numerous industries and professions. Along the way, Hal was introduced to the work of Fernando Flores — first the study of the language-action perspective, then ontological redesign. Those bodies of knowledge coupled to Lean allowed him and his collaborators to make very large scale organizational interventions. Hal and his wife Rita live in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.
Articles By This Author
The Lean Leadership Pattern Puts People at the Center of a Challenge
Leading is about WE rather than ME. It comes from a recognition that I can take care of myself while we take care of each other, the customers, and the company.
Leaders Start by Aligning and Committing to a Challenge
Lean leaders keep attention to what is good for customers, stakeholders (supply chain, partners, the community, etc.), team members, and the company. Aligning the interests of all is ideal.
Using Study-Adjust-Plan-Do for Experimental Learning
Experimental learning follows Dr. W. Edwards Deming’s cycle of improvement which turns everyone who uses it into a scientific thinker. People typically call it PDCA for Plan > Do > Check > Act.
Leaders Take a Systems Thinking Perspective for Making Change
Thinking in systems has been part of the Toyota Way since the 1950s. We just didn’t know it, or did we? Like many other Japanese manufacturers, they learned about quality and production at the feet of Dr. W. Edwards Deming, one of the people after WWII who helped them get back on their feet.
Leaders Make Learning the Ongoing Payoff for the Team and Themselves
The Toyota Way principles #9 Grow Leaders and #10 Develop People and Teams are key responsibilities of people who are leaders. It starts by developing oneself as a leader. This is accomplished with ongoing study and more importantly by leading for learning.
The Pocket Sensei - How to Teach Yourself to Train Your Mind
There's a revolution happening. It’s called learning while doing. Great projects are Lean — yet the majority of Lean initiatives fail. Lean is generally misunderstood to be about the tools we use rather than the people at the place where they work.