Lean is still in, and growing

Lean production techniques are 50 years old and McKinsey has a post discussing what’s next for Lean.

Next frontiers for lean

Lean-production techniques have been revolutionizing operations for 50 years. Advances in technology, psychology, and analytics may make the next 50 even more exciting.

February 2014 | byEwan Duncan and Ron Ritter

When the first issue of McKinsey Quarterly rolled off the printing presses, 50 years ago, nearly everyone in senior management thought that manufacturing operations had been perfected. Henry Ford’s great innovation, the moving assembly line, had been refined over the previous five decades, had served as the arsenal of democracy during World War II, and by the mid-1960s was operating efficiently, at great scale, in a wide range of industries around the world.

The authors think Lean is as big as Henry Ford’s assembly line.

Lean is one of the biggest management ideas of the past 50 years. No less than Ford’s original assembly line, it has transformed how leading companies think about operations—starting in assembly plants and other factory settings and moving more recently into services ranging from retailing and health care to financial services, IT, and even the public sector. Yet despite lean’s trajectory, broad influence, and level of general familiarity among senior executives, it would be a mistake to think that it has reached its full potential.

So what is next?  What gets done by the information companies

The future of lean is exciting. Its tools for eliminating waste and for increasing value as customers define it are being enhanced by huge gains in the volume and quality of the information companies can gather about customer behavior, the value of the marketing insights that can be integrated with operations, and the sophistication of the psychological insights brought to bear on the customer’s needs and desires. These advances bring new meaning to the classic lean maxim “learning to see.” The contrast between where companies are now and where they’ll be 20 years on will seem as stark as the difference between a static color photograph and a high-definition, three-dimensional video.

Do you use Trust as a Life Pattern?

Do you use Trust as a life pattern?  I do.  Things move so much faster and better.  If you take a risk with trust, then you can see whether the other parties are willing to increase the trust.  If trust doesn’t increase, then the partnership may not work.  Of course, there is exception, when those you meet you have no interest in developing trust.

This video has gone viral with 1.2 mil views in a week.

One of the interesting ideas is to design information systems to develop more trust.  Think about those systems you trust and others you don’t.

What is the software and sensors to monitor your UPS batteries?

Batteries are part of most data centers, but how many of you have software and sensor solutions for those batteries?

You may not have much choice now, but more is coming.  GigaOm’s Katie Fehrenbacher has a post on some of  the sensor and battery projects.

The coming battery boom will need better software, sensors & data

by Katie Fehrenbacher

5 HOURS AGO

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SUMMARY:

Before we get drowned in cheap batteries, we’ll need better software to monitor and manage them, both optimizing their batteries use and keeping them safe.

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But beyond Tesla, there are many other big companies, startups and even researchers in labs working on new types of battery software, sensing and predictive algorithms. It will be these computing and communication technologies that will help enable lithium-ion batteries (and other batteries) — which can be flammable and volatile under the wrong conditions — become safe enough to allay fears of having them in vehicles and in huge battery banks near power lines.

If you want more sensors and software start asking your UPS vendors.

Writing about Information Theory, no Information Engineering

I have been thinking it is time to change what I spend time writing about.  The data center is a building to house information.  Information is changing how data centers are built.  Services are changing the information we work with.  It is time to change how Information Technology systems are designed and used.

If you look hard you can see the changes coming through.  It is dividing those who want change and those who see change as a threat to their way of doing things.

I started writing this blog on the idea of a green data center is important.  It is, and will continue to evolve.  The greening of the data center is becoming more than just the building.  It is hardware and the software together is greener, and the information is being used to support sustainable efforts.  

One idea to write about is Information Theory.  No, information theory makes it seems like it is theoretical.  What is more interesting is what is getting done.  The execution.  The trade-offs being made to make changes happen.  Information Engineering seems like a better description.

I still plan on writing on data centers especially those ideas that support greener more sustainable ideas.

Theory of Information System in Construction Industry, not BIM, BIM, BIM, "The Collective Potential"

When someone talks about an Information System for construction. You many times hear BIM, BIM, BIM, BIM, BIMMITY, BIM as the answers.  Reminds me of the Monty Python skit where everything has SPAM.

Thinking BIM will solve your information problems in a construction project is short sighted.  Why?  If you don’t consider the quality of the data and how you reconcile perception issues of the data, then you can end up with an Information system that is not as trustworthy as you expect.

Rejected information is the result of a conscious determination that the information is not valid based on differences of opinion of perceived untruth.

If this topic has your interest, then you may enjoy reading “The Collective Potential” by Andreas Phelps.  I’ve traded some e-mail with Andreas and have read book quickly, and reading it again.  The fun I am having is testing answers on how to address the issues that Andreas brings up.  So far, I haven’t been stumped yet.  The nice thing of spending 26 years at HP, Apple, and Microsoft, and now 8 years on my own, there are lots of people I know to chat about information systems. I haven’t had the urge to write a book, but this may be a subject that may get me to write a longer paper.

The Collective Potential: A Holistic Approach to Managing Information Flow in Collaborative Design and Construction Environments Paperback

by Andreas Floros Phelps (Author)

Information flow is the foundation of any project. However, the major limiting factor is not the lack of information, but the inability to effectively integrate useful information into a project. By bringing together the fields of organizational science, organizational behavior, and information science, this book explores the interplay of social, technical, and technological factors influencing information flow. By understanding these concepts, managers can strategically leverage the social and technical characteristics of their project team, processes, and tools to enable positive iterations of trust and learning. These serve as the basis for effective information flow and result in significant improvements in information sharing, decision-making, and project outcomes. This unique perspective provides holistic insights regarding the management of team interactions, project planning, and the overarching structure and strategies used within the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. These findings have significant implications for the: 1) The types of competencies and tools needed in the AEC industry; 2) How the industry approaches management and integration; and 3) The types of organizational structures and innovative strategies that will allow teams to make the best use of their valuable knowledge and realize their greatest collective potential.