Last year I posted a short blog on three books that I have found useful in my journey as a Lean practitioner. I am always trying to keep into a routine to learn more, gain different perspectives to a problem or situation. These are all necessary (in my opinion anyway) to grow myself as a Lean Leader. Scheduling in time to learn is a fundamental element of Leader Standard Work.
So here are three more books that I recommend - A couple of classics and one that I have recently read.
The E-Myth by Michael Gerber
I have recently gone back to this book to refresh the key learning points. Even though it isn’t a ‘Lean’ book, it still aligns nicely with business owners who are struggling to get out of the weeds. It talks about the different roles of the technician, the manager and the entrepreneur. We all start as technicians, good at what we do but generally get stuck there because we haven’t set the business up to run without us. We need to be disciplined in working on the business.
Deliver What You Promise by Bali Padda
This book made a real impact on me at the time, I wrote a series of LinkedIn posts dedicated to some great takeaways from this book. Padda is ex-LEGO corporation and was a driving force behind their turnaround. As the Chief Operating Officer, he takes us through the journey of re-focusing the whole operation to be customer focused. Bit by bit, reviewing and improving every operation, creating an environment that encouraged teams to work more collaboratively together. Combining LEGO and Operational Excellence - this was always going to be an awesome book
Lean Made Simple by Ryan Tierney
Ryan has made a big impact in the Lean world over the past few years. His podcast and YouTube channel are immediate go to’s for me now. Ryan has a great ability to take many Lean Thinking concepts and simplifying them so they feel much more relatable for the business owner. Using examples from his own experience implementing Lean into his own business - Seating Matters. It also has some notes and prompts through the book so it gets you thinking about your own situation.
Happy reading everyone! If you have a book you would recommend, please share them in the comments.
