Lean management is back on the agenda. The management method that steered many major organizations back to the path of growth in the early '90s is now making a comeback. John Drew, Blair McCallum and Stefan Roggenhofer contributed to this development with their book "Journey to Lean", published in 2004, in which they describe how companies can make lean practices stick. A German edition has now appeared under the title "Unternehmen Lean. Schritte zu einer neuen Organisation" ("The Lean Company. Steps Towards a New Organization").

The original version has been very successful in the UK, and won the "Best Management Book of the Year" award presented by the Management Consultancies Association. Case studies and a detailed foreword have been added to the German edition.

We talked about the book and about McKinsey's lean management concept with co-author Stefan Roggenhofer, Expert Principal in the Paris Office, and Munich-based Principal Gernot Strube, content manager of the German translation and the man behind the German case examples.

Why write a new book on lean management at this point in time?

Stefan Roggenhofer: Lean management has by no means gone out of fashion. In the face of competitive pressure and globalization, a lot of companies are asking themselves right now how they can stay successful in the long term. Lean management is one answer to that question.

Gernot Strube: In Germany, in particular, we can point to a number of examples of how much can be achieved with lean methods. By the way, these methods are not confined to mass manufacturing any more, but are also being used, for example, in banking, healthcare, telecommunications, and retailing.
Every well-stocked bookstore will have at least ten books about lean management on its shelves.

Why is McKinsey adding another one?

Stefan Roggenhofer: The books you will find in the stores chiefly describe the technical aspects of the lean methods, but not the big picture and the actual implementation of lean management in a company. We think that is a huge gap. Our book, in contrast, really aims to take managers on the journey to creating a lean organization. 

Is that why you chose your unusual structure, with technical aspects on the one hand and a story about implementation in a fictitious company on the other?

Stefan Roggenhofer: Exactly! We didn't just want to list the technical aspects that every company has to consider and introduce during the transformation. That's why the second part describes how the fictitious company Arboria manages the transition to a lean organization despite the messy reality of everyday operations. That part of the book takes the form of a docu-drama, interspersed with commentary and analysis. We consider it very important for our readers to see Arboria's managers and staff handling the typical problems and setbacks of lean projects – and finally reaping their well-earned rewards. This fictitious story gives readers a very clear picture of what the difficult but rewarding journey to lean can be like.

Who is the book written for?

Gernot Strube: It's written primarily for senior executives, mainly because lean management is not a project that can be delegated to the operations function. The lean method demands holistic thinking and role modeling by senior management. The Journey to Lean is an important tool for managers and client team members because it gives them an excellent introduction to the area we will be working on together.

This management method has been around for a long time. Yet not many companies have been really successful in implementing it.

Why is that?

Gernot Strube: The best way to explain it is probably to look at the example of Toyota, which has been practicing and refining its legendary production system for nearly 50 years now. A lot of companies all over the world have learned from and imitated this system. But in most cases they have not been able to apply it successfully, because most of them underestimated the crucial human factors. In other words: managers did not succeed in changing the attitudes and behaviors of their employees. Toyota, on the other hand,  harmonized these soft factors with its technical systems. This is why we emphasize very clearly in the book that an excellent production system can only be created when the lean management tools are used at the right place and in the right sequence – and the people are involved.

So how do you do that?

Stefan Roggenhofer: By remembering three things. First of all, a company needs the right management structures and processes, including management by objectives, performance measurement, and an incentive system. Second of all, it is important for the organizational environment to be right and for employees to receive training. These two points in particular are often ignored when lean methods are introduced. The third, crucially important, factor is that a culture change is essential and all staff members have to be sensitized to what is happening – from the CEO to workers on the production line. Everyone in the company has to be aware of the needs and requirements of the lean manufacturing system and the way it works. Everyone has to know how important lean manufacturing is to customer satisfaction, and every employee has to see him- or herself as a role model for all his or her colleagues. This holistic approach is precisely what distinguishes The Journey to Lean from other books on the subject.

And it made the book so successful that you actually won an award for it in England?

Stefan Roggenhofer: That is undoubtedly one of the reasons why the Management Consultancies Association awarded it "Best Management Book of the Year".

Please order via your local bookstore.

< Back