A lean office can either accelerate transformation or quietly undermine it. The difference often comes down to trust, leadership alignment, and a clear sense of purpose. Drawing on his time as the architect of the Danaher Business System, Mark shares hard-earned lessons about what makes a lean office succeed and where so many stumble.

From CEOs treating their lean teams as spies to audits that destroy credibility, he explains the traps to avoid and the principles that matter. You’ll hear why capability-building should be the core "product" of any lean office, how to prioritize resources around strategy, and why reporting directly to the CEO is so important.

This episode is packed with practical insights for anyone running or working with a lean office, whether you're starting fresh or trying to course-correct.

Many Lean transformations commence without understanding why, and the communications to employees are poor or nonexistent. Mark DeLuzio talks about this failure mode and why it is essential to answer the question, “What’s in it for me?”

Mark DeLuzio discusses the rules and mindset needed to be an effective critical thinker, which is essential to effective problem-solving. Every Lean coach needs to know how to solve problems effectively. Unfortunately, this knowledge is not widespread. Learn the skills required to take your problem-solving abilities to the next level.

If your Lean transformation feels like it's stuck, your compensation system might be part of the problem. In this episode, Mark tackles a question from Finland about how incentives influence behavior, often in ways that completely undercut Lean principles.

He shares how traditional pay structures and metrics, especially those tied to cost and output, often reward the wrong actions. You'll hear examples from the shop floor to the C-suite, including a mining company that saved money on parts but paid the price in lost production.

Mark draws on his experience leading the Danaher Business System to explain why companies need to rethink how they measure success. He breaks down what a healthy compensation structure looks like in a Lean environment, how to align cross-functional teams around shared goals, and why hitting 75 percent of a breakthrough can be a win worth celebrating.

This episode speaks to anyone who’s trying to make Lean work while fighting against legacy incentive systems. Mark offers a grounded look at how misaligned rewards can quietly unravel even the best improvement efforts, and what it takes to turn that around.

Mark DeLuzio discusses the intangibles that made all the difference to the success of the Danaher Business System. He also discussed the main ingredients of DBS, the 5Ps: Purpose, Principles, People, Plan, Process.

Some metrics were never meant to survive in a Lean world. OEE and absorption accounting might sound smart on paper, but they push the exact behaviors that wreck flow, bury quality issues, and inflate inventory. The result? A system that looks efficient but delivers chaos.

Mark DeLuzio breaks down how these outdated measures keep companies locked in batch production and bad habits. He shares firsthand stories from the factory floor and the boardroom, including a jaw-dropping moment with a CFO who learned the hard way that ROI is not a reason to keep machines running at all costs.

This episode is for anyone tired of playing metric games that look good in reports but hurt performance where it matters. If you’ve struggled to explain why certain KPIs feel off in a Lean environment, you’ll walk away with clear examples and a smarter alternative to measure what actually matters.

Replay from our live April 7 webinar.

Most Lean initiatives stall because leaders chase tools instead of building capability. In this rare unfiltered session, Mark DeLuzio teams up with seasoned transformation veteran Mark Forkun for a blunt conversation on the realities of Lean, why most organizations fake it, and what it takes to get results that last.

From the hidden failure of matrix org charts to the silent sabotage of cost accounting, this webinar replay is a wake-up call for anyone tired of surface-level improvement. You'll hear how Toyota's true strength isn't what's on the walls, but what's in the minds. You'll also get hard-won insight on problem solving, value stream management, and the dysfunction of Lean "audits" that create motion without impact.

Plus, Mark Forkun shares a preview of his new book and the habits he believes matter most for sustaining Lean results.

• 00:02:10 Why there’s no silver bullet in Lean
• 00:04:30 What you don’t see is what matters — Culture, mindset, and invisible systems > visible tools.
• 00:07:40 Value stream management vs. functional silos
• 00:13:00 How Lean accounting drives better decisions — Traditional cost systems sabotage transformation.
• 00:24:00 Cost of poor quality is hidden everywhere — Why finance must stop tracking irrelevant metrics.
• 00:25:10 Lean ≠ TPS
• 00:33:00 Standard work and problem solving
• 00:47:00 Philosophy and principles lead the way
• 00:54:00 Why Gemba boards fail and audits backfire — Most Lean efforts are theater, not transformation.
• 01:00:00 Tech without waste elimination = faster waste — AI and ERP as enablers, not solutions.

In this episode, Mark DeLuzio talks about Lean Horizons' Managing Director Jon Boucher discussing the span of control necessary for problem-solving. In particular, Mark and Jon address the following:

• What is span of control, and why is it important for any lean journey
• Problem Solving – What is the definition of a problem?
• What is meant by standards? How do you begin, how deep do you go, and what is the timeline?
• What is the purpose of a line? (to expose the problems)
• Who "owns" problem-solving? What is the role of the operator?