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Mark Graban

Mark Graban is a Senior Advisor at KaiNexus. Mark graduated from Northwestern University in 1995 with a BS in Industrial Engineering and later earned an MS in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He is author of two Shingo Research Award-winning books, and has worked as a consultant to healthcare organizations throughout North America and Europe, teaching and implementing kaizen and other Lean management practices. He was previously a Senior Fellow with the Lean Enterprise Institute and the Healthcare Value Network and continues as an LEI faculty member. Mark is also the founder of the popular LeanBlog.org and its podcast series.
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Recent Posts

A KaiNexus Panel Discussion About Mistakes, Safety, and Getting Better

May 14, 2026

A few years ago, I hosted a panel discussion with four colleagues from KaiNexus -- Greg Jacobson, Maggie Millard, Linda Vicaro, and Kym...

What CEOs Actually Want from Continuous Improvement Leaders

May 4, 2026

If you've ever walked out of a meeting with your CEO wondering whether they actually care about your improvement program, the answer is...

Why Your Lean Transformation Stalled After Year 5 (And What to Do About It)

April 29, 2026

Here's a pattern that plays out in organizations around the world. Year one: excitement. A consulting engagement, a wave of kaizen...

Why Lean Fails: It's Not the Methodology -- It's the Management

April 21, 2026

Lean has a decades-long track record of producing real results across industries. Hospitals have used it to reduce patient harm and...

Kaizen vs. Kaizen Events -- Why the Distinction Matters

April 20, 2026

If we had to name one concept that caused the most quiet confusion across the Ask Us Anything episodes, this might be it. Over the years,...

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Moving Leaders From "I Support Lean" to "I Am Committed to It"

April 13, 2026

Over the years in Ask Us Anything, we have heard a version of this story again and again:

"Our senior leaders support Lean."

On the...

How Simple Does Your Improvement System Actually Need to Be?

April 9, 2026

One operations leader, describing how he onboards people to his organization's improvement platform, said something that should make...

What Happens After You Outgrow Your Suggestion Box, Spreadsheet, or Homebrew System

April 8, 2026

You already know something is broken. The spreadsheet that tracked 40 improvements just fine is now a 12-tab monster maintained by a...

What Your CI Program Loses When Executives Delegate Change Leadership

April 6, 2026

Most executives don't oppose continuous improvement. They support it -- in the way they support good nutrition or regular exercise. They...