Lost in translation and what to do about it

Lean success has eluded most Western companies. Proof of this, analysis of the reasons why, and discussion of the six attributes necessary for achieving success are detailed in an e-article, "Achieving Rapid Business Success with Lean Thinking – A Holistic Systems Approach," by Adam Garfein and Anil Menawat, cofounders of Menawat & Co., business management consultants.

The paper reports that industry surveys show 84 to 90 percent of manufacturers are said to be practicing some variation of lean. Yet only 20 to 37 percent have achieved "best in class" or "world-class" status.

One industry report concludes: "Lean practices do not appear to be well understood by many companies currently pursuing lean initiatives. As a result, no single lean practice is in wide use by a majority of respondents. Even among those who have declared that they have a lean initiative in place, only two practices are in wide use by half or more of respondents."

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