The Central Coast Lean Summit, an annual showcase of strategies that maximize customer value while minimizing waste in health care, education, government and non-profit agencies, will be hosted by the Central Coast Lean program in Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business on April 16-17 at the SLO Brew Rock Activity Center.
The theme of the seventh annual conference is “Establishing a Lean Culture.” Industry leaders and lean experts, including Jeff Hastie of the Bose Corp. and Carlos Scholz of The Permanente Medical Group, the largest medical group in the U.S., will focus on creating high-performing workplaces by strengthening the team environment.
“I think this year’s theme will help organizations reap true value from their investment in lean tools and processes by engaging their workforce,” said Cal Poly Professor Eric Olsen, who is host and facilitator of the lean summit. “This event will benefit everyone from CEOs to new hires across a variety of industries.”
The philosophy of lean business practices originated in manufacturing but has influenced other sectors to streamline processes and require less human effort, less space, less capital, and less time to make cost-effective products and services with fewer defects.
Hastie, Bose’s global director of lean enterprise, will share the story of how a Lean Enterprise Maturity Model changed the journey of the company, which designs, develops and sells audio equipment.
Scholz, director of Kaiser Permanente’s strategic initiatives, will talk about the “North Valley Way,” a lean operating system aimed at achieving engagement and continuous improvement by every team member, implemented at Kaiser Permanente, North Valley.
The two-day event will include interactive breakouts led by experienced facilitators to allow participants to actively apply lean concepts to a variety of industries and specific job functions.
In addition, a Coaching Café will give participants the opportunity to discuss lean challenges with Sam MacPherson, lean transformation leader and founder of the Lean Leadership Academy.
Attendees will be able to network with lean experts from throughout California and collaborate with Cal Poly faculty. Participants will also see lean posters of improvement projects from Cal Poly students and the Central Coast Lean community.
A networking reception in the SLO Brew Rock beer garden will take place at the end of the day April 16.
Attendees can also take advantage of a post-summit workshop from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on April 17. Jim Benson, author of “Personal Kanban: Mapping Work, Navigating Life,” will discuss continuous improvement processes for back-office employees.
Registration is open. Tickets and corporate sponsorship information can be found at: https://www.cob.calpoly.edu/ccl/.
Cal Poly to Host Central Coast Lean Summit Feb. 18–19
The Central Coast Lean program in Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business will showcase “lean” advances in healthcare, accounting, entrepreneurship, local government and higher education during a two-day summit Thursday and Friday, Feb. 18 and 19, in the Performing Arts Center on campus.
The fifth annual Central Coast Lean Summit has chosen “Leadership on Board” as its theme and will focus on innovations, trends and best practices to help managers lead meaningful change. Organizers also hope to foster a community of local leaders who can build their network with likeminded managers engaged in lean strategies.
The lean concept seeks to maximize efficiency in many facets of business. The philosophy originated in manufacturing but has influenced other sectors to streamline processes and require less human effort, less space, less capital, and less time to make cost-effective products and services with fewer defects.
“Lean is really coming of age on the Central Coast. More organizations are recognizing the need for a systematic approach to continuous improvement just to stay competitive,” said Eric Olsen, Cal Poly’s Industrial Technology and Packaging Area chair. Olsen also serves as director of Central Coast Lean, a research project in the Orfalea College of Business.
Programs throughout the event will be led by industry professionals with real-world experience in implementing lean processes in a variety of environments. The event will begin with two pre-summit workshops on Feb. 18 to delve into lean accounting and production preparation processes applicable in industries such as healthcare. The workshops will be followed by a lean networking reception for attendees.
The summit on Feb. 19 will feature a keynote address by Sam MacPherson, co-founder and executive director of The Lean Leadership Academy and former chief of training for the Elite U.S. Army Special Forces, known as the Green Berets. MacPherson’s presentation, “Leading a Culture of Excellence,” will focus on building leadership teams capable of navigating and sustaining a lean transformation.
The summit will also include interactive workshops led by Ken Snyder, executive director of the Shingo Institute; Steven Kane, director of Customer Success at Gemba Academy; Jonathan York and Lori Jordan from Cal Poly’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship; Paul Stamper, Lean Six Sigma master black belt and deputy executive officer for Ventura County; and Kim Brown Sims, a chief nursing officer at Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center.
Throughout the event, a “coaching café” with lean expert Beau Keyte, president of the Keyte Group, will discuss lean challenges and offer best practices during a facilitated peer group discussion. Attendees will be able to network with lean experts from throughout California and collaborate with Cal Poly faculty.
“The summit is our annual opportunity to bring lean thought leaders from across the country to Cal Poly and delve into the most current best practices. It is an opportunity to learn from the best as we think about how we can improve our own lean programs in the coming year,” Olsen said.
For more information and to register, go to www.cob.calpoly.edu/centralcoastlean/summit/.
Central Coast Lean Summit
Central Coast Lean and Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business hosted the fourth annual Central Coast Lean Summit on Feb. 19-20, 2015, at the Performing Arts Center. The summit showcased lean advances through this year’s theme, “Frontliners Engaged in Problem-Solving.”
Attendees took advantage of a pre-summit workshop to learn the lean language through a hands-on simulation that emphasized several lean concepts. The summit itself featured interactive workshops with leaders in the health care, manufacturing, government and higher education sectors. Norbert Majerus, senior master Six Sigma black belt at Goodyear, delivered the keynote address, “Principle-based Problem-Solving in Lean R&D.”
The annual event aims to showcase lean innovations,trends and best practices that will be valuable to practitioners in a variety of industries. The organizers see this as an opportunity to foster a community of local leaders who can build their network with likeminded managers engaged in lean strategies. For more information, visit cob.calpoly.edu/centralcoastlean/summit/.
Central Coast Lean to Host Liberating Structures Workshop April 17
Cal Poly’s Central Coast Lean program will host a Liberating Structures Workshop on Friday, April 17 from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Monday Club in San Luis Obispo. The workshop will focus on applying methods to transform meetings, decision-making, and leadership into an evolutionary model for collective intelligence and growth.
Keith McCandless, author of the book “Liberating Structures” and a founding partner in the Social Invention Group, will facilitate the workshop. He specializes in organizational development and business strategy. The event will focus specifically on using simple and efficient methods to encourage creativity and enthusiasm within an organization.
Central Coast Lean is an action research and community outreach program within Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business. It seeks to build a local community of lean practice across all industries through learning events and networking opportunities.
The lean concept seeks to maximize customer value in business while minimizing waste. While lean thinking originally began in manufacturing, lean strategies have been successfully implemented in healthcare, education, community organizations, law enforcement, and retail businesses.
Registration is $199 through April 3, and it includes breakfast and lunch on the day of the workshop. Attendees will also have access to a Lean Leadership Forum on Thursday, April 16 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.
For more information and to register, visit www.cob.calpoly.edu/centralcoastlean/workshops/.
Cal Poly to Host Central Coast Lean Summit Feb. 19-20
Cal Poly’s Orfalea College of Business and its Central Coast Lean program will host the fourth annual Central Coast Lean Summit to showcase “lean” advances in healthcare, manufacturing, law enforcement and higher education. The event will take place Thursday and Friday, Feb. 19-20, in the Performing Arts Center on campus.
The lean concept seeks to maximize customer value while minimizing waste. To accomplish this, processes are created that need less human effort, less space, less capital, and less time to make products and services cost less with fewer defects. Companies are able to respond quickly to changing customer desires with high variety, high quality and low cost. Also, information management becomes simpler and more accurate.
This year’s theme, “Frontliners Engaged in Problem Solving,” will focus on lean innovations, trends and best practices that are valuable to practitioners in a variety of industries. Organizers also hope to foster a community of local leaders who can build their network with likeminded managers engaged in lean strategies.
“Lean is not just for manufacturing anymore,” said Eric Olsen, Cal Poly’s Industrial Technology area chair. “There are folks from government, education, service industries and agriculture, to name a few. Lean provides a common set of tools and approaches that can work for any organization.” Olsen also serves as director of Central Coast Lean, a research project in the Orfalea College of Business.
Programs throughout the event will be led by industry professionals, many of whom have achieved black belt status in lean practices through the International Association of Six Sigma Certification. The event will begin with a pre-summit workshop Feb. 19 to help attendees learn the lean language through a hands-on simulation.
The summit on Feb. 20 will feature interactive workshops led by Tom Jackson of Rona Consulting Group; Beau Keyte of the Keyte Group; Andrea Church Kreisa, a lean six sigma master black belt; Peggy Huston, chief operating officer, UC Berkley’s Campus Shared Services; and Keith Inglis, Helix Medical. Norbert Majerus, a senior master six sigma black belt at Goodyear, will deliver the keynote address, “Principle-based Problem Solving in Lean R&D.”
A “coaching café” will openly discuss lean challenges and offer best practices during a facilitated peer group discussion. Attendees will be able to network with lean experts from different parts of California and collaborate with Cal Poly faculty.
“The summit is a great opportunity for the Central Coast lean community to hear from nationally respected experts and local teams with success stories to share,” Olsen said.
For more information and to register, visit https://www.cob.calpoly.edu/centralcoastlean/summit/.