Leaders Listen to Employees – a Hallmark of Lean Leadership

Continuing our series on Lean Management, another aspect that goes along with the skill of Lean Manager’s Ask Effective Questions during a Gemba Walk is that effective Lean Managers listen to words, but they also listen to feelings.

This post is not meant to be “touchy feely” – there’s a very pragmatic and practical reason why we should listen to feelings: Words and Body language and Feelings gives us greater insight into the operation and the opportunities for Kaizen in that operation. And, this goes to the fact that a lot of process problems almost always have to do with leadership and people problems. And, thankfully, Lean as a strategic approach to operations is a very good approach to solving those types of problems.

So, as you talk with the associates and operators in your daily Gemba Walk, take notes in what they have to say, but also watch and be perceptive of how they feel. Then, validate them, sympathize with them, then help them and their leadership engage in Kaizen to help them improve their operation.

Below are a list of feeling ¹ words to watch out for.