The Lean Machine

Combining a probing, nuanced examination of the product development process with a sweeping systems approach to understanding its full scope and impact on an organization, The Lean Machinetraces the evolution that the Harley-Davidson product development team underwent as it moved to its breakthrough process of cadence, flows, and set-based designs, stopping along the way to:

• Explore the far-reaching effect of “firefighting,â€� which funnels huge amounts of time, money, and human resources into fixing last-minute problems

• Pinpoint the hidden problem of “False Positive Feasibility,â€� which dooms many projects developed with common phase-gate processes

• Explain the remarkably practical, low-tech oobeya process for visually documenting targets, objectives, and workflow

• Uncover the powerful results achieved by building product development on a foundation of planned, experiential learning cycles

• Make a persuasive case for adopting a “combat planningâ€� approach to product development, which is better suited to turbulent conditions