Mark Reich is Chief Engineer Strategy at the Lean Enterprise Institute, a nonprofit founded by Jim Womack to promote lean thinking across industries. During his 23-year Toyota career (1988-2011), Mark was among the first Americans hired at Toyota's global headquarters, becoming fluent in Japanese while working in both Japan and North America. His roles included positions in the Supplier Support Center, Corporate Strategy, Production Control, and Product Planning, culminating as General Manager of North American Strategy for seven years. Mark has implemented Toyota Production System principles across automotive, healthcare, furniture, and food industries, driving major productivity and quality gains. His expertise includes practical problem solving, standardized work, pull systems, and Hoshin planning. Mark is the author of "Managing Our Purpose," a practical guide to applying Hoshin Kanri principles in organizations of all sizes.
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From Vision to Execution with Mark Reich
Why do so many organizational strategies end up as posters on walls rather than driving real change? In this episode, Dave and Peter dive deep with Mark Reich, who spent 23 years at Toyota before joining the Lean Enterprise Institute, to examine how Toyota's legendary Hoshin Kanri system transforms ...