Track: Advancing Agile to the Next stage with Lean

Abstract: Arthur C. Clarke said, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Today, we find a lot of magical thinking associated with lean management.  This should be expected. Lean Manufacturing has been a spectacularly successful instantiation of lean management in the domain of manufacturing. It is no surprise that its ideas are migrating into product development. However, it might surprise you to find out that these ideas span the full range from tremendously useful to dangerously toxic. For example, though it is desirable to eliminate all variability in manufacturing, doing the same thing in product development will eliminate all innovation.

How can avoid the trap of magical thinking? Treat lean methods like the  advanced  technology it is.  Understand the mechanisms of action behind the methods. Find out WHY the methods work, not just WHAT to do.  This presentation will examine some key lean methods like queue management, batch size reduction, WIP constraints, and cadence.  It will discuss their governing economic tradeoffs and how these methods can be exploited by product developers.

Keywords: Lean, Product Development, Lean Product Development, Science, Magic

Target Audience: Managers and software professionals who are seeking a deeper understanding of lean product development and why it works.