The Toyota Way, Second Edition: 14 Management Principles from the World's Greatest Manufacturer

The more personal tone of this new edition gives great insights on what lean really is. A must read for all executives who think lean is a "program" to mechanically apply to their organizations in order to achieve "savings." Lean is well described as an organic global performance approach with a very structured framework of principles and techniques in order to act your way into changing your way of thinking. A truly great book.

Thankfully. My way wasn't so great ;) Learning the philosophy of the Toyota Production System, learning to use the tools as needed and not as the outcome while practicing to think scientifically using the starter Kata pattern is my chosen way to work. It's a great ride of learning and discovery about myself, my work and how and why I think the way I do. I'm becoming a more effective coach, manager and person by practicing TPS + Kata!

I am interested in the application of TPS and I am interested in the story of Toyota - this book mixes a textbook approach to the principles and an anecdotal approach to storytelling. To me, it didn’t work. The stories felt disconnected. The principles were difficult to follow with all of the examples. This book would benefit from radical simplification and would shine at about 100 - 150 focused pages.

It has great value: Toyota management philosophy held like a Bible in Alcoa where I worked for 4 years. Great approach to a lot of things. I owned Toyota for 12 years: great quality and great service ( proof that ideas are still alive ) .

good

This book is a great value.

Excellent book. Hardcover Damaged

I so appreciate that Jeff Liker did not take this 2nd edition lightly. He looked at the changing landscape in both the business world as well as potential updates to Lean thinking and process improvement. He addressed the impact of automation and technology as well as how to incorporate Toyota Kata based on his discussions with fellow thought leader Mike Rother. The result is another great read. Well done!

As well as adding new perspectives and learning in this second edition, Jeff models continuous learning and practice for all of us! A great addition to my Toyota Way library!

A great book made even better! In the spirit of process improvement, thanks for adding more of your thoughts about Toyota Kata to this book and some new case examples. Thank you Jeff!

The more personal tone of this new edition gives great insights on what lean really is. A must read for all executives who think lean is a "program" to mechanically apply to their organizations in order to achieve "savings." Lean is well described as an organic global performance approach with a very structured framework of principles and techniques in order to act your way into changing your way of thinking. A truly great book.

Thankfully. My way wasn't so great ;) Learning the philosophy of the Toyota Production System, learning to use the tools as needed and not as the outcome while practicing to think scientifically using the starter Kata pattern is my chosen way to work. It's a great ride of learning and discovery about myself, my work and how and why I think the way I do. I'm becoming a more effective coach, manager and person by practicing TPS + Kata!

I am interested in the application of TPS and I am interested in the story of Toyota - this book mixes a textbook approach to the principles and an anecdotal approach to storytelling. To me, it didn’t work. The stories felt disconnected. The principles were difficult to follow with all of the examples. This book would benefit from radical simplification and would shine at about 100 - 150 focused pages.

It has great value: Toyota management philosophy held like a Bible in Alcoa where I worked for 4 years. Great approach to a lot of things. I owned Toyota for 12 years: great quality and great service ( proof that ideas are still alive ) .

good

This book is a great value.

Excellent book. Hardcover Damaged

I so appreciate that Jeff Liker did not take this 2nd edition lightly. He looked at the changing landscape in both the business world as well as potential updates to Lean thinking and process improvement. He addressed the impact of automation and technology as well as how to incorporate Toyota Kata based on his discussions with fellow thought leader Mike Rother. The result is another great read. Well done!

As well as adding new perspectives and learning in this second edition, Jeff models continuous learning and practice for all of us! A great addition to my Toyota Way library!

A great book made even better! In the spirit of process improvement, thanks for adding more of your thoughts about Toyota Kata to this book and some new case examples. Thank you Jeff!

If you have the first edition the updated commentary doesn’t add enough value to bother buying this book. If you don’t have the first edition then it’s a good introduction to TPS. Just don’t believe the description when it says it’s been updated for this edition far too much is similar.

Jeff Liker has done a major rewrite of the first edition, putting the development of scientific thinking patterns at the center. He explains how we can develop our organizations into learning systems that organically adapt and develop. Some gems from the book: "TPS is built on a scientific way of thinking - not a toolbox." That's something we might have gotten utterly wrong. "Toyota recognized that learning organizations are built on learning individuals." In many of our organizations, we might be lacking the means to do so on a daily basis and on all levels. "Individuals need to develop... [a scientific] ...mindset through repeated practice, with a coach." Jeff takes us below the surface, and beyond the Lean tools, we see to explain how Toyota purposefully develops a shared mental model throughout the organization by having people practice a scientific way of thinking and acting through different formats and at different stages of their career. What's unique? There is little classroom training. Instead, people are trained on the job, working on real projects with a manager as a coach. Some more gems: "Toyota didn't create a rigid problem-solving method that always has to be followed; they rather provide a framework for developing a scientific way of thinking through practice on real-world problems." Beware the dead A3 posters covering our factory walls. Then they trained their top management first. "The executives, after a career of learning how to problem solve, humbly followed the process (TBP), typically over eight months, for very large issues appropriate for their level. Then, they had to report out to a board of examiners, including Fujio Cho. In about 80 percent of the cases, they were asked to go back and do some more work." Can you believe it. C-suite managers practicing for eight months and more? "To get to habits, we need to change behavior through deliberate practice, repeatedly. What matters is what we do, not what we think we might do. As we look at how Toyota develops people, we see that the company creates conditions that foster certain behaviors, like reducing inventory, so problems surface quickly and visibly and put pressure on problem-solving." Creating a learning system is a top management task! "Challenging people is not enough. The company also teaches managers how to coach—to find opportunities in the course of daily work to give corrective procedural feedback to their team members as they strive to move toward a goal." Become a true learning organization has become a hallmark and even a necessity for 21st-century success. Jeff Liker explains how we can do so.

As consultant I have prescribed the previous version of this book to hundreds of directors and leaders on all levels as required reading. New version is even better. An absolute evergreen book.

Book as described and amazing packaging. Deliver time can be improved.