Systems thinking, lean production and action learning

Systems thinking underpins ‘lean’ management and is best understood through action-learning as the ideas are counter-intuitive. The Toyota Production System is just that—a system; the failure to appreciate that starting-place and the advocacy of ‘tools’ leads many to fail to grasp what is, without doubt, a significant opportunity for learning and improvement. Two case studies illustrate the application of the ideas behind the Toyota System for service organisations. In each case managers had to ‘un-learn’ in order to learn how to take the opportunity provided by a systems approach to the design and management of work.