Gemba Academy Podcast: Lean Six Sigma | Toyota Kata | Productivity | Leadership

Hosted by Ron Pereira: Lean Thinker & Co-Founder of Gemba Academy

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Episodes

150

Latest episode

Jun 2026

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EN-US

About the show

Improvement Learning, Improved.

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60 recent

June 11, 202631 min

GA 636 | Taking Control of Your Life with Joel Steele

Most people trying to improve their lives are doing it without a clear picture of what they are building toward. For Joel Steele, a near-miss with prison forced him to start making different choices. His book “Life Switch” grows out of that turning point, and the framework he describes maps surprisingly well onto the tools that continuous improvement professionals use every day. In this episode you’ll learn: Why progress builds momentum faster than motivation alone (0:02) The quote Joel likes (3:19) How focus shapes the direction of everything you do (4:09) What a near-death experience reveals about wasted potential (6:06) How the puzzle analogy reframes goal-setting for real life (8:58) Why believing in the process separates progress from stagnation (13:22) How failure functions as fuel rather than a stop sign (14:47) The difference between living on and merely surviving each day (18:46) How understanding your wiring unlocks the right role for you (21:27) Why fulfillment is the only scorecard that actually matters (24:13) How buying one book becomes part of a million-dollar donation (27:27) “It’s simple in theory, but it’s hard to execute. But when you understand that, hey, this is going to work and you believe in that process and you don’t have doubt in yourself, you make so much more progress.” – Joel Steele Keep Learning If Joel’s point about believing in the process resonated, the School of Leadership is a natural next step for anyone who wants to build the kind of clarity and conviction that sustains continuous improvement over time. Learn More About the Gemba Academy School of Leadership. Podcast Resources Joel on LinkedIn Joel’s Website Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Stay current on new courses, podcast episodes, and continuous improvement resources. Sign up for the Gemba Academy newsletter at gembaacademy.com/news What Do You Think? When you think about your own work in continuous improvement, do you have a clear enough picture of the finished puzzle to know where the next piece belongs?

June 4, 202634 min

GA 635 | Emotions Are Not the Enemy with D. Earl Johnston

Most continuous improvement practitioners are trained to prize logic and treat emotion as noise in the system. D. Earl Johnston spent nine years and thousands of research hours across twelve disciplines discovering that framing is backward. His book, “Choosing Emotions,” grew out of a father-daughter moment involving depression, post-it notes, and a single powerful text message. What came out of that work challenges something most leaders have never stopped to question. In this episode you’ll learn: What Winston Churchill’s 8 words reveal about how emotions work (3:14) How a father-daughter dinner became a 9-year research project on emotions (3:57) The three most common misunderstandings people have about emotions (11:40) Why doom scrolling is an emotionally driven navigation, not a bad habit (16:56) What ego actually is and why most high-performers misunderstand it (19:12) Why trauma persists until you find the words to describe it (22:00) How naming an emotion releases its grip on your behavior (26:11) What neuroscientist Lisa Feldman Barrett says about emotional vocabulary (28:05) How an emotionary differs from an ordinary dictionary (31:13) Why making friends with your emotions makes life easier (32:13) Keep Learning If the idea that naming an emotion is the first step to solving a problem resonates with how you think about coaching and people development, the School of Leadership builds on exactly that kind of human-centered foundation. Podcast Resources “Choosing Emotions” Choosing Emotions Website Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Stay current on new courses, podcast episodes, and continuous improvement resources. Sign up for the Gemba Academy newsletter at gembaacademy.com/news What Do You Think? Where in your work do you see emotional vocabulary, or the lack of it, affecting how problems get solved?

May 28, 202640 min

GA 634 | Doubling Profits in 90 Days with Ben Hansen

This week’s guest is Ben Hansen. Ron and Ben discussed how Ben helps companies improve their profit margins, dealing with “profititis,” shifting your focus from revenue to profitability, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: Ben’s quote (2:23) His background (3:59) How Ben helps companies double their profits (6:57) The most common “profit leaks” (9:28) An example using a manufacturing facility (20:17) About “profititis” (23:29) How you address it (26:05) Shifting the focus from revenue to profitability (27:38) Ben’s thoughts on accounting (32:05) Separating the signal from the noise (36:09) Ben’s parting thoughts (37:24) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Ben on LinkedIn Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? Has your business ever suffered from profit leaks or profititis? How did you know?

May 21, 202642 min

GA 633 | Be Curious and Seek Knowledge with Andy Olrich

This week’s guest is Andy Olrich. Ron and Andy discussed the roles of people and tools in continuous improvement, what NOT to do when building a lean culture, teaching younger generations, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: The quote Andy likes (3:40) His background (4:25) Andy’s “Aha” moment when it comes to lean (13:33) How his perspective has changed (16:58) What not to do when building a culture of lean (22:47) Andy’s work with younger generations (29:28) His advice for those just getting started (39:08) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Andy on LinkedIn The Lean Solutions Podcast Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What was your lean “Aha” moment?

May 14, 202637 min

GA 632 | Performance Unleashed with Chris Libutti

This week’s guest is Chris Libutti. Ron and Chris discussed Chris and his wife Yamila’s book, “Performance Unleashed,” his time in the military, the importance of self-discipline, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: The quote Chris likes (2:29) His background (4:08) About his time in the military (8:46) What Chris is most proud of (12:42) His transition to college (14:01) About Chris’s book (18:42) The importance of self-discipline (26:39) Chris’s final words of wisdom (32:43) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Performance Unleashed Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? How do you practice self-discipline?

May 7, 202630 min

GA 631 | What We Can Learn from Tetris with Michael Parent

This week’s guest is Michael Parent. Ron and Michael discussed an interesting AI conundrum, the impact that systems and design have on performance, Michael’s Tetris experiment, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: Michael’s quote (3:03) Ron’s LinkedIn poll on AI (4:32) About Michael’s background (8:11) His thoughts on system and design (10:58) What’s happening with high performers (14:09) How Michael uses Tetris (17:40) What the lessons learned were/are (22:18) How often Michael sees these design problems (24:52) His final words of wisdom (27:52) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Michael’s Substack Michael on LinkedIn Ron’s LinkedIn Poll on AI GA 339 | Applying Lean and Six Sigma to Human Resources GA 423 | Lean and Human-Centered Design The Red Bead Experiment Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What are your thoughts on Michael’s Tetris experiment?

April 30, 202644 min

GA 630 | Why Tone Matters with Shahab Shah

This week’s guest is Shahab Shah. Ron and Shahab discussed the importance of balancing human empathy with the demands of reality, why tone matters, first steps for making improvements, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: Shahab’s favorite quote (2:25) His background (4:17) What was the most influential (6:23) What Shahab is looking for when first entering a manufacturing plant (8:26) His first steps for making improvements (13:50) Balancing human empathy with reality (16:01) Why tone matters (25:08) How Shahab handles expectations (31:06) Shahab’s final words of wisdom (42:46) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Shahab on LinkedIn Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? Why else does tone matter?

April 23, 202635 min

GA 629 | Why Leadership Is Like Cooking with Pete Behrens

This week’s guest is Pete Behrens. Ron and Pete discussed Pete’s book, “Into the Fog,” what it means for leaders to face uncertainty, why leadership is like cooking, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: Pete’s quote (2:10) His background (3:15) Why people are the biggest source of variability (6:57) What Pete means by “into the fog” (9:50) Pete’s approach (14:14) What’s better than sitting still (17:59) Why leadership is like cooking (22:07) The constraints Pete is seeing (28:41) Pete’s final words of wisdom (32:32) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Into the Fog Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? What does venturing “into the fog” look or feel like for you?

April 16, 202629 min

GA 628 | A Factory on Fire: How Lean Saves Lives with Brian Meyers

This week’s guest is Brian Meyers. Ron and Brian discussed the heart-stopping story of how Brian’s facility caught fire, the profound difference lean made in saving it, what “unwavering commitment” means, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: The quote Brian likes (4:16) His background (5:35) The fire at Brian’s factory (8:40) How lean saved the day (15:14) How they moved forward (17:04) The emotions Brian felt that day (18:48) Unwavering commitment (22:57) His final words of wisdom (26:55) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Brian on LinkedIn Lean by Doing Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? In what other truly profound ways can lean save lives, factories, whole businesses, etc?

April 9, 202632 min

GA 627 | Value Stream Mapping on University Campuses with Kristin Kielich

This week’s guest is Kristin Kielich. Ron and Kristin discussed Kristin’s experiences with continuous improvement in education, dealing with resistance, measuring success, and more. An MP3 audio version of this episode is available for download here. In this episode you’ll learn: The quote Kristin likes (2:51) Her background (4:03) About Kristin’s personal lean journey (11:48) Dealing with resistance (14:13) How the UC system uses Value Stream Mapping (19:01) How their team is structured (21:23) Measuring success (27:39) Her final words of wisdom (31:03) Podcast Resources Right Click to Download this Podcast as an MP3 Kristin on LinkedIn Get All the Latest News from Gemba Academy Our newsletter is a great way to receive updates on new courses, blog posts, and more. Sign up here. What Do You Think? How else could continuous improvement be used in an educational setting?