APARADOX OF THETOYOTAWAYis that though it is continually improving and
changing, the core concepts remain consistent. We are continuously learning
new aspects of the process and seeing different applications in different situations.
Yet as our understanding deepens, the “basics” continually resurface, guiding
decisions and methods.
One thing that seems to shock many of the people we teach and advise is
the difficulty even Toyota has had in globalizing the Toyota Way. Consider some
of the icons of the Toyota Production System in North America: the Toyota plant
in Georgetown, Kentucky; Toyota’s joint venture with General Motors, NUMMI
in California; and Toyota’s largest supplier, Denso, in Battlecreek, Michigan. All
three locations went through a dip on the Toyota Way around 2000 as they were
rapidly expanding and dealing with a changing workforce and management
team, and all three have made heroic efforts to bring the level of Toyota Way think-
ing back up and are now moving to even higher levels of self-sufficiency in the
Toyota Way.
This is important because it suggests the culture underlying all the neat lean
systems many companies are busily working to implement does not necessarily
come naturally, particularly outside of Japan, and takes constant effort to main-
tain. Even Toyota group companies in America, with their lean tools that are
the envy of most other companies, slip back and must work to move forward.
We have had many experiences in observing, teaching, and consulting
throughout the world. At each step we realize that the core concepts and philoso-
phies are applicable in every situation and are truly the most important aspects
to learn. The greatest challenge in facing each new and unique situation is to
understand how to flexibly apply the methods of the Toyota Way, yet remain
true to the core concepts.
Outside Toyota, the challenge becomes the explanation of concepts that were
learned through continuous repetition but never described in terms of “absolutes.”Preface
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