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How a smaller institution can make a worldwide impact using lean

An institution’s size does not have to limit its ambition, as the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland is proving. The college, ranked in the top 250 of the Times Higher Education (THE) world rankings, is using Lean to help it achieve its goals in a complicated environment, as Doreen Gilfedder explains.

Lean leadership: five steps to get the best from yourself and others

How do you create the right conditions for lean to flourish? The University of Strathclyde’s John Hogg outlines five key behaviours that will help to foster a lean approach in higher education.

How to create a lean team

Institutions implementing a lean strategy need to think carefully about who will support it. The University of Sheffield’s Rachel McAssey explains some of the elements that make up a successful lean team.
The University of Aberdeen library

Making lean an integral part of existing change agendas

The University of Aberdeen has been using lean methods since 2009 establishing its own business improvement team in 2012. Pat Browne, who heads up the team, explains why finding a good fit, aligned with the institution’s priorities, is crucial to directing resources and making a difference.

Demystifying lean

To the unfamiliar, lean with its glossary of Japanese terms can appear daunting. But in the second part of our series on lean methods, consultant Christine Stewart argues that lean is actually relatively simple - and using fancy stationery can help with understanding.
A & BL (academic and Business Liaison) Team. Steve Yorkstone - Senior Consultant

How lean relates to other process improvement methods

While it originated in Japan’s car industry, lean has proved to be applicable to many different types of organisations. Edinburgh Napier’s Steve Yorkstone explains how lean is just one method of continuous improvement and the difference to alternatives are becoming less apparent.
Steve Yorkstone, Edinburgh Napier

What lean could mean for you

Do you develop a cold sweat whenever you hear the term “lean”? Our series of blogposts about lean methodology aims to change all, that starting with an introduction to the philosophy of lean by Edinburgh Napier’s Steve Yorkstone.

A Lean research and business support service?

Developed to cut out waste in car production, the Lean method is helping to transform processes in many universities. Already widely-used in professional services, Lean is now being applied to research management, as Northumbria University’s David Young explains.
Fin Miller is a change manager at the University of St Andrews

Fin Miller: making St Andrews leaner and fitter

Developed to cut out waste in car production in post-war Japan, the Lean method has been used at the University of St Andrews for more than a decade. We caught up with St Andrew’s change manager Fin Miller to find out how it works in practice.
Lean HE Hub event Manchester

Overcoming barriers to LEAN change in higher education

Cutting through the jargon and putting people at the centre of process improvement were two key themes of this month’s LEAN HE Hub Seminar at the University of Manchester. Paul Oates reflects on some of the lessons from the day.