Process Excellence: A Journey, Not a Destination

Date: Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Time: 8:00 a.m.–noon
(check-in and breakfast begins at 7:30 a.m.)
Location: CPCC Harris Campus
Presenter: Dr. Jeffrey Liker
Cost: $125

Join us for a rare opportunity to hear noted author and professor Dr. Jeffrey Liker explain the culture and values that drove Toyota to be the dominant automotive company in the world. Many organizations employ the standard Lean tools and have hired former Toyota employees to replicate the culture. Organizations from diverse markets such as manufacturing, healthcare, and government agencies have been successful while others struggle to compete. What’s the difference?

Through his research at Toyota and through his own consulting, Dr. Liker has first-hand knowledge of the differences between mediocre organizations and great organizations. This seminar will benefit both the people and organizations that have already started a process excellence journey as well as those who recognize the need but don’t know how to begin.

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Jeffrey K. Liker
Dr. Jeffrey K. Liker is professor of Industrial and Operations Engineering at the University of Michigan. Dr. Liker has authored or co-authored over 70 articles and book chapters and eight books. He is author of the international best-seller, The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World's Greatest Manufacturer (McGraw Hill 2004), which speaks to the underlying philosophy and principles that drive Toyota's quality and efficiency-obsessed culture. The companion (with David Meier)  The Toyota Way Fieldbook (McGraw-Hill 2005) details how companies can learn from the Toyota Way principles. His book with Jim Morgan The Toyota Product Development System, Productivity Press, 2006, is the first that details the product development side of Toyota.

All of these books have won awards, including the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing Research. He is doing a series of books focused on each of the 4 Ps. The first book with David Meier is Toyota Talent: Developing Exceptional People the Toyota Way, followed soon by Toyota Culture. He is also the editor of Becoming Lean: Experiences of D.S. Manufacturers (Productivity Press 1997), winner of the 1998 Shingo prize. He has also won Shingo prizes for his research in 1995, 1996, and 1997 including for his breakthrough article with Al Ward: "The Second Toyota Paradox: How Delaying Decisions Can Make Better Cars Faster" (Sloan Management Review, Spring 1995). Other books by Dr. Liker include Engineered in Japan, (Oxford University Press 1995); Concurrent Engineering Effectiveness: Integrating Product Development Across Organizations (Hanser-Gardner 1997); and Remade in America: Transplanting and Transforming Japanese Manufacturing Methods (Oxford University Press 1999).

He is active as a keynote speaker, speaker for executive retreats, and lean consultant, independently and through a company he cofounded, Optiprise, Inc. Recent clients include Hertz, Caterpillar, Android, Areva, Rio Tinto Mining, Tenneco Automotive, Jacksonville Naval Air Depot, US Airforce Material Command, Johnson Controls, Harley Davidson, Eaton, and Fujitsu Technical Services.