Welcome to the Lean Leadership Project!
I started my career as a civil engineer, went to law school and have focused my
practice on public works construction. I have continuously researched and
practiced alternative methods of project delivery, dispute resolution and quality
improvement looking for a way to reduce waste, manage risk and reduce the
conflicts all construction projects are prone to. I discovered Lean Construction in
2010 and have been studying it ever since. I am convinced with every fiber of my
being that Lean has the potential to transform the construction industry. I started
the Lean Leadership Project so I could make a meaningful contribution to this
transformation. I am passionate about helping organizations combine the best
practices of Lean technology with the best practices of organizational
communication and instructional design to achieve higher value.
When I first started practicing construction law, I worked for a firm that specialized
in construction claims. It was my job was to collect all the documentation and
analyze the who-did-what-to whom story. I analyzed dozens of projects gone bad. I
observed there was a common pattern - the project would start out happy, with
everyone focused on doing a good job. But, as time went by, inevitably, there was
a breakdown in communication, which caused the parties to stop using their
technical skills to solve problems. I saw this pattern over and over and theorized
that if you had a way to keep people communicating, they could apply their skills to
effective problem solving and prevent claims and lawsuits. I developed a project
partnering program based on this foundation and used it to facilitate partnering
sessions for owners of large projects such as the U.S. Navy and owners of smaller
projects, such as the Local Transit Authorities.
I tried to help people build a culture of trust and communication so they could
recognize they had common goals and that solving problems effectively was in
everyone’s best interests. However, It didn’t always work. The problem was that
partnering didn't change the contract. So, when there was a problem everyone
retreated to their corner and stopped talking. I like Lean methodology because it
builds leadership, collaboration and problem solving systems into the fabric of the
project. Further, in my experience this failure to communicate frequently exits in
large public agencies, where functions, and communications, tend to exist in silos.
Lean breaks down the silos.
I started my career as a civil engineer, went to law school and have focused my
practice on public works construction. I have continuously researched and
practiced alternative methods of project delivery, dispute resolution and quality
improvement looking for a way to reduce waste, manage risk and reduce the
conflicts all construction projects are prone to. I discovered Lean Construction in
2010 and have been studying it ever since. I am convinced with every fiber of my
being that Lean has the potential to transform the construction industry. I started
the Lean Leadership Project so I could make a meaningful contribution to this
transformation. I am passionate about helping organizations combine the best
practices of Lean technology with the best practices of organizational
communication and instructional design to achieve higher value.
When I first started practicing construction law, I worked for a firm that specialized
in construction claims. It was my job was to collect all the documentation and
analyze the who-did-what-to whom story. I analyzed dozens of projects gone bad. I
observed there was a common pattern - the project would start out happy, with
everyone focused on doing a good job. But, as time went by, inevitably, there was
a breakdown in communication, which caused the parties to stop using their
technical skills to solve problems. I saw this pattern over and over and theorized
that if you had a way to keep people communicating, they could apply their skills to
effective problem solving and prevent claims and lawsuits. I developed a project
partnering program based on this foundation and used it to facilitate partnering
sessions for owners of large projects such as the U.S. Navy and owners of smaller
projects, such as the Local Transit Authorities.
I tried to help people build a culture of trust and communication so they could
recognize they had common goals and that solving problems effectively was in
everyone’s best interests. However, It didn’t always work. The problem was that
partnering didn't change the contract. So, when there was a problem everyone
retreated to their corner and stopped talking. I like Lean methodology because it
builds leadership, collaboration and problem solving systems into the fabric of the
project. Further, in my experience this failure to communicate frequently exits in
large public agencies, where functions, and communications, tend to exist in silos.
Lean breaks down the silos.
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