# better operations > by Prof. Torbjørn Netland ## Posts - [Improving peer review by giving reviewers more choice](https://better-operations.com/2025/04/11/improving-peer-review-by-giving-reviewers-more-choice/): This post is a repost of “Reviewer’s Choice” published in Inside Higher Ed. “Greetings! You’ve been added to our journal’s Editorial System because we believe you would serve as an excellent reviewer of [Unexciting Title] manuscript…”  If you’re an established academic, you probably get these too. It feels like such emails are propagating. The peer review system may still be “the best we have” for academic quality assurance, but it is vulnerable to human overload, preferences, and even mood. A result can be low-effort, late, or unconstructive reviews, but first the editors must be lucky enough to find someone willing […] - [Industry 4.0 explained](https://better-operations.com/2025/03/17/industry-4-0-explained/): This post is a simplified version of the article “Demystifying Industry 4.0: Navigating Automation and Augmentation” published in IEEE Engineering Management Review. If we had a use-to-talk ratio for Industry 4.0, the score would be sobering. Not because companies are not getting results but because most are a world apart from the engineering vision of a fully automatic factory. One plausible reason for the disappointing uptake is that manufacturing managers are confused about what Industry 4.0 is and what it can deliver for bottom-line performance. This article discusses the advancements toward fully automated, lights-out factories and introduces a straightforward matrix […] - [Can AI do my teaching?](https://better-operations.com/2025/02/05/can-ai-do-my-teaching/): This article first appeared in Media&Learning.eu with the title “When AI took over my teaching videos, students enjoyed them less but learned the same” on February 3, 2025. Generative AI has the potential to change education forever. Since the public launch of OpenAI’s generative AI tool ChatGPT in November 2022, students and teachers have eagerly experimented with this promising technology. An important question for teachers is whether AI can fully assume some of our core job tasks. We checked if AI could take over the resource-intensive job of making teaching videos and how it would impact students’ learning effects. At […] - [AI and the future factory](https://better-operations.com/2025/01/13/ai-in-manufacturing/): In 2024, we organized the AI in Manufacturing Summit in Davos and Zurich. While I intended to summarize my learnings instantly, I am finally hitting the keyboard twelve months later… It seems human procrastination is a problem AI has yet to solve. Well, because a year is a decade in the AI space, it allows checking some of our predictions! - [Smartwatches for job task allocation in manufacturing](https://better-operations.com/2024/06/08/smartwatches-in-manufacturing/): A new doctoral thesis at ETH Zurich investigates the behavioral implications of introducing smartwatch technology for job shop scheduling and control. - [How explainable AI improves manufacturing jobs](https://better-operations.com/2023/10/20/how-explainable-ai-improves-manufacturing-jobs/): [This is a shortened version of the article “Augmented intelligence: How explainable AI is changing manufacturing jobs for the better,” coauthored with Julian Senoner and Stefan Feuerriegel, recently published in the World Economic Forum’s Agenda.] A common narrative suggests AI is poised to replace human work on a large scale. Our research in diverse manufacturing settings and a recent World Economic Forum report on AI in manufacturing reject that vision. Instead, AI holds the potential to augment human intelligence to solve work tasks more effectively while also enriching the work experience. The key to unlocking this potential lies in explainable algorithms, which contrast […] - [Warping in the real world: Remote factory meetings in 360°](https://better-operations.com/2023/09/23/warping-in-the-real-world-visiting-factories-in-real-time-and-360/): Imagine you put on a virtual reality (VR) headset and immediately find yourself in an entirely different real-world place. It’s like finding a warp zone in Super Mario Bros. Or walking through Alice’s magical mirror into Wonderland or the wardrobe door into Narnia. Only, it is not a game or a fantasy novel, but reality! We can now remotely visit sites in 360° and real-time. Our new open-access paper in Manufacturing Letters details our research collaboration with Stanley Black & Decker and Avatour. We conceptualized, realized, and tested a remote presence technology that is immersive, real-time, and interactive – all […] - [IKEA's journey with warehouse drones](https://better-operations.com/2023/08/11/ikeas-journey-with-warehouse-drones/): “Flying drones in a warehouse? But why?” I was instinctively skeptical when I first heard of drone startup Verity’s idea to fly drones in industrial warehouses. A few years later, more than a hundred Verity drones fly in IKEA’s warehouses worldwide. Here’s the lesson I learned. - [Just-in-time: only for stable times?](https://better-operations.com/2023/04/10/just-in-time-only-for-stable-times/): Motivated by many media articles warning against JIT as the culprit for supply chain disruptions, the POMS College of Operational Excellence organized the webinar “Just-in-time or Just-in-case” in February 2022. Extending this online debate, five participants co-authored an article intending to provide advice for future research into JIT. After peer review, the article “Just-in-time for supply chains in turbulent times” is now published open-access in Production and Operations Management. - [New textbook: Introduction to Manufacturing](https://better-operations.com/2022/12/30/new-textbook-introduction-to-manufacturing/): After seven years of in-the-making, it’s a thrill to announce the publication of Introduction to Manufacturing: An Industrial Engineering and Management Perspective—an 800-page textbook coauthored with Michel Baudin and published by Routledge. - [One more time: What is lean?](https://better-operations.com/2021/06/09/lenses-of-lean/): What is lean? After all these years, there is still confusion. Truth is, opinions on lean differ widely. If you like heated debates, start a discussion thread on the definition of lean on LinkedIn. Many subscribe stubbornly to their own definitions and claim others “don’t get it.” In an attempt to enlighten the debate, the Journal of Operations Management (JOM) has recently published two articles that address the question. - [A factory’s “rhythm” affects its pace of learning lean](https://better-operations.com/2021/02/27/a-factorys-rhythm-affects-its-pace-of-learning-lean/): Consider two assembly factories—one assembles a car every minute and the other a bus every hour. Which factory setting is the most favorable for learning lean? - [Lean and the Corona pandemic: A clarification](https://better-operations.com/2020/12/28/lean-and-the-corona-pandemic-a-clarification/): Due to the Corona pandemic, critical supply chain shortages have occurred. Many have looked for the problem and pointed at the Just-In-time principle of Lean as one of the evils. This calls for clarification. Lean is not to blame, but part of the solution. - [Solving the ventilator shortage](https://better-operations.com/2020/04/06/a-better-answer-to-the-ventilator-shortage/): This is a reposting of my COVID-19 article published in the World Economic Forum Agenda, April 2, 2020. The article was cited in the news in several countries. An epidemic is an emotional issue. With the lives of our friends and loved ones on the line, we tend to respond with the heart first, then the head: Close the borders! Ground the planes! - [Teaching operations management with virtual reality](https://better-operations.com/2020/01/31/teaching-operations-management-with-virtual-reality/): Factory visits are effective for teaching applied concepts in higher education, but field trips are not easy to plan and organize. What if – rather than the students going to the factories – the factories could come to the students? At ETH Zurich, we integrated virtual reality (VR) technologies into our operations management classes. - [Everyday lean](https://better-operations.com/2019/12/19/everyday-lean/): What does lean look like in everyday life? We launched a simple tweet contest in class to make the students reflect on the course material outside the lecture hall. The response and results were terrific. - [How drones will be used in manufacturing](https://better-operations.com/2019/09/18/how-drones-will-be-used-in-manufacturing/): Emerald just published the world’s first peer-reviewed paper taking a management perspective on drones in manufacturing. Written by Omid Maghazei and myself, the paper explores the current state and future opportunities for using drones in factories. The paper published in the Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management is open access. Here are the main findings. - [Human learning beats machine learning](https://better-operations.com/2018/11/07/human-learning-beats-machine-learning/): It is an exciting time for manufacturing. A plethora of recent technological developments creates radically new opportunities for how we develop, manufacture, and deliver products globally. We hear that “the robots are coming” and “jobs will be automated.” Many managers are excited, baffled, or both. Many job takers are worried. - [10 favorite lean papers](https://better-operations.com/2018/04/05/top-ten-scientific-lean-papers/): Scientific thinking is a cornerstone of lean thinking, but the lean movement itself has unfortunately become largely unscientific. Here are ten academic lean papers you should know. - [How new technologies shape the future of production](https://better-operations.com/2018/01/22/future-production/): How will manufacturing look like in the future? As part of my engagement as a Fellow of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Production, I was featured in a podcast about the future of production. Here is what I had to say about it. - [Open process innovation: The future of operational excellence](https://better-operations.com/2018/01/15/open-process-innovation/): This post about open process innovation first appeared in the World Economic Forum’s Agenda platform on January 11 2018, titled “The future of competitiveness is open“. - [Kings and fat horses: Understanding muri, mura, muda](https://better-operations.com/2017/09/05/muri-mura-muda/): The “3 Ms”—muri, mura, muda—is among the most important concepts in lean production. Yet, the Ms are often misjudged. - [Is 3D printing revolutionizing supply chains?](https://better-operations.com/2017/06/13/3d-printing-revolutionizing-supply-chains/): Countless newspaper articles, tech blogs, and proclaimed experts argue that 3D printing is about to turn manufacturing supply chains on its head. There is little doubt that additive manufacturing (the more precise term for 3D printing) will have its impact, but it will be limited to niches for many years to come. The more interesting question is to identify and transform the 3D print-ready niches. - [Shingo Research Award to the Companion to Lean Management](https://better-operations.com/2017/04/25/the-routledge-companion-to-lean-management-wins-the-shingo-research-award/): Terrific news! It is an honor to receive the prestigious Shingo Research Award for the Routledge Companion to Lean Management, co-edited with Dr. Daryl Powell and published with Routledge earlier this year. - [Five rules of productivity improvement](https://better-operations.com/2017/03/06/productivity-improvement-five-rules/): If I explained my research in two words, I would say “improving productivity.” That was also the title of my inaugural lecture at ETH Zurich today. In the lecture, I presented five rules of productivity improvement, which I summarized in this post. The full inaugural lecture is available here (lecture starts at 7 min 30 sec):   - [The three "Ls" of lean management](https://better-operations.com/2016/11/15/routledge-companion-lean-management/): The Routledge Companion to Lean Management has hit the bookshelves. Here is a summary of its main conclusions. The key message? Any lean transformation—regardless of the sector and application area—is dependent on the three essential Ls of lean: Leadership for Long-term Learning. - [Augmented Reality: Ready for manufacturing industries?](https://better-operations.com/2016/10/07/augmented-reality-manufacturing/): In a series of posts, I will put the spotlight on technologies that eventually will change how we manufacture and deliver products and services. My objective is to demystify the “fourth industrial revolution”— Industry 4.0 — by looking at the specific technologies it concerns. First out is Augmented Reality. - [Manufacturing cost deployment: How to select the right projects](https://better-operations.com/2016/09/15/manufacturing-cost-deployment/): How do firms prioritize and select improvement projects? Unfortunately, the usual method is a combination of guess and chance. Few companies can compute the real return on investment from proposed projects, and select the better ones through a rigorous decision process. This is not a trivial problem, but an important one: Many firms spend much money on useless improvements — fixing issues that are non-critical or have low or no effect on factory performance. In these firms, middle managers battle for the attention and investments of senior management by writing up speculative “business cases” for their proposed improvement projects. Few […] - [Organizing academic conferences: Behind the scenes of EurOMA 2016](https://better-operations.com/2016/06/29/organizing-academic-conferences-behind-scenes-euroma/): We have just finished organizing the 23rd EurOMA 2016 conference at NTNU in Trondheim, Norway. The European Operations Management Association (EurOMA) is the premier European association for academics in the fields of production management, operations management, and supply chain management. The EurOMA conference is hosted by a European university in June-July every year and draws around 500 participants from all over the world. Two years ago, NTNU won the bid for the 2016 conference – and we set an ambitious goal of organizing a flawless and unforgettable experience for all attendants. Although EurOMA offers an appropriate manual for organizing these […] - [Lean implementation tactics](https://better-operations.com/2016/05/25/lean-implementation-tactics/): Managers encounter a number of tactical questions in their lean journeys that call for decisions and actions. For example, should we have a “lean team”? Should we track lean implementation using bottom-up structures or top-down audit schemes? Should we offer financial and non-financial rewards for lean implementation to employees? These questions were recently answered in the research paper “Implementing corporate lean programs: The effect of management control practices,” by J. Schloetzer, K. Ferdows and myself, published in the Journal of Operations Management. This post* gives a summary. - [Academic life explained by WuMO](https://better-operations.com/2016/01/05/academic-life-explained-by-wumo/): Oh, you’re an “academic”… but what exactly are you doing? Among my favorite cartoonists are Mikael Wulff and Anders Morgenthaler, who together write WuMO. Here are eight handpicked WuMo cartoons that explain the essence of academic life. Enjoy! Teaching - [Five critical success factors for implementing lean programs](https://better-operations.com/2015/11/23/5-critical-success-factors-for-implementing-lean-programs/): Two out of three lean programs fail to achieve their initial objectives. My latest research asked 432 practitioners from 83 factories in two multinational corporations what they see as critical factors for succeeding with lean implementation. The research summarized five critical success factors for implementing lean programs that managers must get right. Is your organization on track? - [5S done right](https://better-operations.com/2015/10/19/5s-done-right/): 5S. Five short Japanese words, each beginning with an “S.” The majority of employees in the industrial sector, and increasingly in the public sector, have heard about the “5Ss”. The problem? The vast majority of companies trying to “implement” 5S fail and do so repeatedly. Many mistake it as a concept for cleaning and tidying up—boring but necessary activities for any professional business. This post* takes a closer look at each of the five S-words and finds that many of us might have missed the point. - [Lean in the primary school?](https://better-operations.com/2015/10/08/lean-primary-school/): Do concepts from the assembly line at Toyota apply to the learning environment of children from six to twelve years? One pioneering school in Rogaland, Norway, shows how some elements of lean thinking can be successfully adapted to create better conditions for teaching and learning. - [Poor performance? The problem is you! (A review of Lead with respect)](https://better-operations.com/2015/09/02/book-review-lead-with-respect/): “The problem is you”, is the honest response of a senior manager when a supplier’s CEO asks more time to solve a quality issue. He continues: “I don’t mean you as in the company. I mean you personally. You’re the senior manager here”…. This is the intriguing start of a business novel on lean leadership. Here is my brief review of Lead with Respect: a Novel of Lean Practice by Michael Ballé and Freddy Ballé. - [Lean broadcasting: Lean in the BBC](https://better-operations.com/2015/07/09/lean-broadcasting-lean-bbc/): A service you probably consume every single day is broadcasting. Can lean principles help the broadcasting industry produce better value for the audience – and do so more efficiently and more effectively than today? Admittedly, I had never thought about broadcasting as a new application area for lean, but clearly it is coming. This post looks at lean broadcasting, where the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a first mover. - [Liker on Lean Leadership](https://better-operations.com/2015/03/26/liker-on-lean-leadership/): Why do most firms fail in their lean transformations? Because they have not understood the power of lean leadership, says Professor Jeffrey Liker. I spent the last two days together with the Norwegian aluminum producer Hydro ASA, listening to and learning from Liker. Here is a brief reflection on the essentials of lean leadership. - [Industry 4.0: What about lean?](https://better-operations.com/2015/03/16/industry-4-0-lean/): What is Industry 4.0? Will it end the era of lean manufacturing? Here’s an exclusive preview of an article appearing in the Lean Management Journal. - [The top-ten Dilbert cartoons on lean](https://better-operations.com/2015/02/03/top-ten-dilbert-cartoons-lean/): Is your organization struggling to implement lean or any similar process improvement program? This post presents the 10 best Dilbert cartoons on lean management.* Scott Adams’ brilliant and popular cartoons provide a reality check for any change agent involved in process improvement. Next time, ask yourself: What would Dilbert do? #10 Develop a long-term corporate lean program Restarting a new improvement program every quarter or year? The only ones wagging their tails are the consultants. Instead, develop a lasting corporate lean program—and stick with it for a long time. - [10 benefits of lean games](https://better-operations.com/2014/11/30/lean-game/): How can we boost the learning experience when teaching lean production? Admittedly, presentations and monologues from the front of the classroom are rarely something people remember for a long time. Learning can be greatly improved by using games and simulations, which provide the learner with first-hand experience in learning and its benefits. - [A letter of tribute to Fred Kavli](https://better-operations.com/2014/11/21/letter-tribute-fred-kavli/): On this day, exactly one year ago, one great Norwegian passed: Fred Kavli (1927-2013) was an engineer, entrepreneur, leader and—most importantly—a philanthropist. On my way to work, whether it is here in Cambridge or at home in Trondheim, I pass one of his many living legacies. In Trondheim, it would be the Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience at NTNU (with fresh Nobel Prize winners in Medicine). In Cambridge, it is the Kavli Institute for Cosmology. Both these examples are beneficiaries of Kavli’s passion for science, and both perform high-risk, world-class research in their respective areas. Mr. Kavli certainly deserves a letter of tribute. - [Lean culture eats national culture for lunch](https://better-operations.com/2014/11/03/lean-culture-eats-national-culture-lunch/): Are certain national cultures better suited to implement lean thinking? In this post, I reflect on the role of national cultures in the roll-out of a corporate lean program. - [Managing international manufacturing networks](https://better-operations.com/2014/09/12/managing-international-manufacturing-networks/): Where do the next battles stand for multinational manufacturing firms? The annual Cambridge International Manufacturing Symposium provides some answers. - [The four stages of a lean transformation](https://better-operations.com/2014/08/25/four-stages-lean-transformation/): This post by Professor Kasra Ferdows and myself was featured in Planet Lean (The Lean Global Network Journal) last week. It suggests that organizations that implement lean move through four distinctive stages of lean maturity—each with its own challenges and opportunities. - [Factory response to a corporate lean program: The 4A model](https://better-operations.com/2014/08/12/factory-response-corporate-lean-program-4a-model/): How do factories respond when the headquarters of a multinational firm rolls out a “new” corporate lean program? In a paper in the International Journal of Operations and Production Management*, Professor Arild Aspelund and I propose that factories can respond in four generic ways; explained by the “4A model”. - [Making operations fly: What business can learn from pilots](https://better-operations.com/2014/06/26/making-operations-fly-checklists/): I am still smiling. On my flight from Oslo to Rome this weekend, I was asked to sit in the cockpit. I gladly accepted. My seat ticket read C01 – Cockpit 1. In a fully seated Boeing 737-800, the captain and copilot of SK4713 showed me how to get 194 passengers safely and timely from far north to the south of Europe in about three hours. I could not possibly get a better start on my travel to the annual conference of the European Operations Management Association, this time in Palermo, Sicily. For a scholar of operations, it was truly […] - [Implementing the Volvo Production System in a truck plant](https://better-operations.com/2014/05/13/implementing-the-volvo-production-system-in-a-truck-plant/): To follow up my previous post about the effect of implementing lean in the global Volvo Group, here’s one short story of the implementation of the Volvo Production System (VPS) in the truck assembly plant in New River Valley, Virginia, USA. - [Do lean programs pay off?](https://better-operations.com/2014/04/30/corporate-lean-programs/): Multinational companies roll out lean programs or XPSs. The objective is to improve the operational performance of all the factories in the global network. The party killer? It is documented that about 70 % of all general change programs fail [1], and similar figures has been suggested for lean [2]. So, do lean programs really pay off? - [A speech from a PhD to fellow PhDs](https://better-operations.com/2014/03/29/speech-phd-fellow-phds-doctoral-degree-award/): The annual Doctoral Degree Awards Ceremony has just been ceremoniously arranged at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim. I got the great honor of giving the Fellow Speech to the 370 new Doctors of Philosophy (PhDs). This post is an excerpt from this speech. It is a call for PhDs—in any field—to use their hard-won knowledge to contribute to a better society. - [Beer and bullwhip: What happens as you drink?](https://better-operations.com/2014/03/15/beer-bullwhip-happens-drink/): Do you know the far-reaching implications of you ordering a non-regular beer in a bar? I mean, in addition to all the personal pleasures (and problems) that may follow? If you have ever played the Beer Game* you know what I’m talking about: The Bullwhip Effect. When you create small variations in customer demand, you start a chain reaction of amplifying variations upstream of the supply chain**. Follow me to the bar. - [A gold standard lean production system: the Madshus Business System](https://better-operations.com/2014/02/17/a-gold-standard-lean-production-system-the-madshus-business-system/): It is the Winter Olympics in Sochi. The world’s best winter sports athletes use world-class winter sports equipment to fight for honor and gold. Just like the athletes use exercise regimens to become stronger and quicker, equipment manufacturers can deploy lean production programs to better their production. This post highlights a gold-standard lean production system developed by a leading sports equipment manufacturer. - [The concept epicenters of lean, TQM, six sigma & co](https://better-operations.com/2014/01/17/concept-epicenters-lean-tqm-six-sigma/): When it comes to improving production, a standard question is this one: What are the differences between Lean, Total Quality Management (TQM), Six Sigma, Agile, Quick Response Manufacturing (QRM), and all the other prescribed improvement programs? Underlying the question is a rational need to find a way to navigate through the jungle of “solutions”, and select the one(s) that fit exactly your firm. In this blog post, I suggest that considering “Concept Epicenters” might be helpful in making the right strategic choices. - [How to defend your PhD dissertation](https://better-operations.com/2013/12/15/defend-your-phd-dissertation/): So, I made it. Yiihaa! Four years culminating into one day. My first post as a fresh Doctor in Operations Management will be my reflections on giving the defense. I hope the thoughts will be somewhat helpful or comforting for all those shivering PhD candidates yet to come. One thing’s for sure: I’ve got respect for the process. A PhD defense is, and should be, a serious ceremony. Yet, it can be one of the best days in life. These tips and tricks on how to defend your PhD dissertation are not just my own; many thanks to all the […] - [Chess mate! What does chess have to do with operations strategy?](https://better-operations.com/2013/11/16/chess-mate-chess-operations-strategy/): What’s the most usual image for strategy? Google Pictures leaves no doubt: Chess! These days, the FIDE World Chess Championship is held in Chennai, India. The reigning world champion Viswanathan Anand is playing on home ground against the Norwegian chess wonder Magnus Carlsen. In this regard, one of the readers of my blog asked me to explore the question: What does chess have to do with operation strategy? - [Lean assessments; are they needed?](https://better-operations.com/2013/10/27/lean-assessment/): This post is the original manuscript of the introduction letter in the latest issue of the Lean Management Journal, written by Mr. Ebly Sanchez of Volvo AB and myself.  - [Go Lean, get Green?](https://better-operations.com/2013/10/16/go-lean-get-green/): Good news*: your operations can reach excellence in both Lean and Green. But to hope for success you need to treat Lean and Green as interconnected strategies—not isolated projects. That tip is a key take away from the SMARTLOG seminar “Lean & Green? Yes please both” that we arranged at SINTEF in Trondheim this week. Leading academics and corporations** in Scandinavia were invited to share their latest experiences on the topic. Do Lean and Green go well together? - [Factory Beauty: Does looks impact performance?](https://better-operations.com/2013/09/15/factory-beauty-does-looks-impact-performance/): Factories are like people; they come in all shapes and looks—some more attractive than others. There is no doubt that a good-looking factory is nice for workers and visitors, but does it also have a significant impact on the plant’s operational and financial performances? How much should management care about factory beauty? - [Factory Fitness: What managers can learn from Athletics](https://better-operations.com/2013/08/14/factory-fitness-what-managers-can-learn-from-athletics/): This week, the 2013 IAAF World Championships in athletics is held in Moscow, Russia. If plant managers watch carefully, they might pick up a few ideas for improving their factories. A specific concept that comes to mind is the notion of Factory Fitness – proposed by Kasra Ferdows (Georgetown University) and Fritz Thurnheer (Hydro ASA) in 2011. The key take away is the following: Whereas becoming lean is right for many, becoming fit is right for all. How to become world champion depends on the event. - [The rope team: Theory of Constraints](https://better-operations.com/2013/07/23/why-you-should-run-your-production-as-a-rope-team-or-maybe-not/): Climbing the highest mountain in Northern Europe, a few thoughts on the Theory of Constraints came to my mind. To get to Galdhøpiggen, 2469 meters above sea level, the most common route takes you over a glacier where rope teams are used for safety reasons. In his must-read book “The Goal”, Eli Goldratt (1984) uses rope teams to illustrate an efficient production system. - [A book review of This is Lean!](https://better-operations.com/2013/06/30/this-is-lean/): ‘If lean is everything that is good, and everything good is lean, what is then the alternative?’ Niklas Modig and Pär Åhlström ask this timely question in their book This is Lean. The authors go on to suggest what lean is and what it is not. But, at Amazon.com, there are more than 7,000 books on lean, so why should you read this one? - [The World Class Manufacturing programme at Chrysler, Fiat & Co](https://better-operations.com/2013/05/22/world-class-manufacturing-at-chrysler-and-fiat/): The company-specific production system (XPS) of Chrysler is the World Class Manufacturing (WCM) concept developed by the Fiat Group in 2006. But what exactly is the WCM? And, what does Chrysler see as keys to success in WCM? - [Is Lean Six Sigma relevant for the 21st Century Manufacturing?](https://better-operations.com/2013/05/05/relevance-of-lean-six-sigma-poms-2013-denver/): A report from POMS 2013 in Denver Are Lean and Six Sigma relevant for 21st Century Manufacturing? An answer to this—and a thousand other questions—is being suggested at the annual POMS Conference in Denver, Colorado, this week. - [Colouring the country of black and white: Wadja Inc. in Saudi Arabia](https://better-operations.com/2013/04/21/colouring-the-country-of-black-and-white-lean-in-saudi-arabia/): I have just returned from an excellent visit to Saudi Arabia, researching the implementation of ‘lean production‘ in a successful multinational company that produces the world’s highest quality paints and paint systems. Going there, I heard that Saudi Arabia would be totally different than anything I’ve visited before. It was, and it was not. This post is about how foreign companies contribute to Saudi’s wealth and development and slowly improve women’s rights through cultural exchange and mutual understanding. These companies and their expats colour the ‘country of black and white’. - [Three fishes for Uganda: why Africa struggles to industrialise](https://better-operations.com/2013/03/03/three-fishes-for-uganda-why-africa-lags-to-industrialise/): ‘The pearl of Africa’, as Sir Churchill once called Uganda, has yet to enjoy a rapid economic growth. That’s a challenge that Uganda shares with the majority of African countries. Multiple reasons for the African growth inertia have been suggested; unstable political environments, low education levels and insufficient infrastructure are usual suspects. The main reason for the slow industrialisation of Uganda, however, is neither political nor economical, it is cultural. This week in Kampala, Dr. Peter Lating at Makerere University, explained me the Ugandan mindset with a brilliant—and reportedly true—story.  The story deserves to be shared, and it goes like […] - [Company-wide Quality Management: XPS of the 80s](https://better-operations.com/2013/02/28/company-wide-quality-management-xps-of-the-80s/): When it comes to quality management, there are surprising similarities between what was suggested in the 80s and what we barely have seen the start of in industry today. In this post, I discuss how Juran’s CWQM-concept from the mid-1980s is both valid and useful for companies rolling out global production improvement programs today. - [Kudos to the quality gurus](https://better-operations.com/2013/02/26/quality-gurus-on-quality-management/): What do the quality gurus of the 80s think when they read the modern literature on lean & co? Have we moved beyond their original ideas? Or do we just say the same things using fancy, new words? While preparing a paper for the TQM Journal, I recently re-discovered the wisdom of the 80s. And what a wisdom! This is far too important knowledge to discard as blasts from the past; the ideas of Juran, Taguchi, Garvin, Crosby, Shingo, Deming, Feigenbaum and Ishikawa remain fundamental for competitiveness. In this post, I briefly explain the key contributions of each of the top-eight quality gurus. Kudos to the […] - [Moods of Norway towards global transparency and happier people](https://better-operations.com/2013/02/07/moods-of-norway-towards-global-supplier-transparency/): This week, I drove through Nordfjord, one of the world’s most beautiful corners, on the Norwegian west coast. There—in the prosperous and peaceful countryside—problems in China’s and India’s factories seem far, far away. But they really aren’t. Nordfjord is home to several successful apparel companies: Ricco Vero, Skogstad, and Frislid, famous in Norway and beyond. However, the iconic Moods of Norway is the best known of all. After repeated pressure from consumers and a Norwegian NGO, Moods of Norway finally went public with a list of worldwide suppliers [1-3]. That’s a good start, but not enough! It is admirable that […] - [Why my mother drives a Toyota: The Toyota Production System](https://better-operations.com/2013/01/27/toyota-production-system/): My mother just got her new car. After driving a problematic Renault for many years, she decided to go for a Toyota Yaris. That’s an excellent choice for her needs. Despite Toyota’s recent recalls, it continues to deliver the best quality at the best price. The choice of Toyota also gives me a good opportunity to eventually write about an essential core of my research: The Toyota Production System—the mother of all XPSs. - [Extreme quality for extreme conditions: The Kongsberg Group likes NTNU](https://better-operations.com/2013/01/17/extreme-performance-for-extreme-conditions-quality/): Why do 9 corporate presidents and 20 other high-ranked employees from one company hand out buns and coffee at my university today? Surely they made my morning more pleasant, but that doesn’t deliver the shareholder’s return on investment. Or will it… in the long run? This company believes students are more important than one day of business-as-usual. This is the story of why quality starts at the university for a world-leading Norwegian firm: The Kongsberg Group. - [Better-operations.com, now a self-hosted blog!](https://better-operations.com/2013/01/02/better-operations-com-now-a-self-hosted-blog/): A very HAPPY NEW YEAR to all my readers! Regulars will see that this blog has undergone a major update; I took the jump from wordpress.com to a self-hosted wordpress.org blog. Better-operations started as an experiment, but with more than 6000 hits in its first 18 months, it’s time to take it to the next level. - [Hosting factory visits: 10 best practices](https://better-operations.com/2012/12/21/hosting-factory-visits-10-best-practices/): Visiting more than 40 factories all over the world this year, I have seen both good and not-so-good practices for hosting factory visits. In this post, I share some learning points: here are ten best practices for factory tours. - [Waving the flag for Swedish Manufacturing](https://better-operations.com/2012/11/28/swedish-manufacturing/): The winter sport season has barely started as Norway’s victorious skier, Petter Northug, kicks off his mockery season of our neighbor to the east: Sweden. A few days ago, in the Cross Country World Cup in Gällivare, Sweden, Northug passed the finishing line first—before Sweden—and with a Swedish flag. As the anchorman in the Norwegian cross-country relay team, he made sure that Norway won over Sweden at their home ground once again—and took great care that they knew… At the same time, I spent my third week in Sweden this year. As a student of business, I know that Sweden […] - [Making veggies flow in Macedonia: Better layout with Closeness Rating Analysis](https://better-operations.com/2012/11/12/making-veggies-flow-in-macedonia-better-layout-with-closeness-rating-analysis/): This autumn, a brand new  food factory opened in the small town Gevgelija in Southern Macedonia. The successful entrepreneur Viktor Petkov has since 1992 built a viable company that employs over 100 persons during peak season. His company, Vipro, produces organic food from fruits and vegetables. In September, Vipro ceremoniously opened their new facilities. My colleague Lars Skjelstad and I were invited to join as “guests of honour” because we have assisted Vipro in planning the new factory layout. In this post I tell how Closeness Rating Analysis (CRA) helps plan a flow-oriented layout. - [Applying program management theory to XPS](https://better-operations.com/2012/10/06/applying-program-management-theory-to-xps/): This post is an excerpt of my newly published paper “Managing strategic improvement programs: the XPS program management framework”, published in the peer-reviewed and open-access Journal of Project, Program and Portfolio Management (Vol. 3, No. 1). - [Can ERP support the implementation of lean production?](https://better-operations.com/2012/09/06/erp-support-for-lean-production/): Yesterday, my colleague Daryl Powell successfully defended his PhD thesis titled “Investigating ERP Support for Lean Production” at the Department of Production and Quality Engineering at NTNU, Trondheim, Norway. Over the last three years, Powell’s research has received much interest from the international Operations Management research community and from industrial companies struggling with the mismatch between lean production and ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning systems). Is lean production and ERP solutions for pull production mutually exclusive? - [Nissan Production Way: A better alternative to TPS?](https://better-operations.com/2012/08/30/nissan-production-way-a-better-alternative-to-tps/): I have visited three former Nissan Diesel factories in Japan this week (today owned by a foreign multinational). The plants operate according to the Nissan Diesel Production System—a bi-product of the famous Nissan Production Way (NPW). I believe that too many lean-lovers focus too heavily on the Toyota Production System (TPS), and know too little about alternative approaches to world-class production. The core idea of an XPS is exactly that the X should be tailored to the company, and not be a TPS-blueprint. In fact, the NPW might provide a better benchmark for many Western manufacturers than the TPS… - [The bus driver in Bangalore: Making chaos flow](https://better-operations.com/2012/08/18/the-bus-driver-from-bangalore-making-chaos-flow/): Respect for the Bangalorian bus driver—who probably has one of the world’s most demanding jobs. While I visit Volvo factories in Bangalore this week, I feel the pulse of a thriving city that literally bursts into the streets with all its energy. The traffic in India’s third-largest city is dreadful for a European. Continuous honking seems to be the most important trick to come ahead and stay alive. In this total chaos of noise, pollution, people and vehicles, I am surprised to find the traffic flowing surprisingly swiftly. How do the Bangalorians create a flow of mere chaos? - [Academy of Management safari in Boston (@AOM Annual Meeting 2012)](https://better-operations.com/2012/08/06/academy-of-management-safari-in-boston-aom-annual-meeting-2012/): In the book Strategy Safari, management guru Henry Mintzberg said that no single perspective or theory can sufficiently cover strategy (or management) as a field; the field is an elephant that requires many eyes and minds to understand appropriately [1]. Mintzberg is one of the speakers at the Academy of Management (AOM) annual meeting in Boston this weekend. But he’s not alone: more than 11.000 people (!) choose to spend the best time of the year in clammy conference rooms to present and discuss their incomplete opinions on management. (This is the point where I would make a funny remark about that, but the joke […] - [Lean in Harley-Davidson: Launching the Harley-Davidson Operating System](https://better-operations.com/2012/07/21/lean-in-harley-davidson-launching-the-harley-davidson-operating-system/): Harley-Davidson! …no need for more introduction. This week, I toured the assembly plant in York—the biggest of four H-D manufacturing plants in the US. Together with H-D tattooed bikers with close-fit leather vests, I had the great opportunity to see the factory from the inside. Harley is well-known for the feelings it evokes in its customer base, and the H-D culture is an unavoidable teaching case in any marketing course. Few other products better symbolize the American dream. Therefore, my question when visiting the York plant was natural: is it an American dream factory? - [MIT DIY at iTunes University](https://better-operations.com/2012/07/15/mit-diy-at-itunes-university/): Ever wanted to follow courses at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)? Harvard? Or, if you prefer, the University of Cambridge, Oxford, Yale, Berkeley, Georgetown, University of Tokyo, or the Norwegian University of Science and Technology? Well, you can. It is free and you can easily Do-It-Yourself (DIY).  Why not MIT DIY? … Here’s how I used iTunes University and YouTube to substantially improve my statistics skills over a few weeks. - [The sun sets on REC (sometimes, lean is not enough)](https://better-operations.com/2012/06/10/the-sun-sets-on-rec-sometimes-no-xps-in-the-world-can-retain-your-competitiveness/): The Renewable Energy Corporation (REC) has recently closed its second of two factories in its home country, Norway. All the state-of-the-art technology and lean improvement initiatives in the world could not save the Norwegian factories from shutting down this year. The REC case is a good example of how the benefits of process improvement programs can be far outweighed by global politics. A natural question to raise is, then, under such conditions, is an XPS program insignificant? - [The Honeywell Operating System (HOS) reports flourishing success](https://better-operations.com/2012/05/13/the-honeywell-operating-system-hos-reports-flourishing-success/): In a recent article, The Economist explains how the electronic giant Honeywell International transformed “from bitter to sweet” over the last eight years following an XPS strategy. In my research I search for evidence for how and why corporate production systems (XPS) succeed and/or fail. The Honeywell article paints a picture of how the Honeywell Operating System (HOS) literally saved the company from bankruptcy and turned it into a multi-billion profit machine. Although the evidence is anecdotal, the managers interviewed in the article provide convincing statements of XPS success: - [Top-12 most common lean principles](https://better-operations.com/2012/04/27/the-top-12-common-lean-principles/): It has become extremely popular for companies in any business to pursue the principles of lean production, Six Sigma, TQM, TPM etc. A new development in recent years is that multinational companies develop global and group-wide systems for process improvement based on all these concepts: The XPS. Then, what are the top XPS/lean principles in use? - [Public transportation that works: The Curitiba Case](https://better-operations.com/2012/04/01/public-transportation-that-works-the-curitiba-case/): Cities all over the world strive to improve their public transport system. The benefits of a faster, more reliable and more effective bus transportation system are obvious both to users and the environment. Why is public transport then often so extremely badly planned, expensive and unreliable?  Curitiba in Southern Brazil offers their solution to the challenge. In fact, in such a way that the city is well-known to city planners worldwide. What has Curitiba done? - [ZipCar: Car sharing for the future](https://better-operations.com/2012/03/13/dont-zip-up-zipcar-car-sharing-for-the-future/): I have two Volvo S40, two BMW 328xi, a Toyota Tacoma Pickup, a Cooper Mini, a Mazda 3, a KIA Soul, and a Ford Escape in my garage. Best of all, I pay less than $20 a year to get access to all of them as much as I want. They get washed and cleaned, and I never bother about repairs or maintenance. I pay for use and don’t even worry about gas prices or toll stations. I’m a Zipster by ZipCar. You can be one too! - [People at the lean wheel](https://better-operations.com/2012/03/06/people-at-the-wheel-succeeding-with-lean-in-mass-customised-manufacturing/): This post is an excerpt from my article “People at the wheel – Volvo’s lean journey” co-authored with Ebly Sanchez at Volvo, and freshly published in the Lean Management Journal. - [Copper Fox Distillery: Yummy micro-brewed American whiskey](https://better-operations.com/2012/02/13/copper-fox-distillery-yummy-micro-brewed-american-whiskey/): Yes, I gladly admit that I enjoy a good whiskey. That’s also why it was such a great pleasure to get a first-hand insight into whiskey production at the small family-driven Copper Fox Distillery in Sperryville, Virginia, yesterday. This distillery is the result of a man following his dream and capitalizing on its hometown’s strength in quality apple trees. His small-batch, hand-made whiskey differs from others as the first applewood chip-aged whiskey in the world. I’ve been to large distilleries and breweries earlier, but for us who know whiskey largely as end-consumers, a micro-distillery offers the opportunity to study and […] - [Starbucks: Shoot for the stars, earn a lot of bucks](https://better-operations.com/2012/01/28/starbucks-shooting-for-the-stars-yields-alot-of-bucks/): Starbucks Coffee Company: A success story unprecedented. Out of Seattle, WA, grew the largest coffee shop chain the world has ever seen. Today, it has more than 12.500 coffee shops in the US. The international expansion started with a shop in Tokyo in 1996.  In 2012, it had more than 17,000 stores in 55 countries. That’s 5000 more shops than Burger King and half of McDonald’s number; this is even more impressive knowing that most Starbucks shops are owned by it and not franchised (!).  These days, Norway gets its first Starbucks shop as it opened at Gardermoen Oslo Airport [1] (though Starbucks coffee could have been bought in […] - [Let freedom ring](https://better-operations.com/2012/01/18/let-freedom-ring/): Yesterday, Barack and Michelle Obama spent the evening like I did, attending Georgetown University’s amazing “Let Freedom Ring” concert in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. at the Kennedy Center. - [Team up for lean: How SMEs could do lean](https://better-operations.com/2012/01/11/team-up-for-lean-how-to-achieve-lean-transformation-in-smes/): Lean has become the most popular production paradigm in the 21st century. While some giant companies boldly claim to have reached “Lean nirvana,” many smaller companies have a much tougher road to the goal. Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often lack the competence, the resources, and the stability to sufficiently set out on the lean journey. On the other hand, because of their size, SMEs might be much quicker to shift perspectives and march together in new directions. The challenge is to succeed in doing so. Here follows a promising roadmap for SMEs that want to become lean. - [Ben & Jerry's: Top 14 ice creams from a peculiar company](https://better-operations.com/2012/01/02/ben-and-jerrys-top-14-ice-creams-from-a-peculiar-company/): OK, I gladly admit that this post is more a fun post than a discipline post in operations management… Just like the products from Ben & Jerry’s are much more fun than many other manufactured products. Here’s my list of 14 favorites (yes, they are all favorites). Which is yours? - [Philadelphia, once the workshop of the world](https://better-operations.com/2011/12/29/philadelphia-once-the-workshop-of-the-world/): A magnificent city skyline arises behind a white wall of damp from factory pipes as we drive into Philadelphia. Factories, shipyards and terminals as far as the eye can see. Still, it soon becomes clear that many pipes stand tall but idle; no white damp escapes them anymore. Philly—once named “the Workshop of the World” [1,2]—is standing in the rising shadow of its closed-down factories. Why? - [Margins not costs are key to continued growth in declining markets](https://better-operations.com/2011/12/16/forget-about-your-costs-and-focus-on-your-margins-for-continued-growth-in-a-declining-market/): During the last two decades, and especially in the turbulent times we have today, cost reduction has been on top of any board-room agenda. Companies are obsessed with the cost focus, but not because they want to be; they know it’s wrong! - [Pinnekjøtt, made in the USA](https://better-operations.com/2011/12/11/pinnekjott-made-in-the-usa/): It’s here. The most important ingredient of an authentic Norwegian West Coast Christmas celebration arrived timely at our Washington DC apartment today: Pinnekjøtt. Cured lamb meat ready for cooking and the taste of Christmas Eve. Big thanks to Willy’s Products in Florida (!) for producing and shipping this delicacy in the US (with certain reservations… it remains to enjoy it on the 24th:). Norwegian pinnekjøtt – made in the USA. - [Why lean is losing it's mojo (but not it's significance)](https://better-operations.com/2011/11/19/why-lean-is-losing-its-mojo-but-not-its-significance/): The last 3 years we have seen a renewed explosion in the industrial interest on lean. Ignited by the two waves of economic downturns since 2008 and fueled by consultancy and lean missionaries, literally every business are now going lean. The shared aim is reducing costs and improving customer service by “working smarter not harder”. Today we have “lean services”, “lean construction”, “lean in the office”, “lean healthcare”, “lean ship-building”, “lean logistics, “lean management” and lean this and that… As lean disseminates from its origin in the automobile industry to services and the public sector, I see the word “lean” […] - [The Ideal Factory](https://better-operations.com/2011/11/06/8-principles-for-the-ideal-factory/): High-tech products are foreseen to build the future competitiveness of the Western economies’ manufacturing sectors. However, what probably will become the most important manufacturing paradigm for the Western economies, lacks proper theoretical concepts and frameworks for industrialisation. Lean & co are simply not enough for high-tech, customized, knowledge-intensive, and lower-volume production. In order to remain competitive, there has been a need to develop new production concepts with belonging methods, systems and tools for modern high-tech and mass-customised production systems. A good thing then that someone has made an effort to close this gap… In 2011 the €4 million research project […] - [7.000.000.000 people to serve](https://better-operations.com/2011/10/31/7-000-000-000-people-to-serve-oah-here-are-some-implications-for-business-consumers-and-policy-makers/): Today we turned 7 billion people on the earth. When I grew up in the 1980s, I remember we talked about turning 5 billion people. A magical number that made us learn about the world population in several weeks in school; discussing and drawing more or less successful children sketches of our multi-cultural and common world. My father has seen the world population triple fold in his lifetime; In 1940, there were 2,3 billion world citizens, according to the UN. UN estimates that the growth rate will now decline some, but still we will probably turn 9 billion people in […] - [3 reasons why you need a [your firm-name here] Production System](https://better-operations.com/2011/10/25/3-reasons-why-you-need-a-your-firm-name-here-production-system/): Do you need a company-specific Production System (XPS) to boost your operational improvement? Yes you do. Here are three reasons why: - [The coupon society](https://better-operations.com/2011/10/22/the-coupons-society/): Have you seen any coupons lately? Of course, you have. They are everywhere. In the US, we live in a Coupon Society.  I undertook a brief investigation into the amount of coupons in our daily lives by counting the number of coupons in today’s Washington Post. Here is why we should end this paradigm. - [What is XPS?](https://better-operations.com/2011/10/17/what-is-xps/): XPS stands for “Company-specific Production System” and describes a corporate-wide system that aims to improve and maintain a competitive operations system. Many multinational companies have implemented an XPS today: Examples are the Bosch Production System, Boeing Production System, Audi Production System, Lego Production System, John Deere Quality and Production System, Alcoa Business System, REC Production System, Electrolux Manufacturing System, and so on and so on… ## Pages - [Textbook](https://better-operations.com/textbook/): Introduction to Manufacturing: An Industrial Engineering and Management Perspective Introduction to Manufacturing focuses students on the issues that matter to practicing industrial engineers and managers. It offers a systems perspective on designing, managing, and improving manufacturing operations. On each topic, it covers the key issues, with pointers on where to dig deeper. Supported with rich illustrations and teaching aids, Introduction to Manufacturing is essential reading for industrial engineering and management students – of all ages and backgrounds – engaged in the vital task of making the things we all use. Baudin, M., & Netland, T. (2022). Introduction to Manufacturing: An Industrial […] - [Talks](https://better-operations.com/talks/) - [Links](https://better-operations.com/links/): Fancy better-operations.com? Here are some other Operations Management blogs, web pages, and communities that could interest you. Let me know if there’s a resource I forgot. The Chair of Production and Operations Management at ETH Zurich: www.pom.ethz.ch The best Operations Management blogs out there: The Operations Room by Faculty at Kellogg School of Management Jay and Barry’s OM Blog by Barry Render and Jay Heizer Michel Baudin’s Blog by Michel Baudin, the Takt Times Group Lean Healthcare Blog by Mark Graban, KaiNexus All About Lean by Christoph Roser Supply Chain and Logistics blogs: Global Supply Chain Blog by Faculty at […] - [Publications](https://better-operations.com/publications/): Peer-reviewed journal articles Books Book chapters & Scientific Reports Media articles and interviews Peer-reviewed papers in conference proceedings - [About](https://better-operations.com/about/): A specialist in manufacturing excellence,a scholar in production and operations management,a fan of a better society,and a novice in most other things.This is my blog. Thank you for visiting better-operations.com!Please comment on and share the posts.It’s all about better operations. Torbjørn H. Netland, PhDFull Professor and Head of Chair of Production and Operations Management (POM)ETH Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland Bio Prof. Dr. Torbjørn Netland is a Full Professor and Head of Chair of Production and Operations Management (www.pom.ethz.ch) at ETH Zurich, Switzerland. He is a Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council on Advanced Manufacturing and Value Chains, a […] [comment]: # (Generated by Hostinger Tools Plugin)