Endorsements
"Dr. Bob is amazing! He has a unique perspective unlike any other consultant/researcher in the field." -- James Garrick
"Bob is disciplined and persistent, as well as knowledgeable and curious. Bob looks beyond what meets the eye, he’s a natural born researcher. Bob generously shares his insights, he delivers them straight forward, whether you like them or not. It’s up to you to pay attention… you should!" — Alfredo Angulo, Consultant
"Many thousands of people have benefited from Bob's thought leadership. His blogs and books and well appreciated by everyone in the global OpEx community." — John Dennis, LSS Training Ltd.
"Bob’s work offers an amazing blend of historical depth and practical clarity, which has helped me to better understand the thinking that drives real improvement. His writing challenges conventional management habits and exposes the systemic issues that limit performance, especially in Western organizations. What stands out is his ability to connect respect for people with operational excellence in a way that is both principled and actionable. For anyone serious about leadership or long-term organizational capability, his work provides not just insight -- but a necessary shift in perspective that leads to more sustainable and meaningful results." — David Fitzpatrick -- Zenkai Improvement Partners
“As a business founder and former C-level executive, I know from the inside out what it means to carry the weight of status — and how quietly it can become the very thing that stops you from growing. The fear of disappointing your people, the instinct to defend your position and your ways of working: these are deeply human responses that, left unexamined, halt both personal and organizational transformation. Bob Emiliani’s work gave me the perspective I needed to face all of that with honesty and compassion. He helped me understand that this struggle is universal — it doesn’t matter." — Laura Gerrits, Founder, Holistic Business University
"Bob Emiliani is a great thinker, leader and expert in the application of Lean, Scrum and Agile. He shows where the real problems are. Lack of knowledge about a method is never the issue. It is about the world views and perceptions. Bob taught me how to discover them and to give different answers. He reminded me to base my teaching on values and ethics. Moreover, he is a nice, polite and funny guy. It is a pleasure to work with him." — Jan Fischbach, Common Sense Team GmbH
"I want to thank you for your body of work. It was the inspiration for me to write this book which traces the history of participative management. There are not many management historians to learn from." — John Rizzo, Talus Holdings
Endorsements of Prior Work
"Bob Emiliani is one of a small number of authors about Lean who really understands the human side. Through his experience and seeing a true Lean enterprise develop at Wiremold, Bob gained a deep appreciation for the role of leadership and what makes Lean leadership somewhat distinctive from the usual descriptions of effective leaders. He has a very practical viewpoint and can write for the executive level or the working level that applies the most basic Lean tools." — Jeff Liker, Professor, University of Michigan, and author of The Toyota Way
"The thing that is most impressive to me is that Bob really gets it. He really understands what Lean is all about. Most people don’t." — Art Byrne, CEO of The Wiremold Company (retired) and author of The Lean Turnaround.
"Bob has made a significant contribution to the Lean movement through his books and support for those embarking on their Lean journeys." — Daniel Jones, Chairman, Lean Enterprise Academy
"Bob is one of the very few people working in academia who really understands what Lean is all about. His focus is on leadership and people, rather than shop floor tools and techniques. He has written a series of excellent books on the subject and helped us at the Lean Enterprise Research Centre at Cardiff by inspiring participants at one of our recent Lean Conferences as well as our own team. I thoroughly recommend Bob to you." — Peter Hines, Chairman, S A Partners & Senior Faculty at Shingo Institute, Jon M. Huntsman School of Business, Utah State University
"Bob is one of the few and unique people who have studied Lean from multiple angles and very deeply. He has been a Lean practitioner, consultant, researcher, historian, educator, and author. He is also directly engaged with other Lean thought leaders and gives very deep thought and understanding to his ideas based on extensive research from all of these positions. Bob’s discussions and writings are on the cutting edge of thought, not only about Lean, but also business and economics. Bob is a true pioneer and his has been and continues to be thought-provoking and a key source to continued learning and positive change forward." — Jim Huntzinger, President, Lean Frontiers LLC and author of Lean Cost Management
"Bob is a true thought leader in the Lean leadership space. His writing is passionate and provocative, stretching us to consider the implications of the Lean philosophy and practice as it touches on various aspects of society, economy, politics and management. I look forward greatly to each of his new books." — Jon Miller, CEO, Kaizen Institute, and author of Creating a Kaizen Culture
"I’ve known Bob for a decade or more and we’ve occasionally presented together at Lean-oriented events. Bob has an exceptionally deep understanding of the core values and concepts of Lean philosophy, in particular the human side. I’ve also found him to know and understand the historical context of Lean better than anyone – which combined with his academic background makes for the most meticulously researched papers and books I’ve read on the subject." — Kevin Meyer, Co-Founder and Partner, Gemba Academy LLC
"Bob Emiliani is an original thinker in the Lean world. His provocative and enlightening books are cutting new ground in what it means to be a truly Lean organization – in a world of what Bob would call 'fake Lean.' We use his books regularly as pre-reading with our clients." — Brian Maskell, President, BMA Inc. and author of Practical Lean Accounting
"Bob is a unique voice in the Lean world, as both an experienced practitioner and an academic. Bob brings passion and intellectual depth to his work and his writing. I always enjoy Bob’s books and I’m glad he is such a strong and well-reasoned voice in the Lean community." — Mark Graban, Healthcare Consultant, Founder Leanblog.org, and author of Healthcare Kaizen
"Bob has had a major impact on our journey towards a Lean way of managing our business. His thoughts about Lean leadership in general and specifically the way he defines real vs fake Lean has helped us to do the right thing. The first time he talked to our senior management team and gave us a solid base for our journey, and later on he was the main speaker at our Lean leadership conference talking to all our 750 managers. He makes Lean leadership understandable and fun. I strongly recommend you listen to Bob – he delivers top value." — Stefan Blom, Head of Lean Development Council, Swedish Social Insurance Agency