The Toyota Way Fieldbook [Paperback]

Jeffrey Liker (Author), David Meier (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 28, 2005 | ISBN-10: 0071448934 | ISBN-13: 978-0071448932 | Edition: 1

The Toyota Way Fieldbook is a companion to the international bestseller The Toyota Way. The Toyota Way Fieldbook builds on the philosophical aspects of Toyota's operating systems by detailing the concepts and providing practical examples for application that leaders need to bring Toyota's success-proven practices to life in any organization. The Toyota Way Fieldbook will help other companies learn from Toyota and develop systems that fit their unique cultures.

The book begins with a review of the principles of the Toyota Way through the 4Ps model-Philosophy, Processes, People and Partners, and Problem Solving. Readers looking to learn from Toyota's lean systems will be provided with the inside knowledge they need to

• Define the companies purpose and develop a long-term philosophy
• Create value streams with connected flow, standardized work, and level production
• Build a culture to stop and fix problems
• Develop leaders who promote and support the system
• Find and develop exceptional people and partners
• Learn the meaning of true root cause problem solving
• Lead the change process and transform the total enterprise

The depth of detail provided draws on the authors combined experience of coaching and supporting companies in lean transformation. Toyota experts at the Georgetown, Kentucky plant, formally trained David Meier in TPS. Combined with Jeff Liker's extensive study of Toyota and his insightful knowledge the authors have developed unique models and ideas to explain the true philosophies and principles of the Toyota Production System.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Your hands-on guide to the secrets of Toyota's success!

Jeffrey Liker first revealed the management principles Toyota's worldwide reputation for quality and reliability in the international bestseller The Toyota Way.

Now, he and Toyota veteran David Meier take those lessons a step further with The Toyota Way Fieldbook. You'll receive the diagnostic tools, worksheets, and exercises--many adapted from Toyota originals--so you can craft the most effective approach for your organization.

Learn how to develop a long-term philosophy of cost reduction, build a culture that stops to fix problems quickly, develop leaders that live your system, and transform your company into a true lean learning organization that continuously improves, meets the needs of its customers, and positions itself for long-term success.

Most importantly, you'll understand the thinking behind lean tools and approaches so you can implement Toyota's 4P Model for success in your organization:

Philosophy--The company is a vehicle for adding value to customers, society, the community, and its associates.

Process--When leaders follow the right process they get the right results, including long-term cost-reduction and quality improvement.

People and Partners--Add value to an organization by challenging its people and partners to grow and become more skilled and confident.

Problem solving--Continuously solve root problems to drive organizational learning.

About the Author

Jeffrey K. Liker, the author of the bestselling The Toyota Way, is Professor of Industrial and Operations Engineering and cofounder and Director of the Japan Technology Management Program at the University of Michigan. His work has appeared in The Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review, and other leading publications.

David Meier is the President of Lean Associates and was Group Leader for Toyota Motor Manufacturing for ten years. He helps other organizations across many industries learn from the Toyota Way.

Product Details

• Paperback: 476 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (September 28, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071448934
• ISBN-13: 978-0071448932
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 0.8 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (37 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,177 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #14 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Industrial
  • #39 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Quality Control
  • #64 in Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Information Management

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book for lean implementers December 2, 2005

By Michael Balle

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This temendous book is the best book I have read on the specifics of TPS so far, and the one closest to it's elusive spirit - it's an absolute must read for any lean implementer. Far beyond the description of tools, it's a brilliant attempt at giving a feel for what TPS is truly about. For instance, there's a lovely story of one of the authors looking at a westerm traditional automotive assembly chain. At some point, he spots a problem with a carpet in the cars being assembled. Instinctively, he looks for the andon cord, before reminding himself that, of course, there would be one. Then he points out the defect to the supervisor, who answers, that, yeah, he's right - they'll probably spot it at rework and deal with it. Should they talk to someone upstream? Not necessary, the previous process is probably aware of the problem and trying to do something about it. The author then describes his moment of total anguish at seeing a defect go through the process and not being able to do anything about it.

This, I believe is a reflection of the true TPS spirit. I know a plant manager who used to work with Toyota before chosing to come back home and take a local non-Toyota plant. The first thing he did was set up an andon board. At first, he was puzzled to see the lights never went off. Then he realized there was nothing, but absolutely nothing in the current social system of the plant that would make the operators trigger an andon signal, or the management react to it. To implement TPS, everything had to be constructed from scratch.

The Toyota Way Fieldbook is far more than a companion to The Toyota Way, which is a great management book about Toyota. The Fieldbook goes explicitly into some of the least described aspects of TPS: the development of people thorugh constant problem-solving. The Fieldbook describes both techniques to follow people development, and problem-solving processes which are, in my mind, at the heart of the TPS. I can't recommend this book enough to all readers out there who struggle in trying to implement lean without access to a sensei. This won't replace the sensei, but it's the closest thing to it.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Great addition to Toyota Way but not as good May 26, 2007

By Bas Vodde

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

The Toyota Way Fieldbook is excellent and it's a great addition to the Toyota Way. It's hard to write a book as good as the Toyota Way, this book is good, but not as good as Toyota Way.

When I started reading the fieldbook, I was highly dissapointed. The first 200 pages basically just explained the basic lean tools. It's good if you do not know them, but I felt that the book didn't add anything to the existing lean literature. I expected more from Jeff Liker, especially after the excellent Toyota Way.

Part IV of the book starts around page 200 and talks about developing people. Here, for me, the book took a turn and became better the more I continued. (I also immediately ordered the new Toyota Talent book to hope to get more information on this side of Toyota). The organizational structures and training descriptions was very concrete, as I would expect in a fieldbook. Then Part V started around page 300 and it was... excellent. It's about find root causes and continuous learning. Just chapter 14 is worth the whole book. The description of the "therefore" method and it's relationship to the 5why's is very important. (this section talks about how 5why is a method for finding the root cause, but it's just as important to abstract the problem in "the true problem" so that you got more flexibility in ways of solving it).

The last part is about managing the change. The stories are all very nice and concrete. The advise is useful.

I really like this book, especially chapter 14! It gave me, again, new insights in Toyota's way of working and especially it's culture. The stories made it concrete and they were fun to read. Recommended, after you finished the Toyota Way.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical and useful "how to" companion to the Toytota Way July 16, 2007

By Mark Graban

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Book description: what's the key message?

While Jeffrey Liker's book The Toyota Way was an examination of the 14 Principles of the Toyota Way, it was not an explicit "how to" guide at a tactical level. This follow up book is intended as the more practical guide to Becoming Lean (to borrow the title of an earlier book written by Liker). The Fieldbook is organized in the framework of Toyota's 4 P's:

* Philosophy
* Process
* People and Partners
* Problem Solving

The book starts first with "philosophy," not lean tools. It develops an important relationship between the two. The book, in its entirety, emphasizes that copying Toyota tools, regardless of how thoroughly, is not enough to become lean. Early chapters talk about defining your company's purpose and philosophy, providing many examples of Toyota's purpose and unique view of their place in society and the world. From there, the Fieldbook guides you through a reasonable progression of lean topics and methods to work with in your own company. While there is no simple linear progression through a lean transformation, the authors address the challenge well in structuring the flow of the book. Typical "early" stages of lean learning and implementation are covered first, including learning how to identify waste, establishing process stability, and developing flow. The book spends more time on organizational culture and management methods, as opposed to tools. The book remains practical and actionable, rather than theoretical.

A strong central portion of the book focuses on developing leaders, how to lead in a lean environment, and how to develop "exceptional" employees. One particular highlight are the detailed examples, including a breakdown of the roles of Group Leaders, Team Leaders, and Team Members in a lean setting, not covered in most lean books.

The book recognizes that companies are not Toyota as a starting point. Rather, they are trying to become a Toyota-like lean organization. There is a chapter on respecting suppliers and managing them as Toyota does. The last sections of the book cover Toyota problem solving and implementation strategies, including a discussion of the pros and cons of different common lean transformation or implementation approaches, including kaizen events and the development of a "Company Production System."

How does it contribute to the lean knowledge base?

This book is a unique compilation of Toyota Production System methods, concepts, and philosophies. There are many adaptable examples of Toyota tools and methods, including Standard Work Combination tables, Cross Training matrices, 5 Why's problem solving analysis, and A3 reports. There are many new case study examples in the book that will be helpful, even to an experienced lean practitioner.

The book is also unique in that it is co-authored by a former Toyota team leader, an American, as opposed to reading an older book by Toyota executive Taiichi Ohno or consultant Shigeo Shingo.

What are the highlights? What works?

The book is very readable and easy to understand. Its layout and format borrows many of the good practices of the "For Dummies" series. You might consider this to be a "Toyota Production System For Dummies" book. There are many callouts with icons indicating "Tips" and "Traps" to look out for in your own lean implementation, to help avoid common lean implementation mistakes or failure modes.

This is very helpful, as the authors realize that it can be difficult work implementing lean. They never talk down to you or make you feel bad that you might struggle with the Toyota Way in your own environment, because you are not Toyota.

Furthermore, co-author David Meier was a group leader at Toyota. Many perspectives on Toyota come from the process or industrial engineering perspective, but the perspective of front-line supervisor is of significant value and often overlooked.

What are the weaknesses? What's missing?

While this is clearly a field book in its application focus, it is less clear how it is connected to companion book, The Toyota Way. The 14 principles of that book are mentioned briefly but are not integrated into this book. The Fieldbook has value as a standalone volume, but those looking for a specific companion to The Toyota Way will be disappointed.

You might be surprised to not find much information about Kanban, a process made famous by Toyota. Although the concept of pull is covered, there is no chapter on Kanban or examples of calculations or Kanban cards. Thankfully, there are many references and other books available on this topic.

How should I read this to get the most out of it?

The book can be read straight through. For an experienced lean practitioner, it can easily be used as a reference book. Topics are well organized and tools are easy to find with a well-documented index. For example, if you want an example of an A3 Report, you will find many pages of explanation about the tool and how to use you. You will also find fully completed examples of the tool. This is extremely helpful and adds to the book's value as a practical reference.