Our Winning Formula

About

The JLean Story

We believe the strength of the organization comes from the financial results as well as the mindset of the employees.  We will lead your organization to become even more robust in both sectors.  We help our clients transform with the Lean method—a set of tools and processes that maximize value— along with building a stronger organization through effective management, personal development, and culture.

We are a global team of consultants led by Masaaki Takahara, a leading international expert in management systems, customer service, strategic planning, and Lean.  Previously, Masaaki was President of the U.S. branch of Japan Management Association, the firm that essentially created Kaizen and Lean in Japan.  He brings three decades of experience to our clients and has advised more than 100 companies around the world.

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Where We Started

We are the extension of the North American leadership of Japan’s most prestigious  management consulting firm that created many improvement systems and tools known as LEAN today.

The firm was established in Japan in 1942, and it originally had the mission of improving the productivity of military related plants.  After WWII, Douglas MacArthur dissolved it in 1945.  But due to the devastating condition of Japan’s economy at that time, General MacArthur reformed it back in 1947, with the goal of revitalizing the Japanese economy.  Since that time, the firm has helped almost all of Japan’s top companies, including what was then a small company called Toyota, and many others who have now become “who’s who” brands.

In the 1950’s, the P-course was created as a practical training program to accelerate the creation of Industrial Engineers in Japan.  Dr. Shigeo Shingo, while working for this firm, taught it to Toyota.  He also created SMED.  There are many other Japanese consultants that contributed to its heritage by creating innovations including TPM (Total Productive Maintenance), VP (Visible Planning), MAPS (Management Problem Solving), and B-Course (Business Course), which is a powerful Lean Office Program.  In addition to creating Kaizen, this firm also created 5S, 5-Whys, and Gemba-ism.

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Where We've Worked