Lean government an oxymoron? Maybe not!

Relying on the help of Group Health of Puget Sound, Seattle Children's and other lean companies like Starbucks, the Governor of Washington has been delivering better value to state residents for their tax dollar.

"Washington’s pioneering approach of adapting Lean to all of state government enhances the state’s national reputation as a leader in performance improvement and commitment to provide efficient, effective services to its citizens.  The statewide transformation began with Governor Gregoire directing agencies to adopt this improvement system and philosophy used with great success in the private sector.

In essence, Lean provides proven principles, methods and tools to develop a culture that encourages employee creativity and problem-solving skills. The Lean Transformation Executive Order 11-04 was issued in December 2011, and state agencies answered the call to action by successfully implementing Lean thinking, tools and techniques. In less than a year, state agencies used Lean to improve processes and provide better value to the people of Washington."

What if the other Washington got serious about removing waste? Could we have an impact on our $16 trillion and mounting debt? There is no question. I congratulate Governor Gregoire and the leaders of all the great companies in Washington for their perseverance and tenacity at fighting government waste.