Start here
2 Second Lean
Paul AkersShort, funny and practical. Fix what bugs you, a little every day. The easiest way into Lean for anyone.
Best for: getting the whole team on board.
Books
Start here
The Goal
Eliyahu M. GoldrattA novel about a factory manager saving his plant. You learn about bottlenecks and flow without noticing.
Best for: managers who prefer a story to a textbook.
Next
The Toyota Way
Jeffrey K. Liker (2nd edition)The 14 principles behind Toyota's way of working. The best overview of what Lean really is.
Best for: understanding the “why” behind the tools.
Next
Lean Thinking
James P. Womack & Daniel T. JonesWhere the 5 Lean principles come from: value, value stream, flow, pull and perfection.
Best for: leaders planning a Lean change.
Next
Managing to Learn
John ShookThe A3 report explained through one real story, step by step. The book to read with our A3 tool.
Best for: anyone writing or coaching A3s. Try our A3 tool.
Deep dive
Learning to See
Mike Rother & John ShookA workbook for value stream mapping: draw how work and materials really flow, then design a better flow.
Best for: improving a whole process, not just one step.
Deep dive
Toyota Kata
Mike RotherHow to build a daily habit of improvement with small experiments and short coaching sessions.
Best for: keeping Lean going after the first wins.
Lean for new products: The Lean Startup (Eric Ries)
A great book, but it is about starting a business or launching a new product: test ideas quickly and learn from customers. It uses Lean ideas, but it is not about improving a workplace. Read it if you are building something new.
Websites
Lean Enterprise Institute
The main Lean organisation in the US. Articles, books and a free Lean lexicon that explains every term.
Lean Enterprise Academy
The UK's Lean organisation. Courses, events and learning materials.
Lean Made Simple
Ryan Tierney of Seating Matters, a Northern Ireland manufacturer. Factory tours, practical Lean, and the Lean Made Simple podcast.
Paul Akers
Author of 2 Second Lean. Free audiobooks in his app, and short, practical videos on YouTube.
Gemba Academy
Online Lean and Six Sigma training, with many free videos on their YouTube channel.
Kaizen Institute
An international consultancy that has been teaching kaizen (continuous improvement) for decades. Articles and case studies.
Kanban University
Kanban for office and knowledge work: team boards, limits and flow. See also our kanban board guide.
We don't earn anything from these links, and nobody paid to be listed. We picked them because they are clear and useful for beginners. If a link stops working, please tell us at hello@leanstarterkit.com.