Katherine Rodeka's book on product development receives Shingo Research Award
The book draws from a large selection of companies and opens up the field of lean product and process development which, I believe, will turn out to have even greater potential than lean manufacturing ever did. Read it!
CAMAS, Wash. (PRWEB) August 20, 2013
The Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence, part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, has selected “The Mastery of Innovation: A Field Guide to Lean Product Development” by Katherine Radeka as a recipient of the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award. Radeka is the president of Whittier Consulting Group, Inc., a consultancy that specializes in product development.
“Receipt of the Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award signifies authors’ significant contribution to the body of knowledge surrounding operational excellence,” said Robert Miller, executive director of The Shingo Prize. “The intent is to motivate others to learn from them.”
In “The Mastery of Innovation,” Rodeka shares the conclusions she derived from interviewing and visiting companies that had implemented lean (or the process of identifying and eliminating wasteful activities in an organization’s operational procedures to ultimately provide the highest value to customers) within the area of product development. The focus of the book is a set of 19 case studies describing the many ways that companies have used lean product development tools and the many improvements they have seen in their product development performance. Contributor companies include Ford, Scania, Novo Nordisk, DJO, Irwin Seating, Philips Electronics, Steelcase and others.
“We should all be thankful to Katherine Radeka to have put together this great collection of lean engineering,” said Michael Ballé, associate researcher at Télécom ParisTech in Paris. “…The book draws from a large selection of companies and opens up the field of lean product and process development which, I believe, will turn out to have even greater potential than lean manufacturing ever did. Read it!”
By “challenging” or applying for an award, authors invite a group of accomplished professionals and trained examiners from The Shingo Prize to thoroughly review their publications. The examiners select the publications they think are worthy of recognition.
Radeka will receive the award during the opening social of the 26th Annual Shingo International Conference held in Sandusky, Ohio the week of May 5-9, 2014. The opening social is the beginning of this five-day event featuring a selection of workshops, plant tours, keynote speakers and breakout sessions designed to provide ongoing knowledge, insights and experience for organizations in their pursuit of operational excellence.
About The Shingo Prize
The Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence is named after Japanese industrial engineer, Shigeo Shingo. Dr. Shingo distinguished himself as one of the world’s thought leaders in concepts, management systems and improvement techniques that have become known as the Toyota Business System. Drawing from Dr. Shingo’s teachings, The Shingo Prize helps companies and organizations increase their efficiency and effectiveness by developing cultures that continuously strive for improvement. It also awards and recognizes organizations that demonstrate exceptional results from applying its philosophy and recognizes authors who have contributed important insights and applications of the principles it teaches. Those interested in more information about The Shingo Prize may visit http://www.shingo.org.