Before reading David Mann’s book Creating a Lean Culture: Tools to Sustain Lean Conversion – I really didn’t understand leaders standard work. I thought I did but the author made me realize I didn’t REALLY understand the true purpose. Leader standard work is a component of a lean management system and without it, the system falls apart. Lack of leader standard work is a primary reason why most lean programs become unsustainable. We apply lean tools all the time – 5S, SMED, heijunka – but we don’t focus enough on the leadership behaviors that enable a lean culture. That’s the gap that Mann’s book bridged for me. He also shares a bunch of great templates and articles on his website which you can find below:

Gemba worksheets (PDF)
Summary of Lean Leadership and the importance of gemba (PDF)