ONLINE EXCLUSIVE: The Conference that Never Ends: AME’s LinkedIn Group
Karen Wilhelm
How can you make LinkedIn’s secret weapon — Groups — part of your lean journey? Take a look at AME LinkedIn Group, which brings together great lean thinkers and new learners through knowledge- and idea-sharing. It creates another way to network. It may not be face-to-face, but it is global and it is free. The AME LinkedIn group is really a 5,000-person conference that never ends.
In September, Mike Rother, author of Toyota Kata and keynote speaker at the AME conference in Dallas, published a new concept he’s working on in the AME SlideShare space. He then opened up a LinkedIn discussion to get feedback. The presentation, “Let’s Retire the PDCA (Plan/Do/Check/Act) Wedge,” was viewed almost 500 times, resulting in many thought-provoking comments. The conversation centered on the image of a PDCA wheel, stabilized by the “wedge” provided by standardizing work. Group members debated various ways of visualizing PDCA, the meaning of “standardizing” or “standard,” and the purpose of a “target condition.” Check the conversation and add your thoughts. See SlideShare Exclusive for AME LinkedIn Group Members.
Lawrence Baker from Sydney Australia asked for help explaining standard work for leaders as his company restructured. This topic comes up periodically, and always results in learning what others have experienced, what books could be helpful, and some people even exchange templates or learning materials on request. Lawrence said the answers helped him out. Members also had the opportunity to debate the meaning and purpose of the practice.
Others have discussed motivating workers to take responsibility for quality, what might be beyond lean, lean certification, and whether lean can drive growth.
Be Part of the Conversation
People often wonder how much time it takes to use LinkedIn or if it’s worthwhile. The process of joining and filling in a basic profile about your professional experience is fairly straightforward. Find the “settings” tool to control the amount of e-mail you can receive and prevent unwanted contact.
Then select “groups” from the dropdown at the search box and enter “AME.” Choose “The Association for Manufacturing Excellence” from the search results and click the “Join Group” button. As long as you have five or more contacts, you’ll be immediately part of the group. Unlike many groups, the AME group is kept free of self-promotion disguised as a question.
Observing the discussions and reading the threads is informative. The passion of the members often shows through. Get a feeling for the etiquette, start by making comments, and then pose a question of your own. You will be linking in with 5,000 members with real-world lean experience who are eager to hear from you.
Karen Wilhelm is chair of the AME Social Media Council and publishes the blog, Lean Reflections.
