Doing Lean in HE, Case Study:Learning from the University of St Andrews Presentation on 2nd International Lean Six Sigma Conference for Higher Education in Arnhem, The Netherlands, organized by HAN University of Applied Sciences

1. Doing Lean in HE, Case Study:
Learning from
the University of St Andrews

2. The University of St Andrews
• Oldest in Scotland and the third oldest in
the English-speaking world
• Consistently ranked in the top ten
universities in the UK, usually in the top
five
• In 1773, the university had fewer than
100 pupils, and was in Samuel Johnson's
opinion in a steady decline … "pining in
decay and struggling for life"
• In term time over a third of the town's
population is either a staff member or
student of the University
• Greek motto AIEN ARISTEUEIN
• Lots and lots and lots of change

3. Don’t be deceived by appearances
• In our experience St Andrews is
• probably quite similar to your
place in lots of ways
• full of “opportunities for
improvement”
• made up of human beings, in all
their glory!

4. Evolution of Lean activity in HE
Five years on Future…
a b
x
c
p
?
Early days

5. Towards lean as business as usual in HE
• Static
• Getting people used to a way that
we do it around here
• “Established” Lean
• Dynamic
• Always changing, growing, and
developing new ways of doing
things
• “Evolving” Lean

6. Imagine a dynamic, evolving organisation
• Community feeling
• Creative challenge
• Constant learning
• Customer delight
• Constructive impact

7. External
context
• Political
• Financial
• Social
Internal
context
• Governance
• Structures
• Systems
Human
factors
• Attitudes
• Experiences
• Skills
Barriers … Enablers ?

8. Learnings
Leadership Action
IntegrityVision

9. Leadership
Vision
Action
Integrity

10. Go as far as you can
see;
When you get there,
you will be able to see
farther.
Thomas Carlyle

11. Mark Robinson
mark.robinson@st-andrews.ac.uk
Steve Yorkstone
s.yorkstone@napier.ac.uk