The document outlines lean methodologies through a cycle of processes (cap-do, sdca, pdca, edca) used for workflow, problem-solving, and development. It emphasizes the importance of team structure, sense-making, and utilizing standard work to improve efficiency and adapt to changing conditions. The author, Joseph T. Dager, shares his background in business development and lean practices, highlighting various experiences in service design and marketing.

1. Lean is Simple
3 Ways of Looking at the Lean Cycles of
CAP-Do – SDCA – PDCA - EDCA
1. As Tools: Creating workflow, problem solving,
development, design
2. As Structure: Use as stages to migrate between
one to the other in a natural progression.
3. As Patterns of Behavior: The way we practice
to achieve specific goals in an efficient manner.
Taking this type of view allows us to move from
micro to macro thinking while still applying Lean
Practices. We keep Lean in its simplest by breaking
it down to the 4 Cycles, CAP-Do, EDCA, PDCA,
EDCA and providing overall scope and assembling a
team using the SALES acronym.

2. How to Start (CAP-Do)
Zen Saying: If you want to take a deep breath, you must
first exhale
• Capture what you are doing (CAP-Do)
• Create your Standard Practice (SDCA)
• Take a practice improve on it (PDCA)
• Try something new explore (EDCA)
Check
Act
Plan
Do

3. REFLECTION CARD
Purpose: The beginning point for Lean Thinking and creating the team (SALES acronym)
S – Sense-making: Give meaning to experience.
• Create a point of view statement that defines the efforts to understand
connections which can be among people, places, and events.
• Understanding the problem space is many times as important as
understanding the customer.
A: Analyze the customer
• Define and study the customer to develop insights as a starting point for
defining value.
• Review and focus on the service period to determine the
pre-service, service and post-service durations.
L: Locate the people who understand the customer and the needs
• List the members of your team, including position and role they will play.
E: Empower the Team
• Team is autonomous & responsible for the tasks.
• Clarity is critical factor for empowering a team
• Outline Meetings: Stand-ups, Weekly Tactical
• Define Standard Work of Team (Team Charter)
S: Select a limited set of needs (Frame)
• Create customer stories based on this set of needs.

4. HOW TO REFLECT (CAP-D0)
C: Check
· List what we are presently doing – Why, What, How
· Review organizational structural forces
· List what we are certain and uncertain about
· Value Chain Analysis: assess the current value chain
A: Act (Adjust)
· Confirm with Customers key certainties & uncertainties
· Go to Gemba for planning.
· Write stories with customers of existing/future events/scenarios
P: Pause (Presencing)
· Are the stories clear, concise and relevant?
· Reflection – The stories created in Check match with stories in Act (Divergent
views are important)
· Isolate and group key assumptions
Plan
· Decide what to: Stop, Continue, Start, Do Different
· Visualization: use imagery to envision possible future conditions
· Concept Development: assemble innovative elements that can be explored
and evaluated
D: Do (Enact our Decision)
· Stop what we don’t want to do
· Create Standard Work for what not to change (SDCA)
· Create Hypothesis for what to change (PDCA)
· Create Plan to start something new (EDCA)

5. How to Create Standards (SDCA)
• Commitment – Level of commitment is
expected from the individual
• Connection – A path for support through
conversation is provided (Andon)
• Clarification – Minimum standard is explicit:
Budget, Visualization, Documentation
Std.
Do
Check
Act

6. THE WoW CARD – STANDARD WORK
Purpose: Developing standard work and defining the needed team (SALES acronym)
S – State the standard
• Best practice for a given process (What we do?).
• Provide a routine for consistent delivery of work
• Must be stated clearly
• Provide a clear line of sight to adjacent associates
A: Agree on the method
• Method used for documentation of Std. Work
• Provide components of a reporting system
• Ensures the work is being done to standard
L: Locate the people who will on the team
• List the members of your team
• Include position and role they will play.
E: Empower the Team
• Team is autonomous & responsible for the tasks.
• Clarity is critical factor for empowering a team
• Outline Meetings: Stand-ups, Weekly Tactical
• Define Standard Work of Team (Team Charter)
S: Select the team goals of the workflow
• Team must understand goals and outcomes
• Boundaries should be clearly defined

7. HOW TO CREATE STANDARDS (SDCA)
S: Standard
• Review the method.
• Document the actions needed and who will complete each action step.
• Clarify the resources needed for each action step.
• Decide on what constitutes variation and required action
• Has a feedback loop been established?
D: Do the plan
• Perform to the standard.
• Use Visualization board to demonstrate work flow and problems encountered
• Use the Andon (Coaching) to establish boundaries
C: Check (Study) to see if an improvement is needed
• Is the standard being maintained?
• Collect and analyze data to demonstrate if standard was done.
• Are there changes available for improvement?
• Is active coaching taking place? Are using the Andon?
A: Act (Adjust)
• Have standards been met? If not, reconsider & continue with PDCA.
• Can standards be raised? If so, reconsider and continue with PDCA.
• Proceed with standard or document steps needed to be taken.

8. How to Improve (PDCA)
• Concern: Locate the point of concern or cause
through Who, What, Where, When
• Cause: Identify root cause verifying with data
• Countermeasure: · Develop countermeasures
utilizing customer stories and place on visual
board, prioritize
Plan
Do
Check
Act

9. KAIZEN SPIRIT CARD
Purpose: Develop an improvement process and defining the needed team (SALES acronym)
S – Select the initial Problem Perception
• What is the problem to be solved?
• Describe problem, issue, need project is intended to address.
A: Analyze the current process
• Review the Critical to Quality (CTQ) issues facing this value stream and how
they apply to this cycle.
• What should be involved in this step?
• Have customers' expectations & specifications been examined & documented?
• What are the points of concern?
L: Locate the people who understand the process
• List the members of your team, including position & role.
E: Empower the Team
• Team is autonomous & responsible for the tasks.
• Clarity is critical factor for empowering a team
• Outline Meetings: Stand-ups, Weekly Tactical
• Define Standard Work of Team (Team Charter)
S: Select the improvement (Frame)
• Team must fully understand Value Stream CTQ’s
• Team must understand CTQ’s of this cycle.
• Define the Gap to be completed in this cycle.

10. HOW TO IMPROVE (PDCA)
P: Plan
• What are the detailed steps needed to make an improvement?
• Clarify problem, breaking down customer decision process & people involve.
• Locate the point of concern or cause through Who, What, Where, When
• Identify root cause and verify with data.
• Develop countermeasures utilizing Customer Stories; place and prioritize on
visual board
D: Do the plan
• Build Project Plan or iteration through customer stories.
• Use a Visualization board for workflow and measures
• Pull tasks into doing as needed.
• Use daily stand-ups/Andon to signify problems
C: Check (Study) to see if an improvement was made
• Did the plan work?
• Collect and analyze data to demonstrate if gap was (not) closed.
• Determine which changes worked and which did not.
A: Act (Adjust)
• Has Gap been closed?
• Have needs been completed? If not, reconsider and continue with PDCA.
• If it has, documents steps needed for standard work & ensure hand off.

11. How to Explore (EDCA)
• Creativity: Envision past ideas to structure,
adapting to changes, learning new ideas
• Conviction: Deep sense of purpose with the
ability to sustain interest & effort
• Challenge: Offers unique perspectives from
customer’s viewpoint based on their value and
economic drivers
Explore
Do
Check
Act

12. EXPLORATION CARD
Purpose: Developing an exploration process and defining the needed team (SALES acronym)
S – Sense-making: Give meaning to experience.
• Create a point of view statement that defines the efforts to understand
connections among people, places, and events.
• Understanding the problem space is many times as important as
understanding the customer.
A: Analyze the Customer
• Define and study the customer to develop insights as a starting point for
defining value.
• Review and focus on the service period to determine the pre-service, service
and post-service durations.
L: Locate the people who understand the customer and the needs
• List the members of your team, including position and role they will play.
E: Empower the Team
• Team is autonomous & responsible for the tasks.
• Clarity is critical factor for empowering a team
• Outline Meetings: Stand-ups, Weekly Tactical
• Define Standard Work of Team (Team Charter)
S: Select a limited set of needs (Frame)
• Create customer stories based on this set of needs.

13. HOW TO EXPLORE (EDCA)
E: Explore
• Value Chain Analysis: assessing the current value chain that supports the
customer’s journey
• Job Mapping: assessing the existing experience through the customer’s eyes
• Visualization: using imagery to envision future conditions
D: Do the plan
• Concept Development: assembling innovative elements into a coherent
alternative solution
• Mind Mapping: generating insights from exploration activities and using those
to create design criteria
• Brainstorming: generating new alternatives
C: Check (Study) to see if an improvement was made
• Assumption Testing: isolating and testing the key assumptions that will drive
success or failure
• Rapid Prototyping: express new concept in a tangible form for exploration,
testing, refinement
• Customer Co-Creation: enroll customers to participate in creating the solution
A: Act (Adjust)
• Exploratory needs been completed? If not, try gain.
• If it has, continue improvement with PDCA creating an affordable experiment
• Document the steps needed to be taken & complete hand off.
Adapted from the book, Designing for Growth by Jeanne Liedtka & Tim Ogilive

14. A Freelancer, Not a Consultant.
I am highly proficient in building and implementing Business, Marketing and
Project plans with an emphasis on simplicity. Experienced in combining core
business strengths into a brand strategy along with Lean Startup and Business
Model Generation Techniques.
A few areas of interest:
• Started a manufacturing company with 2 file cabinets and created a 5 million
dollar company in 3-years, sold it in 5-years to my largest distributor.
• Staring as a welder, I eventually became the president of a 1.6 million dollar
manufacturing company and left 6-years later when it was at 12 million and
paid out 6 to 7-figure profits on an annual basis.
• Worked for a SaaS company in Precision Ag that has grown 3-fold in the 18
months I have been associated with it in the capacity of Business
Development.
• Worked with IT, E-commerce, & other Cloud-based companies.
• Developed and implemented workflow engagements for lead generation,
support platforms (like Zen Desk) and on-boarding customer programs.
• Worked with a variety of Professional Services to include Information
Technology, Microsoft Partners, Real Estate, Financial, Quality, Medical, and
others.
If you want to learn more sign up for my Lean Scale-Up eBook on my website.
While there, you may notice over 500 podcasts, YouTube channel, Slideshare,
and few thousand blogs. Also note over 11,000 LinkedIn connections, 30,000
Twitter followers, etc..

15. Joseph T. Dager
Business901 Lean Marketing Lab
PH: 260-918-0438 Skype: Biz901 Twitter: @business901
E-mail: jtdager@business901.com Website: http://business901.com
A Lean practitioner that specializes in Service Design and Sales and Marketing.
Most of my recent work has been in SaaS discipline working with organizations
in the Business Development area and to onboard external groups such as
affiliate, re-sellers and reward programs. I have also managed and worked
closely with their sales and marketing teams and even been that department.
I have hands-on experience in the implementation of marketing strategies to
include direct and indirect sales development. I am well-versed in digital
marketing and the traditional marketing concepts of lead generation,
advertising, and public relations. In fact, in today’s world, they are so
interconnected that I struggle to separate them.
I build marketing processes that are not brittle. They are flexible, adaptable to
changing conditions. Following the USA Principle: Understand-Simplify-
Automate, I engage in the first few to get hands-on experience and build your
story for others to execute in later events.
Specific Areas of Work
Customer Account Management
Qualitative & Quantitative Research
Lead Generation & Acquisition Sales/Market Forecasting