Darren Dolcemascolo on Turning Improvement Into Sustained Execution

Tom Foster on How Accountability Starts With Structure

What if most of your communication breakdowns and personality conflicts aren't people problems at all? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Tom Foster, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/fosterlearning/] author, speaker, and longtime business coach to CEOs and senior leaders. Drawing on more than two decades of work with executive peer groups and 800+ deliveries of his organizational structure workshop, Tom makes the case that accountability starts with structure. 🔻 Why communication breakdowns and personality conflicts are almost always structural problems in disguise 🔻 The five organizational life cycle stages and the strategic focus that belongs to each one 🔻 Why delegation is not a time management tool but your most powerful mechanism for growing an organization 🔻 How levels of work and time span help you match the right people to the right decisions 🔻 Why breaking down silos is the wrong goal and what to do instead 🔻 Why hierarchy exists not for reporting but to bring value to problem solving and decision making 📘 Order Tom's Book, "Premeditated Culture": https://a.co/d/01ioDINF [https://a.co/d/01ioDINF] 🔗 Connect with Tom Foster: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fosterlearning/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/fosterlearning/] 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ [https://www.kpifire.com/] 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/]

Tina Agustiady and Jennifer Ralston on What Happens When AI Meets Continuous Improvement

Lean has always been about working smarter. AI might be its most powerful tool yet. In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Jennifer Ralston [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeralston/] and Tina Agustiady [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tina-agustiady/] for a practical conversation on where AI and continuous improvement intersect. Jennifer is the CEO and Founder of HKPO and the HKPO Veterans Academy. Tina is a Six Sigma Master Black Belt, author, educator, and respected continuous improvement leader. Together, they make the case that structured problem-solving skills are more relevant than ever in an AI-driven world. 🔻 Why AI makes belt programs more powerful, not less relevant 🔻 How AI helps practitioners break through analysis paralysis in DMAIC projects 🔻 Real-world AI use cases across healthcare, finance, and manufacturing 🔻 Why you need domain expertise to prompt AI effectively 🔻 How to build AI adoption into organizational strategy and policy 🔻 What Dr. Deming's "knowledge of knowledge" tells us about AI transparency 🔻 How Lean Six Sigma certifications are impacting hiring and career advancement 🔗 Connect with Tina Agustiady on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tina-agustiady/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/tina-agustiady/] 🔗 Connect with Jennifer Ralston on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeralston/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeralston/] 📘 Sign up for free Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Training for Veterans: https://gohkpo.com/training/ [https://gohkpo.com/training/] 🎟️ Register now for the online Webinar "AI & Lean" on August 19th, 2026: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ai-lean-tickets-1990425638666 [https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ai-lean-tickets-1990425638666] 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ [https://www.kpifire.com/] 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/]

John Garrett on Building a Culture People Stay For

What if your company expected every single employee to submit improvement ideas within their first six months on the job? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with John Garrett [https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-garrett-b8767047/], who has spent the last 20 years as a Product Owner and Client Success Executive at 3M Health Information Systems, where he specializes in helping healthcare organizations and their customers get more value. 🔻 How 3M made CI part of every employee's job from day one 🔻 Why owning your forecast matters more than hitting it 🔻 How to build trust and drive change without direct authority 🔻 Why going on site beats every survey you'll ever send 🔻 The art of asking questions that get honest answers 🔗 Connect with John Garrett on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-garrett-b8767047/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-garrett-b8767047/] 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ [https://www.kpifire.com/] 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/] 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

Darren Dolcemascolo on Turning Improvement Into Sustained Execution

What separates organizations where continuous improvement fades after a leadership change from those where it becomes part of the company's DNA? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris welcomes back Darren Dolcemascolo, [https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrendolcemascolo/] founder of EMS Consulting Group, for his second appearance on the show (first heard in Episode 31). [https://rss.com/podcasts/kpi-fireside/2279822/] With more than two decades of experience helping organizations improve operational performance through Lean Six Sigma, leadership development, and execution-focused consulting, Darren shares what it really takes to move beyond tools and improvement activity to build the operating discipline needed for measurable, sustainable results. 🔻 Why the terminology debate in Lean Six Sigma misses the point—and what actually matters 🔻 How leadership engagement (not lip service) determines whether improvement programs succeed or quietly die 🔻 Why CI teams are set up to fail when they own improvement instead of leadership owning it 🔻 How to structure a Green Belt program so it drives real ROI, not just completed coursework 🔻 What leader standard work is, why leaders should develop it themselves, and how to make it stick 🔻 Why Gemba walks matter—and what happens when leaders actually show up to where the work gets done 🔗 Connect with Darren Dolcemascolo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrendolcemascolo/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrendolcemascolo/] 🔗 Visit EMS Consulting Group: https://www.emsstrategies.com/ [https://www.emsstrategies.com/] 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ [https://www.kpifire.com/] 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/] 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

Karen Martin on Clarity First: Flow, Metrics, and Leading Improvement

What does it take to design an organization where work actually flows and improvement never stops? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Karen Martin [https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenmartinopex/], president of TKMG and internationally recognized thought leader in operational excellence, Lean management, and business performance. Karen shares how organizations can achieve clarity, eliminate the obstacles that slow work down, and build the conditions where every leader takes ownership of improvement. 🔻 How to know the difference between a value stream and a process and why it matters 🔻 How to choose the relevant few metrics instead of drowning in data you never act on 🔻 Why the Belt program created a dangerous gap between improvement specialists and the leaders who should own it 🔻 How to build an improvement culture when your organization was never designed that way 🔻 Why continuous improvement belongs to leadership, not a dedicated team 🔗 Learn more about Karen Martin and TKMG: https://www.tkmg.com [https://www.tkmg.com] 🔗 Connect with Karen Martin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenmartinopex/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenmartinopex/] 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ [https://www.kpifire.com/] 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/]