What is Lean?
Lean is defined as “a systematic approach to identifying and eliminating waste through continuous improvement by flowing the product or service at the pull of the customer in pursuit of perfection”. At the UW, the Lean Team works with departments across Finance and Administration to build a sustainable culture of excellence, engaged employees and continuous improvement using Lean thinking, tools, systems and principles.
Our approach is built on making everyday service, or “operations”, the best they can be through creating a culture where employees:
- Are aligned to the organization with purposeful goals.
- Have the ability to affect change through employee driven improvements and innovations.
- Feel empowered to take risks and grow as an individual and as a team.