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Escape the Improvement Trap:
Five Ingredients Missing in Most Improvement Recipes
Chicagoland Lean Enterprise Consortium (CLEC)
Cumberland provides administration and facilitation services for the CLEC member companies. They have joined forces as a consortium of like-minded companies intending to improve their business performance faster than their competitors. CLEC enables them to: share their experiences and knowledge about quality, productivity, and continuous improvement; challenge each other for breakout improvements; and leverage each others' resources for mutual improvement efforts. 
White Papers
Intro to Business Consortiums
What is a business consortium? Why can it be a powerful alliance for the member companies? How does it work? This paper is a brief overview about consortiums in general, and the High Performance Consortiums (HPC) Network in particular.
HPC Lean Assessment FAQs
Member companies in the HPC Network business consortiums receive an annual assessment to measure their progress on 14 Lean criteria. This paper describes how the assessment works. (Note: A broader assessment covers the full range of CI process components, including the Lean criteria that are necessary for robust, sustainable, continuous business performance improvement with strong workforce engagement.
Escape the Improvement Trap
Many companies have been disappointed with the results from their continuous business performance improvement initiatives. Popular tool sets like Lean, Six Sigma, Supply-Chain Management, ERP, CRM, and a host of other "acronym programs" have been applied with expectations like "silver bullets." Unfortunately, a number of common weak or missing ingredients in companies' management systems often doom the new program to sub-par results, sometimes outright failure. This paper summarizes our book of the same name that explains the root causes of the problem and how to overcome them.
Improvement Maturity (IM) Quick Test
How capable is your company to annually improve its competitive position relative to the rest of the industry? Do you have an easy way to answer that first question? If not, use this Quick Test.
Lean Flow Enterprise Elements
The popular press presents a confusing picture of the various Lean principles, tools, programs, methodologies, etc., ad infinitum. Unfortunately, that generally looks like a completely disorganized stew that doesn't help people get their bearings. Yes, it's all about improving business processes to better meet customer requirements with the least cost and least invested capital. But where do you start, and how do all the elements fit together? If that's not clear, it won't be long before you're losing track of where you are and where you should be headed. This paper provides a visual explanation of where the Lean operating principles and support systems fit in an operating organization. With that view in mind, you will find it easier to understand where and how Lean tools might be used.
A Workforce in Flow
Can a business team be more like an inspired sports team? The answer is "yes." And researchers have written some important words about how business leaders can build an environment where inspired teamwork can be part of the everyday business culture. This paper outlines the basics to start you thinking and doing. It's not magic.