20 Years Later: How Toyota's Product Development Principles Are Still Core to a Lean Enterprise

In this special edition of the WLEI Podcast, hosts Lex Schroeder and LEI President Josh Howell sit down with former product development executive Jim Morgan to explore the lasting impact of The Toyota Product Development System: Integrating People, Process, and Technology, the groundbreaking book he co-authored with Jeff Liker. Two decades after its release, the insights that revealed Toyota’s unique approach to product development remain a cornerstone for any organization striving to become a great product company.

Together, they examine:

• The story behind the research that inspired The Toyota Product Development System, what drove Jim to uncover Toyota’s secrets of innovation, and how to apply them today
• The enduring principles engineering leaders still rely on to build teams that consistently design products customers love (and buy)
• How Jim translated lean product and process development (LPPD) lessons into practical action across his own career as a product development and operations executive, adapting them to diverse challenges and contexts.
• Common hurdles companies face when putting core LPPD ideas into practice—and where to begin the transformation journey.
• Why so many organizations hesitate to take those hard, necessary steps to develop their people and achieve genuine enterprise transformation.

Whether you’re new to lean thinking or deep into your own transformation, this conversation offers both history and insight into how timeless principles continue to shape the future of product development and provide the key to a lean enterprise.

Learn more about lean product and process development at lean.org/LPPD