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Laying off Lean People
October 11, 2008

Mass General cuts 200 jobs - Daily Business Update - The Boston Globe

Times are tough, financially, for many organizations -- hospitals included. About two weeks back, a Lean specialist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston posted on the Yahoo "HME" list (Healthcare Management Engineers) said she was getting laid off from MGH and was looking for a new opportunity.

Doesn't this seem short sighted, firing the very resources who should be able to help reduce costs and improve the organization for the long-run? Who knows the particular situation here, but are you seeing similar things in your organization -- factory or hospital??

I know one hospital that tells the story of how "back in the day" they were under financial pressure and reacted by firing the whole "Management Engineering" department (industrial engineers). They're trying to be careful that they don't repeat the same situation with any dedicated Lean resources that they might add.

What are your experiences?

Posted by Mark Graban on October 11, 2008 | Comments (0)