Continuous Improvement in Higher Education

Bonnie Slykhuis is currently a Lean Consultant for Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) in Ankeny, Iowa. She holds a B.A. in Biology and Secondary Education from Central College and a Masters in Training & Development from Drake University. Bonnie is responsible for implementing Lean initiatives throughout DMACC’s six campuses, developing lean curriculum, and providing training and consulting services to external manufacturing, service, government and education clients. She is a certified Master Trainer for workplacelean® (office lean) and a certified trainer for NIST/MEP Lean (manufacturing lean) having conducted over 1000 Lean sessions for more than 130 organizations both in and out of state. She is also a certified instructor for leadership and soft skills programs such as MBTI (Myers-Briggs Type Indicator), DDI (Developmental Dimensions International), Achieve Global and Logic Opera. Prior to DMACC Bonnie was employed as a K-12 educator then by such companies as Pella Corporation, 3M Company and Maytag Corporation. Areas of employment included production, safety, training, organizational development, and supervision. From 2002-2006 Bonnie also owned and operated her own small manufacturing business.

1 Big Picture Rationale 2 What Is Lean and Continuous Improvement? 3 What Is Waste? 4 Common Types of Waste 5 Lean Tools 6 Do Your Research 7 Determine Budget and Who’s Driving Your Efforts 8 Determining Purpose 9 Planning Your Lean Journey 10 Leaders on Board 11 All on Board 12 Communication 13 Preparing to Launch 14 Planning Considerations 15 Working Your First Year Plan 16 Conclusion