The Servant Leader

A graduate of the US Military Academy at West Point, Robert Camp began his career in one of this country’s foremost schools of leadership. Yet, like most, he gained his real impression of the skill by watching leaders. He came to realize that leadership is a precious gift that far too many fail to recognize. In the mid-1980s, as Americans began to watch markets they had created be penetrated, then dominated by Japan, Robert started reading the literature trickling out of that country. Each new book pointed to a new technique. "Statistical process control (SPC) is how they’re doing it!" proclaimed some. "It’s quality circles," countered others. Still others claimed it was just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing. As it turned out, none was right; all were right. Over time, as a more complete picture formed, Robert learned that it was the combination of those tools that gave the Japanese their considerable edge. Still, the picture was not quite complete, and it wasn’t until the late 1990s that the world came to realize that the tools alone would never make an organization Lean, because their results couldn’t be sustained. By then, Robert had made Lean a full-time profession. Over and over he transformed organizations. Some succeeded, but most failed. He tried to make heads or tails of the circumstances that made the difference. The answer, he discovered, was right under his nose all the time. The difference was leadership. He learned that many have been content to manage and call it leadership. Management, however, isn’t leadership. In fact, it’s a far cry from there. Management faces backward, analyzing yesterday’s data and perfecting it today. It’s an extremely valuable skill and much-needed, but it’s not leadership. Leadership, as Robert sees it, is the ability to look forward, over the horizon, and through the haze of battle, to define, then communicate, a new course of action and compel others to follow. Robert has had the good fortune to work for some of this country’s biggest and most successful organizations. Throughout his career, he’s been afforded the privilege of working under great men and women who have taught him both in word and deed.

About the author introduction Chapter 1 – The Promotion Chapter 2 – Begin at the Beginning Chapter 3 – Who’s Who In the Zoo? Chapter 4 – The Mission Chapter 5 – Seeking help Chapter 6 – Developing a Common Mind Chapter 7 – The First Event Chapter 8 – One Down Chapter 9 – Friedman Chapter 10 – Heads or Tails? Chapter 11 – The Tour Chapter 12 – And Then … Chapter 13 – Climbing the Curve Chapter 14 – Baby Steps Chapter 15 – A Giant Step Chapter 16 – Airplanes and Progress Chapter 17 – OEE Chapter 18 – Employee Morale Chapter 19 – Meeting Customer Demand Chapter 20 – The wheels Come off the bus Chapter 21 – Optimizing the Airplane game Chapter 22 – Year Two Chapter 23 – Contemplating Reorganization Chapter 24 – Purchasing New Equipment Chapter 25 - Standard Work Chapter 26 – If this, then that Chapter 27 – Growing People Chapter 28 – Growing Suppliers Chapter 29 - Moonshining Chapter 30 – Breakthrough! Chapter 30 – Succession Planning & Skills Matrix Chapter 31 – Always At the Beginning of the Path

Index