KPI Fireside: A Continuous Improvement Podcast | Podcast on RSS.com

KPI Fireside: A Continuous Improvement Podcast

KPI Fireside: A Continuous Improvement Podcast

by KPI Fire

Management Careers

Season 1

Darren Dolcemascolo on Turning Improvement Into Sustained Execution

What separates organizations where continuous improvement fades after a leadership change from those where it becomes part of the company's DNA? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris welcomes back Darren Dolcemascolo, founder of EMS Consulting Group, for his second appearance on the show (first heard in Episode 31). With more than two decades of experience helping organizations improve operational performance through Lean Six Sigma, leadership development, and execution-focused consulting, Darren shares what it really takes to move beyond tools and improvement activity to build the operating discipline needed for measurable, sustainable results. 🔻 Why the terminology debate in Lean Six Sigma misses the point—and what actually matters 🔻 How leadership engagement (not lip service) determines whether improvement programs succeed or quietly die 🔻 Why CI teams are set up to fail when they own improvement instead of leadership owning it 🔻 How to structure a Green Belt program so it drives real ROI, not just completed coursework 🔻 What leader standard work is, why leaders should develop it themselves, and how to make it stick 🔻 Why Gemba walks matter—and what happens when leaders actually show up to where the work gets done 🔗 Connect with Darren Dolcemascolo on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrendolcemascolo/ 🔗 Visit EMS Consulting Group: https://www.emsstrategies.com/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/ 🎧 Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

Karen Martin on Clarity First: Flow, Metrics, and Leading Improvement

What does it take to design an organization where work actually flows and improvement never stops? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Karen Martin, president of TKMG and internationally recognized thought leader in operational excellence, Lean management, and business performance. Karen shares how organizations can achieve clarity, eliminate the obstacles that slow work down, and build the conditions where every leader takes ownership of improvement. 🔻 How to know the difference between a value stream and a process and why it matters 🔻 How to choose the relevant few metrics instead of drowning in data you never act on 🔻 Why the Belt program created a dangerous gap between improvement specialists and the leaders who should own it 🔻 How to build an improvement culture when your organization was never designed that way 🔻 Why continuous improvement belongs to leadership, not a dedicated team 🔗 Learn more about Karen Martin and TKMG: https://www.tkmg.com 🔗 Connect with Karen Martin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/karenmartinopex/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Danny Toney on Data Driven Leadership

Most leadership teams are flying blind. They have plenty of data but no clarity on what actually matters, who owns it, or what to do when things go off track. In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Danny Toney, Certified EOS Implementer and business improvement consultant, who helps leadership teams cut through the noise and drive measurable traction. 🔻 Why your weekly meetings feel like a four out of ten and how to fix that 🔻 How to spot a problem three months before a customer calls to complain 🔻 Why treating symptoms keeps the same issues coming back every single quarter 🔻 How 90 day priorities keep your whole leadership team pulling in the same direction 🔻 Why the most successful leaders have more clarity than everyone else and how to get it 🔻 How to use EOS as a tool that makes every person's work life better, not just the bottom line 🔗 Connect with Danny Toney on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dannytoney/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Katie Anderson on Building Teams That Think, Learn, and Improve

What separates organizations that improve occasionally from those that build improvement into their DNA? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Katie Anderson, internationally recognized leadership consultant, speaker, and author of the Shingo Award-winning book Learning to Lead, Leading to Learn. Katie shares how leaders can create learning-driven cultures, develop people through problem solving, and avoid the trap of becoming the hero with all the answers. 🔻 Why great leaders “own the thinking process, not the thinking” 🔻 The difference between solving problems and developing problem solvers 🔻 The danger of focusing on templates instead of thinking frameworks 🔻 Why caring about people doesn’t mean carrying all the responsibility 🔻 How AI can accelerate learning without replacing human thinking 🔗 Connect with Katie Anderson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kbjanderson/ 🔗 Help shape Katie's next book by taking this survey (open til' May 22nd): https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScjlCi-Y3rfzihImMRahEfxMuPr4uqZ4TVqy7h5iRyEQ_uadQ/viewform 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Jeff Gray on Building a Career in Continuous Improvement

Every company has problems. The difference is whether those problems become expensive failures or opportunities for innovation. In this episode of KPI Fireside, Keith Norris sits down with Jeff Gray to explore how Continuous Improvement principles can help organizations reduce waste, engage employees, improve quality, and create sustainable operational systems. Jeff shares stories and lessons from decades of experience helping companies solve real-world process challenges. 🔻 Why every organization, regardless of industry, runs on processes 🔻 The importance of reducing variation before improving flow 🔻 Why employee ideas often create the biggest innovation breakthroughs 🔻 The power of visual management and Obeya rooms in operational excellence 🔻 Why Continuous Improvement is about removing work, not adding more work 🔗 Connect with Jeff Gray on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-gray-123b0ab/ 🔗 Learn more about Lean Revisions, LLC: https://leanrevisions.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/LEAN-REVISIONS-Capability-Statement-April-2026.pdf 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Duane Deason on Smarter Cost Management

What separates companies that control costs from those constantly reacting to them? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Duane Deason to unpack what smarter cost management really looks like in practice. This isn’t about cutting budgets or tightening spending. It’s about understanding where cost is created, where value is lost, and how organizations can make better decisions with clearer data. 🔻 Cost problems are usually system problems 🔻 You can’t manage what you can’t clearly see 🔻 Cost reduction vs. cost understanding 🔻 Data needs to be usable, not just available 🔗 Connect with Duane Deason on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/duanedeason/ 🔗 Learn more about the Efficacy Group Cost Management Services: https://efficacygroup.com/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Chris Keahey on The Value of Tracking ROI in CI

What happens when continuous improvement teams can clearly prove their impact? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Chris Keahey to break down why tracking ROI is one of the most critical and overlooked aspects of any CI program. Chris shares how his journey from firefighting into Lean Six Sigma shaped his approach to discipline, standard work, and decision-making under pressure. But the core of the conversation focuses on a bigger challenge: making CI measurable, defensible, and valuable in the eyes of leadership. 🔻 If you can’t prove ROI, CI becomes vulnerable. 🔻 Validated data beats projected savings. 🔻 Finance alignment is non-negotiable. 🔻 Standard definitions create consistency. 🔻 Your program should speak the language of leadership. 🔗 Connect with Chris Keahey on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ckeahey18/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Cheryl Jekiel on Letting Go To Lead

What if the biggest mistake leaders make… is trying to be the answer? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Cheryl Jekiel, founder of the Lean Leadership Center, to unpack one of the hardest shifts in leadership: letting go. 🔻 Why most leaders are underprepared to lead—and how that shows up in real organizations 🔻 How letting go actually creates stronger, more capable teams 🔻 The difference between directing, training, mentoring, and coaching 🔻 How to handle team ideas without shutting people down 🔻 What great leaders do differently to build independence instead of reliance 🔗 Connect with Cheryl Jekiel on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cheryljekiel/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Jess Orr on What Leaders Get Wrong About Transformation

Why do so many continuous improvement programs fail to deliver lasting impact? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Jess Orr, a business transformation leader with deep experience in Lean and continuous improvement, including time working directly at Toyota. Jess shares why many organizations limit their results by concentrating improvement efforts in a small group of specialists instead of building a system that engages everyone. 🔻 Why limiting CI to specialists restricts impact and scalability 🔻 Why sustainable improvement requires systems—not just short-term wins 🔻 How to justify CI investment using data and performance metrics 🔻 The role of leaders in building problem-solving capability across teams 🔗 Connect with Jess Orr on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jessorr/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

Francine Bejarano on The Execution Gaps Leaders Don't See

What happens when teams deliver everything they were asked for—but still miss what the customer actually wanted? In this episode of KPI Fireside, host Keith Norris sits down with Francine Bejarano, a program and product delivery leader who has led major technology and transformation initiatives at companies like T-Mobile, IBM, and Verizon. 🔻 The difference between output metrics and outcome-driven success 🔻 Why success must be defined upfront—not measured at the end 🔻 How “voice of the customer” changes alignment and priorities 🔻 The danger of “watermelon metrics” (green on the outside, red on the inside) 🔻 Why understanding the “why” drives better execution and buy-in 🔻 How visibility and structured prioritization improve decision-making 🔗 Connect with Francine Bejarano on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/francine-bejarano-173725149/ 🔗 Learn more about KPI Fire: https://www.kpifire.com/ 🎙 Hosted by Keith Norris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/keithnorris/

1 of 7