A Socratic philosophy used to make improvements. Lean puts just-in-time practices and visual management front and center.
— Making Work Visible, Second Edition, Dominica Degrandis
Lean
4 of our books define this term — and their definitions are worth reading side by side.
a methodology for software development based on Lean manufacturing.
— Project to Product, Mik Kersten
The set of techniques and mental models behind Lean manufacturing and other Lean disciplines, highly influenced by the Toyota Production System. Lean focuses on shortening lead times by eliminating waste from processes. Lean theory identifies certain typical categories of waste and advocates mapping each step in a process, finding instances of those kinds of waste in the steps, and eliminating it. It has been applied to the software delivery process and is a fundamental part of the theory behind DevOps.
— War and Peace and IT: Glossary, Mark Schwartz
“Lean” refers to a body of knowledge that was first pioneered in manufacturing by Toyota in the 1940s.
— Breaking the Change Management Barrier, in the text
See also Lean Coffee · Lean Pizza · mental models · DevOps · Growth hypothesis · Process agility
Filed under Flow & Lean · DevOps & Delivery