2026-09-30
Taiichi Ohno: his product wasn't a car, it was the way to build one
In 1982 GM closed its Fremont, California plant, whose workers were considered the worst in the US auto industry. Two years later Toyota and GM reopened it as NUMMI; over 85% of the staff were the same people, now working under the Toyota Production System, and quality soon matched Japanese plants. The system's chief designer was Taiichi Ohno, and the 'lean' and 'MVP' that software people talk about every day trace back to his shop floor. No. 18 of the 100 product managers who changed the world, six dimensions 90/88/92/94/93/96.
