Leadership and Beyond

  As we wrap up our look at Pillar 1 of the Paint It Red Philosophy, it’s time to confront one of the most pervasive yet rarely challenged drivers of overcomplication: culture and social norms . We often think of overcomplication as a personal or organizational habit. But much of it is deeply rooted in how we’ve been conditioned to think, act, and make decisions. Culture, whether in a company, a profession, or a society: creates expectations. And those expectations can quietly pressure us into behaviors. Breaking Through: Smarter Strategies for Everyday Decisions Audio Book and E-Book: May 15th. Click Here Tradition and the Fear of Deviating Many of the systems we follow today weren’t created with efficiency in mind. They were built to reflect status, history, or a desire to follow a well-worn path. People keep doing things “the way they’ve always been done,” not because those ways work best, but because they feel safer. Challenging tradition can feel like swimming upstream. S...

Maintenance has come a long way from the “run it ‘til it breaks” days. Preventive maintenance was a huge step in the right direction. But it’s no longer cutting it. If all you’re doing is changing filters, greasing bearings, and hoping your schedule prevents breakdowns, you're still playing defense. Chris Ortiz. Author of the Upcoming Book- The Maintenance Mindset The next evolution is predictive maintenance. Using data and analytics to identify failure patterns and take action before the problem even shows up. It's smarter, faster, and more efficient. But that shift doesn’t happen without the right people, processes, and mindset in place. The Role of Maintenance Engineering This is where maintenance engineering comes in. It’s the proactive, systems-thinking version of maintenance. It’s not just about repairs and about designing and managing systems that reduce breakdowns, improve performance, and drive continuous improvement. Basically, moving away from the maintenance techni...

  Why Your Brain Might Be Working Against You If you’ve ever wondered why your team gravitates toward complicated solutions or why you yourself sometimes feel more comfortable adding layers? you’re not alone. There’s a hidden force at play that impacts nearly every decision we make: cognitive bias. Cognitive biases are mental shortcuts. They help our brains process information quickly, but they can also distort reality and lead us directly into the arms of unnecessary complexity. In the world of decision-making, there’s one bias that shows up time and time again: Complexity Bias . The natural tendency to believe that complicated solutions are superior to simple ones. Why Complexity Feels “Smarter” When faced with a problem, most people feel pressure to “prove” their intelligence or value. The result? Teams start building multi-step processes, introducing expensive software, or launching task forces. All before stepping back and asking: Is there a simpler way? Complexity b...

Operational excellence isn’t just about tools or metrics. It’s about mindset, leadership, and the courage to simplify. As a Shingo Prize-winning author and trusted advisor to manufacturers across North America and beyond, I’ve spent my career helping organizations cut through complexity and create sustainable, people-driven systems. Whether you're on the plant floor or in the boardroom, these books are designed to help you bridge the gap between intention and execution.   Feel free to email me about them or other questions on operational excellence. Email $39.99. This book describes how to effectively implement cell manufacturing. It covers the eight Wastes of Lean and the six Lean metrics that are recommended in each implementation and a description of what cell manufacturing is and its application to improving operational processes. Learn and Order Here $39.99. This book is intended for Lean practitioners and facilitators looking for a training tool and guideline that can be...