Continuous Improvement in Higher Education

An increasing number of institutes of higher education are
introducing the principles of Lean and other continuous improvement
methodologies in order to improve efficiency and operational
effectiveness. This might be surprising - even a bit controversial
- in a sector that doesn’t produce products per se, but the
underlying principles of respect for people, incremental change,
and the elimination of processes and activities that do not add
value absolutely have a place in an educational environment. In
higher education, there is an interesting coalition of students,
faculty, administrators, public officials and potential employers
that all have a stake in achieving the best possible outcomes.