Podcast appearances and mentions of Crystal Y Davis

In this episode of the People Solve Problems podcast, Jamie Flinchbaugh sits down with Crystal Y. Davis, CEO of The Lean Coach, Inc., a boutique consulting and coaching firm that partners with mid-to-large cap companies to enhance operational excellence and drive cultural transformation. Crystal, also known as "Your Corporate Confidante," brings her vast experience as a practitioner, leader, and coach to the conversation, offering deep insights into the challenges of leadership and the complexities of guiding organizations through change. The discussion kicks off with Crystal reflecting on the most difficult aspect of her work: helping leaders understand that their role must evolve to support cultural transformation. She shares a poignant example from her recent work, where a facility that had seemingly achieved success quickly backslid due to a lack of sustained management routines and accountability. This, Crystal notes, underscores the importance of leaders embracing their responsibility not just for immediate results, but for long-term cultural shifts that require consistent effort and adaptation. Crystal explains her dual approach to problem-solving: using both established methodologies and curiosity-driven exploration. She emphasizes the need for a tailored approach when working with leaders, recognizing that coaching requires permission and trust. This, she points out, is often the most challenging part of her job—getting leaders to open up and engage fully in the coaching process, which is crucial for their personal and professional growth. The conversation also touches on the importance of deliberate, thoughtful problem solving, particularly when faced with complex challenges. Crystal shares her practice of using the A3 problem-solving process, a method she finds invaluable for gaining clarity and ensuring that no aspect of a problem is overlooked. Despite her experience, she continues to rely on this structured approach, which allows her to see the "whole" picture and identify gaps that might otherwise be missed. Throughout the episode, Crystal and Jamie explore the nuances of coaching and consulting, including the need to adapt one's approach based on the culture and readiness of the organization. Crystal describes how she gauges the "tolerance for the nudge" within an organization, balancing the push for change with the need to nurture and support leaders as they stretch beyond their comfort zones. In concluding, Crystal highlights the critical role of self-awareness and emotional intelligence in her work, noting that these qualities are essential for successfully guiding leaders through the transformation process. She and Jamie also discuss the importance of understanding one's "zone of genius" and setting boundaries to maintain effectiveness and energy in coaching roles. For more insights from Crystal Y. Davis, you can visit her website at The Lean Coach, Inc. or connect with her on LinkedIn at Crystal Y. Davis.

Crystal Y. Davis, Karyn Ross, Dorsey Sherman Show notes: https://www.leanblog.org/411 My guests for Episode #411 are the co-founders or "founding mothers" of the group called "Women In Lean: Our Table." They are Crystal Davis, Karyn Ross, and Dorsey Sherman. Crystal was my guest back in episode 363 and Karyn was my guest in episode 266. Dorsey, welcome as a first-time guest! All three of them were part of this panel discussion webinar that I moderated last year. Crystal's company is The Lean Coach, Inc., Karyn's is Karyn Ross Consulting, and Dorsey's is Modele Consulting. Topics and questions in today's episode (and related links): How did the Women in Lean group get started, and why? Why do they (and many women) feel like they don't have "a seat at the table"? Why can "creating your own table" be helpful? How can women get involved? What can we do about the lack of equal representation on stage at Lean conferences? How can men be better allies for women in the Lean community? The podcast is sponsored by Stiles Associates, now in their 30th year of business. They are the go-to Lean recruiting firm serving the manufacturing, private equity and healthcare industries. Learn more. This podcast is part of the #LeanCommunicators network. 

In this episode of Supply Chain Now, host Scott W. Luton chats with leadership dynamo Crystal Davis, the CEO and founder of The Lean Coach, Inc (TLC). Born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, Crystal shares intriguing perspective on her journey: from graduating with an Industrial Engineering degree from Mississippi State to working with a wide variety of companies across sectors to develop cultures that win. Learn who advised Crystal to "read books & save money", to treat people right, and the legendary figures that taught her the core essence of Lean. Crystal will share what one critical thing she sees companies doing to drive successful Continuous Improvement initiatives. And she'll also share regular mistakes that leaders make when trying to drive change. Upcoming Events & Resources Mentioned in this Episode: Subscribe to Supply Chain Now and ALL Supply Chain Now Programming Here: https://supplychainnowradio.com/subscribe Learn more about Crystal: http://theleancoachinc.com/ And don't miss her podcast: "Lead Lean with Crystal Y. Davis" wherever you get your podcasts Register for “The Opportunity for Industry 4.0 is Now” Webinar with SAP: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1222439639845251596 Download the Q4 2020 U.S. Bank Freight Payment Index: https://freight.usbank.com/?es=a255&a=20 Learn more about our Highlighted Non-Profit Making it Happen for Q1, Truckers Against Trafficking: https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org This episode was hosted by Scott Luton. For additional information, please visit our dedicated show page at: https://supplychainnow.com/episode-588.

View and more resources: https://info.kainexus.com/continuous-improvement/sharing-our-visions-and-voices-to-rootcauseracism/webinar/signup Presented by Deondra Wardelle and a panel that includes the original founders of The Women in Lean: Karyn Ross Crystal Y. Davis Dorsey Sherman Have you been listening to the heartbeat of what’s going on in the world? Activists are calling for an end to systemic racism and social injustice. There’s an urgent demand for change. Have you been wondering how you can become more involved? Starting on August 8, 2020, you’ll have the chance to join Deondra R. Wardelle and her network of colleagues from the continuous improvement community and other industries, as they present an insightful week-long series of blog articles at LeanBlog.org. Join us for the online series called “Sharing Our Visions and Voices to #RootCauseRacism.” Experience the dynamic and heart-felt writing of our bloggers, as they provide you with tangible anti-racism countermeasures. Experience the feeling of empowerment, as they share specific actions that you can implement within your own circle of influence. As a grand finale to our blog series, you’re also invited to attend a webinar panel discussion on Friday, August 14, at 1pm EDT. Our discussion panelists include Karyn Ross, Crystal Davis, and Dorsey Sherman, original founders of The Women in Lean. These continuous improvement experts will answer questions and spotlight key points about the anti-racism calls to action that were shared earlier in our blog series. Don’t miss this opportunity to make significant change in your own community. Register today for “Sharing our Visions and Voices to #RootCauseRacism.”

https://info.kainexus.com/continuous-improvement/virtual-improvement-2/webinar/signup Presented by Crystal Y. Davis, The Lean Coach, Inc. Karen Martin, TKMG, Inc. Mike McGowan, Marietta Memorial Hospital Are you now faced with the challenge of doing more improvement work in a virtual way, given the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic? Join us for our second virtual panel discussion on this topic, hosted by KaiNexus and moderated by Mark Graban, with three improvement leaders who have recent experiences in this new era. No slides, just tips and lessons learned from three experienced improvement facilitators and coaches. Crystal Y. Davis, CLSSBB Founder, CEO, and Principal Lean Practitioner @The Lean Coach, Inc Crystal helps leaders create a culture of problem solvers allowing them to focus and deploy strategically. Specializing in the "Toyota Way" Lean model. Over 20 years of proven Lean experience in automotive, beverage and supply chain industries. STEM Industry focus. Client roster consists of Fortune 500/1000 Companies. Formally mentored by Toyota Senseis. Led companies to award-winning results, recognized for operational excellence at the "Lean Enterprise Institute Summit" and "Industry Week Best Plant". Karen Martin President TKMG Group & TKMG Academy Karen is the President of TKMG, Inc., a global consulting firm that specializes in operational excellence, Lean management, and business performance improvement. They help their clients create strategies, operations, and work environments that drive profitability and growth, deliver exceptional customer value, and maximize human potential. She is also the Founder & President of a new online learning destination, TKMG Academy, Inc. They aim to be the premier online learning choice for business performance improvement, Lean management, and leadership development. Karen is the author or co-author of five business performance books, including two Shingo Award-winning books: The Outstanding Organization and Value Stream Mapping. Her latest, Clarity First, centers on her core belief that all success in life—both business and personal—is a result of operating with clarity. Mike McGowan, LSSBB, MBOE Director, Process Excellence at Marietta Memorial Hospital Mike McGowan directs and oversees a team of Continuous Improvement specialists and works to apply lean thinking and tools to improve the current system. He was previously the Senior Director of Diagnostic Services for Memorial Health System. He has a Masters of Business in Operational Excellence degree from The Ohio State University.

Preview of a webinar panel discussion that will be held on Thursday July 23 at 1 PM. Register in advance or view the recording afterward: https://info.kainexus.com/continuous-improvement/virtual-improvement-2/webinar/signup Presented by Crystal Y. Davis, The Lean Coach, Inc. Karen Martin, TKMG, Inc. Mike McGowan, Marietta Memorial Hospital Are you now faced with the challenge of doing more improvement work in a virtual way, given the challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic? Join us for our second virtual panel discussion on this topic, hosted by KaiNexus and moderated by Mark Graban, with three improvement leaders who have recent experiences in this new era. No slides, just tips and lessons learned from three experienced improvement facilitators and coaches.

http://www.leanblog.org/375 My guest for Episode #375 of the podcast is Mohamed Saleh, Ph.D.  Dr. Saleh has been a practitioner in Lean & Six Sigma transformations, in both manufacturing and service sectors. Mohamed was directly mentored by one of the country’s foremost experts on enterprise-wide Lean transformation and the Toyota Production System (TPS). He has extensive experience in hands-on healthcare, manufacturing, supply chain, network optimization and enterprise information systems. Mohamed’s academic credentials include a Certified Six Sigma Black Belt from Kaplan University, a Masters in Technology Management & Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from Central Connecticut State University and a PhD in Business Administration from Northcentral University.  Mohamed is: Founder of Vizibility llc, a Lean consulting and training company An M Plus Group Managing Partner, an advisory-coaching firm devoted to knowledge sharing, event planning and helping clients achieve organizational transformation. One of his partners, Crystal Y. Davis, was my guest in Episode #363. Today, we talk about his background and education in Lean and we delve into what it was like to lead a Lean transformation at a large health system in Connecticut. Mohamed also shares a little bit about his Ph.D. research. I hope you enjoy the conversation! 

http://www.leanblog.org/363For Episode #363, I'm joined by Crystal Davis as we discuss:What are you seeing in terms of how Covid-19 is disrupting businesses?How do we move from crisis mode, to survival mode, to recovery mode?Why do we need courageous leadership during these challenging times?This is also the first video podcast that I've done in a while. See the show notes page for the video: HTTP://www.leanblog.org/363We share a background as industrial engineers who started our Lean careers at General Motors, and we both moved on to do work with other types of businesses.Crystal has many roles today: The Lean Coach, Inc. - Founder, CEO, Principal Lean Practitioner; DisruptHER Coach; Managing Partner at MPlus Her website is http://theleancoachinc.com/. I hope you enjoy the conversation! 

From Engineer To Successful Entrepreneur, Crystal Davis is a force of nature!  Crystal’s career spans over a number of business functions, industries and disciplines including automotive, consumer-packaged goods, healthcare, strategy deployment, training, facilitation, coaching and speaking. After leading several teams throughout her career, Crystal launched The Lean Coach, Inc. a boutique Lean Six Sigma and Leadership Development consulting firm in 2009. But it is her program DisruptHER that is making us stand up and take notice! A little more background on Crystal with her official bio-- "Crystal Y. Davis is a business process improvement specialist, international speaker, and corporate consultant. Davis earned a B.S. in Industrial Engineering from Mississippi State University and an MBA from Samford University. Davis is a certified Black Belt in Lean Six Sigma, and certified John Maxwell Leadership Coach. She has worked for more than 20 years in various leadership positions as a change agent. Davis has been privileged to work with leading experts in countries such as Portugal, Spain, Mexico, and Sweden. She is an expert at working with practitioners and executives; utilizing proven methods and guiding principles to become the key influencers in the process improvement transformation within Fortune 500 companies. Davis is committed to helping women in male dominated industries, and those on leadership teams who are often the minority.  Certified by the Women’s Business Enterprise National Council, The Women’s Business Enterprise and more she helps female leaders learn bold moves necessary to take control of their careers. Davis assists all who feel frustrated, undervalued and stuck on their career path. In addition to being a business specialist, corporate consultant and speaker, Davis serves as CEO for The Lean Coach Inc. and Your Corporate Confidante. As a passionate leader committed to helping people reach their full potential, she takes pride in witnessing individuals evolve as they accomplish greater levels of success and impact. Through The Lean Coach, Inc Davis assists in organizational transformations using the Toyota Way lean approach with manufacturing, supply chain, and service industry leaders. Your Corporate Confidante helps women in STEM and leadership professions overcome challenges, shift negative perceptions, influence others to be open to diverse ideas, and create an inclusive environment. Her mission is to bring international notoriety to the companies in an attempt to improve the lifestyles, career success, and goal setting practices of men and women worldwide. Crystal Y. Davis is currently accepting opportunities as a keynote speaker in categories to include women’s empowerment, leadership, process excellence, lean and six sigma. For more information or media inquiries please contact PRTeam@epimediagroup.com." Thank you for listening! We appreciate you! Don't forget to subscribe on iTunes, Google Play or Stitcher to get your episodes automatically sent to you each week! We would also love for you to submit a review on iTunes! A few things mentioned in this episode... Lean Inside: 7 Steps to Personal Power by Jay Crystal's Website Crystal's Facebook Crystal on LinkedIn The Doing the Work Private Facebook Group If you are currently struggling to achieve a goal, manifest your dreams, or just get over the hump in an area of transformation--we are here to help! Contact us through the contact form or via Facebook to sign up to have a coaching session on a future episode. We would love to help! And a free coaching session from Jay is pretty darn amazing too. Thank you for listening. We are so honored to have you with us each week. Please note that some of the links are affiliate links through Amazon. We get a little money if you end up purchasing the item through the link. This money helps to keep our podcast on the air! We do not link to anything that doesn't naturally come up in our podcast interviews/conversations. We are not asked to link to any specific product or service.