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Lean thinkers can create a long list of examples of waste, but maybe the worst example is the wasting of people’s potential. The reason it’s the worst is it not only fails to take advantage of the person’s current potential, but it can destroy the person’s spirit and future potential.  When people feel like no one cares about their opinion, they tend to develop an attitude of why should I care? In a NCS Radio interview, George Trachilis, CEO of Global OEM Solutions, (http://www.jackstreet.com/JackStreet/WCON.Trachilis.cfm) made the point that even the newest member of the organization can make a significant contribution.

More: Don’t Waste Your Company’s Human Potential

Jim Clifton, Chairman of Gallup, wrote an interesting book entitled The Coming Jobs War. This is a book that everyone should read. It explains why creating good quality jobs are at the heart of our nation’s economy and our individual economic security. The construction industry has complained for decades about the difficulty of hiring and retaining qualified people. While the recession has masked that issue in the short-term, attracting people to the industry is really about creating quality jobs. Of course, some companies do a better job than others in creating desirable jobs. But if your company is struggling with finding enough good people, you should look at the quality of the jobs your company provides.

More: Creating Good Jobs

With the money crunch for public projects, I have advocated that a great solution is more private-public-partnerships. The reason is there are huge amounts of a private capital seeking places to invest. Private-public-partnerships are a way to tap that resource while at the same time decrease the strain on federal, state, and local government coffers. It is important that we find methods to finance our infrastructure. Not investing in infrastructure increases costs to both business and individuals. Further, a healthy program of infrastructure projects would help provide high quality jobs.

More: You Need to Fund the Projects

The construction industry needs to think LEAN. The industry should stop thinking in terms of either LEAN manufacturing or LEAN construction. Obviously, LEAN thinking it is applied differently in manufacturing than in construction, but the fundamentals are the same.

However, even contractors may need to think in terms of LEAN manufacturing. Read on for three situations where the contractor could use LEAN manufacturing.

More: Think Lean