OM Podcast #47: Leadership and Continuous Improvement

In our latest podcast, Barry Render interviews John Dyer, a well‑known speaker, consultant, and expert in continuous improvement, and the author of The Façade of Excellence: Defining a New Normal of Leadership. With over 40 years of experience—including roles at GE, Ingersoll Rand, and years of consulting across manufacturing, government, and nonprofit sectors—John brings a depth of practical insight that leaders at every level can learn from.

In this episode, Barry and John discuss:

• What operational excellence really means beneath the surface
• Why so many continuous improvement initiatives fail after 12–18 months
• The psychology behind middle‑management resistance
• The shift from “manager” to “coach” as the core leadership evolution
• How empowerment really works
• How AI will reshape teamwork, decision‑making, and PDCA cycles
• Real‑world examples of fully empowered, high‑performance teams

This is an outstanding conversation for instructors, operations leaders, and students who want an honest, experience‑grounded perspective on building sustainable cultures of excellence.

 

TRANSCRIPT LINK
A Word document of this podcast will download by clicking the word Transcript above.

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Instructors: assignable auto‑graded exercises using this podcast are available in MyLab OM. To learn more, view our earlier blog post featuring Chuck Munson or contact your Pearson representative: Find your rep