Art Smalley
Author, consultant, and lean management expert with over 40 years of experience in the Toyota Production System.
Art Smalley is one of the first Americans to work for Toyota in Japan, where he spent over a decade learning directly from the people who built the Toyota Production System. During his time at Toyota, Art gained hands-on experience in manufacturing, engineering, and improvement roles — working with the methods that transformed global manufacturing.
After Toyota, Art served as Director of Improvement at Donnelly Corporation and later as a Senior Practice Expert at McKinsey & Company. Since 2003, he has been President of Art of Lean, Inc., helping organizations worldwide implement lean thinking in practical, sustainable ways. He has authored four books on lean management, problem solving, and kaizen methods, and is a frequent keynote speaker at international conferences.
Art is a member of the Shingo Prize Academy, LEI Senior Faculty, and has been featured in Forbes, Assembly Magazine, and other publications. His work focuses on bridging the gap between Toyota's actual practices and what organizations commonly implement as "lean."
Credentials
Toyota Motor Corporation
One of the first American managers to work for Toyota in Japan. Over a decade of direct experience in TPS.
Shingo Prize Academy
Member since 2006. The Shingo Prize recognizes organizations that achieve world-class operational excellence.
Lean Enterprise Institute
Senior Faculty member. Author and contributor to LEI's body of work on lean thinking and practice.
Published Author
Four books: Four Types of Problems, A3 Thinking, Toyota Kaizen Methods, and Creating Level Pull.
International Speaker
Keynote presentations at conferences in Brazil, Mexico, Poland, UK, and across North America.
Featured In
Forbes, Assembly Magazine, McKinsey & Company publications, and numerous lean industry journals.