"It’s a question that crops up with amazing regularity: What’s next after lean manufacturing? It’s an odd inquiry, really, because it implies that you “finish” lean or toss it aside in favor of the next big thing. It suggests that the idea of removing waste, improving flow and maximizing customer value is out of vogue. It nearly proposes that lean—a term coined in the ancient past, meaning more than 30 years ago—is an old-fashioned notion with no current relevance."