Mark Graban – Lean Healthcare Author & Improvement Leader
About Mark Graban
Helping healthcare leaders build systems where people speak up, learn, and improve.
Mark Graban connects Lean management, psychological safety, and daily improvement to help organizations deliver safer care and create better work environments.
He is the author of Lean Hospitals, one of his three Shingo Award-winning books, and the forthcoming The Silence Tax.
Practical experience. A focus on people.
Mark’s work combines an education in engineering and management with hands-on experience alongside executives and frontline employees. His focus is on leadership behaviors and management systems that make improvement part of everyday work.
Since 2005, he has helped healthcare organizations—including hospitals, medical laboratories, and clinics—improve quality, patient safety, and the experience of patients and staff. His work also spans manufacturing and technology.
Independent since 2010, Mark partners with organizations and consulting teams on improvement efforts. He also serves as a Senior Advisor to KaiNexus and holds a small equity stake.
The Silence Tax
How Lean Leaders Drive Out Fear and Futility
What does an organization lose when people stop raising concerns, sharing ideas, or questioning a plan? Mark’s upcoming book examines fear and futility—and the everyday leadership behaviors that make speaking up both safe and worthwhile.
Built around four behaviors—model, encourage, enable, and reward—the book connects psychological safety with the practical work of Lean and continuous improvement.
Read an excerpt & get book updatesBooks that connect ideas with daily work
Lean Hospitals
Improving Quality, Patient Safety, and Employee Engagement translates Lean principles into practical healthcare examples. It received the Shingo Research Award in 2009—the first healthcare book to do so.
Healthcare Kaizen
Co-authored with Joe Swartz, Healthcare Kaizen explores how to engage frontline staff in sustainable improvement. It received a Shingo Award in 2013. The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen focuses on leadership.
The Mistakes That Make Us
Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation explores how leaders and teams learn from mistakes. Published in 2023, it received the Shingo Publication Award in 2025.
Measures of Success
React Less, Lead Better, Improve More helps leaders understand variation in their metrics and focus on meaningful improvement.
Mark also edited and contributed to Practicing Lean. He founded LeanBlog.org in 2005 and shares conversations and ideas through his podcasts.
Education & experience
- BS in Industrial Engineering, Northwestern University.
- MS in Mechanical Engineering and MBA, MIT’s Leaders for Global Operations program.
- Early experience at General Motors, Dell, and Honeywell.
- Senior consultant with Johnson & Johnson’s ValuMetrix Services, 2005–2009.
- Senior Fellow at the Lean Enterprise Institute, 2009–2011.
Speaking & service
Mark speaks at conferences and works with organizations internationally. He has guest lectured at MIT, Wharton, Ohio State, and healthcare education programs.
He serves on the board of the Louise H. Batz Patient Safety Foundation and has been honored as a Diplomate member of the Society for Health Systems.
More credentials & experience →Bring these ideas to your organization.
Explore a keynote, workshop, or consulting conversation shaped around your team’s challenges.