For those of you willing to pay for a canonical source on Toyota's philosophy, I heartily recommend The Toyota Way: http://www.amazon.com/Toyota-Way-Jeffrey-Li

For those of you willing to pay for a canonical source on Toyota's philosophy, I heartily recommend The Toyota Way: http://www.amazon.com/Toyota-Way-Jeffrey-Liker/dp/0071392319 http://www.amazon.com/Toyota-Way-Jeffrey-Liker/dp/0071392319 It is much, much more than a 'lean system', although one of their major goals is to eliminate waste. I'm also big fan of their 'go and see for yourself' (genchi genbutsu) philosophy.