Mark Reich spent 23 years working for Toyota, starting in 1988 with six
years in Japan in
the Overseas Planning Division, where he was responsible for Product Planning and worked
with Chief
Engineers to define vehicle specifications for overseas markets. This was at a critical time
when Toyota was
introducing the Lexus to the world.
Mark moved back to the United States in 1994 and transitioned to the Toyota Supplier Support
Center (TSSC),
a non-profit organization Toyota established in North America dedicated to the practical
application of the
Toyota Production System to manufacturing. While with TSSC in 2008, he worked to spread TPS
beyond
manufacturing to a variety of applications in healthcare and non-profits, and this is still
an important
part of the TSSC mission.
Mark transferred to the Corporate Strategy group for Toyota in North America in 2001, and as
Assistant
General Manager, was given responsibility to manage Toyota’s North American hoshin kanri
process. This was
at a time when Toyota experienced significant growth, nearly doubling sales and production
in the next
decade. Hoshin kanri was critical to bringing the organization together.
In 2011, Mark transitioned to LEI and has served in several positions, including as Chief
Operating Officer
and, since 2018, Senior Coach and Chief Engineer, Strategy. Mark has led lean
transformations and coached
executives in hoshin kanri in various companies and business sectors. Clients include
Freeman, GE
Appliances, Legal Sea Foods, Michigan Medicine, Nucleus Software, and Turner Construction.
Mark earned a bachelor’s degree from Ohio Wesleyan University and specialized in Japanese
studies at Nanzan
University. He is fluent in written and spoken Japanese.