Mark Graban is the author of multiple books on Lean management, leadership, measurement, and psychological safety, drawing on real-world experience across healthcare and industry.
The Mistakes That Make Us
Cultivating a Culture of Learning and Innovation
My latest book grew out of the lessons and compelling stories shared by guests on my My Favorite Mistake podcast. It started as a synthesis of those conversations, but evolved into a broader, more practical guide to learning, leadership, and improvement through mistakes.
Measures of Success
React Less, Lead Better, Improve More
- Measures of Success book website
- Order the Kindle version through the Amazon Kindle Store
- Paperback and Hardcover are also available
Measures of Success focuses on how leaders and organizations use data to guide decisions and improvement. Drawing on real examples, the book explains why reacting to every up-and-down in performance often makes things worse—and how better thinking about variation leads to calmer leadership, better decisions, and more sustainable improvement.
Also Published by Mark Graban
Practicing Lean
Learning How to Learn How to Get Better… Better
If we keep practicing, we might get good at it eventually. We all have a starting point in our personal “Lean journeys.”
Looking back at our first year of work in Lean or continuous improvement methodologies, we probably weren't very good at it.
What are our reflections and lessons learned? What can we share with those who are just starting today? This book is a compilation of those stories from 16 Lean professionals.
- Practicing Lean book website
- Order the Kindle version
- Paperback
- Audiobook
Healthcare Improvement Books
Published by Productivity Press
Lean Hospitals
Improving Quality, Patient Safety, and Employee Engagement
A practical guide to applying Lean principles in hospitals, this award-winning book explores how organizations can improve care, reduce waste, and better engage staff. Based on real-world examples, it helps leaders build systems that benefit patients and employees alike.
- Lean Hospitals: Improving Quality, Patient Safety, and Employee Engagement, (3rd edition, June 2016)
- Shingo Research and Professional Publication Award Recipient, 2009.
- 1st Edition, 2008
- 2nd Edition, 2011
- 3rd Edition, 2016
Healthcare Kaizen
Engaging Front-Line Staff in Sustainable Continuous Improvements
Co-authored with Joe Swartz, this book shows how hospitals can create a culture of continuous improvement by involving everyone—nurses, physicians, support staff—in daily problem solving. With over 200 full-color examples, it’s a roadmap for making improvement part of the everyday work.
- Healthcare Kaizen: Engaging Front-Line Staff in Sustainable Continuous Improvements, co-authored with Joe Swartz, 2012.
The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen
Leadership for a Continuously Learning and Improving Organization
Written for senior leaders, this companion to Healthcare Kaizen outlines the leadership behaviors, systems, and mindset needed to support a culture of daily improvement. It emphasizes how executives can move beyond isolated events to build sustainable, organization-wide change.
- The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen: Leadership for a Continuously Learning and Improving Organization, co-authored with Joe Swartz, 2013.
Contributions to Other Titles
Mark has written the foreword for these books:
- True Kaizen: Management's Role in Improving Work Climate and Culture
- The Lean Electronic Health Record: A Journey Toward Optimized Care
- Profitable at Any Price: Lean Thinking for Safer, Cheaper, and More Responsible Oil & Gas Production
And has been a contributor to books, including:
- Lean-Led Hospital Design: Creating the Efficient Hospital of the Future (Essay)
- Management Innovations for Healthcare Organizations: Adopt, Abandon or Adapt? (Chapter)
Discover Books by Mark Graban on Lean Healthcare, Kaizen, and Organizational Culture
Mark Graban’s books offer practical, real-world guidance for leaders and teams striving to improve healthcare systems. Lean Hospitals provides a foundational approach to applying Lean principles to improve patient care, safety, and staff engagement. Healthcare Kaizen, co-authored with Joe Swartz, illustrates how hospitals can empower frontline staff to drive daily continuous improvement. Its companion, The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen, focuses on the leadership behaviors and systems required to sustain that culture of improvement over time.
Measures of Success helps leaders move beyond reacting to every metric, using statistical thinking to lead with clarity and confidence. And The Mistakes That Make Us explores how embracing mistakes—and learning from them—can foster innovation, psychological safety, and lasting cultural change. Together, these books serve as a comprehensive library for anyone leading or supporting continuous improvement in healthcare or beyond.
About Mark Graban and His Healthcare Improvement Books
Mark Graban is a recognized expert in Lean healthcare, continuous improvement, and organizational culture change. His books—including Lean Hospitals, Healthcare Kaizen, and The Executive Guide to Healthcare Kaizen—have helped hospitals and health systems around the world improve patient care, safety, and employee engagement. Whether you’re a frontline leader or an executive, these resources offer practical strategies for applying Lean thinking in healthcare. Explore how to reduce waste, empower staff, and create a culture of sustained improvement.