For decades, Prof. Jeffrey K. Liker devoted his time to study the Toyota Production System to find out what is at the core of a highly successful Lean company. In his book on Lean Leadership, he points out the damage that shortsighted managers can have on the long-term development of an organization, if the only focus is on reducing costs.

“To often, when the order to save money comes down from the top, the Lean leaders panic. They fire the sensei and stop focusing on the long-term development of people. It’s all hands-on deck to find cost savings. And cost savings means hard dollars, which almost always focus on headcount. Do Lean events to take out heads. Commands from the top for quick cost savings generally kill the investment in the culture for the future and ruin employee trust, and Lean becomes a tool-based program to cut costs.”
Prof. Jeffrey K. Liker

Great book. A must read for any Lean enthusiast.