The Harada Method

Harada Method workshop with Steve Mitchell
and guest appearance by Norman Bodek

Next courses: See our training summary for scheduled courses. 

This one day workshop is about The Harada Method. Norman Bodek discovered Takashi Harada, while teaching students at Portland State University.  A map of world best techniques, developed by Shigehiro Nakamura of the Japan Management Association, identified The Harada Method as the “world’s best process on day-to-day management to develop people to their fullest capability.” It uses a sports analogy and teaches a leader how to be like a highly successful coach, bringing out the best from their employees, and is often called "the human side of Lean". 

About The Harada Method

Takashi Harada was a junior high school track and field coach at the worst school in Osaka, Japan. After many years studying the world's best coaches, he created a totally new methodology to uplift his students. The school went from the lowest rated to the highest rated out of 380 schools and the students won 13 gold medals - number one in all of Japan. Later, Harada opened a consulting and training company in Tokyo and has trained over 70,000 people at close to 300 companies.

Norman Bodek, often called the "Godfather of Lean," had Mr. Harada's training material translated into English, co-authored a new book with Mr. Harada, and has taught over 1000 people in the West the Harada Method. He has taught the Harada Method at Portland State University and also certification workshops in Portland, Oregon.

Steve Mitchell learned about The Harada Method and decided he had to experience this for himself, so he flew to the US to take Norman's full certification course. Steve has also attended a Lean Study Mission in Japan, led by Norman. The Mission tours Japanese lean manufacturing facilities, learning about the best Japanese management techniques from former Toyota presidents.

About the workshop

This course is aimed at people of all levels of experience who want to start learning:

• how to develop their career

• how to help develop the careers of people that they manage

• how to create a new culture at your company

• how to be more productive and more fulfilled

• how to become a more effective leader and coach

• the basics of The Harada Method, with tools and techniques that you can use immediately.

It's a step-by-step method, with 5 main tools that help you to find your goal, understand your purpose, analyse your past and future, build an action plan and use this plan in your daily routine.

Norman Bodek will be joining the course, live, onscreen from Japan. He will participate in either the first or second session of the day.

About Steve Mitchell

Steve Mitchell's professional interests gravitate towards the vital trivium of creativity, productivity, and inspiration, and how to practically and pragmatically lead change in organisations to adopt new ways of thought and behaviour. He's also been actively involved in the agile community.

Steve discovered Norman's work has been a certified Harada Method trainer since 2015, one of only two in Australia. He has trained individuals and primary school students in the method and is now offering public and corporate training. Steve learnt the Harada Method from Norman Bodek, and he also completed a Japanese Study tour with Norman in 2016.

In his spare time he enjoys reading, music, and quality family time.

About Norman Bodek

Norman Bodek is a teacher, consultant, author and publisher; he founded Productivity Press, and is currently President of PCS Press.

He is known as "the godfather of Lean", having had the writings of many of the famous Toyota Production System creators, translated into English. He has published over 100 Japanese management books in English, and taught the Best of Japanese management at Portland State University.

Based in the Pacific North-West of the USA, Norman will be joining this workshop via video from Japan.