Tom Adair

Tom Adair is an internationally known author, lecturer, coach, and Toyota-trained lean Sensei with over 30 years experience in all lean systems methods, tools and techniques. He is a veteran of Toyota’s first North American plant in Georgetown Kentucky, retiring with nearly 20 years of service. He created and administered the first Quality Circle Program in the U.S. and Canada, and served as the Quality Circle resource for all North American Toyota plants, writing policy and training team members, supervisors and management. Toyota Motor Corporation Japan referred to him as the “Father of Toyota Quality Circles in North America.” (Formalized and expanded by Japanese companies in the early 1960s, quality circles are small groups of workers who meet regularly to identify, analyze and solve work-related problems, usually implementing solutions themselves to improve company performance and motivate employees.)

Tom founded and chaired the annual North American Toyota Quality Circle Conference (USA). He became the first person outside of Japan to chair the annual Worldwide Toyota Motor Corporation Quality Control Circles Convention (Japan). He has also served on boards for the Association of Quality and Participation (USA), The International Quality Circles Convention (South Africa) and The World Council for Quality in Education (India).

Tom was one of the three original instructors who developed Toyota’s practical problem solving methodology, spending nineteen years coaching on the floor and teaching classes to thousands of Toyota managers and employees. He authored numerous Toyota instructional books, including their first book on practical problem solving (still in use across North America).

He went on to teach problem solving to the US Air Force, the US Environmental Protection Agency, and companies in industries as diverse as automotive, pharmaceutical, and healthcare, to name just a few. Also, he has designed and implemented lean-based improvements and systems around the world for the US military and major international companies. He has trained and coached everyone from corporation leaders to on-the-ground workforce in such subjects as culture change, problem solving and critical thinking, all essential in developing a learning organization. Tom currently consults for Total Systems Development (https://leancpi.com)