Keep your Gemba Walks fresh & meaningful - engage your people
Overview
Too often, leaders fall into the trap of turning every walk into a “waste walk.” While identifying waste is valuable, that’s only a fraction of what’s possible. In this 90 minute session with Michael Bremer and the host, AME San Diego consortium, we’ll explore how to:
· Keep your walks engaging—for you and your team
· Make each walk a learning experience, not a routine
· Use walks to actually drive performance improvement
We’ll also touch on Virtual and Office Gemba Walks — how they differ from a physical walk.
Join us to re-energize your Gemba Walks and deepen their impact.
Host Company
The Association for Manufacturing Excellence (AME) is the premier organization for the exchange of knowledge in enterprise excellence. Members come together to explore lean thinking and other enterprise improvement methods, exchange best practices and network in order to advance their careers and improve the competitiveness and overall value of their organizations.
AME San Diego Consortium is a collaborative learning network of local companies that are committed to performance excellence and shared learning. Lenny Perry is the consortium facilitator and can provide an introduction to the consortium to learn more about the benefits, offerings and more. https://sandiego.ame.org/
Presenter
Michael S. Bremer, author & Improvement leader, is a semi-retired business executive and award-winning author, with a diverse career spanning productivity, information systems, financial leadership, and global consulting.
He began his corporate career at Beatrice Foods, serving as Director of Productivity and later Director of Information Systems. He served as Chief Financial Officer and Board Member of the Association for Manufacturing Excellence (AME). Michael spent 28 years as President of The Cumberland Group, a Chicago-based global consulting firm.
Michael was also involved in education and innovation, serving as adjunct faculty at the University of Chicago’s Graham School for 15 years, and mentoring manufacturing-focused startups at mHUB Chicago, an innovation incubator.
Awards & Recognition
· 2016 Shingo Prize for Research & Publication Award – How to Do a Gemba Walk
· 2019 Mac McCulloch Lifetime Achievement Award – Association for Manufacturing Excellence
Publications Michael has authored five books on leadership and performance improvement, including:
1. How to Do a Gemba Walk (2025, Self-Published 4th Edition)
2. Learn to See the Invisible (2025, Productivity Press)
Current Activities
Michael continues to serve as volunteer Vice President for AME’s Excellence Award activities, coordinating over 50 volunteer assessors. Assessments focus on elevating organizational improvement maturity. He also moderates a bi-weekly discussion group on global issues.
Agenda
Wednesday, January 14, 2026
12 pm Welcome and introductions
12:10 pm Keep Gemba walks fresh and meaningful presentation
1:15pm Questions and closing comments
1:30 pm Adjourn
PARTICIPANT BENEFITS
· Practical actions to improve your gemba walks
· Ideas on how to coach others in improving their walks
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
· “C” level senior leaders
· Operations leaders
· Continuous improvement practitioners
Safety Requirements
OTHER REGISTRATION INFORMATION
We strive to host events that are inclusive and accessible to everyone to fully participate and engage. Please email events@ame.org if you have any questions.
If you are not already a member of AME, we invite you to join at this time. Membership benefits include complimentary and discounted event registrations throughout the entire year. To learn more about membership benefits, please visit here.
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Cancelation Policy: This event may be canceled by AME for any reason. AME is not responsible for incidental costs incurred by registrants. For paid events, registration fee less a $20 administration fee will be refunded up to one week before the event. Substitutions may be made up to three days prior to the start of the event.