Training

On March 24th after work 3 of my fellow coworkers and I headed South to Brentwood Tenn. for LEAN Management Training. I wasn't sure what to expect and was a little concerned because the people who had been down for training before me said there would be a test and it was tricky. We got down to the Baymont Hotel in Brentwood around 5pm and after getting settled in our rooms for a few minutes we met back in the lobby to head out for supper. We wanted something close after spending so much time on the road so we went to a Chili's that was just behind the hotel. We all filled our stomachs and went back to the hotel to relax before the next mornings classes. We got up bright and early the first morning of class so that we could get good seats and make sure our group got to set together. We got there right at 7am with breakfast served at 7:30. After breakfast we started class at 8:00 am and right from the start the pace of information was very brisk. Ideas and concepts of different ways of thinking about stream lining complex procedures and correction measures to do so. We got out of class at 5:30pm.  That evening we decide to go to the Bass Pro Shop, mall and ate at the Aquarium. The food was very good and scratched my itch for seafood. The second day of class was more of the same but more about problem solving, data collection and the start of implementation. We had a group challenge that involved 20 pieces of uncooked spaghetti a yard of tape, a yard of string and a marshmallow. The challenge was to build the tallest freestanding structure and the complete marshmallow had to be at the very top. We ended up winning that challenge with our tower at 33 inches tall.  That evening we went to the Cracker Barrel for supper and to a Krispy Kreme to taste doughnut fresh out of the fryer. YUM! The third day was co worker buy in and getting people to work with you rather that against you. One from our group was under the weather so instead of staying for the test we ended up heading home and doing the test on line.  It was a very intense 3 days and a lot of information to digest. By the time the trip was done I think all of us was a little worse for wear. I think its going to take a few days to recover.