Work with the top
operational excellence talent.
Fast, skilled, and specialized, from shopfloor kaizen to AI in operations. Most senior practitioners run solo shops, finding, vetting and contracting them is a hassle. Lean Competence gives you everything to find, hire and manage top operational talent in one place.
800+ vetted experts · ★ 4.9 avg engagement rating
S. Okafor
Six Sigma MBB · healthcareM. Tanaka
TPS coach · ex-Toyota22 yrs guiding plant-floor kaizen across automotive, aerospace and medtech. Specializes in changeover reduction and daily management systems.
CHF 280 /hr
From problem to
expert on-site
in three days.
No retainers. No RFPs. No recruiters. We replaced the consulting firm with a transparent network and a 72-hour matching guarantee.
Tell us the problem
A 5-minute brief: the bottleneck, the goal, the timeline. Plain language, no RFP energy required.
Match within 24 hours
We hand-pick 2–3 vetted experts from a network of 800+. You meet them, you choose.
Ship the work
Sprint with a fixed scope, fractional weekly cadence, or embedded interim. Contracts, NDAs and billing handled.
Twelve disciplines.
One network.
From shop-floor kaizen to AI in operations, borrow the exact expertise you need, when you need it. Twelve disciplines, one curated network.
Value-stream mapping
End-to-end flow analysis & redesign
SMED / changeover
Cut setup time 40–70%
TPM / reliability
Reduce unplanned downtime
5S & visual factory
Workplace organization systems
Six Sigma DMAIC
Defect reduction projects
Daily management
Tiered huddles & escalation
Statistical process control
Capability & control charts
Root cause facilitation
A3, 5-why, Ishikawa coaching
Lean office / admin
Cycle-time reduction in back-office
Kaizen events
3–5 day rapid improvement sprints
AI workflow assessment
Where LLMs replace, augment, or fail
AI-assisted process mining
Surface waste with event-log data
Production +
Value-stream mapping
End-to-end flow analysis & redesign
SMED / changeover
Cut setup time 40–70%
TPM / reliability
Reduce unplanned downtime
5S & visual factory
Workplace organization systems
Quality & data +
Six Sigma DMAIC
Defect reduction projects
Daily management
Tiered huddles & escalation
Statistical process control
Capability & control charts
Root cause facilitation
A3, 5-why, Ishikawa coaching
Office, service & AI ops +
Lean office / admin
Cycle-time reduction in back-office
Kaizen events
3–5 day rapid improvement sprints
AI workflow assessment
Where LLMs replace, augment, or fail
AI-assisted process mining
Surface waste with event-log data
Hire the shape that fits.
Six ways to work with Lean Competence experts. Pick the format that matches your problem, switch anytime.
Sprint
Focused intervention on one bottleneck. Diagnose, redesign, train, hand off.
Kaizen event
On-site rapid improvement workshop. Expert facilitates; your team implements.
Fractional
Recurring weekly cadence. Coaching, audits, daily-mgmt support.
Project
Defined deliverables, VSM map, DMAIC project, training curriculum.
Interim
Embedded full-time. Maternity cover, transformation lead, plant turnaround.
Train-the-trainer
Build internal capability. We certify your champions; you scale it.
800+ vetted practitioners.
Top 3% acceptance.
M. Tanaka
NagoyaTPS coach · ex-Toyota
Shopfloor kaizen across automotive, aerospace, medtech.
CHF 280/hr
S. Okafor
Lagos / LondonSix Sigma MBB · healthcare
Reduced ED length-of-stay by 38% across 6 hospitals.
£ 240/hr
J. Lindqvist
StockholmFractional COO · fin services
Specialises in back-office cycle-time reduction and AI rollouts.
kr 3,200/hr
R. Castaño
MonterreyPlant turnaround lead
Five distressed plants returned to plan within 12 months.
€ 295/hr
Avg. changeover reduction
across 47 SMED engagements
ROI in year one
client-reported, blended avg.
Median engagement length
sprint format, on-site
Client repeat rate
within 12 months
Changeover time
-62%
OEE
+38%
Annual savings
€2.4M
Time to payback
11 wk
Henrik Salonen
VP Operations · Nordic packaging Tier-1 Stay on the
shop floor.
Not in BD.
If you're a solo lean / ops practitioner, Lean Competence is your front office. We source, scope, contract and bill. You consult.
We bring qualified projects. You pick what fits.
Transparent take-rate. You see what clients pay.
MSA, NDA, billing, expenses, invoicing, done.
Sprint, fractional, interim. Mix and match.
Common questions.
We are a curated network, not a firm. There is no leverage pyramid: you hire a single senior practitioner directly, and the person who diagnoses also implements. Practitioner rates are typically 40 to 60 percent lower than tier-1 consultancies for equivalent seniority.
Tell us where
you're stuck.
A 5-minute brief, a 24-hour match, an expert on-site this week.