This award, presented by the Shingo Institute, was created to recognise writing that has had a significant impact and advanced the body of knowledge regarding operational excellence. 

Mark received the award for his book, co-authored with Matthias Thürer and Charles Protzman, entitled “Card-based Control Systems for a Lean Work Design” published by CRC Press. The book outlines a range of card-based production control solutions and determines their fit with different types of production control problems. It provides a means for companies to diagnose the type of control problem they face and, therefore, the most appropriate production control solution for their shop. Many shops struggle to achieve operational excellence through card-based control because the wrong system is chosen, e.g. due to a lack of problem diagnosis; or because a kanban system (the most commonly applied card-based control solution) is chosen by default and forced onto the wrong control problem. The book also includes a new solution that allows high-variety make-to-order companies to effectively adopt card-based control solutions to achieve operational excellence.

Mark said: “I am delighted that the Shingo Institute has recognised this book and its contribution to operational excellence. Card-based control systems can be a simple and effective approach to controlling a production process, but to be effective it is important to align the control system with the shop. The book supports managers in aligning card-based control with the characteristics of their production control problem; and it describes a new system that is suitable for high-variety make-to-order companies. This makes it an important means of achieving operational excellence in contexts where implementations have either failed or been underwhelming. It means that a wider array of firms is now able to implement and achieve the benefits of card-based control.”