The W. Edwards Deming Institute

08/25/2026

It was 2008. Jake Rodgers was a fifth-grade teacher whose team meetings had devolved into arguments with nothing getting done. His principal told him to find a solution, and he stumbled across educator David P. Langford. Jake called his office, not knowing much about him. Langford heard him out and said: "I can help you with that — and a whole lot more."

Jake wasn't interested in the whole lot more. He just wanted to stop the fighting.

The "whole lot more" changed his life.

That seminar in Montana didn't just fix his meetings. It changed how Jake thought about teaching, leadership, learning — and eventually led him all the way to becoming Executive Director of The W. Edwards Deming Institute.

In the latest episode of the Deming Institute podcast, Jake joins host Andrew Stotz to share his journey from classroom to principal's office to charter schools in LA. Jake also talks about the challenge he's now focused on: bringing Deming's philosophy to a generation that's never heard of him but desperately needs what he taught.

If you lead a team or have ever felt like the system around you was set up to fail — this one's worth your time. https://podcast.deming.org/from-teacher-to-the-deming-institute-leader-jake-rodgers-story
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Curious about which aspects of the Deming philosophy can help solve your problems? Check out our online learning program, DemingNEXT, for free for 14 days! Sign up here: https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

"Once you see it, you can't unsee it." What starts as a teacher's search to reduce conflict can become a lifelong journey in leadership and transformation. In this episode, Jake Rodgers shares how discovering Dr. Deming's philosophy changed the way he thinks about teaching, leadership, parenting, an...

08/19/2026

What if poor performance is really a sign that the system is working exactly as designed? Maggie Nichols explains why leaders must take responsibility for improving their systems and why Deming thinking is essential to real innovation.

What if poor performance is really a sign that the system is workin...

08/17/2026

Why do good strategic plans so often fail to produce different results?

John A. Dues joins Andrew Stotz to explore a simple idea: organizations do not run on strategic plans. They run on the routines leaders and teams follow every day. From meetings and priorities to problem solving and learning, those routines form the management system that shapes results.

🎧 Listen to a practical conversation about strategy, leadership, Deming, and designing an organization that can continually learn.
https://podcast.deming.org/why-strategic-plans-fail-and-what-actually-works-instead

Want to explore how Deming’s ideas can help you build better systems and create lasting improvement? Check out DemingNEXT, the online learning program for anyone looking to improve their work! Try it free for 14 days: https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

Why do good strategic plans so often fail to produce different results? John Dues joins Andrew Stotz to explore a simple idea: organizations do not run on strategic plans. They run on the routines leaders and teams follow every day. From meetings and priorities to problem solving and learning, those...

07/27/2026

What happens when an organization gets so focused on results that it forgets why it exists?

In their latest podcast episode, Andrew Stotz and Balaji S Reddie unpack the first of Deming's 14 Points, create constancy of purpose, and why it's easy to confuse purpose with a mission statement. They trace the story behind Harvard Business School's answer when Deming challenged them to define the purpose of a business, and look at how Indian manufacturers who understood their true purpose pivoted almost overnight to produce PPE during the pandemic. A thoughtful conversation about building organizations that can adapt, improve, and create lasting value. https://podcast.deming.org/a-new-lens-with-balaji-reddie-part-6

Interested in learning more about the 14 Points? Check out the DemingNEXT online learning program FREE for 14 days! https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

What happens when an organization gets so focused on results that it forgets why it exists? Andrew Stotz and Balaji Reddie dig into the first of Deming's 14 Points, constancy of purpose, using stories like Harvard's answer to Deming's challenge to define a business and Indian manufacturers who pivot...

07/22/2026

What if you train employees and they leave? Michael Mower flips the script: what if you don't train them and they stay? A fresh take on why investing in people is worth the risk, no strings attached. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/WgtINrI_vWU

Ready to learn a new way to think about your employees? Try our online learning program, DemingNEXT, for FREE for 14 days! https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

What if you train employees and they leave? Michael Mower flips the...

07/20/2026

"Every time this child was proven wrong, he learned something new."

In this episode, Andrew Stotz continues his conversation with Balaji S Reddie as they explore two essential elements of Dr. Deming's System of Profound Knowledge: the Theory of Knowledge and Psychology.

Through the memorable story of a young boy trying to understand how his father's scooter starts, Balaji illustrates how we build theories, test them through experience, and improve them through learning. The discussion also explores why PDSA begins with theory, why experience alone is not enough, and why understanding how people learn is fundamental to leading improvement.

Whether you're new to Deming or deep into his work, this episode offers practical insights into how better questions lead to better knowledge and, ultimately, better management. https://podcast.deming.org/a-new-lens-with-balaji-reddie-part-5

Are you ready to learn more about the System of Profound Knowledge? Check out DemingNEXT online learning! https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

"Every time this child was proven wrong, he learned something new." In this episode, Andrew Stotz continues his conversation with Balaji Reddie as they explore two essential elements of Dr. Deming's System of Profound Knowledge: the Theory of Knowledge and Psychology. Through the memorable story of....

07/13/2026

New podcast!

What if the best leaders are not the ones with the biggest ideas?

In this episode, host Andrew Stotz and educator John A. Dues make the case for leaders who test small instead of launching big, sweeping initiatives. John explains why so many improvement efforts fail: leaders start with a solution instead of a clear problem, then get too invested to honestly learn if it's working.

Andrew brings the idea to life with a real example from his own company, where he is introducing the PDSA (Plan-Do-Study-Act) cycle to his accounting and inventory team. Because accounting runs the same process every month, it turned out to be the perfect place to build real organizational "know-how," one small test at a time.

A practical, accessible listen for anyone new to Deming's ideas — and a reminder that real improvement comes from knowledge, not confidence.

https://podcast.deming.org/go-small-or-go-home

Looking to learn more about PDSA and Deming thinking? Sign up for a FREE trial of DemingNEXT online learning! https://deming.org/learn/demingnext/

What if the best leaders are not the ones with the biggest ideas? In this episode, John Dues argues that the leaders who make the greatest impact are the ones who create the fastest learning cycles. John and Andrew Stotz explore why small tests often outperform large initiatives, how PDSA builds rea...

07/09/2026

Why are so many leaders still talking about Deming in 2026? In this video, you'll learn why Deming's philosophy wasn't built for a single moment in history. If you've ever wondered why Deming's ideas still matter, this is your starting point.

Ready to dive deeper into the Deming methods? Sign up for a free trial of DemingNEXT online learning! https://deming.org/learn/demingnext

https://youtube.com/shorts/RWXYW3P6bik

Why are so many leaders still talking about Deming in 2026? In this...

06/30/2026

New podcast!

A farmer plants a coffee tree. Five years later, a barista in another country pours a cup of coffee. Every decision along the way, from the harvest timing to the roast to the water temperature, either honors or wastes that farmer's five years of work.

In this episode, Balaji S Reddie and Andrew Stotz use stories like this to explore one of Dr. W. Edwards Deming's most important ideas: connectedness. Through an appreciation for a system, Balaji explains why cause and effect are rarely obvious, why seemingly unrelated events are often linked, and why improving one part of a system can sometimes harm the whole.

The conversation offers a practical introduction to seeing organizations, processes, and problems differently. Because when you learn to see connections that others miss, you begin to ask better questions and make better decisions.

http://podcast.deming.org/a-new-lens-with-balaji-reddie-part-4

What if better management starts with seeing connections that were there all along? In this conversation, Balaji Reddie and Andrew Stotz unpack one of the most powerful and overlooked ideas in management: that everything is connected. Drawing on Dr. W. Edwards Deming's systems thinking, he expl...

06/24/2026

Ever wonder why your org chart feels totally disconnected from how work actually gets done? In this eye-opening clip, Kelly Allan breaks down W. Edwards Deming's powerful idea that organizations are living systems — not just boxes and lines on a chart. If you've ever sensed something's off in how your company operates, this video will give you the lens to finally see why.

https://youtu.be/uBZCC48iI2Q