As we celebrated our 50th anniversary on Thursday 12 June, Mark Robinson – from the 600 year old University of St Andrews in Scotland – was demonstrating to a packed audience of Macquarie staff that even institutions as venerable as his can adapt and innovate, using the simple principles of Lean.

Lean is the innovative methodology and expertise being applied to strategic priority 7: Improving those aspects of our support services to realise this aspiration and vision of Our University: A Framing of Futures. Mark suggests that it is is best summarised as “the right people continuously searching for the simplest and smoothest process in order to meet customer needs perfectly”, with a core focus on respect for people, and the ability to be agile across silos and reporting lines.

In leading the Lean Team at St Andrews, Mark’s experience closely reflects the challenges and opportunities Macquarie faces in developing the support services that underwrite our learning and teaching and research activity. Our Business Process Improvement Initiative (BPII) team is working with Mark to train and prepare a number of staff in the implementation and ongoing use of the methodology, starting with a review of our postgraduate domestic enrolment process.

View Mark’s full presentation, and contact the BPII team to find out more about Macquarie’s use of Lean.