Gemba Coaching
Classroom / Online / Onsite Training
GEMBA Coaching
Coaching Where Your Value is Created
GEMBA Coaching is a practical leadership approach that embeds coaching directly into the place where value is created (the Gemba). Rather than treating coaching as a standalone activity or a ‘soft skill’, GEMBA Coaching positions coaching as a core operational leadership behaviour, lived daily by leaders working on the shop floor and across operational environments.
This approach enables leaders to coach in real time, within the flow of work, using live situations, decisions and problems as the context for learning and improvement.
What is GEMBA Coaching?
GEMBA Coaching reframes how coaching is understood and practised in manufacturing. Instead of stepping away from operations to hold scheduled coaching conversations, leaders learn how to coach in the Gemba – observing work as it happens and engaging people through effective questioning, listening and reflection.
By coaching in the Gemba, leaders move away from telling and firefighting, and towards enabling clearer thinking, stronger ownership and earlier problem visibility. The result is observable behaviour change where it matters most: at the point of work.
Why Is GEMBA Coaching Different?
Traditional leadership and coaching programmes often sit outside day-to-day operations. GEMBA Coaching is different because coaching happens within performance, not about performance.
Instead of scheduling coaching conversations away from the work, leaders learn how to coach in the Gemba during normal leadership routines, such as Gemba Walks, Daily management and tier meetings, One-to-ones, and Live problem-solving activities.
This approach shifts leadership behaviour at the point of work. GEMBA coaching for leaders focuses on how leaders show up on the shop floor and across operational environments:
Coaching is practised in real conditions, on live challenges, creating immediate relevance and transfer back into operational leadership. Leaders move away from telling and firefighting, and towards enabling clearer thinking, stronger ownership and earlier problem visibility — resulting in observable behaviour change where it matters most.
Who Is GEMBA Coaching For?
GEMBA Coaching is designed for leaders who operate at or close to the point of work, including:
- Manufacturing and operational leaders
- Production, quality and supply chain managers
- Engineering, design and NPD leaders
- Continuous improvement practitioners
- HR and L&D partners supporting operational leadership
The programme is most effective when senior leaders attend together, creating a shared leadership language and consistent coaching behaviours across the organisation.
GEMBA Coaching Programme
The GEMBA Coaching programme is a low-cost, high-impact leadership intervention focused on creating immediate and lasting behaviour change on the shop floor.
PHASE 1 - Foundations of Coaching
Leaders build a strong coaching mindset rooted in trust, inquiry and respect. Coaching is clearly positioned as a leadership behaviour – distinct from mentoring, advising or problem-solving.
Focus areas include:
- Leadership presence at the Gemba
- Active listening and questioning discipline
- Clean, non-leading inquiry
- Coaching conversations that balance clarity and accountability
PHASE 2 - Coaching in the Gemba
Learning moves directly into live operational environments. Leaders apply coaching skills during Gemba walks and daily routines using real problems and decisions as the learning vehicle.
Focus areas include:
- Coaching during daily leadership routines
- Opportunistic coaching in real conditions
- Strengthening trust and psychological safety
- Improving problem visibility and decision quality
PHASE 3 - TMI Fellowship, Application & Building Habits
GEMBA Coaching is designed to create impact that lasts. For leaders who want to go further, the programme connects naturally to the TMI Fellowship — a professional standard that recognises leaders who demonstrate behavioural excellence and coaching fluency within operational environments.
The Fellowship reflects the same principles that underpin GEMBA Coaching: leadership as behaviour, coaching as operational presence, and improvement driven from within the system. It recognises leaders who don’t just understand the language of Lean and continuous improvement, but who consistently model the habits, mindset and emotional intelligence required to make change stick at the point of work.
Focus areas include:
- The capability to embed coaching into everyday operational routines
- Greater credibility as leaders who develop people while delivering performance
- Practical tools to sustain reflection, learning and accountability
- Reduced reliance on reactive management and external intervention
- A scalable foundation for cultural change and continuous improvement
Why Does This Matter?
Manufacturing needs leaders who don’t just walk the floor, they change what the floor represents. The TMI Fellowship supports leaders to put practice into action and maintain the momentum of training to create real return on training investment.
Start Your GEMBA Coaching Journey
Please fill out the form below, and a member of our team will reach out to you as soon as possible.
FAQ’s
What is GEMBA Coaching?
GEMBA Coaching is a practical approach to leadership development that embeds coaching directly into the operational environment — the Gemba. Rather than separating coaching from day-to-day work, leaders learn how to coach in real time using live situations, decisions and problems at the point where value is created.
What does coaching in the Gemba mean?
Coaching in the Gemba means developing people while work is happening. Leaders coach during normal routines such as Gemba walks, daily management and problem-solving, using observation and inquiry to improve thinking, ownership and performance without stepping away from operations.
How is GEMBA Coaching different from traditional leadership coaching?
Traditional leadership and executive coaching often takes place away from the work. GEMBA Coaching is different because it focuses on coaching within performance, not coaching about performance. Coaching becomes a core operational leadership behaviour rather than a separate conversation or intervention.
Is GEMBA Coaching the same as Lean Coaching?
No. While GEMBA Coaching strongly supports Lean and continuous improvement, it is not tool-led or method-focused. Instead, it develops leadership behaviours — how leaders observe, question and engage people at the point of work — creating the conditions for Lean tools and CI systems to be used effectively and sustained.
Who is GEMBA Coaching for?
GEMBA Coaching is designed for manufacturing and operational leaders who work at or close to the point of work, including production, quality, engineering, supply chain and continuous improvement leaders. It is also relevant for HR and L&D teams supporting operational leadership development.
Do leaders need prior coaching experience?
No prior coaching experience is required. The programme builds coaching capability from first principles, clearly defining what coaching is — and what it is not — in an operational context. Leaders develop confidence through practical application in real situations rather than theory or role play.
What outcomes does manufacturing leadership coaching deliver?
As a form of manufacturing leadership coaching, GEMBA Coaching leads to observable behaviour change at the shop-floor level. Organisations benefit from earlier problem visibility, stronger ownership, improved engagement and reduced reliance on reactive management, creating a more sustainable foundation for continuous improvement.