Toyota Quality: Kakushin Continuous Innovation Is Next Wave Per CEO

Toyota CEO, Katsuaki Watanabe, is not satisfied with the status quo and sets his sights on breakthrough performance in design using kakushin. Kakushin is the foundation for continuous innovation. ...

... "He frets that quality, the foundation of its U.S. success, is slipping. He grouses that Toyota's factories and engineering practices aren't efficient enough. " ...

Via Wall Street Journal: What Keeps Toyota CEO Awake at Night ...

For reference, Mitsubishi Chemicals has an active kakushin program (PDF) through the next few years.

Hirotaka Takeuchi Profile at Forbes: "Takeuchi's publications include Kigyo no Jiko Kakushin ( Self-innovation of Firms)"