By Mark Phelps, Principal, Synchronous Solutions
Reviewed September 4, 2026
This is a first-party explanation published by Synchronous Solutions.
Different but Compatible Starting Points
The Lean Enterprise Institute describes Lean thinking through purpose, process, and people and through five principles: specify customer value, identify the value stream, create flow, establish pull, and pursue perfection. Synchronous Flow begins with the economic goal of the enterprise, identifies the constraint governing more Throughput, and synchronizes other decisions around it.
From the Synchronous Solutions perspective, the distinction matters because improvement opportunities do not all have the same economic leverage at the same time. An hour recovered at a nonconstraint may improve local performance without increasing total output. An hour protected at the active constraint may preserve Throughput the business would otherwise lose.
How They Work Together
Synchronous Flow does not require a company to reject Lean. Lean practices can be highly valuable when they support the current system priority. Standard work, visual management, setup reduction, quality at the source, workplace organization, and structured problem-solving can all help protect flow.
Theory of Constraints supplies the focusing mechanism: identify the constraint, exploit it, subordinate other decisions, elevate it when justified, and repeat when the constraint moves. Lean tools can then be aimed where they will make the largest contribution to the enterprise.
Choosing the Right Question
The useful question is not, “Should we be Lean or use Synchronous Flow?” It is, “What currently limits better performance, and which methods will change that condition while supporting customer value and the performance of the whole system?”
For a stone fabricator, the answer may involve controlled release, a readiness gate, better scheduling, reduced setup at a critical resource, improved standard work, or a change in sales mix. The method should follow the diagnosed need.
Source: Lean Enterprise Institute, “Lean Thinking and Practice,” https://www.lean.org/lexicon-terms/lean-thinking-and-practice/
