An accountant originally, John qualified as a "Lean and Six Sigma Expert" through the Renault Institute of Quality Management and as a "Jonah" through the Goldratt Institute. He worked for AlliedSignal for 13 years in the Turbocharger division. His roles varied from Financial Controller and IT Manager to Plant Manager of the European Aftermarket. He spent two years as Kaizen Director of the largest Forging Group in the UK, where his role involved him heavily in the systematic application of Lean Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management. John specialises in Costing and Capacity planning at Lean Enterprise Research Centre at Cardiff Business School, and he has been a guest speaker at American Production and Inventory Control Society, and South African Production and Inventory Control Society where he won the Toyota Prize for Best New Idea.