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© 2016 Dwellworks, LLC
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Lean & Agile Playbook v.2.01 – modified MAY2016
Aggregation of Marginal Gains
If you consistently work to improve everything related to a certain “thing” (process, system,
hobby, your life in general!) by just 1%, then over time those small gains will add up to
REMARKABLE IMPROVEMENT.
Real world application:
No British cyclist had never won the Tour de France. Dave Brailsford, Team Sky’s
(Great Britain’s professional cycling team) new General Manager and Performance
Director was tasked with changing this.
Dave believed in a concept that he called the “aggregation of marginal gains” or the 1%
improvement in everything you do. The idea was that if they could improve every area
related to cycling by just 1%, then these small improvements would add up to profound
improvements over time.
Dave and his team began investigating everything from the obvious (nutrition, training
programs, shape and size of the bikes and components, to the not so obvious things
that the other teams overlooked (what pillow offered the best sleep, the best way to
wash hands to avoid infection and viruses, massage types, etc.). They looked for
improvements (even the smallest of improvements) everywhere.
Dave believed that if they could improve in every aspect possible they would be in a
position to win the Tour de France in five years. Remarkably, in 2012 a British cyclist
won … it only took 3 years! The following year they dominated at the 2013 Olympics by
winning gold medals in 70% of the cycling events.