On this episode of Coach and Coordinator, Keith Grabowski sits down with Cris Reisert to explore how the Kaizen philosophy can transform coaching, team culture, and player development. Drawing from Reisert’s experience at Tiffin University and Gardner-Webb University, the conversation centers on building programs through Kaizen – continuous improvement, accountability, and shared ownership.
Reisert breaks down how metrics, evaluation, and clear standards help teams track growth and reinforce expectations, emphasizing that quality and improvement are everyone’s responsibility. They discuss the importance of feedback and adapting systems to fit the people within the program, not the other way around.
This episode highlights how making a big deal out of small wins, reframing mistakes as learning opportunities, and serving others with humility can create a positive, growth-oriented environment. It’s a practical and philosophical discussion for coaches looking to build sustainable success through culture, consistency, and a commitment to getting better every day.
Chapters:
- Introduction to Kaizen in Coaching
- Cris Reisert’s Journey with Kaizen
- Implementing Kaizen in Team Culture
- Metrics and Evaluation for Continuous Improvement
- Accountability and Standards in Practice
- Fostering Collaboration and Feedback
- Adapting Schemes and Strategies
- Creating an Inclusive Environment
- The Importance of Ownership
- Final Thoughts on Embracing Kaizen
Connect on X-
Keith Grabowski: @CoachKGrabowski
Cris Reisert: @CoachReisert
Kaizen Episode Companion
Launch the Kaizen Companion
This episode introduces Kaizen as the blueprint for developing a clear, repeatable coaching process.
To help you apply it to your own program, we built the Kaizen Episode Companion.
This Companion is designed to turn the ideas from the episode into practical, football-specific systems you can actually use.
What the Kaizen Episode Companion Can Do
The Companion helps you:
- Diagnose recurring issues in your program without defaulting to blame
- Identify root causes using Kaizen tools like 5 Whys, PDCA, and process mapping
- Improve practice structure, install clarity, communication, and standards
- Translate Kaizen principles directly into football language and actions
- Build a clear improvement plan focused on systems, not just outcomes
- Standardize what works so problems don’t keep reappearing
Everything stays grounded in the concepts covered in this episode. It does not pull from outside material or generic advice.
How to Use It
You can ask a question directly at any time.
If you want a personalized improvement plan, type START and the Companion will walk you through a short mapping process to understand your situation before responding.
Watch: How the Companion Works
In the video below, I walk through the Kaizen Episode Companion and show how it can be used to diagnose problems, build process clarity, and apply Kaizen principles to real coaching situations.
This walkthrough will give you a feel for:
- How the Companion thinks
- The types of questions it asks
- The kind of outputs it produces
Once you’ve watched, you can open the Companion and apply it directly to your own program.