Your Data & Privacy

Most tools save in your browser. When you use one of them, everything you enter is saved in your web browser on the computer you're using. It does not go to us or to anyone else. We cannot see it, read it, or recover it for you.

This means:

• Your work is saved on that computer only. If you log in from a different computer or a different browser, your work won't be there.
• Logging out does not erase it. Your work stays in that browser until you clear it.
• Clearing your browser history or data will delete it. Work you do in a private or incognito window is deleted when you close that window.
• If it's gone, it's gone. We have no copy to give back.

These are saved to your account in our database, so you can use them from any computer you sign in on:

• Your course progress, quiz scores and certificates. In the two Advanced courses, the exercises you work through stay in your browser, and your quiz result and certificate are saved to your account.
• Your answers in the Value Stream Management Assessment that comes with that certification course.
• Box scores and analyses you save in the Box Score Analyzer. Until you save, your work in progress stays in your browser.
• Your conversations with the Lean Accounting AI Coach.

Your AI coach conversations and your assessment answers are private to you. Nobody else can see them on the site, not even our administrators. We can see your course progress and the box scores you save in the Box Score Analyzer, so we can help if something goes wrong.

When you ask the Lean Accounting AI Coach a question, what you type is sent to Anthropic, the AI company whose model writes the answer. The coach inside the Box Score Analyzer works the same way, and also sends the box score figures it needs to answer.

Ratings and notes you leave for the coach are used to improve the coach for everyone, so please don't include company details in them. A note is sent to Anthropic and may count toward turning on a general habit for the coach, from a fixed list, such as how long to answer. The words of your note do not go into the coach. We see your rating and note with your name and email. Your conversations are not used for this.

Most tools that save in your browser have a button that saves your work as a file on your computer, called Back up, Save file, Download file or something similar. Use it when you finish a session. If you ever need your work back, use the tool's matching button, such as Restore, Open file or Load project file, to load that file.

A few tools don't have one yet, so their work is only in that browser: the Linkage Chart Builders, the free Value Stream Management and Standard Costing assessments, the Continuous Improvement System Readiness Checklist and the Capacity Calculator for Manufacturing.

Your work is only as private as the computer you use. Keep it locked when you step away. On a shared or public computer, back up your work, then clear your browser data before you leave.

Please don't enter confidential company information unless you're allowed to keep it on that computer, or with us for the tools that save to your account. Sample or made-up numbers work well for practice.

Use a strong password for your account, and don't share it.

When you sign up, we collect your name, your company and your email address. If you buy something, our payment provider, Square, collects your payment details on its own checkout page to process the purchase; we never see your card number. We keep a record of what you bought so we can give you access. If you leave feedback on one of our beta apps, we keep what you write, and your email address if you give it.

We use this information to give you access to the website, courses, and tools, and to contact you about your account. We do not sell your information.

When you send either form, we save what you entered, linked to your account:

• Your company, and the contact person's name, position, email and phone number.
• The payment method you choose, the total, and any invoicing instructions you give, such as a PO number, billing address, tax or VAT number, or who the invoice goes to.
• On a Group Registration form, each participant's name, position and email address, and the courses chosen for them.

We use this to send your invoice or payment link, to turn on your access or enroll your group once it's paid, and to answer questions about your order. Nick and our site administrators can see these forms, along with where each one stands and any note Nick adds. You can't see another customer's form, and they can't see yours. They stay on file as a record of your order, even if your account is deleted later. Your account is no longer linked to them then.

When we enroll a group, anyone on the form who hasn't registered yet gets a separate access record: their email address, the course, your company's name and the form's reference number. It's what gives them the course when they register with that address, and Nick and our site administrators can see who is still waiting. This record is not part of your form. It stays on file after they register, and deleting your account or theirs does not delete it.

We count how many times each page is visited, as one number per page per day. The count does not record your IP address or your account, does not identify you, and stores no cookies. We don't use advertising or any other tracking on this site.

Like any website, the companies that host the site and its database keep standard records of each visit, such as your IP address and the kind of browser you use, to run and protect it. These records do not include anything you type into the tools.

To keep bots from creating accounts, the sign-in page (where you create an account, sign in or reset your password) can show a security check, Cloudflare Turnstile, which Cloudflare runs. When the page shows it, Cloudflare receives your IP address and information about your browser and device to tell people from bots. Cloudflare uses this to run the check, under its own privacy policy.

The site itself uses only the cookies needed to keep you signed in.

One free assessment, Solving the Standard Costing Problem, loads its fonts from Google Fonts, so Google receives your IP address when you open it.

When you upload an Excel file to a tool, it is read right on your computer and is not sent anywhere.

The tools are provided as they are, to help you learn and plan. They are not your official accounting records. Please keep your official financial data in your company's own systems.