Think Your Way Through The Improve Phase
You and your team have identified the causes of your problem and are now ready to develop solutions that will keep the problem from ever occurring again. In this phase, the team will develop, test, pilot, and implement the solutions for the problem or issue they’re trying to improve. Some critical checkpoints for this phase are: Try to generate several possible solutions. The goal is...
Read MoreThe DMAIC Measure Phase Requires Diligence and Patience
The measure phase is important for a number of reasons. It is in this phase that the team gets into the nitty-gritty of the project. Because of this there are a number of things that can go wrong for an inexperienced team. Here are some of the more common pitfalls that can occur: Failure to go to gemba. I’ve never seen a problem or issue that’s been resolved in a conference...
Read MoreTo Ensure Your Project Is A Success Focus On The Define Phase
The define phase of any Lean Six Sigma project is critical to its success. It is the phase of DMAIC that makes or breaks a team’s ability to make rapid improvement. Many of the project’s benchmarks are developed and formed in the define phase and a team’s failure to get it right can spell disaster as the project proceeds. In myy experience as a Master Black Belt and...
Read MoreWalking The Talk Is More Than Lip Service
More and more organizations dabble in Lean Six Sigma everyday. Some see the chaos that exists in their organization and want to stop the bleeding. Others see it as a means to become more efficient and thus save time and money. Some see it as a way to increase revenue without increasing headcount therefore doing more with less resources. But how many organizations go all in and are...
Read MoreCalculating Project Savings in a Lean Six Sigma Program
Nothing speaks louder than saving money for most organizations. Owners, CEOs, and top executives want to know that employees are working on projects that are going to make customers happy and make a difference to the bottom line. They want to see a return on investment for the training expense and the time teams spend working on projects. Nothing works better when it comes to accomplishing...
Read MoreImportance of Monitoring Processes and Having Good Data
We’ve all been taught that without data our understanding of problems is just an opinion and in order to understand a problem or make a decision we must have good data. During our training in continuous improvement and Lean Six Sigma we are taught the importance of a good data collection plan, having an accurate measurement system and the need to establish operational definitions if...
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