In this article, Ian Lazarus discusses the challenges of balancing customer satisfaction, stakeholder interests, and budget constraints in process improvement and design. Lazarus starts by addressing the dilemma of creating enduring quality in products and processes, particularly when faced with the desire for rich and flexible design. He points out that simply saying “no” to … [Read more...] about A Process for All Reasons: Satisfying Customers, Stakeholders, and Budgets
LEAN/ 6 Sigma
A Benefit Costing Process for Lean Six Sigma Programs
This academic study published in "The TQM Journal," addresses the gap between financial measurement and Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodologies in process improvement initiatives. The study aims to enhance employee engagement by designing a process and a benefit measuring methodology that aligns with financial metrics and LSS principles, particularly in eliminating waste.The … [Read more...] about A Benefit Costing Process for Lean Six Sigma Programs
Advancing learning in a lean organization
This article outlines how lean organizations, particularly managers and employees, can use different ways of learning depending on how much is known about problems. These stages include the known, known unknown, and unknown "unknown" stages. The author discusses learning in the context of Lean Thinking, a management philosophy focused on maximizing value and minimizing … [Read more...] about Advancing learning in a lean organization
Six Sigma in Manufacturing | Advantages & Disadvantages
A strategy that reduces errors and defects in manufacturing is called Six Sigma. Organizations use Six Sigma to increase the quality of their products. Innovations in technology have changed the manufacturing industry. Understanding and adapting to these changes allow Six Sigma to advance towards quality improvement. Lean manufacturing works simultaneously with Six Sigma to … [Read more...] about Six Sigma in Manufacturing | Advantages & Disadvantages
ISO 9001:2015 Certification and Lean Six Sigma
ISO 9001 or Six Sigma? What certification should companies adopt to improve their quality management system? ISO 9001 can help organizations achieve a quality management system to cover their departments, suppliers, and employees. Six Sigma presents a series of mechanisms and methods to streamline business operations and curtail organization-wide waste. Although both … [Read more...] about ISO 9001:2015 Certification and Lean Six Sigma
Why a Plan for Every Part Is Essential to Lean Transformations
Several organizations miss a vital component of a lean handling system known as PFEP, "A Plan for Every Part." While some companies assume that a lean transformation in their operations should focus on labor, PFEP focuses more on inventory. The PFEP seeks accurate and regulated inventory reductions for every purchased component to make any company's material handling operation … [Read more...] about Why a Plan for Every Part Is Essential to Lean Transformations
Understanding the context of your process
Context, the first lens of the 6CON process development framework, provides the development team with critical information against which they can readily make informed decisions. Context, by itself, does not eliminate the failure modes we have mentioned, but it is the foundation for the rest of the work to come, reducing the likelihood of the failure modes. The components … [Read more...] about Understanding the context of your process
The Principles and Implementation of Lean Improvement
To succeed in today's hyper-competitive environment, organizations must strive to improve continuously. But, because that's easier said than done, forward-thinking business leaders have developed several structured improvement methodologies over the years. One of the most widespread is an approach that grew out of the Japanese automotive industry, Lean manufacturing. … [Read more...] about The Principles and Implementation of Lean Improvement