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Congratulations! You have just passed your exam and now it is time to tackle that Lean Six Sigma Green Belt project. “What makes a good Green Belt project?” is often the first looming question that comes to mind. Learners struggle with finding support, properly scoping their projects and other common…

Surely everyone knows that process improvement has changed dramatically over the last 20 years, and certainly there are generational differences in the practitioners then and now. The first post in this series, The Next Generation of Lean Six Sigma (Part 1): Then and Now, was about the generational shifts in…

When customers are satisfied with their first purchase from your company, they patronize you again and your business records higher sales. They tell their families and friends, and they may also choose to buy your products and services. That first experience with your product and your service matters. Customer satisfaction…

Goldilocks is a great source for guidance on A3 problem-solving. With the goal of getting the approach “just right” it’s critical to assess the kinds of problems that require A3s. As with Goldilocks and the Three Bears, some problems are “Papa Bear” sized, with multiple unknown factors to explore. A…

Finally, your leadership team commits to investing in building a culture of problem solvers. Yay! The greatest hurdle is behind you—or is it? An early mistake can quickly kill leadership support. Read on to find out the ugly truth and how to avoid it. Hundreds of organizations all over the…

The Challenge Missing the deadline to process warranty claims means automatic approval and money lost—and Marel had missed the deadline for 13 of the last 18 months. Marel, a leading food processing equipment manufacturer, had been missing their customer-promised 60-day timeline in 13 of the last 18 months. When they…

Kaizen Charter? Knowledge Capture? Project Tracker? Posting Board? A3s have grown beyond their roles as problem-solving staples. They’ve expanded and staked out a richer domain in the Lean Six Sigma Toolkit. The A3 is often where we start to examine a challenge, address a problem or consider an opportunity. While…

 A late event approval means campus planners are given short notice, crippling their ability to stage concerts, festivals or even simple barbecues. Last year 82% of the 300 food-only events at UC San Diego received a late final review—that’s over three quarters missing the deadline! The Challenge On average,…

We asked our learners to share a Quick Win or Process Improvement Project story related to how they’ve solved a problem that arose because of COVID-19. We were heartened by stories of hope from Hospitals, Military Bases and Family Businesses. Nurses, Logistics Managers, Consultants and Army Officers banded their colleagues…

A call center for a business equipment and supplies company had call transfer rates well over 20% and customer dissatisfaction trending in the wrong direction. High transfer rates in a call center are an indication that customers are talking to multiple agents and their issues are taking way too long…