Check out these blogs, Just-In-Time Cafe podcasts and resources to easily learn how to use a variety of Lean Six Sigma concepts and tools so you can deliver improvement results like these!
We’re creating new content every week, so please bookmark this page and come come back again soon!
Content by DMAIC Phase
Blogs
- 10 Most Popular Lean Six Sigma Presentations for Beginners
- 4-Step Problem-Solving Routine: Toyota Kata
- 5 Basic Webinars to Expand Lean Six Sigma Training – Yellow Belt Refreshers
- 5 Lean Six Sigma Project Types
- 5 Ways to Make Agile Great Again
- 50 Facts Everyone Needs to Know About Green Belt Training
- 6 Ways Waste Catalyzes Creativity
- Baby Got Tools!
- Belt Levels of Lean Six Sigma
- Best Books to Buy: “Streamline” by Richard Baron
- Best Books to Buy: “The Joy of Lean” by Dodd Starbird
- Best Books to Buy: “We Don’t Make Widgets” by Ken Miller
- DMAIC or PDCA: Which Is Better?
- Everything I Know About Lean (Well Almost Everything), I Learned From Improving My Laundry Process…
- How Beginners Can Get Started With Lean Six Sigma
- How Lean Six Sigma Can Improve Schools & Our Children’s Educational Experiences
- How Lean Six Sigma Could Make a Huge Difference for Your Business
- How Maple Syrup Gets Sweeter Using Lean Six Sigma
- Industries & Job Functions That Benefit From Lean Six Sigma
- Lean or Six Sigma? (Infographic)
- Lean vs. Agile: What’s the Difference?
- Learn How To Apply Lean In 4 Steps
- Project Storyboard: How to Lose 16 Pounds Using Lean Six Sigma
- The 3 Stages of Project Selection Maturity and How They Help You Achieve Project Success
- The Curse of Lean Six Sigma: You’ll Never See the Same Way Again
- Today’s Top 7 (or 8…) Quality Tools
- Why Call Centers Should Model Deming, Not DiMaggio
- Why Lean Six Sigma Training Helps Military Service Members Advance Their Careers
- Why MBAs Who Are Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belts Are More Successful
- Why Wishful Thinking Fails and Lean Six Sigma Succeeds With Personal Finance
Just-In-Time Cafe Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 1 – The Battle of the Fixes
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 3 – How Simple Changes Can Transform Entire Factories, With Bill Eureka
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 5 – Journey Into the Lean World With Lean Expert & Author Mike Osterling
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 7 – How Lean Changes Lives With Jerry Wright From AME
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 40 – The Journey From Plastics & Axles to Shingo Prize Featuring Tracey & Ernie Richardson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 41 – How Music and Mentoring Save Money and Lives for an Army Hospital, Featuring Kelly Hardee Wheeler
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 43 – Lean Boosts Efforts to Feed Folks in Need, Featuring Alicia Saake
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 48 – Want a Better Building? Go Lean! Featuring David Umstot
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 59 – Disaster Recovery Made Easy With the Toyota Product System, Featuring Liz McCartney
Blog
- 10 Essential Tips for Successful Process Mapping
- 10 Guidelines for Great Goal Statements
- 3 Huge Mistakes to Avoid When Planning & Conducting Process Walks
- 4 Best Practices to Help Ensure Your Process Walk Is Successful
- 4 New Ways to Use A3s (Have You Tried Any of These?)
- 5 Reasons You Should Go to the Gemba + 6 Tips to Get You Started
- 6 Process Maps You Should Know & How to Choose the Right One
- DMAIC + A3 = Kaizen Success
- Getting Your Customers to Rock n’ Roll Over Your Products & Services
- Hertz Doesn’t Hurt: Why Your Customer Experience Matters
- How a Lean Six Sigma Gemba Walk Reduced My Baby’s Tears and Improved Our Bedtime Routine
- How to Use a SIPOC to Ensure Projects Are Scoped to Your Intended Customers
- How You Can Avoid Cut-&-Paste Solutions With Your Project Charter
- Lean Leaders: How Pulse Point Maps Help You Manage Processes
- Project Charters: What They Are & How to Use Them
- Putting the Customer on the Map: How the Customer Journey Drives Cross-Functional Improvement
- The Secret to Surveys: Go to the Source
- Using a SIPOC to Leverage Control and Influence
- Video: The Process Walk – An Overview of What, Why and How
- Why Can’t I Choose Customer Satisfaction As My DMAIC Project Goal?
Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 10 – Transforming the User Experience by Finding the Joy in Problem-Solving With Holly North
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 25 – Amazon Delivers Excellent Customer Service With Lean Six Sigma, Featuring Bob Zimering
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 30 – Ditch the Survey and Take a Journey With Your Customers, With Leslie Henckler
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 37 – Customers Are Talking and Comcast Is Listening, Featuring Dana Wilson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 54 – 10 Secrets to Outstanding Customer Service, Featuring Jeff Toister
Blogs
- 6 Issues With Your Data + Fixes Using Measurement Systems Analysis
- Call Centers: Must be Something Wrong with the “Machine”-ery
- Find Data “Gold” With Process Mining
- How Knowing What Statistical Differences Are Can Dramatically Improve Your Call Center
- How to Ensure Your Projected Lean Six Sigma Savings Aren’t Fool’s Gold
- How to Win the Confidence Game
- Lean Six Sigma and the Cost of Poor Quality
- Lean Six Sigma in Education: Is Standardized Testing Improving Student Performance?
- Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees – But This Tree Helps Find It!
- The Stormy Truth Behind Operational Definitions
Blogs
- A Hypothesis Test for When There’s Not Much Data
- Challenging the Process: Why Do We Stop Asking Why?
- Finding the Smoking Gun: Root Cause Analysis With Less Guess Work
- How a Cause and Effect Diagram Helped Reduce Defects by 19%
- How Dr. House and Sherlock Holmes Solve a New Year Health Mystery
- How to Increase the Effectiveness of Your Next Cause & Effect Diagram
- How to Visualize a Process With a Value Stream Map
- Lean Goes to the Oscars
- No Thanks to Thank Yous- #OscarsSoLong
- What Averages Don’t Tell You and How to Learn the Truth About Your Data
- What Does the Super Bowl Have to Learn From Lean Six Sigma?
- Why You Should Avoid Jumping to Weight Loss Solutions
- Wine & Waste: A Primer on Value
Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 29 – Chicago Bulls Box Out Injuries With Lean Six Sigma, Featuring Chip Schaefer
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 46 – How to Display Data to Drive the Best Decisions, Featuring Mark Graban
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 55 – Removing Waste and Delivering Fresh Farm Food With Big Data, Featuring Erin Baumgartner
Blogs
- 10 Easy Ways to Organize Your Home Using Lean Six Sigma
- 3 Levels of a “Fix”
- 3 Quick & Easy Ways to Live a Leaner Lifestyle
- 5 Ways to Improve a Process
- 5S: An Easy Way to Eliminate Waste
- A Fun 5S Rhyme That Will Help You Shine!
- Best Books to Buy: “Personal Kanban” by Jim Benson & Tonianne DeMaria
- Burn the Popcorn: Stop Traditional Brainstorming
- Do Your Processes Require Security? Beyond 5S (and 6S), There’s 7S!
- How I Solved My Shoe Addiction Using Lean Six Sigma
- How Lean & Agile Make Yard Work a Breeze
- How Lean Six Sigma Can Improve Anything From Video Games to Personal Wardrobes
- How to Apply 5S: Dishpit Hell
- How to Apply 5S: Elementary School Classroom
- How to Apply 5S: Home Nursery
- How to Apply 5S: Home Office Desk
- How to Apply 5S: Makeup Storage
- How to Apply 5S: Messy Medicine Cabinet
- How to Apply 5S: Piano Area
- How to Apply 5S: The Frightening Fridge at Work
- How to Apply 5S: Work Station
- How to Streamline Your Life Using Lean Six Sigma, One Mess at a Time
- How to Turn Unintended Consequences Into Happy Accidents Using Lean Six Sigma
- How To Visualize An Improved Version Of Your Process
- Lean Life Hack #1: How to Start Your Day
- Lean Life Hack #2: How to Remember Stuff
- Lean Life Hack #3: How to Raise Kids
- Lean Six Sigma Is Everywhere
- Video: How to Organize Your Life Using 5S
- Visual Management Helps Reduce Penalties From Delayed Health Insurance Claims
- What If IBM Used the Fishbone and 5 Whys to Fix Their Crashing Tape Drives?
Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 4 – Jump Starting a Successful Lean Six Sigma Effort With a Single Project, Featuring Jeff Owens
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 13 – Lean Tours at Seattle Children’s Hospital Featuring Jay McNally
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 14 – Getting Wild & Ending Extinction Using Lean Six Sigma With Jeff Foster of the San Diego Zoo
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 31 – How to Balance Your Crap-to-Fun Ratio With a Personal Kanban, Featuring Shingo-Prize-Winning Author Jim Benson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 38 – Duct Tape and Standard Work – The Sexy Tools of Lean! Featuring Tom Root
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 42 – Cutting Defects in Half Helps Double Production at Costco Optical, Featuring Jeff Konstanzer and Carlos Vallejo
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 57 – Leaning Out the Accreditation Process in Healthcare, Featuring MaryBeth Jermyn
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 61 – Using RPA to Lean Out Admin Processes, Featuring Joshua Beaudry
Blogs
- Best Books to Buy: “Measures of Success” by Mark Graban
- Build a Better Storyboard by Connecting the Dots
- City of SeaTac: Improving The Right-Of-Way Permit Process From 21 Days To 5 Days
- Project Storyboard: How a Family Reduced Their Carbon Footprint & Saved $1,342 Per Year Using Lean Six Sigma
- Project Storyboard: How Lean Six Sigma Can Help You Get a Job
- Project Storyboard: How to Control Your Blood Sugar Using Lean Six Sigma
- Project Storyboard: How to Reduce Your Electricity Bill Using Lean Six Sigma
- Rapid Improvement Event Example: New Business Licensing For The City of SeaTac
Blogs
- 10 Types of Troublesome Team Members
- 2 Reasons Why Improving Government Processes Is Challenging & Countermeasures to Fix That
- 3 Key People Skills That Make Lean Six Sigma Successful
- 3 Lean Six Sigma Lessons From Michael Jordan
- 5 Effective Ways to Remember the Names of Project Stakeholders
- 5 Project Time Traps and How to Avoid Them
- 5 Ways Taking Tests Can Make You Smarter
- 5 Ways to Improve Your Virtual Process Improvement Coaching Sessions
- 7 Ways to Measure & Manage Soft Skills
- Best Books to Buy: “Ask More” by Frank Sesno
- Best Books to Buy: “Brain Rules” by John Medina
- Best Books to Buy: “Getting Service Right” by Jeff Toister
- Best Books to Buy: “Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance” by Angela Duckworth
- Best Books to Buy: “Humble Inquiry” by Edgar Schein
- Best Books to Buy: “Otherwise Engaged” by John Guaspari
- Best Books to Buy: “Storytelling at Work” by Mitch Ditkoff
- Best Books to Buy: “The Ideal Team Player” by Patrick Lencioni
- Best Books to Buy: “The Upside of Stress” by Kelly McGonigal
- Best Books to Buy: “To Sell Is Human” by Daniel Pink
- DMAIC: How to Drive Accountability With RACI
- Do Government Agencies Have Customers or Hostages?
- Does LEAN Stand for Less Employees Are Needed?
- Driving Accountability to Maximize Results Using the Plus-Delta Tool
- Elephant-Powered Process Improvement for Zoos All Over the World
- How to Convert “Negative Nancy” Into “Empowered Emily”
- How to Make Lean Work for You
- How Toyota Coached Leaders to Improve Processes With Learning Journals
- Is Your Process Improvement Team “Seeing the Same Game?”
- Lean in Japan: Respect for People & Regret for Waste
- Lean Six Sigma Virtual Meetings: Dos and Don’ts for Engaging Attendees
- Lean Six Sigma Without Using “Lean” and “Six Sigma”
- Lean Transformation: 3 Ways to Turn Resistors Into Champions
- Solve Problems Faster by Focusing on Your People
- Solving the Lean Six Sigma Dilemma: “No Problem” Is a Problem
- Stop Selling: 5 Mindful Ways to Engage Others in Fixing a Process
- The Amazingly Awesome List of Lean Six Sigma Books
- The Hard Work Behind Soft Skills – Change Management Round Up
- Video: Build Support for Your Lean Six Sigma Project by Clarifying the Purpose
- Video: Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Blunders to Avoid
- Why a Bad System Will Beat a Good Person Every Time
- Why a Lean Six Sigma Culture Should Be Adopted in Healthcare
- Why Blame Stalls Improvement & 5 Ways Leaders Can Create a Blame-Free Environment
- Why Government Workers Get a Bad Rap & How We Can Spread More Love
- Why Lean Six Sigma Certification Ensures You Retain What You Learn
- You’re Not the Boss of Me: 5 Ways to Influence Stakeholders
Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 11 – How Fiction Can Inspire Factual Process Improvement With Richard Baron of Coconino County
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 16 – Telling Stories That Create Monumental Change With Mitch Ditkoff, President of Idea Champions
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 17 – The Importance of Building a Lean Culture With Brett Cooper, Co-founder of Integris Performance Advisors
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 18 – Why Engaged Employees Make Process Improvement Happen With John Guaspari, Employee Engagement Expert
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 22 – Unleash Your Creativity & Get Results Using the Toyota Way, With Shingo Prize Winner Karyn Ross
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 36 – Building Better Government With a Lean Fellowship Program, Featuring Hollie Jensen
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 39 – The Secret to Keeping Great Nurses on Staff Featuring Aisha Ahmad
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 45 – How to Build a Better School System, Featuring Kamaljit Jackson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 47 – Plan-Do…Walk-Away? Avoiding the Perils of Lean, Featuring Mohamed Saleh
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 51 – “Go Slow to Go Fast” Wins Awards and Saves Millions, Featuring Shane Wentz
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 56 – How Goodyear Uses Lean Six Sigma to Strengthen Diversity & Inclusion, Featuring Billy Taylor
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 58 – Stanford Children’s Health Cures HR Bureaucracy With Lean, Featuring Ekta Vyas
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 62 – Avoid the Advice Trap and Become a Better Leader, Featuring Michael Bungay Stanier
Blogs
- 3 Important Factors to Consider to Launch a Successful Lean Six Sigma Project
- 4 Essentials of Coaching for Lean Six Sigma Process Improvement
- 5 Facts Executives Need to Know About Lean Six Sigma
- 5 Tips for Starting Lean Six Sigma in Government
- 5 Ways Lean Six Sigma Heroes Are Solving Problems Caused by COVID-19
- An Interview With Tracy O’Rourke on Service Chain Management and Business Development
- Best Books to Buy: “Chief Joy Officer” by Richard Sheridan
- Best Books to Buy: “Clarity First” by Karen Martin
- Best Books to Buy: “Getting Home” by Liz McCartney and Zack Rosenburg
- Best Books to Buy: “Humble Leadership” by Edgar and Peter Schein
- Best Books to Buy: “Joy, Inc.” by Richard Sheridan
- Best Books to Buy: “The Coaching Habit” by Michael Bungay Stanier
- Best Books to Buy: “The Toyota Engagement Equation” by Tracey & Ernie Richardson
- Best Books to Buy: “The Toyota Way to Service Excellence” by Jeffrey Liker & Karyn Ross
- Best Books to Buy: “Tree-Ring Management” by Kiroshi Tsukakoshi
- Book Review Roundup: In-depth Insight on the Industry Books That Make a Difference
- Can Lean Six Sigma Be Applied in County Government?
- Change Your Vision, Change Your World
- Changing the Law & Improving a Process With a Soldier’s Story
- Coach Your Leaders in Lean Successfully With These 5 Tips
- Deploying Lean Six Sigma On a Budget
- Ensure Lean Six Sigma Training Delivers Results Using a Flipped Classroom
- How Catchball Builds More Engaged Teams in Government
- How Leaders Can Get Quick Results With Lean Six Sigma
- How Lean Six Sigma Can Help Fight the Coronavirus Pandemic
- How to Build a Lean Culture: Using Leader Standard Work
- How to Successfully Rollout Lean Six Sigma Training Yourself
- HR + Lean: A Powerful Pair for People Development
- Lean Six Sigma Training Deployment: A Rollout Kit With Everything You Need to Successfully Launch Process Improvement Training
- Strategic Planning for a Lean Six Sigma Program Office (Part 1 of 4): How to Create a Mission and Vision
- Strategic Planning for a Lean Six Sigma Program Office (Part 2 of 4): How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis
- Strategic Planning for a Lean Six Sigma Program Office (Part 3 of 4): How to Set Goals, Objectives and Measures
- Strategic Planning for a Lean Six Sigma Program Office (Part 4 of 4): How to Build an Action Plan Timeline and Define Roles
- The Biggest Lie About Six Sigma: It’s Dead
- The Next Generation of Lean Six Sigma (Part 1): Then and Now
- The Next Generation of Lean Six Sigma (Part 2): Old Tools for a New World
- The Next Generation of Lean Six Sigma (Part 3): Time Studies Get an Update
- The Next Generation of Lean Six Sigma (Part 4): Solving the Problem of COVID-19
- Webinars to Expand Lean Six Sigma Training – Leadership Refreshers
- Why College Students With Green Belts Are More Hireable
- Why the Lean Community Is Uniquely Positioned to Fight the Pandemic
- Why You Can’t Coach on a Process Without a Standard
Podcasts
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 6 – Improving Our Children’s Education With Carla O’Dell and Dewey Dorsett From APQC
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 8 – Streamlining a Successful Business Launch Using Lean Six Sigma With the DiFriscos of Hell n’ Blazes Brewing Company
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 9 – Improving Government Performance Using Lean Six Sigma With Brian Elms From Denver’s Peak Academy
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 21 – Using Lean to Build Government’s Capacity to Do More Good With Ken Miller
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 23 – How the Best Hotels Shine With Lean Six Sigma, Featuring Sally Toister
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 24 – How Service Organizations Move From Mediocrity to Excellence, With Jeffrey Liker
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 26 – Leaning Into Lean Leadership in Government, With John Dickson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 27 – How Clarity of Purpose Drives Better Improvement Results, With Karen Martin
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 28 – UC San Diego Sparks a Thriving Lean Six Sigma Community With Angela Cook
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 32 – How Effective Lean Leaders Model the Way With Danielle Hinz
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 33 – Crafting a Lean Culture at TaylorMade Golf, Featuring Kevin Limbach
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 34 – Chucking the Classic Job Interview With Amazing Results, Featuring Richard Sheridan
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 35 – Leaving the Office and Building a Joyous Culture, Featuring Gary Peterson
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 44 – Start a Conversation = Become a Great Leader, Featuring Edgar and Peter Schein
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 49 – How IT Spreads Lean Six Sigma to Boost #2-Ranked University, Featuring Mojgan Amini
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 50 – Become a Better Coach in Just 21 Days, Featuring Karyn Ross
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 52 – Stop Being a Boss and Find Joy as a Leader, Featuring Richard Sheridan
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 53 – Turning Failure Into Growth With a Great Mentor, Featuring Mohamed Saleh and Heather Pierzchala
- Podcast: Just-In-Time Cafe, Episode 60 – Surprising Discoveries About Japan’s Continuous Improvement Culture, Featuring Laurie Fiorica and Hilary Hellman