Well it’s that time of year, when being fat and jolly is starting to feel overrated. Your summer and fall clothes have been put away with care and all the winter attire, including lots of big sweaters and stretchy leggings encourage our bad eating behavior. How do we snap out…
DMAIC is the problem-solving approach that drives Lean Six Sigma. It's a five-phase method—Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control—for improving existing process problems with unknown causes. DMAIC is based on the Scientific Method and it's pronounced "duh-may-ik." To build your understanding of the method, and help you apply it to…
In the early 1980s there was a countrywide failure of computer tape drives. The tape drives were all made by IBM, they were crashing in large and small businesses alike and no one knew why. This was a big problem for business and definitely a big problem for IBM. We’ll…
My 22-year-old son James got sick over the holidays. The rest of the family was on a trip while he was at home, so I wasn't able to help much. My suggestion to him? "Go to the emergency room." Healthcare Process Problems He went there on New Year's Day, which…
The Cause & Effect Diagram is a popular tool and it appears in most continuous improvement projects. But in reviewing the project examples and publications, I am amazed at how many different ways this tool is utilized. No one can say there is only one correct way to use any…
One of the challenges in implementing a Continuous Improvement program is this: After employees go through training, how do they determine where to apply all of their new process improvement tools? Even if your organization is culturally ready for process improvement, how often have you heard people say, “The process…
Wine and Waste: Two terms that are not typically “paired” in our house. Wine is rarely wasted in the consumption process (unless you consider unneeded calories, but let’s not go there). However, what about during the buying and tasting process? There must be some waste there. Or, so I assumed…
When organizations want to address an issue, they frequently bring people together to determine what actions to take. Often, part of the group’s process is to brainstorm about what causes the issue to happen in the first place. Maybe you have been in one, or several, of these situations with…
The Value Stream Map is a critical tool within the Lean methodology. It serves as the basis for documenting the "As Is" state of the process and is the platform for designing the "To Be" state of the new and improved process flow. A Value Stream Map (VSM) is a…
DMAIC is a five step method for improving existing problems with unknown causes. DMAIC stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control. For a better understanding of DMAIC and an overview of Lean Six Sigma, check out our free Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Training, Green Belt Training or Lean Training.