Dr. Juran was a Quality Man with a Quality Life, and, after celebrating 81 years, clearly a Quality marriage! Time to tip our hats to the man who pointed out that sometimes inspection costs more than the defects themselves. Huzzah! December 24th would have marked Mr. Juran’s 115th birthday -…
There was an article earlier this year with the title, “Whatever Happened to Six Sigma?” It focused on the rise and decline of the fortunes of General Electric—the most famous adopter of the Six Sigma Process Improvement method. It’s an interesting question, and the answers reveal some underlying truths about…
Process improvement has changed dramatically over the last 20 years—but how? For one, there are generational shifts in the practitioners. We’ll provide a glimpse of those shifts through the eyes of two certified Black Belts—Dodd Starbird and James Starbird—who also happen to be father and son. Today, Dodd and James…
Did you know Dr. Kano was a student of Dr. Ishikawa? Did you know Dr. Kano was still with us? Does he know everyone still uses the Kano Model? Would that be a delighter for Dr. Kano? Inquiring minds want to know! This November marks Noriaki Kano’s 79th birthday (we’re…
“Don’t rule by fear,” “Stop inspection,” “Remove silos” and "Clarify your purpose.” Dr. Deming’s principles are as applicable today as they were when he was alive. He challenged managers to rule without fear, without targets or quotas and focus instead on setting the stage for pride of workmanship. What workplace…
TQM was an organizational approach developed in the late 80's to create a culture of continuous improvement by focusing on customer satisfaction. The idea was that all levels and all members of an organization are responsible for improving its products, services and culture. Both Lean and Six Sigma build on…
Total Quality Management was an organizational approach developed in the late 80's to create a culture of continuous improvement by focusing on customer satisfaction. The idea was that all levels and all members of an organization are responsible for improving the products, services and culture. Both Lean and Six Sigma…