Lean Six Sigma Bursts

In this episode, I discuss my work with a client that is trying to improve their sustainability score. One of the next steps is to establish a goal for electricity reduction, since it is a large contributor to their carbon footprint. I explain how to apply process mapping to heating and cooling a building, and why regression modeling and analysis can be helpful in focusing your electricity reduction efforts.

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In this episode, I discuss an interview and discussion I had with Climate Change Professional and former Quality executive, David Saunders. We talk about how to leverage your skills of process and quality improvement to improve the environment and help mitigate climate change.

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In this episode, I share some audio from a presentation I gave to Lean Portland for their July Happy Hour. I discussed Statistical Process Control (SPC) and how to detect out of control conditions. I'm sharing two questions that were asked at the end of the talk:

1) For office applications of SPC, what software package would be recommended to make control charts?

2) What control chart do you use if your data is nonnormal?

The full presentation can be watched at the link below.

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In this episode, I share the audio from a presentation I gave to Lean Portland for their July Happy Hour. I discuss Statistical Process Control (SPC) and why it's not seen very much in Toyota facilities anymore. I also include a question that was asked related to the transition from monitoring outputs to inputs. The full presentation can be watched at the link below.

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In this episode, I discuss the Washington State Department of Ecology Lean and Green program that I've been supporting the last few years as a consultant. The audio is an interview with the program administrator and my contact point at Ecology, Hugh O'Neill. He shares how this program can help businesses save money, reduce their environmental impact and engage employees. If you are a business in Washington that might be interested, check out the links below. If you're outside of Washington, contact me to learn how we can help you with a customized program. I also invite you to check out my other podcast, "Lean Six Sigma for Good" if you're interested in environmental and societal improvements.

p.s. Hugh is retiring this year, and I'd like to personally thank him for all his work on this topic, and including me in their very important work. You will be missed!

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In this episode, I discuss how to measure variation in a process, using Range and Standard Deviation. Variation is an important concept to understand how to improve a process. This was audio from a recent Six Sigma Yellow Belt course I taught. You might have heard of these concepts before, but hopefully it will be a good refresher for you.

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The following topic was taken from one of my recent Yellow Belt courses, explaining how to use Mean (or average) and Median to measure the middle of a set of data, whether it is solar panel production, calories eaten per day or electricity consumed per day.

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For one of my clients, we conducted a survey of their employees to understand if daily huddles were helping them be more engaged in their work. The results of the 7 questions found a statistically significant improvement in scores after the huddles were implemented. Listen to the episode to learn more about the questions and the Paired T-test analysis.

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In this episode, I share some audio about DMAIC from a recent class I taught, and I thought you'd find it helpful. I express the importance of ignoring improvement ideas in a DMAIC project until after you go through Define, Measure and Analyze first. You will get pressure to jump to Improve before you're ready, so resist that urge and trust the process.

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In this episode, I discuss an improvement I made at home, that saved time in my personal life, and why small improvements are worth pursuing and not overlooking. I also discuss how small sample sizes are not a barrier to running statistical tests of significance or hypothesis tests.

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In this episode, I discuss the importance of the Control phase in a Six Sigma DMAIC Improvement project, including the key considerations to make before closing out your improvement activity.

1. Create a system and/or process to monitor the results
2. Update any documentation of the processes and procedures
3. Update any training of the processes
4. Create a response or mitigation plan in case there is a drop in performance
5. Add any visual controls or job aids that can be posted in the work area
6. Review incentives to encourage new improvements to be used or followed
7. Identify contact names and resources if employee has questions about the new improvements
8. Schedule process audits or reviews for the next 30, 60 and 90 days
9. Ensure improvements have been labeled, have a clear storage space, and have someone assigned to reorder them or perform maintenance on them (if applicable)?
10. Ensure clear ownership of the improvements have taken place by the process owners

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In this episode, I share the audio from a panel discussion I was asked to participate on Wednesday this week. The discussion was focused on Lean Manufacturing, but we also discussed Six Sigma quite a bit. The event was hosted by the Texas Chapter of the Women in Manufacturing Association. They are the only national and global trade association dedicated to providing year-round support to women who have chosen a career in the manufacturing industry

I'm sharing only the segments when I talked, but I encourage you to listen or watch the entire hour-long discussion. The other panelists were Crystal Davis, Dave Crysler, RaeJean Griffin, Sneha Kumari, and Troy Weier.

I have a link to the association and the recording is in the links section below.

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In this episode, I provide some tips on how to close out a project or improvement effort, when the primary metric may longer than a year before you might be able to see tangible results. I also discuss other things you can do to prove in the short term that your improvements will be effective in the long run.

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In this episode, I discuss a project I'm really excited about, the 2nd book release in the Lean Six Sigma for Good book series.

This is the 2nd collection of real-life experiences and stories from Lean and Six Sigma practitioners who have spent time at the "gemba" with not-for-profit organizations. They have generously offered to write a chapter about lessons learned and tools they have applied. There are 8 chapters in total.

• Joe Wojniak and Lynn McCullough: Improving Thrift Shop Donations (interview with authors) - Proceeds donated to TRU Community Care
• Tim Turner: Helping Others By Following The Toyota Way (podcast interview with Tim) - Proceeds donated to Center for Quality People and Organizations (CQPO)
• Douglas Cooper: Lessons from Liberia – Standard Work as the Foundation for Lean Practices - Proceeds donated to Mercy Corps
• Anita Havemann: Reducing Time and Complexity in Nonprofit Accounting - Proceeds donated to Relay Resources
• Steve Bell: Simple Framework for Complex Problems - Proceeds donated to Lean4NGO.org
• lisabeth Swan: Leaning into the Mission of Childcare (podcast interview with Elisabeth) - Proceeds donated to Cape Cod Children’s Place
• Tracy O’Rourke: Increasing Meals Per Hour with Kitchens for Good (podcast interview with Tracy) - Proceeds donated to Kitchens for Good
• Joy E. Mason: Using Six Sigma to Address Racial Equity (podcast interview with Joy) - Proceeds donated to The Six Sigma Racial Equity Institute

I think this is a great book to share with potential volunteers, or nonprofits or public service agencies wanting to learn more about how Lean or Six Sigma can be applied to their organizations.

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In this episode, I discuss two acronyms to help you remember ideas on how you can improve a process.

ECRS stands for Eliminate, Combine, Rearrange, and Simplify.

SPACER stands for Standardize, Parallel processing, Automate, Consolidate, Eliminate and Re-arrange.

I also mention SCAMPER, which is similar to these, and stands for Substitute, Combine, Adapt, Modify, Purpose, Eliminate and Reverse.

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In this episode, I discuss Action Priority (AP), a newer method for determining which risks from an FMEA should be addressed. Traditionally, the multiplication of Severity, Occurrence and Detection was used to calculate a Risk Priority Number (RPN). Any number over a certain RPN threshold required action to reduce the risk.  Action Priority gives three possible outcome for each risk identified: Low, Medium and High, which can make it easier to decide which RPN scores are more important than others. I also discuss the troubles I've had using a RPN threshold with FMEA teams, as they tend to score just below the threshold intentionally.

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In this episode, I explain a new virtual coaching program I'm launching in January of 2023. 

If you or your team would be interested in completing some online Lean or Six Sigma training, completing a kaizen event or a Six Sigma project, and obtaining a certification, I have three approaches that might work for you at different price points:

1. Do It With Me (Coaching) – We work closely with you to keep you on track with the training, and we help you with your Six Sigma project or Lean event over a 4-month period. Best combination of self-learning and mentoring.
2. Do It Yourself (DIY) – You complete the training and project/event primarily by yourself, with a few hours of our support. Lowest cost option but requires self-discipline.
3. Do It For Me (Consulting) – We take the lead on your Six Sigma project or Lean event, and coach/mentor you as needed, with focus on getting tangible results as quickly as possible. Most expensive but effective option.

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In this episode, I explain what a "single-stall production system" means, and why it is superior to the traditional single piece flow assembly line.

Single-stall is a method of work where one highly skilled worker is trained to perform all steps of the process by themselves (often in one stall to reduce floor space), instead of handing off the work to multiple workers in an assembly line.

It can take months or years to develop their skills so they can perform each step at high quality, but it can be the most efficient way to complete a process from beginning to completion.

I share a link to an article I wrote below, and in the episode I explain the videos in the article that better explain the difference between single-stalls and assembly lines.

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In this episode, I read off an article I just wrote, based on my 20+ years of teaching Lean concepts and principles. These are the topics that get the most attention, solicit the most questions, or are the most eye-opening for my students and clients. 

I also announce the launch of a new Lean course I helped create, called Lean Fundamentals.

You can access the FREE Lean Introduction course (first 5 modules) using coupon code "KICKSTARTLEAN-LSSE"

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In this episode, I share the audio from a recent video I created. The short video highlights four different industry case studies applying Lean principles and concepts.

The 4 organizations highlighted in the video:

In this episode, I share the audio from a recent video I created. The short video highlights four different examples of nonprofits and NGOs applying Lean principles and concepts to social challenges in the local community.

In this episode, I read off a recent article I wrote, breaking down the turnover data from the University of Iowa 2021 football season. I explain how I would evaluate their data using categorization and Pareto charts to identify more opportunities to create more turnovers against their opponents, or reduce the number of turnovers caused, which will increase their chance of winning games.

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In this episode, I read off an article I wrote back a few years, about how the 5S workplace organization methods compare to the popular home organizing methods of Marie Kondo, developer of the KonMari method, which had become popular through her books and Netflix TV show. There are other links embedded within the article.

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In this episode, I discuss how I helped someone select a key metric for their Six Sigma project, based on the opportunity to measure and statistically validate the improvement.

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In this episode, I discuss a way to help identify a potential Lean Six Sigma project out of a larger improvement project taking place. Selecting a project is one of the hardest things to complete for those pursuing a Lean Six Sigma certification.

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In this episode, I discuss how I applied the Theory of Constraints (TOC) to come up with additional improvement ideas for a bottleneck process at a client I am working with. Before we invest in more people or equipment (throwing money at the problem), let's make sure we have extracted as much opportunity out of the existing process.

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In this episode, I discuss ways in which I've combined current event topics from the Iowa Hawkeyes sports teams with my data analysis and process improvement background. I explain a summary of 4 articles I have written, and invite you to read the ones that are of interest to you.

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In this episode, I discuss a situation I encountered related to hiring new employees within a set period of time. Thinking about the problem in terms of takt time was helpful, so I thought I'd share that with everyone. If you don't know about takt time, it's a method to establish a pace or rhythm for how often a process needs to complete items. We take the time available divided by the number of items to determine a pace for the work. In this example, we use it to determine how often you need to hire people to meet your goal of 14 candidates. I also include adjustments to the demand to account for losses through the process, such as no-shows, not being qualified, and not accepting the job.

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In this episode, I share the 7th and final module of the free "Lean at home" course, giving you a full example of a home improvement project. Hopefully you will be inspired to make similar improvements to your own personal life.

If you complete a similar project to this at home, you can submit the project workbook to me for review, and obtain a "Lean at Home" certification.

In this episode, I share the 6th module of the free "Lean at home" course, giving you ideas about how to error proof your home from mistakes, and documenting the new process using checklists and standard operating procedures or SOPs. At the end of the course, you will have the option to implement a project and get a "Lean at Home" certification.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I share the 5th module of the free "Lean at home" course, helping you understand how to organize your home using the 5s method. I also go through an example of organizing my mom's sewing room. At the end of the course, you will have the option to implement a project and get a "Lean at Home" certification.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I share the 4th module of the free "Lean at home" course, helping you learn about the 8 forms of waste, and how you can spot these wastes in your home process. At the end of the course, you will have the option to implement a project and get a "Lean at Home" certification.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I share the 3rd module of the free "Lean at home" course, giving you ideas about what data to collect, and how to better understand your home processes by creating a process map or spaghetti diagram. 

At the end of the course, you will have the option to implement a project and get a "Lean at Home" certification.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I share the 2nd module of the free "Lean at home" course, giving you ideas about which process at home you could select for your improvement project. At the end of the course, you will have the option to implement a project and get a "Lean at Home" certification.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I share the introductory module of the free "Lean at home" course, explaining why I made this course, and why it's a great starting point for anyone interested in learning and practicing Lean and process improvement methods.

Over the next few weeks, I will upload other modules from the course. But you don't have to wait.

In this episode, I talk about a useful matrix that helps you identify cross-training and skill development opportunities with your team or in your organization. It's called a cross-training matrix, or a skills matrix. Each skill is listed on one side, and each team member is listed on the other side of the matrix. For each combination of skill and person, you determine how much experience they have by filling in a circle (called a harvey ball).

I'm including a link to more details, and an Excel template you can download and use for free.

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In this episode, I rant about the lack of effort some organizations put into their process improvement programs, and then are surprised that it didn't work, and want to blame the tools and methods, not their strategy for deploying it.

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In this episode, I talk about the importance of collecting data in the very beginning before you start an improvement project or initiative. The example I use is measuring how much sleep we get a night, and collecting data to see if the current performance is below a target or goal you have. It might not be as bad as you think, or maybe it's worse than you thought. Collect the data first.

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In this episode, I talk about some other ways to identify waste and opportunity in your process and workday, specifically the tasks that you are not doing, but should be. This proactive work doesn't happen, so you often don't realize that you didn't get around to it. It later shows up as actual waste when something goes wrong or there are problems, but it's too late. Start to notice these proactive activities that you aren't doing as opportunities for improvement.

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In this episode, I go on a little rant about books, and how I estimate there are a lot of unread books in people's homes and offices. I'm considering a challenge to get people to read some of their unread books, or get rid of them and free up space in your home. Would you be interested in this challenge?

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I was asked a question about how to get started applying Lean and Six Sigma to a non-manufacturing business. I thought about some key questions I would want to ask, and sent them a response. I thought they were good questions, so I wanted to share them on the podcast. 

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During a recent coaching call with a client, we discussed applicability of statistical process control (SPC) and control charts (also called process behavior charts) in their operations. I sent them a link to the Honda SPC video (older but highly recommended) and I share the comments I made to elaborate on what they saw. 

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After conducting a Lean 101 webinar for Lean Portland, we had some excellent questions from the attendees, so I thought I share my answers. The first question was looking for advice on how management can support their employees instead of just giving them their idea on what the answers are. The second question asked about how to deal with managers who think that no complaints means no problems. You can watch the full Lean 101 webinar in the links below.

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After conducting a Lean 101 webinar for Lean Portland, we had some excellent questions from the attendees, so I thought I share my answers. The first question was looking for advice on how to make their forms easier and more streamlined for their customers. The second question asked about how to create psychological safety and build trust in their organization when top management doesn't seem to be driving it. You can watch the Lean 101 webinar in the links below.

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After conducting a Lean 101 webinar for Lean Portland, we had some excellent questions from the attendees, so I thought I share my answers. The first question was looking for more explanation about batching vs one piece flow. The second question asked about classical vs lean management methods. You can watch the Lean 101 webinar in the links below.

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Project charters for improvement projects do not have solutions listed. Instead, they should explain the problem, the management support for this project, the key team members, the scope, the timeline and key metrics of success. They should not have the proposed solution, as we shouldn't have that figured out yet. We still need to follow the problem solving approach. I explain my thoughts on this in more depth.

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When describing the methodology of a kaizen or kaikaku event, I often break it up into two main types:

• Working session - traditional approach where 80% of the work is implemented during the 2-5 day event
• Planning session - process mapping approach where the team generates a 90-day action plan during the 2-5 day event

I explain the differences and when to use each type, along with describing how projects and point kaizen (or kaizen blitz/burst activities) fit within these activities.

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A common question I hear is "what if my company doesn't support process improvement?"

I share 4 main approaches you can take to deal with this situation, instead of feeling frustrated by it.

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