Category: Blogs

The interviewer asked me: “What is your proudest project accomplishment?” I’m sure she wanted to hear about traditional success measures like millions of dollars saved, cycle time decreased or customer satisfaction increased. I blurted out – my preschool! While it most likely cost me the interview, that moment reminded me of other important problems we solve. Like […]

I enjoyed taking the Washington State Ferry across Puget Sound from Bainbridge Island today, then driving to Kirkland (East Seattle) to attend Minitab‘s statistics training session. As advertised, Minitab delivered: [div4 class=”approved2″ class2=”module-icon”]Learn to use Minitab Statistical Software to analyze your project data by attending Minitab Training in Seattle, WA March 19-23, 2012. The hands-on […]

Gold’s recent run on Wall Street made me think about what makes businesses valuable. Gold represents an investment; business invests its capital into tools, equipment and facilities. Conjuring up thoughts of gold I imagined someone grabbing a cloth and physically shining up some jewelry or a gold bar. I chuckled. Who shines a gold bar? But who […]

Data collection is in full swing – be a part of the fun and create or update an iSixSigma Job Shop account today. In appreciation of your participation, everyone who creates or update a Job Shop account between Feb 13-Mar 2, 2012 will receive a free copy of the final report! Some interesting facts from past […]

Every Six Sigma project and Lean event goes exactly as planned right? There are many reasons for detours during your project journey; unfortunately, many of these are unpredictable. As much as we try to avoid these pitfalls by following established methodologies or hiring experienced project management personnel, it remains clear that some of the best […]

It is time for iSixSigma’s 9th annual Global Six Sigma Salary Survey! Every year iSixSigma analyzes information in its Job Shop database to produce a Six Sigma-specific salary report.   Please note: Although the data is pulled from our Job Shop, it is only presented in aggregated or summarized format; no personally identifying information is […]

I was recently asked if I was aware of any research on the advantages of hiring people with a “Lean mindset” vs. those with specific industry experience. My response was, regretfully, that I did not know of any documented research. I was then asked, would I prefer that my company hire people with a “Lean […]

I was recently asked, “What is the most efficient way to communicate change throughout the value stream?” What I am about to propose does not need to take the place of other methods to communicate change. Historically, email, newsletters, video or updating policies all have had their place. I have had good experiences using a […]

As a career operations professional, many of my friends understand that I see process flows in nearly everything I encounter. Some friends find this entertaining, others find it a bit annoying. But mostly they allow me to exercise (not exorcise) my craft. You see, I was born of operational parents. I’m not sure if it […]

Michael Cyger is on a roll with videos about the new iSixSigma.com – he’s posted a new one on how to use your iSixSigma profile. If you have any questions about how to upload your avatar (I needed help with the cropping feature), learn what’s contributing to your reputation, add your bio and more, this is […]

In this video, I walk you through the new iSixSigma.com website, how to use the site, the features, functionality and special areas you might want to investigate further.

Welcome to iSixSigma.com Version 4.0! I am excited to announce the launch of iSixSigma.com, Version 4.0, after purchasing back iSixSigma on November 7th. In this short video, I describe some of the new features and exciting updates we’ve made to this version of iSixSigma. Next Video: How to Use iSixSigma.com »

Readers will again have access to the best Six Sigma, Lean and operational excellence resources as well as more ways to share, learn and discover Bainbridge Island, Wash (PRWEB) November 08, 2011: iSixSigma.com, the leading online community and resource portal dedicated to Six Sigma, Lean and other operational excellence methodologies, is back under the ownership […]

As I travel the country for Auburn University, assisting companies with lean implementations, one of the first signs of resistance occurs during the discussion of standards. Just last week, a supervisor said, “the operators feel like standards are painting them into a corner and don’t allow room for dealing with problems.” When I hear this […]

Greetings! This is my first blog for iSixSigma. By way of introduction, I’m on the outreach faculty of Auburn University where I support local industry with leadership coaching and lean implementation services. I look forward to sharing the common goal of continuous improvement and daily learning! As most of you know, Alabama was hit with […]

I was running outside in the back country on a beautiful morning. It reminded me of the summer days when I was training for marathons with groups of runners. Those were some most memorable days I ever had, a lot of hard work, sweat, pain, but also full of fun. What does it have to […]

One week to go. That’s about all the time you have left to take part in the 2011 iSixSigma’s Best Places to Work™ for Six Sigma Professionals event. A week may seem like a lot of time, but we all know how fast these summer days can fly by. The deadline for submitting your nomination […]

Isn’t it amazing how there’s “the next big thing” everyday? Headlines from blogs, sales websites, newspapers, even Twitter and LinkedIn, carry this headline continuously. How many of these “things” really are new? Years ago when I started my continuous improvement journey, I read about Deming and Juran. Quality Circles and SPC were big. Then Total […]

When you think of the world’s most efficient and successful performance and supply chains, what comes to mind? For many, large corporate giants like Dell, Wal-Mart and Coca-Cola instantly pop into our heads. But few, if any, would think a cultural structure and meal delivery system in Mumbai, India, would be among the world’s most […]

“Before cars, make people.” – Eiji Toyoda, former chairman of Toyota. Jidoka is one of the core principles of the Toyota Production System, one that empowers production workers to stop the assembly line and solve problems at the moment they occur. Jidoka integrates the two guiding pillars of the Toyota Way, “Continuous Improvement” and “Respect […]

Voice of the customer, often qualitative in nature, may appear simple. But identifying the right customers and their needs, in my opinion, is exceedingly challenging in practice.

In these difficult economic times it is vital now more than ever that organizational leadership understand and implement the best defense against all types of waste. Value added analysis and percentage increases to the overall value added activity must be among the top measurements for all employees. Non-value activities need to be reduced and cultural […]

Let’s start off by defining Lean manufacturing. Lean (as described on multiple on-line resources) is described as a production practice that focuses on the elimination of wasteful elements in all process to increase the value to the customer. Sounds great! What organization wouldn’t want to implement a program to eliminate waste? The problem is that […]

Got best practices? If you’ve been attending (or separately purchasing components of) the iSixSigma “Best of the Best” Webinar Series, you are on your way. These hour-long sessions deliver process improvement secrets from some of the world’s most respected companies. The first two sessions in the series featured best practices from MoneyGram International (“MoneyGram’s Transformation […]