Category: Concepts

Understanding Thulla and Its Impact on Team Dynamics
Updated:When workers lack motivation, this can be incredibly frustrating. There can be a temptation to address these frustrations using terms that one has heard elsewhere. Take care to keep criticism constructive, to be very aware of how certain terms are used culturally, and to avoid them if they could be inappropriate. When workers have used […]
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Enhancing Data Visualization Through Stratification
Updated:Webster’s dictionary defines stratification as: formed, deposited, or arranged in stable layers or strata. Thatโs interesting, but how does it apply to Six Sigma? Letโs find out.
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Add Business Value to Your Organization with Total Productive Maintenance
Updated:If your machines are not working, you canโt produce products for your customers. Your customers will likely not remain your customers for very long. Letโs see how Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) can keep your equipment up and running. Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is a maintenance strategy aimed at maximizing the productivity of equipment, machines, and […]
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Stem and Leaf Plot
Updated:It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words. You can also say a picture of your data is worth a thousand words. The stem and leaf plot is one such picture.ย
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SWOT Analysis: Gaining a Competitive Edge in Business Strategy
Updated:As competitive and market pressure increases, business strategic planning becomes ever more crucial. Using SWOT analysis, we investigate the factors that allow us to plot a path to continued growth and profitability.
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The Advantages of Using a Strategic Planning Process in Your Organization
Updated:Strategic planning is a formal, organized, proactive and structured process used by an organization to define its vision, goals, and objectives. The process of strategic planning also includes planning for, and the allocation of the resources needed to reach the stated goals and objectives of the organization. It is the roadmap for achieving your organizationโs […]
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Systems Engineering: Key to Successful Projects
Updated:Over one-third of projects will fail, and two-thirds will only achieve some of their goals. It is estimated that a lack of proper systems engineering is responsible for half of all total project failures. In order to help ensure that your projects do not wind up falling short, it is important to include systems engineering. […]
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The Importance of Identifying Subject Matter in Six Sigma Projects
Updated:In order to understand the world of Lean Six Sigma and the terminology that goes along with it, you need to know what subject matter is. It’s important because this is where you can start your project and determine if there are any areas for improvement or if anything needs fixing. By looking at subject […]
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T-test
Published:A t-test is a statistical tool used to determine whether a significant difference exists between the means of two distributions or the mean of one distribution and a target value.
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Solving Problems at Their Core: The Power of Root Cause Identification
Updated:The root cause is the true factor that leads to a condition or non-conformance. Let’s look at how root cause compares to symptoms, the benefits of attending to a root cause, and some common tools you can use to uncover the root cause.
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Using Subgrouping to Monitor Process Performance
Updated:When you speak of subgrouping, it is usually in the context of constructing a control chart. Letโs explore the topic in a little more detail. Subgrouping is a technique used in control charts to group data into smaller, more manageable sets or subgroups. The purpose of subgrouping is to increase the sensitivity of the control […]
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Understanding Supply Chain Management: The Key to Efficient Business Processes
Updated:No company is an island. Virtually every business process relies on different types of input, often in the form of physical supplies, that it does not generate internally. The concept of supply chain management (SCM) revolves around controlling and adapting to the way inputs flow into the process and outputs flow out of it. Overview: […]
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Improving Process Efficiency with Statistical Process Control
Updated:Do you want to know whether your process is in control or not? Statistical Process Control, or SPC, is the tool you want to learn about, so letโs get started.ย
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Improving Accuracy with Sampling: Techniques and Strategies
Updated:When doing statistical analysis, it is impractical and often impossible to gather all the available data. That is when you would seek to sample the data to analyze it and make decisions about your process. In statistics, a sample refers to a group of individuals, objects, or events that are selected from a larger population […]
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Regression Analysis as a Tool for Process Improvement
Updated:In the Analyze phase of DMAIC, you will want to identify possible independent or predictor variables to help explain the relationship with your response or dependent variables. Correlation is a statistical tool to establish the strength of the relationship between your independent and dependent variables. Regression is used to predict your response variable as a […]
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Software Inspection Plans: Benefits and Drawbacks
Updated:Software inspection requires thorough examination in order to be sure that it is safe for release. In order to successfully and reliably conduct such an examination, a plan is required. Overview: What is a software inspection plan? A software inspection plan is a formalized process of inspecting software for any issues. The typical steps involved […]
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Understanding the Response Variable
Updated:The dictionary defines a response as a reaction to something. A response variable would be defined as the reaction or effect on a dependent variable as a result of an experimental manipulation of independent variables.ย Response variable When discussing Design of Experiments (DOE) and Regression, you can talk about independent variables, also known as the […]
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Reengineering: A Methodology to Create a More Efficient Organization
Updated:In the spirit of continuous improvement, re-engineering is the process by which you can identify, analyze, and re-design your organization’s core business processes for the purpose of achieving improvements in critical performance measures. Reengineering, also known as business process reengineering (BPR), is a methodology that focuses on the fundamental redesign of business processes to achieve […]
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Sufficiency: Achieving More with Less for Improved Outcomes
Updated:In today’s fast-paced business environment, organizations are constantly looking for ways to improve efficiency, cut costs, and optimize their operations. Lean Six Sigma is a methodology that has been widely adopted by companies in various industries to achieve these goals. One of the key concepts in Lean Six Sigma is sufficiency. Overview: what is sufficiency, […]
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The Role of Takt Time in Meeting Customer Demand
Updated:The customer just placed a new order requesting 100 widgets by the end of the week. If we keep producing at our current rate, will our cycle time be able to provide the parts in time? What is the rate we must produce the widgets to meet their deadline? Well, that rate has a name, […]
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Spaghetti Diagram
Published:The shortest distance between two places is a straight line. Unfortunately, you canโt alway do that in your work environment. Letโs see how a spaghetti diagram might help visualize how things move through your workplace.ย
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Statistical Thinking: A Framework for Strategic Business Improvement
Updated:In 1903, famed writer H.G. Wells first described the importance of mathematical analysis. Samuel Wilks, in 1951, paraphrased Wells and developed this famous quote: โStatistical thinking will one day be as necessary for efficient citizenship as the ability to read and write.โ Letโs see why he said that.
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Mastering Six Sigma: A Closer Look at Six Sigma Body of Knowledge
Updated:So much to learn, and so little time to do it. The Six Sigma Body of Knowledge (SSBOK) is a collection of the tools and methodology of Six Sigma and serves as the base for most Six Sigma training and certifications.
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Standard Deviation: A Key Concept in Inferential Statistics
Updated:More often than not, itโs the variation in a process rather than the central tendency that results in defective products, causes us to not meet customer expectations, or costs real dollars. While there are others, standard deviation is the most common metric for quantifying the variation in a dataset.
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