Category: Concepts

Have you ever heard someone ask the question, “What’s the odds of that happening?”. Well, that’s the concept of probability. Let’s learn a little more about probability and how it can be used in your organization.  When you start discussing probability with someone else in your organization, you may hear the words deterministic or stochastic. […]

Have you ever waited in a line at the grocery store or bank? The British term for a line is a queue. Queuing theory is the mathematical study of waiting in line. Let’s learn more about this. The British refer to a line as a queue. Queuing theory is the mathematical study of people, objects […]

Is there a real difference between machines? Did what I changed really help? Does a relationship really exist between temperature and pressure? The answers to these questions and others can be provided by the p-value.

In business, it is vital to have a firm grasp on the maximum amount of expenditures a project can allow. This can mean the difference between being profitable or falling into the red. For every project you undertake that requires funds, you need to know how much you can comfortably spend on it. Beyond that, […]

Lean Six Sigma prevention cost analysis (PCA) is an important tool that can help businesses prevent costly mistakes and improve their bottom line.

Understanding process entitlement is essential to Lean Six Sigma practitioners and organization leaders because process entitlement quantifies the best case or optimum process performance without changes to the process.

How do you know if your diet is working? You need to start with a baseline and then measure change from that. You should do the same for all your processes. From that process baseline, you can know whether your process is getting better, worse, or not changing. The term “process baseline” typically refers to […]

The primary metric is a numeric output used to understand your process. It makes the process objective, setting the stage for successful improvements that align with the organization’s strategic goals.

Have you ever accidentally microwaved your face? No? You’ve never opened the microwave door while it was cooking and accidently exposed your face to microwave energy? I know that you haven’t, because whenever you open the door, the microwave stops running. There is a switch that triggers when the door is opened that tells the […]

When you want to replace a part in your car, you should ask whether it is OEM or aftermarket. OEM parts will be the same as the part you are replacing. An aftermarket part may be similar but will not be from the same manufacturer or supplier who originally provided the part. Does it matter? […]

Nothing is perfect, but almost everything can be made better. That’s the basic philosophy behind any optimization strategy. Optimizing is an activity that businesses pursue when they are generally satisfied with the entry criteria and scope of a particular process, but want to further improve the efficiency or reduce output variability. Overview: What is optimization? […]

When you work on a process, there is always a result. These results can be broken down into outputs and outcomes. Whatever you put into your work results in the degree of your output. Your output is dependent on the strength of your input, so it is vitally important to choose the right inputs that […]

There are all kinds of procedures for the many things that people do every single day. Every family household has procedures for basic tasks like putting dishes away, assembling for dinner or getting into the car. Likewise, every place of business has procedures for the essential activities they do on a regular basis. Overview: What […]

Many organizations claim that safety is Job #1. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is an agency in the U.S. Department of Labor which is responsible for ensuring that companies provide safe and healthy work environments for their employees. OSHA stands for Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It is a federal agency of the United […]

Have you ever heard your customer ask, “Why does my job take 10 days when there is only 5 days of actual work?” It may be because the Process Cycle Efficiency (PCE) is low, and there is a lot of waste in the process. PCE will help define how much that waste is.

Many statistical tests have underlying assumptions about the population data. But, what happens if you violate those assumptions? This is when you might need to use a non-parametric test to answer your statistical question. Non-parametric refers to a type of statistical analysis that does not make any assumptions about the underlying probability distribution or population […]

The purpose of Lean Six Sigma is to identify opportunities for improving organizational processes. One of the challenges is the selection of projects for improvement teams to work on. Let’s learn more about how to select impactful projects. Both Lean and Six Sigma projects are used to improve organizational processes. Improvement teams are formed. DMAIC […]

Financial project metrics can be cumbersome to use and jargon-heavy. We demystify and simplify project return on investment, making the concept accessible to all and giving you the confidence to use it in your project management operations.

For any process you collect data on, there will be a signal and some noise. Unfortunately, if the noise is loud enough, it will drown out your signal. Let’s see what we mean by noise and how we can mitigate its impact.

Running a business involves all kinds of expenses. Rent, materials, labor and just keeping the power on all take money, and these costs add up to your total operational expenditures.

Correlation is a statistical term of the relationship between two variables. You can have a negative correlation, positive correlation, or no correlation. Let’s see what a positive correlation is all about.

Complex processes increase the likelihood of error states occurring. Scrap, defects, unnecessary work in progress, and warranty are all expensive. We’ll show you the benefits of adopting the process failure mode and effects analysis approach for your business.

Widely recognized as one of the most prestigious certifications in the industry, PMP validates your knowledge and experience in project management, opening up new opportunities for career advancement and higher salaries. Overview: What is Project Management Professional (PMP) Project Management Professional (PMP) is a globally recognized professional certification that is granted by the Project Management […]

Objective evidence is factual, unbiased data that can be observed and measured. Let’s explore its importance in your Six Sigma practices.