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Time management is a common sore spot among many Six Sigma practitioners. The typical complaint: “I spend most of my time on my day-to-day responsibilities – my Six Sigma projects – and then my personal life suffers.” The question is: How can practitioners best manage all of their tasks and priorities? While time cannot be […]

Product Manager, Transportation Information Services (PM TIS) is an Army program under the auspices of the Program Executive Office, Enterprise Information Systems (PEO EIS). The PM TIS organization includes the Customer Service Center (CSC) which is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to answer questions and resolve issues related to software that […]

Imagine for a moment that your Six Sigma project does not have the rigorous measurement system you would like it to have, and you have to calculate your primary metric from a few inputs instead of measuring it directly. Or perhaps you are designing a new product and want to understand how the variability in […]

Smarter Solutions CEO, Forrest Breyfogle, Receives Crosby Medal at the ASQ World Conference

Emagia CEO to Present on Driving Six Sigma Quality in Receivables Management at National Association of Credit Management

Making the decision to bring Six Sigma into an organization is the first step on a long journey. Although this decision has proven successful for a variety of industries (including healthcare), the best-laid plans may go awry if the focus is solely on the technical side, without considering the cultural and communication aspects of the […]

Testing a software product to remove hidden defects is an integral part of the software development life cycle (SDLC). Yet it is well accepted that running a software product through every possible scenario to check for defects is not just difficult, but usually impossible. The enormous cost and huge effort required is simply too much. […]

GAGEpack® Release Features Enhanced Measurement Systems Analysis

When it comes to managing supplier quality, many people immediately think of controlling the quality of incoming raw materials as they enter a process. However, as companies look to shed their non-core business processes by relying on other specialized firms to perform the work, suppler quality takes on a much broader meaning. Supplier quality incorporates […]

A common problem encountered in Lean, Six Sigma and TQM implementation is performance deterioration after the completion and handover of a breakthrough improvement. This can happen despite installation of control mechanisms to monitor ongoing performance. In this case study, a financial services company with a national sales network had already begun addressing concerns about its […]

In a recent speech to a local chapter of the American Society for Quality, the speaker stated that in a typical work site as many as 15 percent of the employees actively work to subvert the goals of the organization. Their activities obviously have a negative effect on the clients of the organization and the […]

KJ Analysis is a method of developing insight into themes and relationships among issues. It helps drill from high-level issues at one level of context (usually abstract or vague) to a more detailed set of common, reusable statements. KJ is particularly useful in software because people have a tendency to state problems as abstract characteristics […]

“We’re the largest company you’ve never heard of.” That description of McKesson Corp. by Master Black Belt Bob Gooby underscores the relative anonymity of the organization that is the largest – and also the oldest – healthcare services company in the United States. McKesson has been providing medical products for more than 175 years, yet […]

Six Sigma project metrics are typically taught in detail during Black Belt and Green Belt training classes. But the inconsistent use of these metrics after training can lead to lost opportunities and rework after a project ends. Using project metrics consistently brings enormous clarity to the impact and benefit of a Six Sigma project and […]

Nearly all medium and large companies spend hundreds of thousands, if not millions, on customer surveys every year. Customer survey results are used to amend strategies, design new products and services, and focus improvement activities. Gathering customer data is only the first step. The second step involves making best use of the data – analyzing […]

iSixSigma Live! Now Accepting Nominations for 2010 Awards

The late Bill Smith, widely regarded as the “Father of Six Sigma,” was inducted into iSixSigma’s Six Sigma Hall of Fame during a ceremony at the iSixSigma Live! Summit & Awards in Miami this past January. Smith was the first honoree to the Hall, which will welcome new members annually at the event. The Six […]

MoreSteam.com Announces Creation of Support Portal for Honda Lean Network

While working in environments where costly statistical software is not easily accessible across the organization, an Excel-based Pareto chart is a practical alternative. Follow these straightforward steps to build a Pareto chart that can be updated with a click of a button.

The Quality Group Announces Next LSS/CPI Blended e-Learning ‘Before and After’ Webinar

Information Technology Applications in Lean Systems

Lean Six Sigma Shares Innovation with DoD Components

Many organizations use surveys to gather information and data in order to learn more about their customers. While it is important to ensure that surveys are targeted to the right audience, confidence in the development and implementation of a survey is even more vital. To prepare a successful survey, practitioners should follow nine basic steps; […]

Systems thinking studies how parts of a structure interrelate to form an overall system. For example, the human body is a system – and so too are healthcare organizations and the healthcare industry in general. By adopting a systems mindset that supersedes individual functions and departments, practitioners can complete strategic value analysis based on internal and […]

A data set with a physical limit – such as time, which has a lower bound of zero – often cannot be transformed using the usual tools for non-normal data. To determine process capability and perform further statistical analysis, use the standard deviation calculated as if the data were not truncated, along with a correction factor.

The need to deploy a continuous improvement (CI) program is greater than ever. In the global financial meltdown, companies must find ways to produce goods and services cheaper, faster and better, while continuously delighting customers. In an effort to catch up, companies may be tempted to launch extensive training programs or start multiple improvement projects […]

Practitioners who think process mapping can be completed in a two-hour session with a group of subject matter experts, a white board and some sticky notes are likely to end up with a nice piece of paper with a bunch of squares and diamonds. This is because process mapping is not for wimps. Creating a […]

“McKesson’s strong Six Sigma culture and high employee job satisfaction proved to be their strongest points,” said Michael Marx, research manager for iSixSigma and the person who developed the matrix for measuring best places.

Call for Speakers: iSixSigma Live! Energy Forum for Process Excellence in Houston, May 2009

Practitioners should reach a strong understanding of the original Japanese 5S method so they will be able to educate others about it in a way that will garner employee buy-in and achieve the best results in helping their firm become more organized.

Customer complaints, known in the VOC process as reactive data, may be difficult to hear, but they are valuable information for an organization to track. They usually represent many unspoken issues, and can be used to take needed improvement action.

For companies hoping to groom future leaders, a two- or three-year Black Belt tenure can serve as a key testing ground. Therefore, it is important to select the right Belt candidates, provide them with proper training and assess their performance.

Linking DMAIC process measures to rewards as part of an annual employee objectives and appraisal process is a step often taken imprudently. It can create distortions in how the business processes are run and how Belts approach their work.

There is a synergistic relationship between enterprise risk management and Six Sigma. The continuous improvement methodology assists leadership in managing both the operations of the organization and the inherent risk associated with it.

Testing

A Six Sigma approach to marketing may be the missing piece in the marketing accountability movement. By selecting a target audience and positioning their messages to those people, marketers can become more effective while saving on cost.

Many scale production enterprises face high inventory costs as the current worldwide financial crisis has led to a significant production volume drop. This problem of high inventory cost of key materials can be approached with Lean and Six Sigma.

PowerSteering Announces Upcoming Webcast: ‘Merck Sigma – A Prescription for Corporate Health’

A SIPOC (suppliers, inputs, process, outputs, customers) diagram is a standard part of most Six Sigma projects for good reason: It helps a team to pose and answer important questions about customers, suppliers, requirements and dependencies. In many cases a SIPOC table and a simple process map can go a long way in discovering the […]

Some practitioners mistakenly believe that it is not necessary to transform data before creating an individuals control chart when the underlying process distribution response is not normal. An individuals control chart, however, is not robust to non-normally distributed data. Therefore, it is important to use an alternate control charting approach. Necessary Transformation Consider a hypothetical […]

The question is simple: What type of projects should a Black Belt be conducting or considering? There are only so many hours in a day. And there is an abundance of demands, requirements and deadlines, coupled with ever-present and growing resource constraints. Black Belts are expected to complete projects that save money, as well as […]

Christopher Paret Joins MoreSteam.com

Six Sigma Corporate Recruiting Now Offered by iSixSigma

iSixSigma’s 2004 Salary Survey for Six Sigma Professionals: Worldwide This section of iSixSigma’s 2004 Salary Survey for Six Sigma Professionals provides an overview of the average salaries worldwide. Salaries for Black Belts (BB), Master Black Belts (MBB), Champions (CH) and Deployment Leaders (DL) are broken down by levels of education and experience, as well as […]

iSixSigma’s 2004 Salary Survey for Six Sigma Professionals: U.S./Canada This section of iSixSigma’s 2004 Salary Survey for Six Sigma Professionals provides an overview of the average salaries in United States/Canada. Salaries for Black Belts (BB), Master Black Belts (MBB), Champions (CH) and Deployment Leaders (DL) are broken down by levels of education and experience, as […]

Six Sigma is a data-driven approach for eliminating defects in any process. The use of data is a key foundation of Six Sigma. Yet, when Six Sigma is being implemented organization-wide, the use of data diminishes, almost to the point of disappearing.

In the Six Sigma methodology, the equation Y = f(x) shows that the output (Y) is dependent on several variables (x). The same can be said about cycle times for process improvement projects. The correct variables mean improved project cycle times.

Launch of iSixSigma Conferences and iSixSigma Magazine

A lengthy and inefficient process for discharging in-patients is a common concern of hospitals, as well as patients and their families. A solution to that problem can be found in the application of Lean Six Sigma methodology.

An internal audit by a team using Lean Six Sigma tools solved the mystery of what happened to about $1 million of a liquid chemical “misplaced” at a global chemical company. Case study shows how the team used a Kaizen event and DMAIC methodology.