What are the elements of your continuous improvement program? How are they integrated? Or are they expected to be done separately without much guidance on what to do, leaving a complex approach with endless meetings? As a result, is your organization too focused on the problem-solving process rather than being more focused on obtaining solutions? [...]
There is no doubt that many top financial institutions have embraced some form of Lean Six Sigma. As an exercise we went to Indeed.com in order to get a snapshot of what the demand for jobs might be. Accordingly, we looked at job notices on Indeed for six top financial institutions. J.P. Morgan Goldman Sachs [...]
First, let’s review the objectives of each DMAIC step. D: Define (Establish project purpose and scope, background on process and customer) M: Measure (Quantify existing process performance) A: Analyze (Determine ways to eliminate or reduce the gap between current performance and project goals) I: Improve (Evaluate, select, and implement chosen solution) C: Control (Institutionalize the [...]
Simpson's paradox occurs when a trend appears in several different groups of data but disappears or reverses when the data from these groups are combined. In this video, Guillaume Riesen, currently a Ph.D. student in neuroscience at Stanford University, gives examples of how combining data from two disparate groups can lead to a different and [...]
How well do your inspectors agree with one another? How well do they agree with a standard? What about people who review documents? How would several reviewers rate the same document? Do they agree with one another? These are just several of the situations where Attribute Agreement would answer these questions. In this simple video, [...]
Do you have a problem with an objective to maximize, minimize, or perhaps you want to hit a target value? Is achieving your objective based on the provision of several resources for which there are constraints? Then you have an optimization problem on your hands, which requires mathematical programming. But don’t worry. You most likely [...]
In 2009, the City of Irving, Texas published a video on how they used Six Sigma principles to make their water utility department more efficient. While this video was made years ago, it is worth watching because you hear from the actual workers and their thoughts about Six Sigma and its benefits for their work. [...]
Error Proofing, Mistake Proofing, or in Japanese Poka-Yoke. Shigeo Shingo developed Poka-Yoke while working for Toyota. Poka-Yoke is first and foremost the prevention of an error before it could have occurred. That is, you cannot do it wrong. It can only be done one way. A three-prong plug can only be inserted one way. Baring [...]
In this video from Innovation Tutorials, learn how to know your customers better and design products and services for them through the Kano Model. Noriaki Kano, currently Professor Emeritus at Tokyo University and Board Director at Komatsu, Ltd. developed his model in 1984. He recognized that customers have conscious requirements and unconscious wants when buying [...]
Six Sigma methodology has transformed many industries, helping them achieve new heights. The methodology can help a business continuously strive for excellence in all its endeavors and processes. It does so by providing the tools to identify bottlenecks and the ways to remove those for maximal efficiency. The methodology improves quality and minimizes the variability [...]
