What I Learned About Lean Six Sigma

Author: Pat Boutier (Shingo Prize Winning Author, Certified TWI and Coach, and retired TMACer) Welcome to the Musings of a Retired LSS TMACer! I have had the privilege to learn, experiment, and work with Lean Six Sigma over the past 16 years. Over that time, I have learned much and wanted to share a few … Read more

Overcoming Bias (Presentation)

A Core Skill for Effective Data Collection Program Manager and Master Black Belt Russ Aikman was a presenter at the 19th Annual Lean Six Sigma World Conference. The event was held virtually and provides advances learning for Lean Six Sigma practitioners. Below is the PowerPoint presentation used: Russ Aikman’s presentation from the 2021 Lean Six … Read more

Lean Six Sigma in Healthcare: A Case Study

Author: Eduardo Amezcua, Lean Consultant, Shingo Facilitator, and Black Belt Most examples of Lean Six Sigma projects involve manufacturing processes. This is mainly because it was developed in that environment. But LSS is a methodology that works well in a variety of industries. It is increasingly being used in healthcare to improve quality of care … Read more

The $10,000 Paper Clip

Author: Kurt Middelkoop
Recently I was facilitating an E3 (Economy, Energy, Environmental) workshop with a local company. We spent time learning about lean and how to identify value and non-value add activities. After covering these basics I lead the group out of the classroom to conduct a Gemba walk so they could put the lessons learned to practice. As all LSS practitioners know, direct observation of work activities is fundamental to lean.
Read More…

Better Facility Design Using DMAIC

Author: Rodney Reddic The greatest opportunity to eliminate and/or reduce waste in a production facility is the upfront design and planning of the facility. From a construction cost standpoint, it is about as inexpensive to construct a well-planned facility as to implement a poorly planned one. Decisions made during the factory planning and design stage … Read more

Don’t Be A Gunslinger

Author: Pat Boutier (Shingo Prize Winning Author, Certified TWI and Coach) Have you ever experienced the ‘rush’ of discovering the solution to a problem then implementing the change? If you’re reading this blog I’m sure you have. Solving a problem and getting it right does lead to good feelings. For many belts once the solution … Read more

The 7 Habits Revisited – Part 2

In Part 1 of this blog I wrote about the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Written by Stephen R. Covey (1932-2012) in 1989, this extremely popular self-help book has sold more than 25 million copies. I feel strongly that Covey’s ideas can be adapted by Lean Six Sigma practitioners at all levels … Read more