Articles

All Quiet on the change front

All Quiet on the Change Front

Change Management and its importance cannot be dismissed. Even the human resources who are the foundation of change management cannot be dismissed as well. Lack of human resources would result in lack of execution that damages the purpose of change management. It is important for the management to understand that human resource must be well […]

View More

US Army Adopting Lean Six Sigma

US Army Adopting Lean Six Sigma

US army is building the principles of business transformation into its workforce introduced by Lean Six Sigma (LSS). The US army is doing this to make available resources for the personnel engaged in military operations along with providing the soldiers with necessary equipment quickly. Around 1,400 leaders in the US army have received training for […]

View More

Pied Pipers

The Pied Pipers of Change Management

Back in the thirteenth century, in the German town of Hamelin, when the Pied Piper played his pipe, all within hearing range chose to follow him, no matter where he chose to go, or so the legend goes. So, too, effective leaders must possess, a Pied Piper-like ”magic”, that enables them to call the tune […]

View More

culture, leadership, six sigma, lean six sigma, 6sigma.us

Culture: Creating An Environment of Sustainment

Is it the culture of your organization that is blocking sustainment? Most will tell you that one of the biggest challenges in implementing a 5S strategy is capturing the elusive element of Sustain. An effective 5S process is built around the elements of Sort, Set In Order, Shine, Standardize and Sustain. Quality leaders are typically very […]

View More

Six Sigma Leadership

Six Sigma Leadership – The Efficient Way

Six Sigma Leadership Six Sigma is a strategy used in business management and is extensively applied in many industrial sectors across the globe. Motorola is the original creator of Six Sigma. It has achieved great repute for the ability to produce tremendous performance improvements. In terms of implementation, a few firms understand its advantages. Over […]

View More

innovation, value, quality, 6sigma.us

Innovation: Where Is The Value?

Where is the value of innovation? If you ask business leaders to define value, you are going to get a dizzying variety of answers. Why is it so hard to define the term? Value means different things to different people. The definition depends on what they see as value in their organization. Finding value is […]

View More

Game Plan

What’s the Game Plan?

Browse through any management book these days and you’ll be amazed at the number of concepts that have appeared in the last decade: SWOT analysis, business process re-engineering, CRM, competitive advantage, analysis tools, fix-it tools and measuring tools. One frequently used (and overused) term is strategic planning. Look at any mid-size to large corporation, and […]

View More

conflict resolution, lean six sigma, 6sigma.us

Conflict: Managing At The Top

Conflict is a natural human condition. That conflict naturally occurs in the business environment. Just like in personal relationships, conflict in business relationships can become a destructive force. This is especially destructive when that conflict occurs between top leaders or the founders of an organization. That negative energy and environment can take a wildly successful […]

View More

Lean Six Sigma Tools

What are the different Lean Six Sigma Tools?

Tools play a very important role in Lean Six Sigma, as their use help in obtaining cost, speed as well as leaps in quality. Very much like Six Sigma, the DMAIC model is used to make improvements. Today we will look into the tools used in Lean Six Sigma: SIPOC: The full form of this […]

View More

Quality Function Development, QFD, lean six sigma, lean six sigma tools, 6sigma.us

Quality Function Development (QFD): Translating Customer Demands

Can you get a better understanding of customer demands using the Quality Function Development (QFD) process? Understanding the true needs of the customer can be a touchy process. Typically, business tends to focus on the negatives. Their operational focus is like putting out fires, responding to negative feedback and complaints. Wouldn’t it be nice to […]

View More

The Cold Shoulder

The Cold Shoulder

Back in the good old days, companies that were persistently conservative and resisted change were handsomely rewarded. Stalwarts like General Motors, Procter and Gamble and Sears Roebuck were empires unto themselves; they tapped their resources to ward off change or to avoid it altogether. This strategy used to work. Not anymore. Change – like death […]

View More

lean six sigma training, lean six sigma, training, development, career, 6sigma.us

Lean Six Sigma Training: Continuous Building, Continuous Training

Are you getting it right with Lean Six Sigma training? No matter where you are at in your professional development, you can never stop! Success is about continuous improvement through continuous building. Look around you and you will see that people who are achieving high levels of success are continuously and deliberately working on self-development […]

View More

The More Things Change

The More Things Change…

“…the more things remain the same.” As they gathered around the salad bar, one employee said, “that must be the umpteenth announcement this month.” One of the senior employees smiled. “Don’t worry. It’s all talk. There’s never any follow-through. Trust me, I’ve been here long enough. Things will NEVER change around here.” We remembered conversations […]

View More

ISO 9000

Process Change? Think ISO 9000!

In their haste to implement changes, a few companies fail to consider ISO 9000. They think that it is a technical standard to be reckoned with and that only certain industries must comply. But for the experienced, the Switzerland-based International Standards Organization (ISO) must occupy a prominent place in company policy and strategy, especially when […]

View More

gantt chart, lean six sigma, lean, six sigma, lean six sigma tools, leadership, tools, 6sigma.us

Gantt Chart: Charting a Path to Success

Understanding the value of Lean Six Sigma tools is crucial to a practitioner. With a busy practice, keeping up with and accurately tracking the exact location and status of projects is crucial. The Gantt Chart is traditionally display as a bar chart. It shows the tasks of a project, when each must take place and how […]

View More

leadership failure, leadership, lean six sigma, six sigma, business, ceo, management , 6sigma.us

Leadership Failure: Are You Stumbling?

Understanding the Trap Leadership failure can happen more often than you think. According to a recent survey, over 40% of new Chief Executive Officers (CEO) fail within their first 18 months. That is a very powerful statement! Newly hired CEO’s enter the arena with confidence and attitude that is success focused. They wouldn’t have gotten […]

View More

leadership, business, project manager, six sigma, lean six sigma, 6sigma.us

Leadership: Developing the Essentials

Are You Preparing? Leadership is often misunderstood. Often times, people define leaders as those appointed to positions of authority above them. It is expected that if you hold a position of authority, then you are a leader. Those same people then follow those in positions above them, with sometimes reluctant obedience. They see that their […]

View More

Risk Assessment

FMEA: Failure Mode and Effect Analysis – Risk Assessment

Need for Failure Assessment Traditionally, a lot of emphasis was placed on designing a product. Those who planned ahead of time were given a pat on the back. Then, most of the effort was positioned towards manufacturing the product. Lastly, the product was checked for any defects or areas where quality was compromised. This cycle […]

View More

Barriers to Radical Change

Barriers to Radical Change – Six Sigma is Here to Help You

When considering the many barriers to change efforts, a leader can become overwhelmed and easily frustrated. However, most of these barriers can be categorized into three areas, making them seem, perhaps, more manageable. These three categories include cognition, motivation, and obligations. Cognition deals with the way people think. It is understandable that many people hold […]

View More

Product Branding

Product Branding: With a Little Help from Six Sigma

There is no dearth of advice and wisdom from marketers when it comes to product branding. Open the business section of your newspaper or surf to a marketing site and you’re bound to come across articles on the subject. We’re not sure though if anyone has discussed product branding within the framework of Six Sigma. […]

View More