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Subir Chowdhury - Quality is a Mindset

Quality is a Mindset: Interview With Subir Chowdhury

Six Sigma professionals focus on quality to achieve their success. When that focus becomes a true ‘mindset’ then results become significant and long lasting. If you look at any sales organization, ‘mindset’ for success is required for any true sales professional. The Six Sigma professional must have that same vision and drive. We can either […]

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nurse caring for patient

As Six Sigma Heals Healthcare, We Must Keep Patient Care in First Place

Six Sigma continues to inject health into the healthcare system. More than ever, hospitals are seeing the need to engage with a Six Sigma program. These programs are providing significant improvements in quality and reductions in operating costs. Of course, the best results from a healthcare perspective have been improvements in patient satisfaction. The problem […]

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Six Sigma - Manufacturing Sector DFSS

The Lean Six Sigma Influence in Manufacturing

The influence of Lean and Six Sigma continues be show robust growth and influence across all segments of the manufacturing sector during 2015. According to a recent industry survey, 71% of the participants are utilizing the 5S methodology, which is the highest rate reported in five years. The significance of these results cannot be overstated, […]

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army lean six sigma

Go Army! Earns 10 Lean Six Sigma Excellence Awards

Nothing could speak higher of a nation or a process like this achievement! Ten units of the US Army earned awards for excellence in Lean Six Sigma programs. The units were recognized for excellence in streamlining business operations and saving the service millions of dollars. You may ask yourself why the Army even needs Six […]

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LEAN Day at the Hospital

A LEAN Day at the Hospital

A dozen people gather for their early morning meeting. The noise of the hustle and bustle of the normal hospital operations fade as the door closes and they settle in to the task at hand. The gathered group represents all specialties of service within the hospital (nurses, nursing assistants, housekeepers, and maintenance and support staff). […]

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Value of Lean Six Sigma in Manufacturing

What is the Value of Lean Six Sigma in Manufacturing?

Do we really understand the value of these two methodologies? Two methodologies? Really? Yes, Lean and Six Sigma are two separate methodologies. They are commonly combined in discussion, and the roles are not clearly differentiated. Each methodology has tremendous value alone, but combined, they can be a powerful tool in any business setting. Let’s talk […]

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Lean Six Sigma Healthcare

Is Lean Six Sigma Changing Healthcare?

At one point about 20 years ago, there were no books, conferences or curriculum dedicated to Lean Six Sigma in Healthcare. Now, the tools abound and seem to be flourishing. We are now seeing that the methodology is alive and well in healthcare, which is a significant change from when it was first introduced two […]

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Lean Six Sigma: Strengthen Your Business with Confidence

How long have you been trying to find a way to improve the processes that you use to operate your business? As a CEO, you have been trying to eliminate the non-value added work, which wastes time and productivity. You thought you found a solution and “fixed” a problem or process, just to find you […]

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Five Reasons to Implement Kaizen in Non-Manufacturing

Kaizen is a proven performance improvement tool. Adopted from modern Japanese manufacturers, like Toyota, Kaizen generates breakthrough improvements quickly, without huge capital investments and/or extensive commitments of employ time. Kaizen is an efficient, effective technique for producing change in manufacturing operations. Kaizen improves performance in non-manufacturing situations as well. Ideal for a wide variety of […]

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Promising Careers in Lean Six Sigma

If you’re looking for a job – any job – in the Six Sigma field, stop and look elsewhere. If you’re looking for a career – a real Six Sigma career – then by all means aim high! When you do find a position that will enable you to apply Lean Six Sigma principles and be part of […]

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Implementing A Kaizen Event in Non-Manufacturing

Variety distinguishes manufacturers from non-manufacturers. Manufacturers dislike too much variety. They want to stamp out products quickly and efficiently because they’re focused on fulfilling customer demand. The more variety they have, the more production slows. The more production slows, the longer it takes for the manufacturer’s products to reach the customer. Non-manufacturers absorb variety. They […]

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Is 5S Implementation At All Possible in Non-manufacturing?

It is no wonder that the service industries sometimes feel disoriented in the world of management-speak regarding business improvement. There is so much jargon floating around – ‘Six Sigma’, ‘5S’, ‘Kaizen’, ‘JIT’, ‘Kanban’ and so on. They do not commonly realize that these concepts are often as applicable to them as to the manufacturing sector. […]

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Kaizen Events: Are They Any Good for the Non-manufacturing Sector?

Kaizen is a Japanese management tradition that roughly translates to ‘becoming better through change’. It’s a management philosophy that believes in continuous vigilance regarding all the aspects of a production system, and making changes based on this observation so that the system always remains at the peak of its productive efficiency. And one most effective […]

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The Lean Office: Eliminate Process Flab

The lean office system cuts down human effort, investment and working hours to alter how work is done, and thus increases output. Organizations which effectively adopt lean office techniques boost their performance hugely and raise the production per hour worked. In modern management jargon the term “lean” was first coined by John Krafcik of MIT, […]

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Map Your Value Stream: Cut out Waste Visually

Value Stream Mapping is a visual imaging technique developed by the Toyota version of Lean Manufacturing. It is a paper and pencil tool that helps to visualize and figure out the flow of materials and information as a product or service courses through the value stream. It helps to understand and improve work processes using […]

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Good Housekeeping with 5S Implementation

If your business needs a good house cleaning, then consider 5S Implementation. This Lean Office concept originated in Japan and is a method by which a business can get organized and stay organized. The 5S’s are: Seiri – this is a general sorting of the business processes, throwing away what does not work and keeping what […]

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Making Use of the Kaizen Event in the Office

Kaizen is a Japanese word that means continuous improvement in and orderly manner. A Kaizen event is an intensive, short-term project intended to improve a specific process within a business. By improving a process the overall system will be improved – the proverbial weak link is strengthened and the chain does not fall apart. One […]

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The Lean Office Approach

Lean seems to be one of the new buzzwords in business these days. However, it is far more than that. It is a business concept. In order to understand the Lean Office, you must first understand what lean means. This term was first applied by Toyota to the manufacturing side of business, as their Toyota Production System, and […]

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What is Six Sigma Deployment

In the implementation of Six Sigma, an effective infrastructure lays the foundation for success. An effective infrastructure for your Six Sigma or Lean Flow change initiative in an organization requires a clear strategy and comprehensive planning. Strategizing and Planning The planning stage of a Six Sigma deployment is where you can gain valuable traction. A […]

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Make that Lean and Mean!

It Takes a Leader When you hear the words “lean manufacturing”, what springs to mind? That you’re getting an inferior product because cost reduction efforts take precedence over customer satisfaction? That a manufacturing facility is ill-equipped or else has obsolete machinery that no longer meet today’s standards? That the product you just purchased came out […]

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