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Kirsten Terry

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What’s Inside the May/June Issue

Kirsten Terry

The latest issue of iSixSigma Magazine highlights the DFSS program at John Deere Power Systems, measures the critical inputs for Lean Six Sigma success and offers tips for recharging your deployment.

Up Close with William B. Wark

Kirsten Terry

Wark will be presenting on the role of the CSB and the lessons learned from its investigations during a keynote address at iSixSigma’s Energy Forum for Process Excellence on May 17 in Houston. In an interview with iSixSigma Senior Editor Kirsten Terry, Wark offered a preview of some of the topics he will cover during…

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European Wind Project Embraces Lean

Kirsten Terry

With assistance from Spanish wind-turbine manufacturer Gamesa, nonprofit foundation Tekniker and several other European technology firms, COSMOS seeks increases in turbine quality, as well as lower costs and faster manufacturing times, according to a release from Ibermática. According to the COSMOS consortium, many European turbine assembly operations involve both manual labor and work done by…

Guest Blog: Strategic Business Improvement in the New Economy – Part 2

Kirsten Terry

The following post is from Guest Blogger Terence T. Burton. Most organizations are emerging from largest recession and slow recovery since the Great Depression. Unfortunately, the reactionary and inconsistent leadership responses to the meltdown have become the new cultural norm in organizations, taking culture backwards and destroying their ability to improve anything. Organizations have placed…

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Guest Blog: Strategic Business Improvement in the New Economy – Part 1

Kirsten Terry

The following post is from Guest Blogger Terence T. Burton. Most organizations are emerging from largest recession and slow recovery since the Great Depression. Unfortunately, the reactionary and inconsistent leadership responses to the meltdown have become the new cultural norm in organizations, taking culture backwards and destroying their ability to improve anything. Organizations have placed…

White House Announces Winning SAVE Award Idea

Kirsten Terry

Posting public notices for seized property online, rather than in newspapers…Ending express delivery of empty U.S. Departmet of Agriculture food inspection containers…Requiring mine operators to use online forms for quarterly data, rather than mailing paper forms. These cost-saving ideas – and more than 18,000 others – were submitted by government employees as part of the…

Get Updated with Supply Chain Research

Kirsten Terry

Reports released in the last several months reveal important information for supply chain managers. The first study, conducted by NPI, a spend management services firm, found the top areas of supply chain overspending. The second report, carried out by CAPS Research, a nonprofit research firm, features benchmarking data from 16 industrial manufacturers. Overspending Identified The…

Study Shows Physician Involvement in Improvement Projects Helps Sustain Changes

Kirsten Terry

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) National Research Network and the American College of Physicians released a study in the Journal of the American Board of Family Physicians (JABFM) in September showing how including both physicians and non-physicians on process improvement teams can help better facilitate change management, according to an article by David…

Global Supply Chain Problems Spark Lean Debate

Kirsten Terry

An unexpected rise in demand for automobiles and electronic goods this spring and summer has played havoc with the supply chains of some corporations, causing temporary shutdowns at a number of factories in Asia and North America. While recent articles in The Wall Street Journal (wsj.com) have pointed to Lean manufacturing methods as a cause…

Six Sigma in Sales?

Kirsten Terry

Posts on the iSixSigma Discussion Forum reveal the common roadblocks for implementing Six Sigma in the sales department. However, the thread below also offers helpful tips for overcoming these obstacles.

Annual Survey Shows Average Salary Data for Belts in Asia

Kirsten Terry

iSixSigma’s 7th Annual Global Salary Survey, published in the March/April 2010 issue of iSixSigma Magazine, offered data on average compensation for Six Sigma professionals from around the world for the year 2009. The report analyzed salary and bonuses for a variety of regions, including Asia and Pacific Nations. Some of the findings included: Across the…

Spreading the Word Throughout the Supply Chain

Kirsten Terry

In a recent survey, iSixSigma gathered data on how organizations communicate about their Six Sigma efforts – data that reflects a lack of communication both within and outside of Six Sigma programs. A resulting iSixSigma Magazine research report, “Spreading the Word,” examined internal communication. Externally, the flow of information – or at least the knowledge…

Is Lean the Secret to Curing Healthcare?

Kirsten Terry

Dr. John Toussaint, former CEO and president of the ThedaCare healthcare system, shares his lessons learned in applying Lean in his recent book. ThedaCare Inc., a not-for-profit system of hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and other services in Northeast Wisconsin, has been practicing Lean for more than seven years. Through its use of Lean principles, the…