Acceptable Quality Level (AQL)

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The only acceptable quality level should be zero defects. But that’s not always the case. Let’s learn what an acceptable quality level or limit is all about.

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The Simple Yet Powerful 5 Whys Method for Effective Problem-Solving

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Asking the 5 Whys is a quick way to get to the root cause of a problem your organization may be dealing with.

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The Role of the Anderson-Darling Test in Assumption Testing

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Is your data normal? If not, will that be a problem? It might be, since data normality can be important when using certain statistical tools to make your business decisions. 

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Breakthrough Improvement: Going Beyond Incremental Changes

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How much improvement do you expect from your projects? Is 5% ok? How about 15%? Breakthrough improvement will be 70% or more. Let’s see how breakthrough improvement works. 

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Authority

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In any business arrangement, it is necessary to know who exactly has the power to make decisions. This is true for everything from approving a sale to granting the request for a change in a process be implemented. Just being in a position of power does not make you a great leader. A lot of […]

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Formulating the Alternate Hypothesis: Guidelines and Examples

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The Alternate Hypothesis, written as Ha, is a subset of the larger topic of hypothesis testing. The Alternate Hypothesis is the default statement about a specific condition of your data and allows you to draw important conclusions about the population from which the sample data came.

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Improving Efficiency with Work-In-Process Buffers

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A buffer can be simply defined as something that serves as a protective barrier. Let’s see how this might apply in the context of technology and computing as well as manufacturing. In the context of technology and computing, a buffer is a temporary storage area that holds data while it is being transferred from one […]

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The Power of Alpha Risk: Minimizing Errors in Statistical Analysis

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Don’t you hate it when you make a mistake? Well, an alpha risk is just that. Let’s learn what that mistake is and how to keep from making it.

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Keeping Your Business Metrics Relevant: Why It Matters

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There are all types of business metrics. Some examples would be sales revenue, customer retention rate, and net profit. Each of these and others helps provide you with a fuller picture of how your business is doing. Overview: What are business metrics? Business metrics are metrics that are quantifiable and utilized to assess the performance […]

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Automated Process

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Some tasks are repetitive, mind-numbing, and lack the sort of creativity that promotes active engagement. If possible, these types of processes should be automated so that the type of energy needed to find places where your organization can evolve may blossom. Businesses thrive on having employees that are engaged in the work that they are […]

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Accuracy

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At the gun range, your goal is to hit the target. Accuracy will be measured by how close you come to that target. The same is true of your process.  

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Baseline

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Why do you weigh yourself before you start your diet? You probably want to get a starting point or baseline to help measure your progress so you know whether the diet is working or you have reached your goal. 

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Baselining

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By standardizing a project, an organization is better able to analyze the effects of environmental factors that may have otherwise been overlooked. Baselining is one way to achieve this.

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3P

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3P? How hard could that be? It’s only three letters: P-P-P. You will see that there is more than meets the eye.

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Understanding the 6Ms: A Powerful Tool for Root Cause Analysis

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Are you confused yet? Is it the 6 Ms? Is it 5 Ms and a P? How about 4 Ms, 5 Ms or 8 Ms? Let’s explore some of these and figure it out.

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Exploring the Benefits of Autocorrelation in Time Series Analysis

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To optimize the benefit of your forecasting, you would like your time series values to be independent. Unfortunately, sometimes your values are correlated. This autocorrelation will have an impact on your ability to interpret what the data is telling you. Autocorrelation refers to the correlation between a time series variable and its own lagged values […]

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8D Process

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The bad news is that you have problems to solve. The good news is that there are a number of simple, yet powerful tools that can help you. The 8D process is one of them.

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A-square

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An underlying assumption for the use of many statistical tools is that your data is normally distributed. But, how do you know? The A-square calculation for the Anderson Darling Normality Test will tell you.

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Accessory Planning: Maximizing Resource Efficiency for Profitability

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Even a little bit of leftovers each day can add up to something big. That’s the basic principle and motivation behind accessory planning. The whole purpose of this activity is to find ways to use what would otherwise be wasted to generate further value. Overview: What is accessory planning? Most companies engage in accessory planning […]

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Mastering Problem Analysis with the 6W Methodology

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6W? 5W1H? 5W? The bigger question is, how do you make sure you’re asking the right questions to guarantee you properly solve your problem or execute your project?

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The 8 Wastes of Lean: Understanding and Addressing Them in Your Organization

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Waste is all around your organization. Using TIMWOODS and DOWNTIME, you will learn how to identify the 8 Wastes of Lean and eliminate it to improve your organization.

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Streamlining Six Sigma Projects with The 7 QC Tools

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The seven basic tools in my home tool chest are a hammer, screwdriver, wrench, saw, drill, pliers, and duct tape. What basic QC tools do you have in your continuous improvement tool chest? Let’s check it out.

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What Active Data Can Tell You About Your Customers

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It is important for any business to understand its consumers. The collection of both passive and active data serves to provide insight into the habits, preferences, and needs of an organization’s consumer base. In data capture, smart businesses do not rely solely on passive data alone. Active data can tell an organization more about its […]

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Leveraging Attribution Theory for Marketing Success

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The marketing departments of businesses have been looking to the field of psychology for many years to determine how to best understand the habits of consumers. One theory that is utilized is attribution theory. Attribution theory dates back to the 1950s but has continued to be a touchstone for businesses to understand how to best […]

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