Category: Concepts

5S is often thought of as the foundation for continuous improvement. While traditionally considered only applicable to a manufacturing environment, it’s highly relevant for non-manufacturing operations as well. In this article, we will define 5S, discuss its benefits, and consider its importance to an organization. Overview: What is 5S?  There is some debate as to […]

Average incoming quality is a simple, effective and accessible metric that indicates input quality within a process. Accurate assessment of average quality depends on several other factors, including an established framework for evaluation and consistent screening techniques. Overview: What is average incoming quality? In the context of lean manufacturing and business management practices, average incoming […]

In many industries, it is possible to find distributed data that does not follow the typical bell-shaped curve. In some instances, you will find that there is a much longer tail on the right side. This type of distribution follows the 80/20 rule, which states that roughly 80& of consequences come from 20% of causes. […]

Waste is all around your organization. Using the acronym TIMWOOD, you will learn how to identify the 7 wastes of lean and eliminate them to improve your organization.

In random sampling, this number is the fine line that separates an accepted lot and a rejected one.

When talking about an alias, alias structure or aliasing, you are talking about Design of Experiments (DOE). More specifically, you are referring to the confounding of effects in a fractional factorial experiment. Aliasing occurs when the estimate of a factor effect  is difficult to distinguish because of the impact of other factors in your experiment. […]

You will often see attribute data and discrete data being used interchangeably. At some level, they are similar. But, if we dive a little deeper, you’ll see that there’s a bit more distinction than meets the eye.

While you may be familiar with Lean Six Sigma as a methodology for improving your processes, have you heard of the Business Process Management System (BPMS)? If not, this article will provide lots of information on what it is and how to use it. Business Process Management System (BPMS) Business Process Management System (BPMS) is […]

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.

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

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. 

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. 

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 […]

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.

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 […]

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.

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 […]

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 […]

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.  

ARMI stands for Approver, Resource, Member, and Interested Party (IP). Find out more about these Lean Six Sigma expertise classifications.

Ever been to a business meeting? Ever thought it was a waste of time? Let’s explore how the 5Ps of meeting effectiveness may help you have a better meeting.

You are probably familiar with the term 5S in the context of Lean Six Sigma. But, what about the term 5Z. Let’s learn a little more about what that means. The 5Z’s provide the principles and guidelines for achieving 5Z Accreditation. The 5Z process uses the Genba (Gemba) Kanri principles to maintain, evaluate, promote, and […]

5C is the formal activity of organizing the workplace, and it serves as the foundation of any continuous improvement effort. Explore the 5C framework, and learn how to implement it in your organization.

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?