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Are you making use of digital Kanban boards? Remote work is on the rise, and as such, there is a definite need to adapt and change workflows to better suit working conditions. You can’t readily pull out a physical Kanban board in a Zoom call, so what do you do? Thankfully, there is […]

While it might seem rather unusual at first glance, the principles behind Six Sigma make for an ideal solution in most network operations. When you consider some of the core tenets running behind Six Sigma, these are quite similar to some of the best practices in networking. That said, you can take things […]

Whenever we think about how much organizations spend every year on process improvement, it’s a whole lot of money. The efforts to improve engagement, business results, and employee performance can certainly lead to rewards, or they can lead to wasted spending. The hope is that every company’s good intentions pay off, but far […]

Keeping Lean Six Sigma rolling while merging with another organization is vital to maintain synergy and successfully integrate processes into your current workflow. Rapidly identifying waste, cutting away non-value-added activities, and improving processes is key for any newly combined entity. Developing key strategies for this can seem somewhat daunting, especially as you’re considering […]

When you examine the various management philosophies that exist today, there truly is something for everyone. From Six Sigma to Lean to Kanban, there are numerous options for businesses to choose from. Among the choices is the Theory of Constraints, a system introduced in the 1980s by Dr. Eliyahu M. Goldratt.  In this […]

You’ve done the difficult task of conducting a business process reengineering effort, but how do you quantify the results? BPR is a very drastic practice, and can be somewhat more difficult to measure than you might think. When you consider the scope and depth of a BPR project, cleanly pointing out tangible benefits […]

Quantifying Lean Six Sigma impact across any project can be a challenging prospect. You need to prove to stakeholders and management that the investment has been worth the time and effort expended. When taking on any sort of initiative, it helps to have support for future projects. The immediate effects of this might […]

If you jump back in time to the 1940s, Toyota was seeking ways to manage better and control the work taking place at each step of the manufacturing process. The idea behind Kanban came from Toyota, while other companies adopted a work management process that focuses heavily on visualizing work, including how to […]

Technology is one of the most useful things at your disposal when it comes to your Hoshin Kanri processes. While pen and paper certainly have their place, even in the modern world, the advent of modern software suites has given a shot in the arm to how people are conducting Hoshin Kanri lifecycles. […]

If you’re unfamiliar with Value Stream Mapping, that’s okay, as it’s not a methodology that has the same recognition as something like Lean Six Sigma. However, this doesn’t mean that Value Stream Mapping lacks a unique purpose as a way to document, analyze, and improve the steps involved in helping an organization or […]

What is Business Process Reengineering? There are quite a few ways to approach the design of a process. We can pursue continual improvement, hoping that little by little it is hammered into the right sort of shape. This has its benefits, as it doesn’t severely upset the current workflow, and teams stay on […]

The Theory of Constraints can lead to some great breakthroughs in your product design, but you have to understand the concept. Theory of Constraints is a management philosophy that supposes any workflow is going to have at least one pain point present. By addressing the pain point, you’re increasing the chances of overall […]

The whole notion of successfully implementing a new business methodology doesn’t come without numerous challenges. First and foremost among those challenges is getting internal stakeholders, like the day-to-day workers, to sign off on new processes. Total Quality Management has plenty of success stories, but even the best efforts didn’t go off without a […]

Predictive analytics is one of the most powerful tools at your disposal when it comes to decision-making in Six Sigma. Data drives quite a bit of any business’s operations under Six Sigma, so it stands to reason that leveraging historical data to try and gain a future advantage would be a boon for […]

Whether it’s Total Quality Management or another popular methodology used in the business world, a lot of the success rides on how engaged and involved the leadership is. There’s no question that it’s crucial in quality management, as it requires a strong leader to rally everyone behind the TQM cause and ensure everything […]

How do you build a business case for Lean Six Sigma as a non-profit? You’re not building towards record profits, so the usual business case for pursuing an implementation is out the window. As we’ve outlined in the past, however, Lean Six Sigma is a solid fit for any non-profit organization. While financial […]

How are leading organizations leveraging TQM? Total Quality Management is a philosophy and approach that emphasizes the likes of continuous improvement, customer satisfaction, and employee engagement. The methodology itself reached the peak of its popularity in the 1980s, before the rise in popularity of methodologies like Six Sigma and Lean. TQM is still […]

One of the best-known job titles in the world of product and development, Scrum Master is arguably one of the most common terms you will hear today. While the job itself has evolved, there is no question that businesses still heavily rely on this individual or team of individuals to help everyone work […]

Any sort of public sector project is going to have constraints seldom seen in a typical business. That doesn’t mean you have to forego the implementation and use of methodologies like Lean Six Sigma. It takes a deft hand, careful planning, and adaptation to make the approach work regardless of intent or industry. […]

The origins of Total Quality Management and its ability to exceed customer expectations have surprisingly been around for a long time. You can trace its origins to just after World War II, something most people don’t know. Given that it has been around for so long, Total Quality Management has been at the […]

BPR projects can be daunting at first glance, as you’re fundamentally changing the way you work. However, it might not be tenable to continue with work as it sits; processes might be inefficient, wasteful, and prone to costly errors. BPR isn’t something that happens in a vacuum, and understanding how it affects any […]

Six Sigma in healthcare seems like an unlikely pairing at first glance. After all, Six Sigma is oriented towards less strict industries like manufacturing, compared to the slew of regulatory bodies any healthcare provider needs to pay attention to. That said, it isn’t impossible. Some providers leverage the teachings and principles of Six […]

The next time you are on the hunt for a process improvement methodology that looks explicitly for bottlenecks, the answer is the Theory of Constraints. This system enables organizations to achieve both their financial goals and their consumer goals by keeping their entire supply chain moving. The Theory of Constraints is often associated […]

The Scrum framework’s history is relatively short, in the grand scheme of things. However, its introduction to businesses had a transformative effect seemingly overnight. At its core, Scrum seeks to address the rigidity and linearity of older methodologies to better suit the rapidly changing needs of customers. So, with that in mind, we’re […]

If you’re looking for a management philosophy that will help your organization identify any factors preventing you from achieving a goal, it’s likely based on the theory of constraints. The goal is to identify any factor that is limiting a company’s ability to achieve its goal and then make the necessary changes until […]

What can you do to engage employees in your BPR initiatives? Any sort of BPR effort can be a vast undertaking. When we consider the wider scope of what needs to be done to achieve any sort of success, the odds are stacked heavily against us at first glance. Overhauling a process from […]

What are the best data visualization tools for Lean Six Sigma? There is no shortage of options when it comes to how you approach visualizing the data your organization gathers in Lean Six Sigma. Some tools have become something of a de facto industry standard, with plenty of documentation and dedicated learning resources […]

In the world of different management techniques and methodologies, Hoshin Kanri stands out. A Japanese management style, Hoshin Kanri, is no doubt a game changer. For any organization, Hoshin Kanri can help it align goals at every level of the business and direct everyone in the same direction to achieve a common set […]

When you have an undertaking as massive and diverse as a BPR effort, you need a little help to get things rolling. While getting your workforce on board with your efforts is instrumental to the initiative’s success, that isn’t the only consideration you’ll need to keep in mind when planning your BPR effort. […]

One of the most important things for any organization in today’s world is to figure out how to best handle remote work. For better or worse, remote work is here to stay, and millions of employees worldwide are happier for it. Enabling a stronger work-life balance, there is a good chance that employees […]

Six Sigma in healthcare is a fine fit, but there are always going to be things you don’t plan for in the mix of it. There are few industries better suited for Six Sigma than healthcare, and we’ve certainly seen more organizations pivoting towards it in recent years. However, it can be tough […]

When a company considers how to best bring its teams together in a collaborative manner, several approaches can be taken to achieve this goal. At the top of any list should be Kaizen, which is the philosophy of continuous improvement. Translated as “changing something for the better,” the origin of Kaizen stems from […]

Scope creep is the bane of any project’s existence, and one thing that can seriously hinder your BPR efforts. Avoiding scope creep is going to be paramount to the success of any efforts you’re undertaking to revamp your processes. Thankfully, it isn’t quite as difficult as you might think to stay focused and […]

What does design thinking in practice look like? There has been much talk about its power and efficacy. However, when you peruse the many online resources available, the picture is incomplete. We know it’s a human-centered take on product design, but what does that look like in motion? Design thinking in practice isn’t quite what […]

Applying Scrum to non-software industries is a lot easier than you think. The most recent edition of the Scrum Guide has even prepared the approach for integration into other business sectors. As such, there has never been a better time for adapting and ultimately using Scrum in a non-software setting. With that in […]

Originating from the Japanese term “Gembutsu,” “Gemba Walk” is essentially a lean management practice that has an organization’s leadership visiting the “actual place” where work is done. This might be a factory or an office, but the goal is to give company leadership an inside view of how things are going, as well […]

The Scrum Guide is something of a living document, undergoing frequent revisions and changes to better suit the changes of today’s business needs. The most recent edition of the guide is the 2020 one, authored by Ken Schwaber and Jeff Sutherland. Now, for the average person, this is a fairly dense document, in […]

Going from Waterfall to Scrum is a tall order, but is easily achieved with the right mindset and approach. You can’t just drop and turn tail, you’ve got to ease into things to the best of your ability. Scrum is a flexible approach to project management, putting people well before any processes or […]

One of the most popular approaches to strategic planning, Hoshin Kanri has been helping companies like Toyota achieve their most important goals for decades. Focusing heavily on continuous improvement, the Hoshin Kanri methodology is pretty straightforward, but this doesn’t mean it’s always launched perfectly.  Launching Hoshin Kanri can be relatively problematic in many […]

Developing solid metrics and a good toolchain is instrumental for the success of any Scrum project. If you’re just flying by the seat of your pants, you’re likely not maximizing the potential of both your team and the outputs of a given project. Success in Scrum is about delivering value, not so much […]

No matter what total quality management or quality management system you want to implement, one truth is that leadership will be required for success. No matter why an organization wants to adopt a new process or methodology, if leadership isn’t fully on board, any attempts to change are dead on arrival.  This is […]

What role does leadership play in your BPR efforts? BPR is a drastic and often massive change to business processes. The concept of a clean slate isn’t just touted about, but followed through on. As such, it has its own sort of demands to consider when undergoing a BPR initiative. Leadership plays a […]

What major changes in BPR implementation is your organization struggling with? Like it or not, sometimes implementing something new can lead to some real hurdles to overcome. Often, these can be minor speed bumps in the road, and an adjustment can get things back on track. However, BPR is quite drastic by design, […]

One of the world’s most common and best-known quality improvement methodologies, Six Sigma, is seemingly everywhere. Developed in the mid-1980s, it reduces the likelihood of defects and ensures that organizations or businesses use quality management techniques that directly lead to bottom-line profit improvements.  As a result, there is always a question about how […]

What data visualization tools are you leveraging for Lean Six Sigma? Lean Six Sigma relies heavily on the interpretation and use of data to make the most of your decision-making process. Looking at hard numbers on a computer screen can be a bit daunting, however. Ultimately, you’re looking to present the data in […]

Whenever an organization has to make key decisions about improving its operations, it must decide how to best improve processes across the board. In this decision-making, someone must evaluate the different process methodologies, such as Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma, Total Quality Management, and Quality Management Systems.  These systems are popular approaches for […]

What common myths about TQM muddy the waters on how it is utilized? Total quality management is a powerful framework, but without a keen understanding of the methodology, you fall victim to issues with how to best use it. That said, it isn’t a difficult methodology to get behind, as we’ll explore a […]

When an organization or group is looking to roll out a Lean Six Sigma program, it’s a good reminder to consider that this combines two very powerful process improvement methodologies. No matter the industry, Lean will play its role as it looks to reduce overall waste, while Six Sigma focuses heavily on reducing […]

Practitioners cannot wait to use their newly acquired knowledge after they have finished Lean Six Sigma (LSS) training. They want to immediately apply the framework to their real-life projects. But what if, for numerous reasons, it is not possible to “go by the book”? In such cases, there are ways to break LSS down into […]

Is Chaku Chaku a real word or the sound of machines loading and unloading parts? It turns out that Chaku Chaku is Japanese for load load and a system of loading and unloading parts from a machine. Let’s explore this a little deeper.