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A process window index (PWI) is a quantifiable and reproducible statistical measure which indicates how a product performs relative to range limits.

Ideation brainstorming is the first stage of a formal solution development process that usually includes free-form exchange of thoughts and ideas.

What Is Accuracy? Accuracy is the difference between a measured value compared to its true value. Since no measurement can be 100% exact, there needs to be a degree of inaccuracy allowed in the measurement. This degree of inaccuracy depends on the amount of error you are able to accept and is denoted by a […]

The Keep it Simple and Specific principal is based on the idea that most systems work at their best if they are kept simple as opposed to being made complicated.

Activity Based Costing (ABC) is a tool to help companies understand how their products and services are being used.

What is a Subject Matter Expert? Subject matter experts (SMEs) are people who have a significant amount of knowledge or experience regarding a specific subject. They can specialize in any kind of academic discipline, profession or practice. Even though their area of expertise is relatively narrow compared to general consultants, there is still a lot […]

Visual Management Boards played a critical role in enabling this company to link and visually display critical metrics, KPIs and actions in a simple and consistent way. Using Visual Management Boards (VMBs), the company was able to consistently create and display critical organizational information  A Visual Management Board (VMB) is used to display critical information […]

Systems thinking is based upon the concept that all systems are composed of interconnected parts. These connections and interrelationships cause behavior of one part to impact another.

What Is Repeatability? Repeatability is the typical variation that occurs when a person measures a part with the same tool (or gauge) multiple times. This concept relates to the accuracy of any measurement. A measurement is only as accurate as the typical variation that occurs when that item is measured. When conducting a repeatability test, […]

Entry criteria is an established set of conditions that must be met before a specific process can begin.

The Poisson distribution is a discrete probability distribution that provides the probability of a given number of events occurring in a specified interval of time or space.

S-hat is a common model used in statistics when estimating a population.

What Are Exit Criteria? Exit criteria are conditions that must be met before closing out one project stage and advancing to the next stage. When project management teams use exit criteria, they break down the project into multiple steps. Therefore, each stage will have its own set of conditions (exit criteria) that must be met […]

Repeatability and reproducibility are two ways that scientists and engineers measure the precision of their experiments and measuring tools. They are heavily used in chemistry and engineering and are typically reported as standard deviations in scientific write-ups. While these two measurements are both used in many types of experiments, they are quite different and offer […]

Inferential statistics consists of several statistical tools that will allow you to make an inference about the population from sample data.

The Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test, sometimes called the Mann Whitney Wilcoxon Test or Mann Whitney U test, is used to test whether two independent samples come from the same population or two different populations. 

Capability is the ability of your process or product to meet expectations of your customers or any internal organizational expectations, goals or targets.

Benchmarking is comparing what you do to how other organizations do it.

What is Value Added? The most important thing to understand about value concepts is that they always revolve around the customer. Customers are the ones who set the standard for value, which means it’s based on whether the customer believes the product or service will address their specific needs. Increasing appeal by adding value may […]

Businesses should have clear expectations from every procedure, activity and task that happens in their workplace. These expectations can be formalized as process design requirements, which describe the minimum acceptable results from a particular process. Overview: What are process design requirements? Active business managers don’t just let things unfold and develop on their own. Control […]

What is Cpk? Cpk is short for Capability Index. It is a measurement of the capability of a process to deliver output that is within the specification limits of a process. The Benefits of Cpk With Cpk, you are able to determine how closely a process can meet overall specifications in its ability to produce […]

In statistics, variation is a measure of the dispersion or spread of your process data.

Fishbone diagrams are used to drill down to the root cause of a problem. The diagram looks like the bones of a fish, where each main bone represents a possible category of root cause, and subsequent drilling down is shown as smaller and smaller bones.

A covariate is a continuous variable that affects a process that is not the direct target of the study. Excluding known covariates from an investigation can lead to skewed or biased results, which can reduce the value of the analysis or even render it worthless for its intended purpose. Accounting for known covariates is crucial […]

Sigma is the eighteenth letter of the Greek alphabet and is used as a common notation in statistics as a measure of summation and variation.

SMED or Single Minute Exchange of Dies is a process for reducing changeover time.

What is Standard Operating Procedure? Most established companies have some kind of standard operating procedure (SOP) in place, even if it’s a bit vague and outdated. Six sigma practitioners have no excuse for vague or outdated procedures though because these things should be second-nature when you are deep into process management. A SOP is a […]

Trimmed mean is defined as the mean calculated by trimming 5% data sets from the top and bottom of data sets

An analytical management tool used to develop a basic outline of core processes and help the analysts consider what may go wrong with each step.

In business, your profit will be dependent upon several variables such as material and labor costs. Other variables will also be dependent upon several other independent variables.

Does Going to Gemba sound like a nice trip to an exotic locale? While not a fancy foreign destination, Gemba is going to where the work is done to learn more about the process. Let’s take a deeper look into what Gemba is about. 

While you may not be familiar with the specifics of Z st, you’ve almost certainly heard of it. It’s a measure of the distance between two data points on a distribution curve, and it can be used in many different ways to enhance your understanding of how processes work.

Being able to provide your customers with quality goods and services should be a primary goal of any business. In order to be able to provide quality, inspections need to be part of your process.

One of the most famous sayings in the Star Wars films is May the Force be with you. This saying may also apply to making changes in your organization. Let’s see what forces you need to identify and deal with when using a force field analysis to manage change.

Your Six Sigma project will usually focus on a process with customers who directly receive the output of your process. But there are also others who will be impacted and have a stake in the outcome of your project. They are called stakeholders, and you need to understand them.

Calibration is the act of testing the accuracy of measurement equipment and adjusting it to conform to an independent standard.

What is Variable Data? Variable data is any kind of information that is represented and recorded as measurements. The term is often used when discussing the creation of control charts for the purpose of process analysis. Variable data is quantitative, which means it can be described with numerical value and can change along a perpetual […]

Fisher’s 1-way ANOVA is a classic analysis of variance utilized in statistics to determine if there are statistical differences between the means of two or more unrelated groups.

Fits are another term for fitted values. A fitted value is a prediction in a statistical model of a mean response value.

Have you ever noticed that, when you observe people doing their job, they may alter the way they work if they know you are looking? That sums up the essence of the Hawthorne Effect.

Change management is defined as the methodological approach a company takes in the implemental change of its internal and external processes.

For every action we take, there is an effect. Some actions may have only one or a few effects, while others can have a multitude. Having an understanding of the effects of actions, as well as what exactly causes them, helps us be mindful of which actions to take.

You might be familiar with a continuous random variable where you can measure something with an infinite number of possible values. But what if your data has only two possible values; good or bad? Maybe we can answer that with a discussion of a binomial random variable.

Knowing when your methods are not the most efficient is an important realization to have. Being willing to improve upon your processes and make them more efficient can be a deciding factor on whether your business is going to survive and thrive. Manufacturers may begin with processes that utilize a more Datsu Chaku method, but should always be working towards a more Chaku Chaku-focused mode of operations.

What is Pugh Matrix? When it comes to finding solutions and improvements in business processes, making a final decision can seem impossible. There are always multiple options for dealing with a situation or problems, which can be paralyzing for leadership. Pugh’s Controlled Convergence, also called the Pugh Matrix, is a numerical method for making tough […]

A collection of educational and research material that outlines a systemic model for companies delivering IT services.

What is a Spaghetti Diagram? A spaghetti diagram is defined as the visual representation of the flow of an activity or process utilized to identify areas that could use improvement. It is unique in that it demonstrates motion work and its associated waste and assists in the quantification of the amount of walking an operator […]

Black noise is a phenomenon that occurs during Lean Six Sigma projects. It often causes confusion and frustration for project managers and team members alike, but understanding black noise can make your projects run more smoothly and efficiently.

Sometimes you have to break something down into the smallest possible pieces before you can make it right. Process mapping is one of the first major steps when adopting six sigma, so it’s something business leaders should learn to love. Depicting workflow and processes in a visual format sets the stage for defining, understanding and […]

Sometimes you have to break something down into the smallest possible pieces before you can make it right. Process mapping is one of the first major steps when adopting six sigma, so it’s something business leaders should learn to love. Depicting workflow and processes in a visual format sets the stage for defining, understanding and […]