In episode 101, I share an interview clip from John Barnett, former Boeing Quality Manager, as he discusses the culture of quality that might explain the recent airline issues. He was found dead while he was giving a deposition about his former company, but I don't go into those details. I wanted to share my insights about a comment he made that inspection is non-value added, and how I think it has been misunderstood. Inspection is non-value added, but that doesn't mean you stop...

In episode 100, I share a segment of a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt training course I conducted, where I went into details about the Fishbone Diagram and the 6 M's, and I thought you might find it useful. When you are trying to uncover possible causes of a problem, using the 6 M's with a Fishbone Diagram is a great way to enhance your team brainstorming, and methodically narrow down the causes through a process of elimination. I've also posted a video of the slides I presented, if you want to...

In episode 97, we released an excerpt by Elisabeth Swan from "Lean Six Sigma for Good: Lessons from the Gemba (Volume 1)" This is an excerpt from the audiobook version Volume 1. I share the story of running a small nonprofit organization in Portland, called Recycling Advocates (now called Waste-free Advocates). We created a fundraiser conference called Zero Waste Conference, to promote the reduction of items going to the landfill. I was able to incorporate some Lean and Six Sigma...

In this podcast, I expand on Podcast #96, where I talked about the questions to consider in a training and coaching program. I go through 6 different case studies of customized training and coaching programs I've helped develop with clients to meet their specific needs, and how the payback on training is often as short as a few months! If you'd like to get a quote for some training options, ⁠fill out this training request form⁠, and we'll be in touch, or contact me at...

This is an excerpt from the audiobook version of "Lean Six Sigma for Good: Lessons from the Gemba (Volume 2)"Elisabeth Swan shares the story of volunteering with the Cape Cod Childcare Development nonprofit organization. She discusses getting a call from the CEO to help the organization utilize more Lean Six Sigma Green Belt skills and methods within the organization.In one of the examples highlighted in her chapter, she shares how they reviewed their expenses and processes, and managed to...

When I talk to clients about training their team, that usually opens up a lot of questions in my mind that we'll need to discuss before I can give them a ballpark number quote. In this podcast, I run through the questions you need to consider in order to create an effective training program that will result in hands-on application and payback on the investment, while keeping the costs minimal. If you'd like to get a quote for some training options, fill out this training request form, and...

To explain the concepts of hypothesis testing (null and alternative hypothesis statements), I use an example of James Bond. His famous line is "shaken, not stirred" when ordering a martini. In a hypothesis test, we would set the null (default) hypothesis to say that he cannot tell the difference. The alternative hypothesis would be proven if there was data showing he could tell the difference (better than guessing or chance). Hope this helps you understand the concept of hypothesis...

Back in 2020, I created a course called "Home Efficiency Using Japanese Lean Productivity Techniques" and I'm offering a free coaching program this month to help you complete the course and get help implementing the concepts into your personal life. Are you interested? Contact me at [email protected] Links ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Home Efficiency Using Japanese Lean Productivity Techniques (Video course) Podcast episodes #50-56 (Audio version of course) E50: "Lean at Home" Course - Introduction:...

In one of my recent Six Sigma classes, I provide a simplistic explanation of SPC and control charts, and why they are essential to detecting problems quickly in your processes. If you're interested in learning more about SPC, check out the link below. Links ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠SPC Module within Six Sigma Green Belt Training ⁠Lean Six Sigma Project Coaching Program⁠⁠ Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free support call⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast Sponsor: Creative Safety Supply is a...

In one of my recent Lean classes, I discuss the difference between planning kaizen events and working kaizen events. Planning events end up with a 90-day implemenatation plan. Working events end up with 80% completion of actions by the end of the event, with 30 days to complete the remaining 20% of the actions. I try and encourage more working sessions, but planning is sometimes really important to decide where to focus the working sessions in the future. To better understand this podcast,...

In one of my recent Lean classes, I discuss ways to engage front line workers in working kaizen events. I talk about the differences between working and planning sessions in my last podcast. I discuss options for working ahead, catching up afterwards, having half-day sessions (half kaizen, half working), splitting the event across many shifts, and having the leads and supervisors participate but checking in with the workers frequently. Links ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Lean Six Sigma Project Coaching...

I've been helping set up a webinar series with support from the Iowa Sustainable Business Forum and the Iowa Lean Consortium. There are two webinars you can choose from, or sign up for both. I will be presenting the first webinar, Lean Methods for Sustainable Organizations. I will introduce those in sustainability roles to Lean methods, which have become some of the most popular improvement methods used in high-performing organizations in manufacturing, healthcare, government and many...

In this episode, I answer another question in one of my Six Sigma classes. The student said they were having supplier issues, but the data wasn't very good. There is a plan to implement a data collection system, but it might not be ready for a few months. Should she wait until the system is ready and then start her project, or start now and collect the data manually. Links ⁠⁠Lean Six Sigma Project Coaching Program⁠ Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free...

In this episode, I answer a question in one of my Six Sigma classes. The student said they were not sure if their project could be used, because it alreadys mentions some solutions to the problem, and the training said no solutions can be defined at the beginning of a Six Sigma project. He wanted to know how to handle this situation, which is very common. Links ⁠Lean Six Sigma Project Coaching Program Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free support call⁠⁠ ...

In this podcast, I discuss the Taguchi Loss Function again, this time using some real-life examples. I discuss hotel pool temperatures, solar eclipses, and fruit ripeness. I originally talked about this topic in Episode 37, explaining how an increase in variation away from the target value (even within specification limits) leads to an exponential increase in customer dissatisfaction. This is different than the traditional approach of viewing results within the specification limits as...

In this episode, I go through TIM WOODS, which is an acronym to describe the 8 types of waste in a process. As an example, I discuss how the 8 wastes apply to recent camping trips I've been making with my wife this summer and fall. Hopefully, this gives you some ideas on how to see waste in your daily activities and work tasks. Sorry for the length of this podcast, I guess I had a lot to talk about! Links What is TIM WOODS (8 Wastes)? Workshop #1 on Lean Six Sigma and Wasted Food...

In this episode, I discuss some common criticisms about Six Sigma that I've been hearing about over the years. These tend to make their rounds on LinkedIn every few months or years, so I wanted to take each one and go much deeper in the podcast than I can online. Let's start with one of the biggest ones, the 1.5 sigma shift, also called the Motorola Shift. If there are others you have heard about you'd like me to discuss, contact me and I'll add it to a future episode. Links What is...

In this episode, I discuss my work with a client that is trying to improve their sustainability score. One of the next steps is to establish a goal for electricity reduction, since it is a large contributor to their carbon footprint. I explain how to apply process mapping to heating and cooling a building, and why regression modeling and analysis can be helpful in focusing your electricity reduction efforts. Links Integrating Weather Data into your Analysis:...

In this episode, I discuss an interview and discussion I had with Climate Change Professional and former Quality executive, David Saunders. We talk about how to leverage your skills of process and quality improvement to improve the environment and help mitigate climate change. Links Full interview with David Saunders: Video | Audio Podcast Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free support call⁠⁠ Podcast Sponsor: Creative Safety Supply is a great resource for free...

In this episode, I share some audio from a presentation I gave to Lean Portland for their July Happy Hour. I discussed Statistical Process Control (SPC) and how to detect out of control conditions. I'm sharing two questions that were asked at the end of the talk: 1) For office applications of SPC, what software package would be recommended to make control charts? 2) What control chart do you use if your data is nonnormal? The full presentation can be watched at the link below. Links ⁠8...

In this episode, I share the audio from a presentation I gave to Lean Portland for their July Happy Hour. I discuss Statistical Process Control (SPC) and why it's not seen very much in Toyota facilities anymore. I also include a question that was asked related to the transition from monitoring outputs to inputs. The full presentation can be watched at the link below. Links 8 Nelson Rules for Detecting Out of Control Conditions in a SPC Chart Presentation - Lean Portland July 2023 Toyota...

In this episode, I discuss the Washington State Department of Ecology Lean and Green program that I've been supporting the last few years as a consultant. The audio is an interview with the program administrator and my contact point at Ecology, Hugh O'Neill. He shares how this program can help businesses save money, reduce their environmental impact and engage employees. If you are a business in Washington that might be interested, check out the links below. If you're outside of Washington,...

In this episode, I discuss how to measure variation in a process, using Range and Standard Deviation. Variation is an important concept to understand how to improve a process. This was audio from a recent Six Sigma Yellow Belt course I taught. You might have heard of these concepts before, but hopefully it will be a good refresher for you. Links OpEx Learning Yellow Belt Course Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free support call⁠⁠ Podcast Sponsor: Creative...

The following topic was taken from one of my recent Yellow Belt courses, explaining how to use Mean (or average) and Median to measure the middle of a set of data, whether it is solar panel production, calories eaten per day or electricity consumed per day. Links OpEx Learning Yellow Belt Course Need help in your organization? ⁠⁠⁠Let's talk! Schedule a free support call⁠⁠ Podcast Sponsor: Creative Safety Supply is a great resource for free guides, infographics, and continuous...