Lean Six Sigma Blog

Leadership Support: If there is one factor that can make or break a successful continuous improvement program, it is top level leadership support. In an article titled “Lean Manufacturing’s Next Life” that was published in ChiefExecutive.Net, the CEO of a sixty-year-old family owned company, WIKA Alexander Wiegand SE that has significantly reduced manufacturing lead times […]

In any company there are processes that need improvement. Wasteful activities exist everywhere, from the manufacturing floor, to the HR department. In order to improve business processes, companies must identify activities that are non-value add activities, a key lean concept. By identifying these non-value add activities, companies can improve and provide higher quality value of […]

Continuous Improvement in the ITIL World ITIL (Information Technology Infrastructure Library) is a framework for Information Technology Service Management or ITSM and IT Operations. The first set of best in class practices and recommendations were put together in the 1980s by the UK Government’s Central Computer and Telecommunications Agency to manage the growth and dependence […]

Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) CMMI is a capability model developed by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) along with a group of government and industry representatives and is defined as a “non-prescriptive collections of best practices that infuse quality into products through the use of better processes throughout the entire product life cycle.” This model […]

Continuous Improvement in the SCOR World Supply Chain Operations Reference Model (or SCOR) is the world’s “most widely accepted framework for evaluating and comparing supply chain activities and their performance.” The model was established and is maintained by the Supply Chain Council which is a global non-profit organization made up of “all organizations interested in […]

In order for leaders to better manage their teams for continuous improvement initiatives, it is important for them to implement a change management model. Let us take a look at one of the most commonly applied change models in the industry William Bridges’ Three Phase Transition Model: This is another popular change management model that […]

In a previous post, we discussed change management and it’s importance for continuous improvement initiatives. The following is one change management model that can help leaders manage their teams. Let us take a look at one of the most commonly applied change models in the industry ADKAR®: The ADKAR® change management framework is based on the […]

The importance of change management to successful continuous improvement initiatives cannot be expressed enough. Anytime there is a change it needs to be managed. Otherwise the transformation initiative is bound to fail. Studies have shown that more than 60 percent of transformational initiatives fail, not due to the lack of technical or resources, but rather […]

In a previous post we discussed when it makes more sense to build an internal capability versus hiring an external consultant. As we now know, a sustainable continuous improvement program requires the right corporate infrastructure in place that can support and build the continuous improvement program. Before we get to the details of how a […]

Continuous Improvement Methodologies Continuous improvement is needed for the firm to perform similar activities better that will enable the firm to provide higher level of quality and service at a much faster rate compared to the competition. However, as companies deploy continuous improvement programs, they need to be aware of the fact that operational effectiveness […]