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Ever wonder why so many Six Sigma implementations fail? The answer is simple.
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, this is Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma for Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].
“Do you ever wonder why some Six Sigma implementations succeed but most don’t? I can tell you in one word: Results… dollar signs.
“You know, if we’re not continuously making improvements and solving problems and affecting the bottom line, boosting profits, reducing cost, more profits. More profits equals more money. More money equals more stuff. If we’re not doing that, then Six Sigma fails.
Continue Reading "Why Six Sigma Implementations Fail"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Several QI Macros came up to me at the IHI Conference and said: “QI Macros is Easy To Teach!” That’s when I realized I’ve always been chasing that dream.
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma for Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].
“I was out at the Institute for Healthcare Improvement conference and a guy came up to me and he said, “I love QI Macros. I love the Control Chart Wizard.” He said, “And it’s so easy to teach. You know, I have the residents and internists just select data with the mouse, click a button, get a chart… select data, click a button, get a chart… the Control Chart Wizard will pick it automatically.
Continue Reading "QI Macros is Easy To Teach"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Parkinson’s law says: work expands to fill the time available. What are consequences of this?
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“You’ve probably heard of Parkinson’s Law. For some reason, I decided to go get Parkinson’s book out of our local library (from 1957; I was 6 years old at the time). Parkinson’s Law says ‘Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.’
“I don’t know about you, but sometimes in college, I would wait till the last day to actually do that paper that was due, but I knew about it for 3 weeks to a month or something [ahead of time], right?
Continue Reading "Parkinson’s Law and Its Consequences"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
At Colorado Lean Network conference someone recommended Reset by Dan Heath. It’s got some interesting Lean and Theory of Constraints case studies. The first one involves accelerating hospital receiving and delivery.
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“I was out at the… Colorado Lean Network Conference here in Denver, Colorado at the Children’s Hospital, and somebody recommended the book called Reset by Dan Heath. I’ve liked the Heath brothers books, so I went and got this out of the library.
Continue Reading "Reset – Lean Case Studies from Dan Heath"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
If you believe you need to add more people, ask yourself if lack of labor force is truly the problem. Instead, it’s likely that the process itself needs refinement. Here’s why:
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“I was rereading Tim Ferrris’s book, “The 4-Hour Work Week,” and he mentions in there… he says, “Using people to leverage a refined process multiplies production. Using people as a solution to a poor process multiplies problems. So refine rules and processes before adding people.”
Continue Reading "Using People the Right Way"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog.
What’s the main bottleneck to Six Sigma? I think the answer will surprise you:
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“It’s January 2, 2026. And I don’t know about you, but Six Sigma is still moving way too slow. One of the things I thought about was, “Maybe you can use the theory of constraints to talk about why that is and what we can do about it.” I’ve been doing this for 35 years now, and I keep wondering why isn’t anything any better?
Continue Reading "Accelerate Six Sigma using Theory of Constraints"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Do complex things seem smarter or just unnecessarily complicated?
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma for Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].
“Does it seem like we think complex things, complex writing, complex ideas are smarter? Or are they just incomprehensible? And isn’t that just dumb? What if we could simplify how we think about things?
“That’s what I’ve attempted to do with Agile Process Innovation is make improvement more accessible to the average Joe or Susie. You know, people have taken my Yellow Belt training and gone out and saved millions of dollars… millions of dollars.
Continue Reading "Do Complex Things Seem Smarter?"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog.
Ever tried to take your pants off while wearing socks? Friction makes it difficult. How can you remove the friction?
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation-Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“Have you ever tried to take your pants off, but while you still have your socks on? Seems like the friction between the sock and the pant makes it more difficult to take them off. But if you take off your socks first, then your pants will slide right over the smoothness of your skin and your ankle.
Continue Reading "Remove the Friction from Your Life and Work"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Did you know you can draw fishbone diagrams, flowcharts, value stream maps and more without Visio? You can do all that and more right within Excel, and those can be viewed by others who don’t have Visio. Here’s how:
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“I was at the Colorado Lean Network Conference and I was demoing how you can do Value Stream Maps and other things right in Microsoft Excel. The guy looking at it said, “I… I don’t have to use Vizio anymore?”
Continue Reading "Use Excel for Flowcharts and Value Stream Maps Not Visio"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog.
Ever wondered if there might be a better way to start a Lean Six Sigma initiative? There is. Here’s Why:
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation-Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“Back in 2011, Eric Ries launched a book called “The Lean Startup” which was about how to start a startup business, basically. There were some rules behind it, but one of his rules was to have a “Minimum Viable Product”… Minimum Viable Product. Now, in 1997 when I launched QI Macros, it was a Minimum Viable Product but now it’s grown into all kinds of things.
Continue Reading "Lean Six Sigma Startup"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
