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When times are tough, companies turn to Six Sigma, but when the economy is booming, they forget. That’s a mistake.
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 don’t know if you noticed this, but during economic boom times, people get so busy trying to make stuff, ship stuff, sell stuff, make money that they forget about Quality Improvement, and they turn their attention to production, not to optimizing their production. And that works until there’s an economic downturn.
Continue Reading "Economic Boom Times and Six Sigma"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog.
Many people think you need extensive training to start getting results from Six Sigma. Not true. You can start improving from day one. 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 reading Adam Grant’s book “Hidden Potential,” and he talks about learning a new language, like German or Japanese or whatever. He said the goal is to start speaking from day one. He studied a lot of people who are polyglots and their goal was to start speaking from day one.
Continue Reading "Start Improving From Day One"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Unlike manufacturing, service industries don’t make widgets–pistons, brake pads, etc. That means service industries need a small Six Sigma toolkit.
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].
“Some years ago I read a book called “We Don’t Make Widgets,” about a guy who’s talking about how in government, we don’t make a thing. We don’t make a piston or a… whatever… a guitar pick. It doesn’t matter what it is. We don’t make those things.
“What do we make?
Continue Reading "We Don’t Make Widgets"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Most people fear math and statistics. That fear prevents them from using SPC, even though it’s now easy. If you can type, you can do SPC.
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 recently found a reprint of one of Shewhart’s books which had a preface by W. Edwards Deming. Now, this was reprinted back in about 1970 and in it, Deming suggests that it may take the world 50 years to really grasp Shewhart’s brilliance and implement it.
Continue Reading "Many People Fear Statistical Process Control (SPC)"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Jay Arthur Blog.
You may be familiar with the 80-20 Rule. Arthur’s 4-50 Rule takes it farther. Here’s the flip side of the 4-50 rule.
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].
“If you know anything about me, I always preach Arthur’s 4-50 rule: That 4% of what you’re doing is producing over 50% of the mistakes, errors, waste, rework, and whatever. But let’s look at the flip side of the 4-50 rule, which is 50% of what you’re doing is only producing 4% of the benefit.
Continue Reading "The Flip Side of Arthur’s 4-50 Rule"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Every process has a heart beat. SPC monitors that heart beat and let’s you know if everything is okay or something is going wrong. Both give you peace of mind because you know what’s going on and can take corrective action only when needed.
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].
“One of the things that I just sort of realized is that SPC, or Statistical Process Control, can give you peace of mind… peace of mind.
Continue Reading "SPC Gives You Peace of Mind"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
90% of People Work In Service Industries. and 90% of people in manufacturing work in the service side of the business. So why are we teaching everyone every tool they might need on a factory floor?
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].
“It used to be that I’d get lots of requests over time for more exotic tools that are in the ‘long tail’ of tools that you might use in Six Sigma.
Continue Reading "90% of People Work In Service Industries"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
People seem to think Six Sigma and SPC are hard. They aren’t anymore. That’s why harder is easier.
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 reading Eric Ries’ new book “Incorruptible,” and in there he has this concept: He says ‘Harder is easier.’ What? How can harder be easier?
“Well, I think you’ve all had that experience where it may have taken you a little bit longer to learn how to do things the right way, and then that made it easier forever, right?
Continue Reading "Harder is Easier"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
You don’t have to be a statistician or Six Sigma Belt to do SPC. If you can type numbers into an Excel spreadsheet, you can do SPC.
Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation – Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.
“If you can type, you can do SPC. That’s right, Statistical Process Control. I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].
“I find so many people are afraid; like they have to know formulas, they have to be a statistician, they have to do something mystical, lots of training and in-depth whatever, threatening with how they feel about their own thing about math and statistics and everything else.
Continue Reading "If You Can Type, You Can Do SPC"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
Statistical textbooks disagree on what constitutes Control Chart Rule 2 – Zone A: 2 of 3 points above/below 2 sigma. Which one is right?
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].
“Got a call from a customer this week. He was all upset because of control chart rule two, which is about having points above two sigma or below two sigma (two out of three).
“Well, guess what? Some people in their books say those two points have to be on the same side of the center line.
Continue Reading "Control Chart Rules"
Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.
