QI Macros

Improvement Insights Blog

Posts tagged "QI Macros"

What’s a Lean Six Sigma Project Worth?

A study in Texas found that Lean Six Sigma projects save an average of $150,000 per project. How can you hack Lean Six Sigma to get those kinds of results? It’s easier than you think.

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 recently found an article online where in Texas, they’ve done an analysis of Lean and Six Sigma projects. They found that, on average, Lean and Six Sigma projects saved $150,000 a project. Now, obviously, there were some high ones and some low ones, but $150,000 a project.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Lean Six Sigma Vanity Metrics

Companies often implement Lean Six Sigma metrics that have nothing to do with success. 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 mentioning Eric Ries’ book ‘The Lean Startup,’ and he talks about the problems with vanity metrics. Vanity metrics, as opposed to actionable metrics, right? You can measure things that make you feel good but don’t really do you any good.

“In Lean and Six Sigma that’s like ‘number of people trained,’ ‘number of teams started.’

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

*Latest webinar: 3/12/26 QI Macros webinar

Over 40 people signed up for this webinar, with Jay Arthur demonstrating some of the software’s most frequently used tools and answering questions asked by attendees.



If you saw a feature demonstrated in the webinar that might have been added to QI Macros after the version you’re using (for instance, the Improvement Project Wizard or the automated Process Change Wizard), you may need to purchase an upgrade to bring your QI Macros to the current version.

Send an email to support@qimacros.com and we can help, for instance in generating a quote to upgrade all the users at your organization or just guiding you through the purchasing process.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Data Mining, Excel, QI Macros, Webinar.

How to Save $5,000 with QI Macros

There are at least four ways to save $5,000 quickly with QI Macros, not including all of the improvements you can make. 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 want to give you some ideas about how you could save $5,000 for your company.

“First off, if you’re using Minitab, they increased their price to $1,850 a year. Over a three-year period, that’s over $5,500. Right now, you could buy QI Macros for under $400 and save $5,000.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Simple It UP – Don’t Dumb It Down

People often accuse me of trying to take Six Sigma and dumb it down. No. I’m trying to Simple It UP. Here’s why:

Download my free ebook, Agile Process Innovation-Hacking Lean Six Sigma for Results.



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].

People often accuse me of trying to ‘dumb down’ Six Sigma. I’m not; I’m trying to ‘simple it up.’ Huge difference. ‘Dumbing it down’ pretends that people are dumb. ‘Simpling it up’ means I’m trying to make it so that everyone can access it.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Your Business Is Not Unique or Different

People like to pretend their business is different or unique. They use it as an excuse to avoid Lean Six Sigma. You are not unique. 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 For Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].

“Over the years, whenever I talk to people about Lean and Six Sigma or whatever, they very often say, “Oh, we’re not in manufacturing.” This is what is known as ‘uniqueness bias.’ Everybody thinks their business is different from everyone else’s.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Control or Sustain to Ensure Improvement Sticks

Teams often fail to implement the Control Phase of DMAIC. That results in waste on a grand scale. 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 For Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].

“I don’t know about you, I talk to people all the time and they say “Jay, I made this great improvement and 6 months later it was gone…” Made this great improvement; six months later, it was gone. I say, “Did you implement the Control phase of DMAIC?

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Why Six Sigma Implementations Fail

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, I’m 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.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

QI Macros is Easy To Teach

Several QI Macros users 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.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Parkinson’s Law and Its Consequences

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?

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.