Quality Tools and Examples of using them in Improvement Projects

Improvement Insights Blog

Posts tagged "Quality Tools"

5th Grade Vision Problems and Six Sigma

I didn’t know I couldn’t see that well until 5th grade. I didn’t know I couldn’t see how businesses worked until I learned three key tools.



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].

“I grew up in Tucson, Arizona and went to Peter E. Howell elementary, for those of you who might have gone there. I remember in classrooms from first grade on, they sorted us in alphabetical order. Well, my first [letter] is A, so I was always right in the front row. That continued all the way through second grade, third grade, fourth grade…

“And then in fifth grade they said, “No, you need to randomize how you see everybody,” so I ended up in the back of the classroom.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights.

Spreadsheets are Slow – Smart Charts Are Fast

Ever noticed how long it takes for people to analyze a spreadsheet? Too long. How can a smart chart eliminate the delay and accelerate understanding?



 

“One of the things I’ve learned is spreadsheets… People do a lot of spreadsheets. 54% of the Excel spreadsheets out there have no formulas in them, or anything else for that matter; they’re just little reporty things.

“Now, one of the things for you to think about with a spreadsheet is, it’s an auditory process. You’re reading it cell by cell, by heading by heading, by whatever by whatever, and reading (an auditory thing) is a very slow process.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Agile Lean Six Sigma, Excel, Improvement Insights, Six Sigma.

ASQ Lean Enterprise Division 3/10/21 Web Meeting

Jay Arthur was the featured speaker for the 3/10/21 ASQ Lean Enterprise Division Web Meeting. His topic was “Turning Data Into Dollars with Microsoft Excel – Big Profits from Small Data.” You may view the recorded video of Jay’s webinar below:



If you’re interested in learning more about QI Macros for Excel (the software Jay wrote and developed), click HERE and view the demo video in the yellow box. You may also sign up for a free 30 day trial of the software by filling out the form on that page next to the video, or by signing up at THIS link.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Agile Lean Six Sigma, Excel, Manufacturing, Webinar.

Are You Sewing Your Own Six Sigma Toolkit?

Mom used to sew all of her own clothes, just like many people in Six Sigma are creating their own chart templates or code. Mom figured out a better way. You can too.



“Growing up in the 50s, my mom made all of her own clothes. She would go to the fabric store and pick out fabrics and pick out patterns. She’d come home and on this big cardboard thing she’d lay out the pattern on the thing and cut out all the pieces. Then she’d have bought thread, and then she’d sit there at the sewing machine and she would sew blouses and skirts and dresses.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Lean, Six Sigma.

2021 New Year’s Resolutions for Quality

Here’s three New Year’s Resolutions to accelerate your quality improvements: 1) Raw Data Diet, 2) Quality Tools and 3) Worst First. Here’s why these will change your future and your company’s:



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur. It is the New Year and so it’s time for some New Year’s resolutions. Here’s some resolutions I’d like you to consider.

“First, go on a raw data diet. That means you need to know everything about each individual defect, mistake and error, and then you can summarize that. If you start from summarized data you don’t know where the raw data is, and so most of the time you can’t actually figure out what to fix without the raw data.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Lean, Six Sigma.

Six Sigma Dogma

When I started in quality improvement, everyone preached Total Quality Management (TQM). Before that it was quality circles. I’d like you to consider that the gospel of Six Sigma is holding back progress. Here’s why:



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and the QI Macros [software].

“The other day I was [presenting] a webinar for one of the ASQ sections; I’ve been doing Agile Lean Six Sigma webinars for the Agile sections that want something to do during this pandemic. One of the guys said, “Well, you’re sort of telling me that that we don’t need Green Belts and Black Belts to do a project.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Agile Lean Six Sigma, Improvement Insights, Lean, Six Sigma.

Why Big Data is Bad for Small Business

There’s a lot of hype about Big Data, but approximately three-quarters of the money spent had no return on investment. There’s big profits in small data. Here’s what to do differently.



“Hi, this is Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and the QI Macros [software].

“Big Data is actually bad for small business. Now, there was a lot of hype around Big Data, but it kind of crested about 2011-2012 and it’s falling down now because people are discovering that Big Data doesn’t always give you the answers you want. What you need [is] small data, and there’s big profits in small data.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Data Mining, Improvement Insights.

Deming’s 14 Points Were Created for 20th Century Quality

Most quality consultants still quote Deming’s 14 points, but the U.S. economy has shifted. Corporate CEOs are traded like running backs in the NFL. Time for a 21st Century approach to quality that factors in the new reality.



https://www.qimacros.com/pdf/Agile-LSS-Mini-Manifesto.pdf

“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma for Hospitals” and QI Macros [software].

“You know, in the Quality world, we still bring up Deming’s 14 points quite a bit. That’s kind of 20th Century Quality. Now, not that those ideas are extinct or anything, but a lot of it was about that time period.

“When I was working at the phone company we didn’t change CEOs but once every 10, 20, 30 years, right?

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, QI Macros, Six Sigma.

Put the C back in DMAIC

Many improvement projects fail after a few months because teams forget to put the C in DMAIC. Here’s what’s missing and what to do about it:



 

“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].

“I normally talk to you about improvement stuff, but today I want to talk to you about something I keep seeing, which is: People make improvements and then six months later they’re gone. Make an improvement, six months later they they’re gone.

“We need to put the C back in DMAIC: the Control phase. Now, why don’t people do this piece?

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, QI Macros, Six Sigma.

Using Theory of Constraints to Accelerate Lean Six Sigma

Theory of Constraints (TOC) can give us insights into how to accelerate Lean Six Sigma and get results in a day. Here’s how:



“Hi, I’m Jay Arthur, author of “Lean Six Sigma Demystified” and QI Macros [software].

“You know, I’ve been around Quality for almost 30 years now; 30 years exactly, almost. If I think about it, it’s super cool… but why is it so slow and so unsticky? Why is it taking so long for it to get everywhere? I’ve come up with some theories about that.

“If you’re familiar with a technique called “Theory of Constraints,” there’s a whole process to figure out why things aren’t running as quickly as they should.

Posted by Jay Arthur in Improvement Insights, Six Sigma.