Six Sigma Improves Emergency Department Processes
Posted by: meikah | 28 April 2010 | 8:49 pm
Most hospital emergency departments (ED) have one thing in common: too many patients, too little space. Thus, if you are a conscientious management,you would find ways to improve it, and fast.
An article on Health Leaders Media, shares how Jersey City Medical Center improves its ED.
Christy Wade, the nurse manager of the emergency department, enjoined her colleagues, all Six Sigma certified, to work on the problem. That is to search for ED bottlenecks and ways to remove them.
The team instituted changes, including a new approach to observation patients, that have reduced wait time to an average of 30 minutes, and decreased hours on divert to zero. Last month less than 1.5% of patients left without being seen.
Filed under: Healthcare, Processes, Six Sigma
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Learnings from the CSCMP Atlanta Roundtable and the Georgia Tech Supply Chain Executive Forum
Posted by: meikah | 25 April 2010 | 8:11 pm
I am lucky to have stumbled upon Dan Gilmore’s post where he shares what he learned from the CSCMP Atlanta Roundtable and the Georgia Tech Supply Chain Executive Forum. Dan Gilmore, Editor-in-Chief of Supply Chain Digest, summarizes what transpired during the two events, and how we all can learn from it.
Featured companies are Coke, Whirlpool, Intel among other companies. Companies that deal with supply chain on a daily basis are more bullish than ever as they get real orders in recent months.
So, how does supply chain companies deal with a renewed confidence in the economy?
Read Dan Gilmore’s Trip Report.
Filed under: Processes, Six Sigma, Supply Chain
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10 Key Technologies for Lean Process Improvement
Posted by: meikah | 8 March 2010 | 8:20 pm
Technology has indeed made life easier for all of us. With Web 2.0, sales and marketing have become a breeze. With the latest software, processes have become easier.
In the case of Six Sigma, for example, Apple has made Six Sigma applications available to iPhone users and on iTunes.
I stumbled upon Nari Kannan’s article on the ten key technologies for Lean Process Improvement. Again technology can play a big part in a lean process. Below is the list.
- The Internet
- Wireless connectivity
- Automated workflow systems
- Scanning and digitization
- Service-oriented architectures
- Document management systems
- Business process monitoring and measurement
- Business process management systems
- Business rules systems
- Online CRM systems/self-service FAQ system
Filed under: Lean, Processes, Six Sigma, Technology
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Estimating ROI for a Process Improvement Program
Posted by: meikah | 22 February 2010 | 7:49 pm
It’s a fact that in every process improvement that you do, the ROI is always an important matter to consider.
Here’s another good resource for you. Anand Paropkari’s article on iSixSigma is a good discussion on how to estimate the return of investment (ROI) for a process improvement program.
ROI Fundamentals
ROI is the ratio of the amount of resources invested in a project to the net benefits reaped from it, often expressed as percentage. It can be used in cases where management needs to know how the business is going to benefit from a project that carries significant costs. The percentage can be calculated with the following formula:
ROI = ((Total benefits – Total cost)/Total cost) x 100%
For example, if an initiative that cost $10 million provides total benefits of $17.5 million, then, according to the formula, the ROI is 75 percent.
It is obvious from the above equation that:
- ROI less than 0 percent is not economical
- ROI equal to 0 percent is considered a “no loss, no gain†situation
- The greater the ROI, the larger the benefit
Essentially there are two factors to take into account when calculating ROI: cost and benefit.
Filed under: Processes, ROI, Six Sigma
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Webcast: ‘Lean Six Sigma Beyond Process Maps – Delving into the Cultural Impacts’
Posted by: meikah | 26 January 2010 | 9:10 pm
PowerSteering Software will host a new free webcast titled Lean Six Sigma Beyond Process Maps. This will be presented by James Pearson, EMC‘s former VP of Lean Six Sigma and past recipient of WBCF‘s VP Six Sigma Leader of the Year honor.
Participants of the webcast will learn the following:
- Secure top-down executive support
- Assess the cultural consequences across the employee base
- Commit to continuous review and improvement
- Recognize the central role of the system on Lean Six Sigma results
- Obtain and maintain executive visibility of the program
Schedule: Tuesday, February 9 at 11:30 a.m. (EST)
Filed under: Lean Six Sigma, Process Maps, Processes, Six Sigma
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Lean Six Sigma at ADC Telecommunications
Posted by: meikah | 7 December 2009 | 6:56 pm
ADC Telecommunications is the leading provider of Broadband network infrastructure products and services (Copper and Fiber connectivity, Network solutions and professional service). The company has 10,000 employees and has facilities in Shakopee, MN; Sidney, NE; Santa Teresa, NM; Juarez, MX, Delicias, MX; Berlin; Brno (CZ); Bangalore (IN); Sydney (Aus); Shanghai.
Looking at that basic profile, we can say that there is a need for the company to establish a system. The company then decided to go into Lean Six Sigma. The goal was to “have a systematic approach to managing change in critical business processes leading to sustainable breakthrough performance; and an effective leadership and management tool to maximize the best use of ADC’s time, money, and resources.”
And this is ADC’s Lean Six Sigma journey: Lean Six Sigma Deployment at ADC.
Filed under: ADC Telecommunications, Lean Six Sigma, Processes, Six Sigma, Telecommunications
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The SixSig Roundup
Posted by: meikah | 8 November 2009 | 8:54 pm
It’s time again for some link-loving and see what other blogs are saying about Six Sigma, Lean, Lean Six Sigma and other quality improvement processes.
NC State of Business shares tips for integrating Lean and Six Sigma to optimize your organization’s performance.
Newshoggers shares a good discussion on the difference between service operations like hospitals and manufacturing operations such as General Motors or Ford. The conclusion is that U.S. hospitals can improve.
ReliablePlant Blogs asks if your continuous improvement list is long, which projects should you pursue first?
Gallup Management Journal interviews Jim Clifton and talks about the kind of leadership companies go through to achieve sustainability and continuous improvement. Clifton goes on to describe the next generation leadership.
i360Insight has a very interesting take on increasing productivity as inspired by Peter Drucker.
Filed under: Leadership, Processes, Productivity, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Advantage
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The SixSig Roundup
Posted by: meikah | 18 October 2009 | 7:53 pm
It’s time again for some link-loving and see what other blogs are saying about Six Sigma, Lean, Lean Six Sigma and other quality improvement processes.
Power-Transmission Shop blog reminds us what a Green Belt Six Sigma practitioner should do. Green Belts are those employees who are trained to implement Six Sigma projects under the guidance of the Black Belts to achieve the desired goals. Read on…
A Human Resources blog shares a primer on human resource and Six Sigma. HR professionals, who can be involved from the start of the project, play a crucial role in the Six Sigma initiatives at the organizational level will be made. Read on…
The new blog, Lean Mean Process Improvement, talks about the two applications of statistics: descriptive and inferential statistics, and how each can be applied to Lean Six Sigma process improvement. Read on…
Lean Six Sigma Moneybelt blog shares his observation about the differences between project management and Lean Six Sigma. The only important thing to do is ensure that once a project is implemented, that process management and measurement (i.e., control charts and control plans) are implemented to make sure the project continues to function as planned. Read on…
On the Buffalo News, the City and Region section reports that Chris Collins, the county executive of Erie, was not able to deliver his promise of putting order in the bureaucracy. Erie County’s state-appointed control board Friday called Chris Collins’ four-year financial plan unrealistic and gave him until Dec. 31 to better detail how he intends to close a cumulative deficit of some $170 million. Read on…
Filed under: Green Belts, Human Resource, Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Processes, Six Sigma
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Pittsburgh Glass Works Turns One Year Old and Grateful To Lean/Six Sigma
Posted by: meikah | 13 October 2009 | 8:04 pm
According to Jim Wiggins, Chairman and CEO, Pittsburgh Glass Works, LLC:
“PGW improved its cost structure and enhanced its flexibility to serve customers through a streamlined organization based on Lean value streams, transformation of our manufacturing footprint from nine plants to six, and through aggressive implementation of lean/six sigma throughout operations,” said Wiggins. “Operational performance capabilities have been further enhanced through the rebuild of a float line at Meadville, and investments in our fabrication cold end and bending processes.”
Filed under: Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Processes, Productivity, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations
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8 Workable Strategies for Creating Lean Government
Posted by: meikah | 1 October 2009 | 9:03 pm
Governments have the reputation of being bureaucratic and a slowpoke. Many attribute it to the system by which they do business. There are just too many steps, and too many signatories!
An article on iSixSigma shares eight workable strategies to create a lean government. According to the article:
The idealized goal of Lean is “one-piece flow,” also known as continuous flow. One-piece flow is achieved when all waste is eliminated from the value stream and all that remains is value-added work from the perspective of customers.
The interesting thing about Lean in government is this that one-piece flow operation is almost achievable here because there is really no requirement for in-process inventories. There is really no such thing as a partially finished job that is not the result of a customer order within government processes.
…
- Synchronization to customer demands. This is basic really. You cater to the requirements of your customer.
- Understand variations in customer demand. Time and motion study will also apply here, I think. Consider that each customer has a different need, and so the flow should be flexible
- Create work cells. Good idea! Instead of putting each function in different departments and in different locations, why not create a work cell where all the necessary value-adding processing steps and personnel are located together?
- Eliminate batching work and multi-tasking.
- Enforce first in, first out.
- Implement standardized work and load leveling
- Do today’s work today.
- Make the value stream visible.
