The Six Sigma Journey at Dupont
Posted by: meikah | 24 March 2009 | 8:40 pm
It is. In 2000, Dupont’s new mantra was Six Sigma. Don Linsenmann, leader of DuPont’s Six Sigma program, then said that the company was doing it to achieve that competitive advantage. “It’s so different from how work gets done, but so rationally arguable about how work should be done.”
But Dupont’s Six Sigma Journey really began in 1990. The initiative was for re-inventing itself to compete in an increasingly knowledge-driven economy. By 2006, the Six Sigma program generated several billion dollars in savings and top-line growth under the leadership of Corporate Champion, Don Linsenmann.
Let me share with you a case study of Dupont’s Six Sigma journey. Read on…
Filed under: Dupont, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations
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Toyota City, Japan Slumps into Recession
Posted by: meikah | 22 March 2009 | 11:09 pm
Last year, I wrote about Toyota weathering the economic crisis the Toyota way. The company was said to be implementing the “slowdown strategy,” which will focus on their long-term plans of manufacturing more hybrids and attractive smaller cars.
Then just this weekend, LA Times reported that Toyota City in Japan experiencing what they call as Toyota Shock.
- begun an unprecedented production slowdown that called for reduced shifts
- 10-day closures at its 12 domestic plants
- fired 9,000 contract workers — more than 10% of its 85,000 employees — and warned that more firings could follow, even among once-protected full-time workers
- the number of job seekers soared 130% from the same month in 2008, from 1,489 to 2,627
- Toyota City unwanted attention as Japan’s most out-of-work town
It’s sad to see this happening in any city. How much more to a city that was bustling with business? The same thing happened to Iligan City when National Steel Corporation closed down. The once bustling and productive city struggled to find work and income with other industries. The workers of NSC scrambled for work somewhere else.
I hope the globe recovers from this crisis soon so that we won’t be seeing more cities becoming ghost towns.
Filed under: General
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How is Six Sigma in the Banking Industry?
Posted by: meikah | 22 March 2009 | 9:12 pm
There are already a number of banks that have ventured into Six Sigma, and have enjoyed the benefits and savings. However, I also know that there are still banks that are hesitant to go into it.
SixSigma Online has an interesting article on how Six Sigma can fit in the banking industry. Taking on the Six Sigma tool, DMAIC, the article says that it can improve the quality of banks’ services.
Related posts:
Banks Going Lean and Six SigmaÂ
Six Sigma Could be the Secret of Bank of America
COO of GE Money Philippines Adheres to Six Sigma
Six Sigma and Online BankingÂ
GE Money and Six Sigma
Shinhan Bank Goes Six Sigma Way
HSBC Bank Malaysia Vows to Intensify its Six Sigma
BoA Turns to Six Sigma
*Photo from Stock.Xchng
Filed under: Finance, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations
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Clinsys Clinical Research, Inc. Sends Employees to Six Sigma Green Belt Training
Posted by: meikah | 22 March 2009 | 9:02 pm
Clinsys Clinical Research, Inc.® is partnering with North Carolina State University (NCSU) to provide 20 Clinsys employees with Six Sigma Green Belt training. For the month of March, the employees will participate in a two-part training program directed by NCSU’s College of Textiles and Industrial Extension Service (IES) departments.
The selected Green Belt trainees represent all levels and cross-functional departments of the company: Clinical Operations, Data Management, Biostatistics, Field Operations, Quality Assurance, Regulatory Services, Legal, Clinical Development, Training and Customer Relations, Proposals and Contracts, Business Excellence, Human Resources, and Information Technology.
As a requirement, the trainees must complete an open-book assessment and present their projects for final approval to a committee comprised of Clinsys senior management and NCSU trainers. Ultimately, each trainee must show the committee that he/she will help Clinsys increase profitability with satisfied customers and repeat business, plus enhance competitiveness in an industry that values Six Sigma trained employees.
According to David E. Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Clinsys:
“We are grateful to the staff of the Capital Area Workforce Development Board and NCSU for all the guidance and support provided to Clinsys. The company is dedicated to continuous quality improvement, and our talented trainees will apply what they have learned to further ensure customer satisfaction every step of the way.”
Filed under: Green Belts, Healthcare, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations, Training
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The SixSig Roundup
Posted by: meikah | 18 March 2009 | 9:54 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.
SixSigma123.com discusses the current role of the system development life cycle (SDLC) as a unifying procedural basis for Six Sigma improvement activities. Also, it presents SIFT, a simplified deployment and implementation model designed to work in conjunction with the SDLC and Six Sigma. Read on…
User-Centric Enterprise Architecture presents how Six Sigma can be incorporated into enterprise architecture, noting the similarities and differences. Read on…
At The Sixth Sigma, the blog shares a link from Obamanomics about the impact of emerging legislation and foreign tax treatment on the existing lean manufacturing structure. Read on…
Over at the The Lean Thinker, Mark Rosenthal talks about simplifying further the concept of lean, and how it is being implemented by a giant company like Toyota. Read on…
Learning About Lean blog shares an Lean experience from the government. The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles has streamlined its processes by spreading out the due dates of residents. The result: short wait times, shorter queues, and happier people. Read on…
*Edited photo is from Stock.Xchng
Filed under: Six Sigma, SixSig
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Six Sigma and Enterprise Risk Management
Posted by: meikah | 18 March 2009 | 9:08 pm
According to an iSixSigma article:
Enterprise risk management (ERM) is a framework for managing risk across an organization. It improves an organization’s ability to accept the right amount of risk to capture strategic opportunities. ERM is made up of eight components, each of which can be supported by the tools and methods of Six Sigma.
The 8 components are:
- Internal environment
- Objective setting
- Event identification
- Risk assessment
- Risk response
- Control activities
- Monitoring
- Information and communication
Each is explained alongside with the role of Six Sigma tools in each component.
*Photo from the same iSixSigma article
Filed under: Six Sigma, Tools/Toolkits, iSixSigma
2 Comments |
How Do Six Sigma Companies Fare in the Stock Market?
Posted by: meikah | 18 March 2009 | 7:47 pm
An article on BNET looks into the performance of Six Sigma companies in the stock market. It is saying that these companies have not really fared well.
QualPro found that 91 percent of these companies had stock performances below the S & P 500 index since announcing a Six Sigma program. Only five of the 58 companies exceeded the index. The remaining 53 companies underperformed the index. The bottom line? The majority of Six Sigma programs do not benefit a company’s stock performance.
…
General Electric, the poster child for Six Sigma, underperformed the S & P 500 by 30 percent over the past five years. Home Depot adopted Six Sigma in 2001. The result? Its stock has also lagged 30 percent behind the S & P 500.
This is an interesting study, actually. I’m not sure though if there is actually a direct correlation between Six Sigma and stock performance of a company. While good stock performance indicates people’s confidence in a company, that many not really translate to Six Sigma ensuring continuous quality improvement.
And it’s curious that a company whose operations are continuously improving does not get the confidence of people to invest in their stocks.
What are your thoughts on this?
*Photo from Stock.Xchng
Filed under: Finance, Six Sigma, Six Sigma Organizations, Stock Market
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Six Sigma for Time Management
Posted by: meikah | 16 March 2009 | 10:50 pm
I just don’t have the time anymore to do this. How many of you utter this phrase every day?
But those who know how to manage their time don’t buy this at all. I, too, utter that phrase—many times, in fact. And mainly because I don’t know how to manage my time. 
So, like in any other endeavor, Six Sigma projects can also be stalled by lack of time (management). An article on iSixSigma discusses how to set smart goals to better manage time. Take note of how goals are set first to have the timem, and not the other way around: Manage time to set smart goals. 
To do this, the article says that as a Six Sigma practitioner, you are also a change agent, and thus how would you use Six Sigma to manage your time?
To create a goal around time management, start by breaking down a version of the DMAIC model into three main categories:
1. Define
2. Measure
3. Achieve
*Photo from Stock.Xchng
Filed under: Six Sigma, Time Management
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Six Sigma on Wall Street
Posted by: meikah | 16 March 2009 | 9:56 pm
The Wall Street is not in the best situation right now. Can Six Sigma help it back on its feet?
BLOGa.uni.cc asks can Wall Street benefit from Six Sigma?
Wall Street is not unique in their need to manage process-related inefficiencies and defects. Nor are they unique in needing to control process outputs in order to reduce costs, improve customer service, and streamline the organization. These are the tasks for which Six Sigma is designed. But, in order for the methodology to “work,†it must be deployed in the right way with the right resources with 100% commitment from senior management. If Wall Street were to truly give the methodology a chance, they might be surprised by the benefits they would enjoy.
Filed under: Finance, Six Sigma, The Wall Street
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Avoiding Bottlenecks in Six Sigma Implementation
Posted by: meikah | 16 March 2009 | 7:42 pm
Like any other project, Six Sigma implementation is also vulnerable to bottlenecks, especially in small organizations. I know many companies right now may be hesitant to go into Six Sigma, considering the global crisis.But for those who are willing to take the risk to enjoy the benefits and savings later, let me share with you some of the identified bottlenecks so that you can try to avoid them.
- Lack of adequate resources, both human and financial – this can lead to increased employee dissatisfaction, as they have to work extra hours all throughout the implementation stage.
- Small organizations may also face difficulties in hiring Six Sigma professionals, who are vital for the success of any implementation – this may be caused by financial constraints or the failure of management to buy the idea.
- Poor project selection – the team fails to clearly define the real objectives of the implementation project, which can lead to this:
In the “Define†phase, the organization may fail to clearly define the real objectives of the implementation project, which in turn can create problems during the actual implementation. In the “Measure†phase, bottlenecks may arise due to lack of proper measurement systems and due to time lost in data collection. In the “Design†phase, problems may arise due to lack of innovative design improvement ideas. In the “Control†phase, bottlenecks may occur due to non-adherence to VOC (voice of customer), which is vital for the success of any Six Sigma implementation project.
*Photo from Stock.Xchng
