Harness the power of Lean Six Sigma

The Lean Six Sigma Academy aims to help organisations understand the benefits of both lean and six sigma by showing how these two methodologies might work, both separately and together, to deliver real, measurable, operational and financial improvements. We’ll start by briefly describing the key principles involved and stressing how lean and six sigma work together; there is a real and natural synergy. It’s not a question of one or the other. It really is a question of both.

Key principles

The key principles of both lean and six sigma form a ‘magnificent seven’ that can transform an organisation:

1. focus on the customer
2. identify and understand how the work gets done – the value stream
3. manage, improve and smooth the process flow
4. remove non-value-add steps and waste
5. manage by fact and reduce variation
6. involve and equip the people in the process
7. undertake improvement activity in a systematic way

1. Focus on the customer

You need to understand the customer’s perception of value and their critical-to-quality requirements (CTQs). These provide the basis for your measurement set which will help you understand how well you are performing against these critical requirements. Focusing on the customer and the concept of value-add, is especially important as typically only 10 to 15 per cent of process steps add value and often represent only one per cent of the total process time.

2. Understand the value stream

By identifying and understanding how the work gets done (the value stream), you can highlight the non-value steps and waste. In doing so, you can ensure the process is focused on meeting the CTQs and adding value. To do this properly, you have to go to the ‘gemba’. This Japanese word is usually associated with the workplace – where the work gets done or where the action is and that’s where management begins. So, go to the workplace to see the real process being carried out and collect data on what’s happening. You’ll find this will make it easier for you to analyse the root cause of any problems.

Understanding, managing and improving the value stream is key to a business as it sets out all of the actions, both value creating and non-value creating, that bring a product or service concept to launch and bring a customer order through the supply chain processing all the way to delivery. These include actions to process information from the customer and actions to transform the product on its way to the customer.

Toyota’s Taiichi Ohno describes the approach very effectively: ‘All we are doing is looking at a timeline from the moment the customer gives us an order to the point when we collect the cash. We are reducing that timeline by removing the non-value-added wastes.’

3. Improve the process flow

Managing, improving and smoothing the process flow provides another example of different thinking. If possible, use single piece flow, moving away from batches or at least reducing batch sizes. Either way, identify the non-value-added steps in processes and try to remove them – certainly look to ensure they do not delay value-adding steps. The concept of pull, not push, links to our understanding of the process and the improving of flow and it can be an essential element in avoiding bottlenecks.

4. Remove waste

Removing non-value-added steps and waste is another vital element in improving performance. One way to improve flow and performance, generally, is to identify, remove and prevent waste or, as the Japanese call it, ‘muda’. They describe two broad types and seven categories of waste, sometimes introduced as ‘Tim Wood’:

Transportation
Inventory
Motion

Waiting
Over-Processing
Over-Production
Defects

Transportation – moving materials and output unnecessarily. This might include sending partly completed batches of work through the internal mail system because of the inappropriate location of processing teams. It could also involve moves that go to and fro or that include non-value-added steps

Inventory – this links to over-production resulting in too much work in progress, for example, too much stock of brochures, leaflets or stationery

Motion – this means too much movement for people, perhaps due to poor ergonomic design in the workplace, or the inappropriate location of process teams or equipment. This type of waste could also include the need to access too many screens, double handling or the need for unnecessary approvals

Waiting – for example people unable to process their work due to equipment failure or delays in receiving their work or the information they might need to process it

Over-production – producing more than is needed or earlier than it is needed by the next process or customer. This type of waste contributes to the other six

Over-processing – performing unnecessary processing steps, involving irrelevant information or the completion of too many fields

Defects – dealing with rework caused by not meeting customer requirements, providing incomplete replies or simply making errors

5. Manage by fact

Managing by fact, using accurate data, will help you to avoid jumping to conclusions and solutions. You need the facts! And that means measuring the right things in the right way. Data collection is a process and needs to be managed accordingly. Using control charts will enable you to interpret the data correctly and understand the process variation. You will then know when to take action and when to hold back.

6. People involvement

Of course, to be truly effective, we need to involve people in the process, equipping them so they feel able to challenge and improve their processes and the way they work.

7. Systematic improvement

Undertaking improvement activity in a systematic way is achieved through the framework of DMAIC (define, measure, analyse, improve, control), the commonly used method for improving existing processes in six sigma, but one that is equally applicable as the model to follow, even in a lean, rapid-improvement event.

About the Lean Six Sigma Academy

This is a brief description of what’s behind lean six sigma, but one that might tempt you to find out more, something the Lean Six Sigma Academy can help you with.

The academy is jointly led by David Howells and John Morgan, who are supported by a large team of highly experienced and established experts. The quality of support we offer is second to none and our goal is to enable organisations to achieve real success from our interventions.

Drawing on the knowledge and skills of our team, we provide workshops, master classes, in-company and public training, advice, mentoring and coaching to both the public and private sectors. You can see our programme of events on the BQF’s website.

We have an unparalleled knowledge of ‘best in class’ and ‘best practice’ approaches to both lean and six sigma from across all sectors. This enables people to benefit from the broadest possible range of perspectives and potential solutions and make use of the learning immediately in their day-to-day roles.

This year we are introducing the Academy Awards with winners being announced at our Annual Lean Six Sigma Conference in December. In doing so, we plan to recognise excellence and to demonstrate best practice. Entries can be for a project team, or an individual green or black belt, for example. Three broad criteria are being used in assessing award applicants:

• understanding the problem
• applying the right tools
• achieving bottom-line results

Naturally, we hope that as many of you as possible take the opportunity to enter the awards and share the success of your improvement activity. We have tried to make the process relatively straightforward by asking you to submit an overview description supported by a maximum of ten slides on either a PDF or Powerpoint presentation, along with the entry form which can be found on the BQF website.

The ‘slide show’ provides people with the opportunity to present a storyboard describing their project. Where a team has used the framework of DMAIC for example, they might wish to allocate one or two slides to describe the key aspects of these phases, but much will depend upon the nature of the project. Alternatively, they might wish to present their project in line with the above criteria or in some other format. The choice is theirs, but entries need to be presented in a way that will make it easy for the judging panel to follow.

This year’s event will be held at the Renault F1 Communications Centre conference facility, where you will be able to see last year’s Formula One car and test your racing driver skills on a simulator!

Certification

Project storyboards also form an important element in the academy’s independent certification service for all levels of lean and six sigma experts. The programme is based on a skills-matrix developed by a range of consultants who have identified the ingredients for success across a wide variety of industries.

The certification process uses a mixture of formal examination and project review to assess abilities against a number of key competencies, ensuring that both the theoretical and the practical applications of the methodology are evaluated. It includes reviews of the applicant’s performance in leading real projects. Although not exclusively designed for people who have been trained by the academy, the process is designed to build upon a structured training programme.

Certification provides independent recognition that the individual has demonstrated proficiency in and comprehension of the lean and six sigma methodologies. The programme has been carefully designed to be equally applicable to manufacturing and service environments with the aim of establishing a new level of consistency and a recognised national benchmark

Why become certified in lean and/or six sigma?
In today’s world, where business excellence can offer a competitive advantage for an organisation, certification provides a mark of excellence. It demonstrates that the certified individual has the knowledge and experience to successfully undertake a variety of different projects utilising the appropriate methodology.

Certification is an investment in an organisation’s people and can greatly enhance the future career of its employees. It acts as a powerful motivator during training and initial projects, ensuring that both the individual and the organisation reap the greatest benefit from what is usually a significant investment. It also provides a road map for development beyond initial training. Successful practitioners require a wide range of skills, covering project management, competency in the use of analytical and statistical tools and the ‘soft’ change management skills.

Benefits of certification

Whether seeking initial certification or re-certification, applicants can:

• consolidate and augment their training experience
• enhance their career and self-esteem
• promote and advance their organisation
• affirm their commitment to quality
• recognise their performance excellence

The Lean Six Sigma Academy maintains a history file of projects that are accomplished throughout the training programme, providing objective evidence of successful programme completion and will also maintain a register of successful applicants.

For further information on the Lean Six Sigma Academy:
T: +44 (0) 20 7654 5000, E: academy@bqf.org.uk or www.bqf.org.uk