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Lean focuses on seven deadly wastes (overproduction, waiting, transport, motion, over-processing, inventory, defects) to improve workflow and reduce cycle time, while Six Sigma uses DMAIC methodology to achieve 3.4 defects per million opportunities. Companies like General Electric, Motorola, and Bank of America saved millions implementing these methods.
Process improvement prioritizes effectiveness over efficiency because highly efficient processes may still fail to achieve business goals. Six Sigma targets 99.9966% quality through root cause analysis. LEAN manufacturing, pioneered by Toyota, eliminates waste based on customer value. Cross-training employees prevents bottlenecks from sick days and vacations, while regular employee surveys reveal hidden improvement opportunities they see daily.
Process consulting uses coaching and mentoring to help teams solve their own problems when growth creates complexity. Success requires hard data showing how processes work in reality (not just on paper), plus commitment to continuous improvement - much like a Kaizen Event approach.
Business process engineering refers to studying business processes so they can be improved and streamlined for optimum efficiency in both performance and cost. It begins with data, requires careful planning, and needs commitment to continuous improvement.
A Kaizen event is a five-day focused workshop led by a team leader combining training, data collection, brainstorming, and implementation. Day 1 covers waste training and current process analysis, Day 2 gathers data and identifies bottlenecks, Day 3 brainstorms solutions with visual maps, Day 4 implements changes with minimal disruption, and Day 5 creates follow-up plans and management reports for future improvements.
What is a fishbone diagram? Find out what it is, how to create a fishbone drawing - and how it can help you to trace and solve problems at their source.