Corporate Leadership Profile
Not Just Run of the Mill By Elaine Schmidt
From its inception three years ago, NewPage planned to make Lean Six Sigma an integral part of how the company was run. The paper producer is using the methodology to connect its amalgam of mills in a common culture and to differentiate from the competition at a time of decreased demand in the paper industry. NewPage has tailored its deployment to best meet those needs.
Research
Project Failure By Michael Marx
It is inevitable that some Six Sigma projects will not be successful. This exclusive research explores project failure - what constitutes "failure," what causes failure and how companies respond to failure. Key findings:
24 percent of respondents reported that a DMAIC project is most likely to be abandoned in the Analyze phase at their company. The same number answered that at their company the Improve phase is when a project is most likely to be abandoned.
57 percent of respondents cited inadequate support as a factor in the failure of a recent Six Sigma project
57 percent of respondents reported that it is "important" or "somewhat important" at their company to understand why a Six Sigma project failed
"Final Tollgate" Project Example
New Hire Turnover By David L. Marden
The voluntary turnover rate for new hires was above historical levels at Black & Veatch. To address the issue, the company’s Six Sigma group led a three-day Kaizen event structured on the DMAIC roadmap. The project improved new employee satisfaction with the process and reduced the first-year voluntary turnover from 29 percent to 25 percent, resulting in a projected savings in direct costs of $500,000.
The Final Tollgate features a Six Sigma project as it would be presented to a panel of company executives at the final project review. The objectives of such a presentation are to 1) communicate significant results of the project, 2) share highlights of how results were achieved and 3) gain agreement to close the project. The slides are the Black Belts visual presentation and the accompanying text is the verbal presentation. It is assumed that the project leader has been making regular presentations at each tollgate and that the executives in the audience have a basic understanding of Six Sigma. The content for this project was assembled for illustration purposes. It is based on fabricated data from a fictional company. Any similarities to an actual project are coincidental.
Do you have an exemplary Six Sigma project to share? Would you like to see it here? Submit it to us at www.isixsigma.com/submit/.
Strategy
Back on Track: Tips for Getting the Most Out of a Deployment By Jeffrey Howard
A formal deployment review that examines strategy integration, execution and skilled infrastructure can expose barriers and accelerators, allowing leaders to correct course and reinforce movements in the right direction.
Methodology
Put Strategy into Project Selection with Hoshin Kanri By David A. Gels
Traditional approaches to project selection are not always strategic. The hoshin kanri planning tool helps ensure that resources will be applied where they will provide the most long-term benefit.
Product/Service Guide
Simulation Software
A listing of several simulation software products that practitioners may use to create models, and run various experiments and analyses.
More Features
Cover Story Update: Point Taken To Savings, and Beyond! Realizing the ROI of a Deployment The Case for Detached Black Belts and Champions Shaping the Perfect Team
Also In This Issue
Editor's Notes
Best Black Belt
Ask an Expert
Six Sigma Basics
Tool Spotlight
Shop Talk
Plugged In
The Cox-Box Cartoon
Open Mike
Digital edition included free!
From its inception three years ago, NewPage planned to make Lean Six Sigma an integral part of how the company was run. The paper producer is using the methodology to connect its amalgam of mills in a common culture and to differentiate from the competition at a time of decreased demand in the paper industry. NewPage has tailored its deployment to best meet those needs.
