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Lean Six Sigma is a worldwide proven method for improving processes and organizations. It is known to be sustainable and demonstrable, and it is all thanks to the method it provides that allows organizations to achieve tangible results in a structured way with the main goal of continuous improvement. At Lean Six Sigma Curriculum for Houston High School Students of Texas, we are well-versed in it and make sure to teach our students the basics, starting with its history.
The methodology was born for the need to focus on the customer’s priorities and then implement these in your processes while still reducing costs, eliminating waste, and ensuring performance are at the top. You can pretty much tell this is for the manufacturing industry.
Besides the previous goals, this approach increases customer satisfaction and shortens lead times while utilizing existing knowledge and experience from people involved in the process.
Lean Six Sigma improves the quality and process, which is simple, and it is thanks to the two methodologies it originated from Lean, which aims to increase flow and generate value, and Six Sigma, which is committed to stable, efficient processes.
In addition, LSS is an “answer” to the Japanese method—mostly Kaizen—and how companies and businesses were able to focus on customer satisfaction while having incredible results in products and waste reduction.
What Are the Lean Six Sigma Techniques?
Before you can confidently implement Lean Six Sigma, it is important to first understand the Six Sigma logic and the founding principles of the methodology. To support your efforts, there are a variety of Lean Six Sigma techniques, including but not limited to:
- Kanban approach workflow management. Practices such as visualizing the work and limiting it to a specific time frame help you increase efficiency and improve your workflow.
- Kaizen will shift towards a culture that encourages self-development and continuous improvement—and one of the main reasons for the need for LSS in the USA industry to compete with the Japanese market).
- Value stream mapping for optimizing your process delivery;
- 5S model to optimize your work in five steps.
With this set, we can start focusing on the history itself, which starts with the two methodologies individually (Lean and Six Sigma) and how they originated.
What Is Lean? – Origin & Need
Toyota developed Lean manufacturing in the late 1940s as a way to cut down on non-value-adding work activities.
Three core values of Lean management are at heart:
- Deliver from the perspective of your customers.
- Eliminate any workflow waste.
- Continually improve.
The concept also suggests that people should drive organizational change to create a culture of excellence. The two main pillars of Lean for all people are continuous learning and improvement.
The foundations of Lean can be traced back to Toyota Production Systems (TPS), as mentioned earlier. Japanese Taiichi Ohno was the founder. Lean is based on innovations such as Henry Ford’s and methods like Business Process Redesign.
- Lean begins with determining the customer’s added value, a product/service that meets certain conditions.
- The value stream is the process that creates this value. It can then be mapped.
- This exercise will help you identify wastes and improve your flow. This data is collected and shared with others to reveal the waste. The process then improves one step at a time.
- Next, you will look at how to set it up, so it begins when the customer requests it and delivers exactly when the customer needs it.
- The organization’s employees will identify areas where they can improve and then work to make them better. This allows for process-wide thinking, and everyone is focused on delivering the customer’s needs in a smart, efficient, and effective manner.
What About Six Sigma’s Origins?
Six Sigma was created at the same time as Lean and is more data-driven. Motorola developed the method, and General Electric has used it extensively and successfully. Six Sigma is a process improvement technique that dates back to 1980. Motorola’s manufacturing company used Six Sigma to reduce manufacturing process variability and identify process defects.
The structured project approaches Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control (DMAIC), to ensure that the root cause of any problem is identified before any solution can be implemented. The DMAIC model allows you to use the capabilities of employees in order to provide the greatest value for the customer.
The DMADV (Design for Six Sigma), or DFSS, is a variant of this model. It stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify. It is possible to identify and measure the important indicators of the company, which will help you determine where improvements can be made. Six Sigma provides targets and tools to help management create a structured improvement plan. This is similar to Lean and focuses on adding value for customers.
Lean Six Sigma in the USA
As mentioned earlier, the methodology was developed as an answer to compete with the Japanese market and proved to be a great addition to the manufacturing industry as processes were improved, waste was eliminated, and growth was no issue while still caring about customer satisfaction.
In today’s industry, the USA utilizes Lean Six Sigma for more than manufacturing. Instead, it shows that healthcare, education, and similar industries can benefit from its inculcation and implementation.
For instance, schools and educational institutions overall are able to establish better systems and teach students more efficiently while automating other processes. Meanwhile, students can learn LSS and have better job and career opportunities.
As a result, the USA industry regarding LSS is growing daily, and companies like us, Lean Six Sigma Curriculum Pros of Houston, provide all the tools and options necessary to inculcate the methodology to students and business professionals individually or as a team.
Make sure to contact our experts and request our training and certifications!