Quote from the article:

“Through Lean Six Sigma, soldiers and leaders will learn how to properly manage time and resources while delivering a top quality product the first time,” said Chief Warrant Officer Jackie Vuorinen, the TF-Resolute safety officer. “This is a program all soldiers can use to save Army resources while providing higher quality products.”

Tim appeared on the Business901 podcast, Are right brain thinkers better leaders? Tim is a University of Kentucky Certified Lean Master, a Goldratt Institute Theory of Constraint Supply Chain Expert, an ASQ-Certified Six Sigma Black Belt, and a Licensed Social Worker with a SECRET clearance and his website, BusinessLeadership.com is a popular venue for leading edge thinking.

Thanks Tim for passing this on and wish you and everyone else at Kandahar Airfield a safe and Happy Holiday!

Related Information:
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Be Productive, Be Visual, Part 2
Start your Visual Thinking Process with Mind Mapping

Dean Ziegler, founder and owner of Systems2win says, “Along with the Value Stream Mapping, A3 and Standard Work Management templates, we will also be highlighting our recent Multi-Language Excel templates. Now with a simple click of a button, every Systems2win Excel template can switch between English and another language." Dean also added, "Our software actually provides a learning platform that strengthens your Lean experience. It is not an additional step in the process; it is part of your Lean journey.”

Systems2win booth will display their collection of Lean and Six Sigma software that are bundled in the following groups:

• Lean Tools
• Value Stream Mapping
• Kaizen and Project Tools
• Six Sigma Tools
• Free Training Tools

Also, in the booth will be yours truly providing a High Level Overview of the product! Stop by and say hello if you are there!

These bundles have been created to provide an organized structure in supporting the above process. In these bundles, the Lean Management tools of Hoshin Kanri, Standard Work, A3, Fishbone, SMED, 5S, Setup Reduction, Balance Scorecard and more are supported. In addition, the training tools provide not just introductory Lean material but a comprehensive Lean and Excel learning tools that are embedded in the templates providing you help and assistance on exactly what you need, when you need it. They are also designed so that a training course can be developed separate from the templates. An overview of the tools:

About Systems2win: Systems2win provides business process improvement tools and training to companies all over the globe. People are provided with easy-to-use fill-in-the-blanks Excel templates that come with self-help online training to improve the speed and reduce the cost of every step of your project. Systems2win templates were originally developed during 14 years of manufacturing systems consulting by the founder of Systems2win, Dean Ziegler, CPIM. The Systems2win templates and online training has been field proven, and continue to be continuously improved by hundreds of Systems2win clients.

Related information:
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Lean needs Marketing, more than Marketing needs Lean!
Will Lean always internalize the customer?
Customer Experience more powerful than the Supply Chain?

There will always be a strong debate between Lean and Six Sigma people about using the 2 terms jointly. I am not positive of the lineage of it but I believe Michael George at the time of the George Group (later to be Accenture) coined the term. I assume he viewed the two methodologies as compatible and more effective in conjunction with each other versus separately. I am not even sure that many (Case in point being that many of today’s “Lean” consultants were trained as Lean Six Sigma Black Belts) disagreed at the time except for the very traditional Lean stalwarts.

Dr. Mikel Harry, credited as one of the founders of Six Sigma states that Six Sigma is not a culture and was developed as a quality tool to gain breakthrough performance for an organization. I adhere to that statement and think Six Sigma offers great opportunities for an organization and provides a very precise and workable structure in achieving this. I am not against the hierarchy of belts and the formalities of DMAIC, DFSS, etc. Many organizations need this type of structure to be successful. I am avid defender of Six Sigma in the Lean circles many times to the chagrin of others.

Lean was developed by the MIT group under Dr. James Womack from a study of automotive companies and more specifically the Toyota Production System. Its approach is based on continuous improvement with a direct correlation to PDCA and Dr. Deming’s philosophies. Lean made its first inroads in many companies and gains in popularities (IMHO) because of the ease of entry into the methodology. Removing waste and improving flow was Lean’s mantra in the 90’s and the tools of 5s and Value Stream Mapping soared in popularity. However, as Lean continued developing tools of A3, Hoshin and Standard Work became common place. But even more so, the culture of PDCA and the spirit of Kaizen started to take hold.

Six Sigma was the methodology of choice for many manufacturers as a result of the significant strides that GE and Motorola had made. Later, Lean seemed to gain and Six Sigma wane in popularity. Lean became the path to a customer as an enabler of some quick wins. You could then take the deep dive with Six Sigma when you wanted to get “serious”. As Lean continued to steamroll and Six Sigma still continued with somewhat lackluster performance many organizations and consultants dropped the attachment to Six Sigma and became “Lean”. Popularity does create a crowd. This may not be an entirely accurate description but it serves as a basis for my views and the following comments.

What makes Lean Six Sigma work? When you first start using any methodology, you are typically introduced through the tools. Using Lean initially versus Six Sigma makes perfect sense, it is an easier introduction. And why reduce variability on non-value activities? But sooner or later you get to the fork in the road. One path says Six Sigma and the other path is this thing they call culture (Lean). So do you want to take the deep dive with a breakthrough structured approach (still has a steep incline) or do you want to try and instill a culture of empowerment. There is not a right or wrong answer. You can take either. Where I disagree, is that you can take both.

Six Sigma has always been about structure and tools. It is very, very good and does an outstanding job when applied properly. In Six Sigma thinking, you can use Lean tools initially and get to 95%. To finish the job, you use Six Sigma. And as a result, Lean Six Sigma was developed. If your organization grew out of the Motorola and G.E. world it seems like a perfect fit.

If you adopt the Lean mentality and the spirit of Kaizen (continuous improvement is not an event) you become immersed in the culture of Lean, as Dr. Balle wonderfully described in the Zen Story about the mountain. Summed up in the blog post: Lean Tools and Culture as it Relates to Zen

Have you ever played yourself in a game? On a basketball court or even a simple game of checkers, sooner or later you have to pick a side to win. It is inevitable. This is the ultimate wedge between the two methodologies and can simply be stated. Six Sigma is a structured methodology and Lean is a cultural driven learn by doing approach. That is not to say that Six Sigma does not have its prototyping options and that Lean is not without statistical control (it did evolve from Deming). But it is saying that they are both on two completely different paths that you must choose between.

If you take the path of and see Lean as Lean, Six Sigma does not make sense and is not a compatible technology. There is a significant culture difference and approach. If you take the path of Six Sigma, you view Lean as only a set of tools nothing more and why not, Lean has a great toolbox. If you take the path of Lean you still can be just as efficient and just as effective as Six Sigma, you just do it differently.

I make no qualms about stating that I believe and follow a Lean philosophy. Lean works in my world much better. PDCA which is basically form a hypothesis, test it and adjust is what sales and marketing is all about.

I support the idea of Lean Six Sigma without hesitation. What I have trouble understanding is how you can be philosophically aligned in Lean thinking and practice Six Sigma. So I believe you must ask yourself; Which fork in the road do you take?

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Continuous Improvement Sales and Marketing Toolset

Marketing your Black Belt is a 28-day program starting May 6th. Marketing your Black Belt is based specifically on addressing these issues: Customer Acquisition, Marketing, Customer Retention and Communication & Collaboration. Specifically designed for Quality consultants.

Get Clients NOW – 28 Day Program: Program starting on the Monday, April 18th: 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM (GMT-0500).Program Structure and Agenda: During the first three sessions you will receive all the tools and training needed to design your individual 28-day marketing action plan. Specifically Designed for the Professional Consultant.

Value Stream Marketing: is a 28-day program starting Thursday, Mat 12th, from 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM (ET). We want our participants to learn how to utilize a Sales and Marketing Value Stream implement through the use of a Marketing Kanban. Specifically Designed for Organizations. 

How many times has a good idea failed because of a poor plan or execution? For start-ups and established organizations alike, Business901 provides effective but easy to use methodologies. They are flexible enough to allow you to apply your own ideas, while giving you guidance before, during and after. We will provide practical, information-rich, immediately applicable direction that can have immediate impact on the success of your organization.

P.S. 90 Day Program – ask for details about our Achieving Expert Status Program

Organizations need to change from a customer satisfaction focus to a customer value focus. The Five Cs of Driving Market Share serves as the template for this transaction. 5 Cs of Driving Market Share is not a project-by-project approach for reducing the costs of marketing activities, but rather an approach that seeks to enhance marketing’s effectiveness and efficiency. For organizations that have deployed other quality initiatives, the 5 Cs approach provides a user friendly bridge for moving the quality focus from the manufacturing floor to the marketplace. Those seeking to become best in market must shift their focus from a product orientation to a market orientation, from an internal efficiency focus to an external focus. Best in market companies will be those that can make this transformation and make it soon.

Customer Identification Program Content: The first step in the 5 Cs of Driving Market Share is identifying specific products/markets that offer the organization its best options for growth. You will learn how to evaluate products and markets using metrics such as current market share, market growth rate and competitive intensity to assess the best targets for the organization. When completed, you will eschew the notion that a company can be everything to everybody, and instead focuses on key market opportunities. This occurs in the Define/Identification stage and differs from the more project-oriented approach that traditional Six Sigma uses.

Customer Value Program Content: In the Value (Measure) stage of Driving Market Share, you will create a value model for each of your targeted product or markets. This value model is the voice of the market (VOM) that drives all operational and strategic initiatives undertaken by the organization. The VOM replaces agendas, hunches and strategic guessing as the guiding factor in growing market share. Value has been shown to be the best leading indicator of market share and top-line revenue growth. Learn how to use superior value creation and delivery to propel growth within the targeted product or markets.

Customer Acquisition Program Content: In the Acquisition (Analyze) stage you will use primarily the Competitive Value Matrix to guide you through the delivery of value delivery. An organization’s value is relative to that of its competitors. This is part of the buyers’ comparative calculus in assessing where to buy. The buyer is asking a simple question: “Is this brand worth it?” By understanding your organization’s competitive value proposition, leaders can make better decisions regarding market share growth.

Customer Retention Program Content: The Retention (Improve) stage could also be called the Enhancement stage. For value leaders, the focus should be on enhancing value to sustain their leadership position. Extending the gap between the value an organization provides and the value provided by the nearest competitor can lead to best in market status. Value followers will want to improve those elements of the value creation and delivery system that will close the gap. This is when organizations need to enhance or improve their competitive value proposition in accordance to the directives of the market place.

Customer Monitoring Program Content: The Monitoring (Control) stage is where you learn how to put monitoring systems into place to ensure that their competitive value proposition accomplishes what is intended. This control effort focuses not only on the more strategic value proposition, but also can be set up to monitor specific transactions such as sales, repairs, inquires and other customer experiences. This monitoring process acts as a trip wire, providing information where there are potential people, product of process issues that require intervention.

For 72 Hours, March 4th to 7th you can receive a special offer, a $200 savings. on the digital download of this program. 

Driving Market Share Program

People start utilizing methodologies like Lean and Six Sigma and start showing remarkable improvements. However, the market is a living thing and most companies have a tendency towards improvement which means that the bar is being continuously raised. As a result the "average" continuous improvement project gets you absolutely nowhere. Unless you can make significant improvements there is only one way to make those improvements effective.

In any given product/market there are Critical to Quality components that are important to the customer that makes them buy your product over another. You may have the WOW, availability, price, etc. The market may define those CTQ’s or other CTQ’s differently and that is why they buy another product. The acronym may make it sound complicated but it really is not most of the time. I mean really does anyone buy an iPad for reliability or price. No, they buy it because it is cool and seemingly will make their life easier. You still have to be competent in other areas but they are not the driver of sales.

That dirty little secret is that most companies take an inside out approach to improvement and really don’t concentrate on the CTQ’s of the customer for retention and the CTQ’s of the market for acquisition. So if you take an outside in approach in improving quality you will improve more than the average guy and as a result improve market share and/or profits. It really is that simple.

I had three recent discussions on this very subject and they all took a slightly different approach but all had a central theme of Customer Value.

1. Dr. Eric Reiedenbach when we discussed Best in Market on the podcast Applying Six Sigma Marketing to become Best In Market. Eric discussed finding the Critical to Quality Issues that determined how a Customer defined Value in your Product(Service)/Markets.
2. Mike Bremer co-author of Escape the Improvement Trap: Five Ingredients Missing in Most Improvement Recipes. Mike discussed tying all improvement efforts to the CTQ’s components and more specifically to your Value Proposition.
3. Christine Moorman co-author of Strategy from the Outside In: Profiting from Customer Value. Christine discussed developing your strategies and the deployment of those strategies through an Outside in approach.

These are three very unique perspectives that really approach the issue of customer value totally different. They all take a different path, disdain average but arrive at the same place. They even agreed on the same metrics: Market Share and Profitability. I wonder if all three of them have found the Holy Grail?   

Related Posts:
Profiting from Customer Value
Why Lean Marketing? Because it is the Future of Marketing
What does a Customer want?
Six Sigma Marketing introduces 5 Cs of Driving Market Share Webinar Series
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