Story update 4/13/2011: We corrected a misquote regarding who first said, “As goes GM, so goes the nation.”

How many times have you heard, “Lean is in and Six Sigma is out” from a colleague? The funny thing about this is that I used to hear the same thing 23 years ago. Only then it was, “Lean is in, and quality improvement teams are out.” Little has changed since then.

Understanding a process’ cycle time is extremely important, especially in the context of takt

Read this. It won’t be a waste of time.

There are four statements regarding control charts that are myths and in my experience, just refuse to die.

An excellent article by Donald Wheeler on the economic cost of quality, “What Is the Zone of Economic Production?” gave me pause to consider the strategic implications of

An excellent article by Donald Wheeler on the economic cost of quality, “What Is the Zone of Economic Production?” gave me pause to consider the strategic implications of

During the late 1990s, Marilyn vos Savant, holder of the Guinness Book of Records’ highest recorded IQ of 228, received an avalanche of hostile responses, many from Ph.D.s in math and statistics, when she correctly solved the controversial “Monty Hall Proble

During the late 1990s, Marilyn vos Savant, holder of the Guinness Book of Records’ highest recorded IQ of 228, received an avalanche of hostile responses, many from Ph.D.s in math and statistics, when she correctly solved the controversial “Monty Hall Proble

When teaching the I-chart, I’m barely done describing the technique (never mind teaching it) when, as if on cue, someone will ask, “When and how often should I recalculate my limits?” I’m at the point where this triggers an internal “fingernails on the blackboard”