School of Business, BUSI 830, Liberty University
20 Jan 2022
Discussion Forum 1
Author Note
Maria Rutherford
By submitting this assignment, I attest this submission represents my own work, and not
that of another student, scholar, or internet source. I understand I am responsible for
knowing and correctly utilizing referencing and bibliographical guidelines. I have not
submitted this work for any other class.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Maria Rutherford
Email: mffoley@liberty.edu
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Introduction
In order for an organization to improve upon their quality, their performance and to
discover solutions to issues, the Lean Six Sigma method is utilized (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.1). The
use of this quality improvement and efficiency method will guide the organization in using the
right tools to achieve their desired goals. An organization and its many parts should all be
working towards one common goal and the Lean Six Sigma method only seeks to improve upon
the processes used to attain them. While Lean and Six Sigma are two separate terms, the
combination of the two has created a strategy in which organizations can eliminate waste and
problem solve. This change in environment creates an atmosphere where employees are in a
constant cycle of willingly contributing to process improvement by creating solutions to
identified problems (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.2). An organization has presented with an unidentified
issue within their manufacturing of their widget product. The organization has evaluated their
entire process and concluded that while the final product only takes a total of four hours to
manufacture from beginning to end, their ship date from the entry of raw materials is three
months. The noted delays are not well understood by the organization and thus by utilizing the
Lean Six Sigma method the organization can recognize and eliminate steps within their
manufacturing process that are time wasting. The goal is to improve upon the organizations
process and decrease the time from the receipt of raw materials and the shipment of the final
widget product.
Consultant’s Assessment/ Recommendations
The Lean Six Sigma method utilized the DMAIC process as a guide to find appropriate
solutions to the business problem faced (Antony et al., 2017). The DMAIC process uses a
mathematical equation to better understand what variables are responsible for the process outputs
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(Hall & Scott, 2016, p.81). The DMAIC acronym stands for: define, measure, analyze, improve,
and control. In the define phase, the organization will seek to understand the output of their
processes and how to measure them. A process map tool to reflect all of the details and steps
taken within a process would be valuable to the manufacturing organization to understand where
the time delay takes place. Next, the measure phase will order the process inputs based on
priority and their subsequent outputs. This will allow the organization to gain a better
understanding of the current performance. A measurement system analysis tool can help the
organization better understand which tool should be used in the analysis of their data to gain the
most accurate results (Singh & Rathi, 2019). In the analyze phase the root cause of the problem
will be identified by using process map analysis to gain a better understanding of the inputs and
the outputs they generate. In this step it is also important that the organization ask “why”
questions. The organization has already posed their “why” question which is questioning why
there exists a significant delay in shipments. After the issue is identified, the organization will
then move into the improvement phase where solutions are determined in order to rectify
recognized issues (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.93). The Failure Mode Effect Analysis is an effective
tool in this phase as it helps to recognize failures within the manufacturing process and
prioritizes them based on severity. Within this phase potential solutions are brainstormed and are
tested. Lastly, the control phase will monitor the process improvements over time to control them
and to gather information on their effects (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.91). This guide will aid the
organization in recognizing areas of waste or steps within their process that does not add value.
Areas of waste that could be recognized, for this organization, are unnecessary transportation or
waiting. Considering there exists a manufacturing issue that involves large delays, it is possible
that the product is making unnecessary movements around the facility before production. It is
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also possible that there could be large moments of waiting within the assembly process as a
worker or a machine stops working for a period of time (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.97).
Conclusion
The use of the Lean Six Sigma method will enable the organization to increase their profits while
reducing costs, improving upon overall customer satisfaction, improve delivery time and foster
an advanced decision-making skillset for the organization (Hall & Scott, 2016, p.2). Recognizing
opportunities of improvement and creating a work environment that fosters creative solutions
will benefit the organization in the long-term. Minimizing wasted time within the organizations
process requires the leadership to have an understanding of the steps and tools necessary to
implement solutions.
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References
Antony, J., Snee, R., & Hoerl, R. (2017). Lean Six Sigma: yesterday, today and tomorrow.
International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management.
Hall, J., Scott, T. (2016). Lean Six Sigma: Beginner's Guide to Understanding and Practicing
Lean Six Sigma. (n.p.): CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.
Singh, M., & Rathi, R. (2019). A structured review of Lean Six Sigma in various industrial
sectors. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma.
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