Lean Six Sigma in Xerox

Lean Six Sigma concepts were introduced in the book titled Leaning into Six Sigma: The Path to Integration of Lean Enterprise and Six Sigma (Lean Six Sigma). Lean Six Sigma methodologies combine lean manufacturing and Six Sigma strategies to rely on improved performance from a collective team effort that systematically reduces variation and removes seven kinds of waste, known as Muda. Muda includes any unnecessary motion, transport, wait time, inappropriate processing, excess inventory, overproduction, and defects (Lean Six Sigma). Furthermore, Lean Six Sigma methods aim to provide customers with the best possible quality, cost, and delivery (ASQ.org, n.d.). In all, Lean Six Sigma is a business performance improvement strategy that uses a systematic approach to improving the way people advance processes. Its methodologies allow for systematically enriched processes to satisfy the customer and make money. Simply put, Lean Six Sigma as a business enhancer, ingrained with tools and techniques people can use to learn how to improve their processes (iSixSigma,

The driving factors for a success or failure of implementing Six Sigma is largely dependent on the inputs set forth at the conception and duration of the integration. This whitepaper will compare and contrast these critical inputs for a successful deployment. In order to accomplish this five various companies: GE Electric, W.R. Grace, Royal Chemicals, Diversified Paper and Lemforder. Some of these organizations had very successful results while others failed to reach their full potential. What is clear is the similarities of those that succeed and those that failed.

The paper is divided into three sections, the first of which will establish a timeline of events. This project background will serve as a case study for the analysis in the following section that will be structured such that each of the previously mentioned facets will be independently analyzed and contrasted with project management principles. Finally the paper will conclude with a summary of the analysis and recommendations based on

Lean production and Six Sigma help a company to make the production and the workers work more efficient. The processes allow different types of programs to be put in place to ensure the workers and the production process operate at the optimal levels. The processes ensure that each element of the production and looks at each step to ensure that the process is working in a more efficient way (Wisner , Tan, & Leong, 2012).

Lean Six Sigma combines Lean’s time-focused waste-elimination philosophy to dynamic analytical problem solving toolkit of Six Sigma.

Six Sigma is the business strategy and a philosophy of one working smarter not harder.

This paper was prepared for Fundamentals of Project Management, Module 2 Check Your Understanding taught by Dr. Levern Eady.

The Lean Six Sigma looks for ways on how to eliminate defects. In healthcare, a defect can be the difference between life and death. The Lean Six Sigma is used to improve patient safety by eliminating life-threatening errors. Lean Six Sigma uses a five-step approach to process improvement called the Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control (DMAIC). The DMAIC is an approach that is a data-driven quality strategy used to improve processes (ASQ, n.d.). The first phase, the define phase, is where the leaders would define the problem and begin to understand the needs of the customers. This is an important phase of the Lean Six Sigma because this is where the team would outline of their efforts for themselves and the leaders of the organization (goLEANSIXSIGMA.com,

At UB's Center of Excellence for Global Enterprise Management, Li Lin, Ph.D., professor of industrial engineering, and his colleagues apply industrial-engineering tools, including Six Sigma and other lean enterprise methodologies originally developed for manufacturing processes, to improve the operations and competitiveness of hospitals.

Six Sigma is a quality improvement philosophy and a methodology and collection of statistical techniques used to implement that philosophy. Six Sigma’s focuses on reducing or removing identifiable sources of changes in order to decrease the number of defects in a product. Six Sigma was developed by Bill Smith and was used to standardize the way in which defects are tallied (Meredith, 2013). As a new way of doing business, six sigma can have a significant impact on the end result of business. There are many way six sigma can be applied. For example, the scientific component of methodology is a structure approach that takes

An integration of the two approaches and a general focus on process innovation regardless of the origin of the tools and approaches would be more productive. Lean and Six Sigma have complementary strengths that are useful for systematically developing healthcare service innovations. An integrated Lean-Six Sigma approach incorporates the organizational infrastructure and the thorough diagnosis and analysis tools of Six Sigma with Lean analysis tools and best-practice solutions for problems dealing with waste and unnecessary time

Brassard, Michael, and Diane R. (2001). “Sailing through Six Sigma: How the Power of People Can Perfect Processes and Drive down Costs”. Marietta, GA: Brassard & Ritter, 2001.

Six Sigma is a business management strategy originally developed by Motorola, USA in 1981. As of 2010, it enjoys widespread application in many sectors of industry, although its application is not without controversy.

In order to achieve their business objective, project management and the used methodology are key factor which will be responsible for the success or failure of this project.

Looking at the success of Motorola, many companies like Texas Instruments, Allied Signal etc started using Six Sigma methodology to bring organization-wide improvements.