I invite you to join as a member of the PEX Network Group http://tinyurl.com/3hwakem, you will have access to Key Leaders Globally, Events, Webinars, Presentations, Articles, Case Studies, Blog Discussions, White Papers, and Tools and Templates. To access this free content please take 2 minutes for a 1 time FREE registration at http://tiny.cc/tpkd0 Process Excellence Network: A division of IQPC, (formerly known as Six Sigma IQ) provides access to a treasure chest of relevant content for Process Excellence practitioners. Providing critical knowledge on the development of Process Excellence including Business Process Management (BPM), Lean, Change Management, Operational Excellence, Six Sigma, Risk Management, Customer Experience and more, we provide the forum where key industry experts and organizations share their experience, knowledge and tools, and your practitioner peers connect with one another all over the world, both face-to-face and online. The Process Excellence Network is enhanced by an active online community of your professional peers, as well and face-to-face Summits and events that take place across the globe. Collectively we help you discover what the best are doing to get measurable results through Process Excellence and to seek actionable solutions to specific process problems through worldwide mass collaboration. None of us has the time for continuous trial and error learning. We must learn more and more from the experiences of others. Learning is nothing more than thinking with other people's ideas. We bring you the best ideas in a variety of media forms from outstanding academics and practicing professionals. In short, Process Excellence Network, (often known as PEX Network) enables you to advance your own process excellence journey by increasing your idea sources, widening your contacts and friendships and participating in ongoing formal and informal learning opportunities. In Summary: Process Excellence Network is uniquely positioned to provide a comprehensive library of both online and face-to-face content, including first-rate columns, articles, webinars, podcasts, video presentations, and of course globally renown industry events. Through every medium we strive to make your learning an exciting, dynamic, interactive experience. We are constantly striving to improve our content delivery methodologies. In 2011 we will be introducing many new ways for you to learn. Stay updated. The best is yet to come. Become a Process Excellence Network member today and you'll have continuous exposure to new and timeless tools, techniques, and technologies to extend your performance capacity and your organization's productivity. We also invite you to visit e-Zsigma for Lean Six Sigma Training and certification. e-Zsigma is Canada's leader in strategic Lean, Six Sigma and innovation deployment, project management, consulting and change leadership. http://www.e-zsigma.com

1. Six Untapped
Opportunities in Six
Sigma
Contributor: Bryan Camoens View linked In Profile
Posted: 05/12/2011 12:00:00 AM EDT
Process Excellence Network’s Bryan Camoens speaks to 6 Six Sigma
authorities who discuss the untapped opportunities in Six Sigma and where
we will see their deployment in the coming years.
Seow Hong Xuan, Deputy Director, Lean Six Sigma Master
Black Belt SINGTEL:
"Lean Six Sigma is a structured approach towards problem solving. People
used to say Six Sigma only works for process that has controlled factors but it
has been proven otherwise. People used to say Six Sigma is for
manufacturing, again it has been proven otherwise.
Many other industries are deploying in their areas. Importantly, Lean Six
Sigma should be deployed and used as and when there is an opportunity in
terms of Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. If you look at any
happenings in the day-to-day activities, DMAIC just happens to everything.
You don’t know what you don’t know, so just go forward and uncover any
opportunities that come along with DMAIC."
Khwaja Moinuddin, Head of Process Excellence for Garmco :
"Six Sigma and Lean (TPS) methodologies are like an ocean. Even the most
advanced experts are yet to tap the full potential of lean six sigma philosophy
and methodology. Most of the organizations are satisfied with simple analysis
(like fish bone diagrams, process maps and basic statistical analyses like
regression analysis, basic DOEs etc). It takes a while (and of course lots and
lots of patience) to teach and train and get the buy in from employees to
actually use these simple methodologies instead of taking the shot gun
approach of jumping to solutions. One of the most famous quotes is 'In GOD
we believe, for all else, show me the data'.
Just to give an example of untapped opportunities is using advanced
statistical methods like surface response designs (advanced form of Design of
Experiment), advanced regression analysis (using curvature and Durbin
Watson statistics, linking eVSMs with excel and thus analyzing VSMs, design
FMEAs etc). There are many more. As we dig deeper into each method, we
understand the process more and thus make the correct decisions and thus
move the organization in the right direction (leaving the competition miles
behind). The only thing we need is patience. Many people use the term
“Paralysis by Analysis” referring to too much analysis and no decision making.

2. I don’t agree with this because impatient people use this phrase often which
often leads to incorrect decision making. The Japanese companies (Toyota
particularly) plans, plans, plans, plans, replans, replans, plans again and
executes the plan right the first time. Western companies and some Asian
companies’ plan, plan, become impatient with planning, execute, correct, plan
again, execute the plan, correct the plan again, execute and finally maybe get
it right! They lose a lot of time by following this method (if only they realized
it!)."
Rohit Khanna, Chief Operations Officer of GE CAPITAL:
"Six Sigma can be a great program for all parts of the organization that have
repetitive internal processes at one end; and complex new product
development on the other. We have seen it being actively deployed in varied
functions and industries over the last 15 years. In fact, though it originally
started in Manufacturing, the Services industry has benefited immensely from
its application in banking, hotels, healthcare and other related industries.
The potential for Six Sigma to drive customer satisfaction and income is
immense as we speak. Some areas where I believe companies can do more:
firstly share the Six Sigma experience with smaller customers who may not
have the wherewithal or commitment to afford a standalone implementation –
very similar to At the Customer, For the Customer initiatives GE has
successfully run. An extension of the idea could be in Supply Chains where
again Six Sigma can be used to optimize performance.
We also need a better understanding of the balance between process
excellence and innovation. An indiscriminate Six Sigma deployment can
damage the creativity levels in a company in the long-term, resulting instead
in bureaucracy and tendency to over analyze. Done well, I see significant
opportunity in a more proactive approach with focus on designing for Six
Sigma vs merely using it for incremental improvements."
Dumidu Ranaweera, Process Excellence & Lean Six Sigma
Manager, for DIALOG AXIATA PLC:
“Lean Six Sigma has been applied and tested in many areas of late and still
keeps proving its potential. Green Lean Six Sigma (application of Lean Six
Sigma towards reducing environmental impacts), Lean Six Sigma in
Marketing, Lean Six Sigma Accounting, and Lean Six Sigma for SME are
some new emerging areas of Lean Six Sigma application.
For the future there can be also grown interest on how Lean Six Sigma tools
can be used in Socialnomics i.e. mainly to enhance leverage of companies
operating based out of Social media. There are many blue oceans in the
Asian and African terrain that still needs to be explored even by the promoters
of traditional methods of application. Lot of interest has also generated
towards applying the concept in College education and making Lean part of
the standard student curriculum.

3. It’s an area that many organizations can think of venturing out from their
normal operations. There is also huge potential and growing demand on
academic programmes (i.e. specialized degrees) on Lean Six Sigma and
online education and open source training material.”
Alex Budiman, Vice President, of Operations for Biosensors
International:
"Within our organization, one big opportunity lies in integrating Six Sigma into
business excellence that will allow the greatest impact with optimum
resources.
The other opportunity lies in playing a key role in the sustainability of an
organization. In general, I don’t think Six Sigma has been tapped by non-
manufacturing organizations with the same deployment intensity as by
manufacturing organizations."
Remigus Saptono, Six Sigma Process Specialist for Goodyear
Tire & Rubber:
"The consistency on implementing the program to become continuous
improvement all the time. The Six Sigma method is not something frigid and
can not become a creative solution for anyone. Creating the Six Sigma
method as the main culture in the company will help us on seeking the
opportunities to improving our product and services.
The more we committed to implement it and evaluate it regularly the more we
know our position in the business so we can creating some creative way to go
in the competitors business and will knowing better what customer needs and
wants. In my point of view, Six Sigma is the centre on continuous
improvement cycle to create a competitive advantage in the business."
About Process Excellence Network
Process Excellence Network is a free to join online community, providing
critical knowledge on the development of Process Excellence including
Business Process Management (BPM), Lean, Change Management,
Operational Excellence, Six Sigma, Risk Management, Customer Experience
and more. We provide the forum where key industry experts and
organizations share their experience, knowledge and tools, and your
practitioner peers connect with one another all over the world, both face-to-
face and online. Membership is free, the content is priceless.
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