The "success or die" ultimatum : saving companies with blended, long-term improvement formulas

Improvement techniques are like spices: better when blended. Many organizations seem to lose sight of the techniques that still work in addition to Lean & Six Sigma and TPM. This book is a collection of simple stories that show the best ways to find and fix four companies' problems. The authors use the most appropriate tools for the problems. It shows that four different companies all suffer much the same issues but explains why they think are unique. � Read more... Abstract: Improvement techniques are like spices: better when blended. Many organizations seem to lose sight of the techniques that still work in addition to Lean & Six Sigma and TPM. This book is a collection of simple stories that show the best ways to find and fix four companies' problems. The authors use the most appropriate tools for the problems. It shows that four different companies all suffer much the same issues but explains why they think are unique Although eliminating waste and reducing variation are essential for successful improvement initiatives, few books integrate Lean, Six Sigma, and cultural issues into a single management and improvement initiative. Filling this void, this book details a proven recipe for applying Lean, Six Sigma, and the Theory of Constraints in a manner that will maximize return on investment, cash flow, and net profits. The "Success or Die" Ultimatum: Saving Companies with Blended, Long-Term Improvement Formulas uses a compelling story format to guide readers through a collection of stories that illustrate best practices for finding and fixing common issues found in today's organizations. It uses in-depth case studies to illustrate a range of scenarios at a call center, pharmaceutical company, automotive parts supplier, and metals distributor and processor. Readers will learn simple techniques, such as face-to-face discussions to gather data, as well as more complex diagnostic techniques, such as Four-Field Mapping and process mapping. Readers will better understand the complexities in newly formed working relationships, as well as how to: Hire and work with consultants Interact with management to get things done Engage workers on the front line Handle those who are actively against improvements Build and sustain a culture of improvement The book covers simple, yet effective, statistics and explains how Minitab® can be used to simplify and speed up data analysis. In addition, it explains one way to use Statistical Process Control (SPC) to anticipate problems from data and what the results mean. The book includes coverage of project planning, strategy, Lean manufacturing, command and control, finance, PDCA, SPC/root cause analysis, OEE, allocating responsibilities and times to fix, Big Picture mapping, and four-point planning Front Cover 1 Contents 7 Preface 11 Acknowledgments 13 About the Authors 15 Introduction 17 Chapter 1: The Uninvited Visitors 19 Chapter 2: The Consultant 23 Chapter 3: The CEO 25 Chapter 4: The COO 31 Chapter 5: Hamish 37 Chapter 6: Division Presidents 41 Chapter 7: Big Picture Map 55 Chapter 8: Hugh Greenlees 69 Chapter 9: The Confrontation: Ronson & Ronson Metals Distribution 73 Chapter 10: Next Automotive 81 Chapter 11: Chuck Nothis 91 Chapter 12: Independent Pharmaceuticals 97 Chapter 13: Lucie Bell 103 Chapter 14: Phonethics: The Call Center 107 Chapter 15: Elizabeth Golden 111 Chapter 16: The Project Plan 115 Chapter 17: Corporate Cost Allocations 129 Chapter 18: The Low-Hanging Fruit: Phonethics 137 Chapter 19: Initial Analysis and Morning Meetings: Next Automotive 145 Chapter 20: Theory Becomes Practice: Next Automotive 3 155 Chapter 21: Chuck Nothis: Curriculum Vitae 163 Chapter 22: Understanding Data and Basic Statistics: Introduction to SPC 167 Chapter 23: The Powder Analysis 185 Chapter 24: Hugh Comes Around? 199 Chapter 25: Ronson & Ronson Metal Distribution 3 205 Chapter 26: Corporate Update 215 Chapter 27: Corporate Cost and Strategy 239 Chapter 28: Hugh Greenlees 2 247 Chapter 29: Hamish 2 251 Chapter 30: Commitment 253 Chapter 31: Jeff Lincoln 2 261 Chapter 32: Phonethics Call Center Company 3 263 Chapter 33: Phonethics 4: The Diagnosis 271 Chapter 34: Elizabeth Golden 2 289 Chapter 35: Lucie Bell 2 291 Chapter 36: Strategy Meeting with the Board 293 Back Cover 303 This book details a recipe for applying lean, six sigma, and the theory of constraints that will maximize return on investment, cash flow, and net profits. It uses a compelling format to guide readers through a collection of stories that illustrate best practices for finding and fixing common issues found in today's organizations. It uses in-depth case studies to illustrate a range of scenarios at a call center, pharmaceutical company, automotive parts supplier, and metals distributor and processor. Readers will learn techniques, such as face-to-face discussions to gather data, and complex diagnostic techniques, such as four-field and process mapping. Readers will understand the complexities in newly formed working relationships, as well as how to: hire and work with consultants; interact with management to get things done; engage workers on the front line; handle those who are actively against improvements; build and sustain a culture of improvement. -- Edited summary from book This book details a proven recipe for applying Lean, Six Sigma, and the Theory of Constraints in a manner that will maximize return on investment, cash flow, and net profits. The book presents a collection of stories that illustrate best practices for finding and fixing common issues found in today‘s organizations. In-depth case studies illustrate a range of scenarios at a call center, pharmaceutical company, automotive parts supplier, and metals distributor and processor. The book covers simple, yet effective, statistics and explains how Minitab can be used to simplify and speed up data analysis.