Mod 1 Describe the Problem

Question 1

Continuous improvement is an organized approach to identify opportunities for improvement to help an organization meet what 3 things?

Answer 1

Increasing profit, reducing cost, accelerate innovation

kai [change] + zen [better] = continuous improvement

Question 2

PDCA stands for what?

Answer 2

Plan, do, check, act. This is a cyclical method for continuous improvement.

Question 3

How many steps in the PDCA method?

Answer 3

7 steps. (Plan) 1 Describe the prob & 2 process, 3 ID the root cause, 4 dev’p solution. (Do) 5 Implement solution (Check) 6 Review & evaluate (Act) 7 Reflect & Act.

Question 4

What is a process?

Answer 4

Transforming inputs to outputs; a sequence of activities that lead to predictable results.

Question 5

What is process improvement?

Answer 5

Improving quality while reducing costs and eliminating waste.

Question 6

What is problem-solving?

Answer 6

A systematic investigation of a process to identify a root cause of a gap, and keep it from reoccurring.

Question 7

What are 3 possible options to address a process that is not performing to its expected level?

Answer 7

1) Fix it 2) Improve it or 3) Create a new process

Question 8

How do you know when there is a problem?

Answer 8

1. Broken Processes, 2. Product or service doesn’t have a competitive edge

Question 9

What are performance measures?

Answer 9

The degree to which your activities are performing to the expected results.

Question 10

Performance measures are important because they provide data that helps a team identify and solve problems. What are 4 reasons to gather data?

Answer 10

1. Reveal the problem
2. Describe the problem
3. Monitor & control the problem: gain insight into business performance.
4. Prevent the problem

Question 11

What is variable data?

Answer 11

Data that can be measured and plotted to show trends.

Question 12

What is attribute data?

Answer 12

Data that can be counted and plotted to look at trends

Question 13

Processes that deserve your attention are ones that aren’t meeting KPIs. What are 3 paths to improvement?

Answer 13

1 Benchmarking: ongoing practice of measuring against business that are top-performers.
2 Entitlement: looking at the best time period/best subgroup
3 Process Redesign: identifying process, looking for opportunities

Question 14

What are 3 types of performance measures?

Answer 14

1. Input measures: quality, cost, conformity
2. Process: bottlenecks, defects, quality
3. Outcome measures: final outcomes like quality, cost, customer satisfaction, & yield

Question 15

Thinking about Paths to Improvement, what are 3 types of benchmarking?

Answer 15

1. Functional: Any industry - innovators, new tech
2. Competitive: Industry leaders (they are your competition)
3. Internal: Top departments or different offices (regional)
   All of the above mean ‘top performers’

Question 16

What are the four shapes in a process map you need to know?

Answer 16

.1 Oval starting or end point
.2 Diamond decision or inspection point
.3 Rectangle/box activity
.4 Circle with letter shows a break or link
.5 Arrow shows direction/process flow

Question 17

VSM = Value Stream Mapping. This is to analyze complex processes with a broad range of information. What does it help you see the flow of? (2 things)

Answer 17

Material and information (as a product or services moves through a value-stream). It provides visibility on:
processing time (actual work time)
lead time (period of time between actual work)

Question 18

Is SIPOC related to BIPOC?

Answer 18

No. SIPOC is an acronym for Supplier, Input, Process, Output, Customer.
This is a high-level chart to display the people and processes involved. Usually used at a kick-off meeting