Continuous Improvement Journey Podcast

E09 Suppliers: Friend or Enemy

Are our suppliers or vendors considered our friends or enemy? And do we select vendors on price alone? The answers to these questions will determine the fate of our organization for how effective we are in providing our goods or services to our customers.
We need to unceasingly expand the scope of our continuous improvement initiatives outside of just improvements made on the shop floor.
It is critical when we embark on our continuous improvement journey to streamline the interfaces between our suppliers, our organization, and our customers.

E08: Solving Inventory Optimization

Who do you think would win if we had an arm wrestle between lean manufacturing based Just in time Inventory and Inventory Optimization using statistical principles?
Whoever wins, the main challenge for those who work with or are impacted by the effectiveness of our supply chains is figuring out how in the world we can match our inventory supply to our customer’s demand. How well we do this as an organization will directly impact our success and profitability.
My hope is that this series of the 13 laws of System Optimization will help give us a larger and all-encompassing perspective to help take us to the next level from our traditional lean manufacturing training.

E07: WIP-ing and Flowing

Many of us are familiar with the concept of work in process, and some feel that any work in process lying around is of the devil. This thinking is partly true. We need a certain amount of work in process to overcome the natural variation in the system with standard work in process or critical work in process levels.
For episode 7 this week on the Continuous Improvement Journey’s podcast, we will explore the steps to take to have an optimal level of standard work in process levels to not starve or overwhelm each process and the entire system. While on the other hand, not having too much work in process or inventory can cause confusion and variation in the system that decreases throughput and increases cycle times.
My hope is that this series of the 13 laws of System Optimization will help give us a larger and all-encompassing perspective to help take us to the next level from our traditional lean manufacturing training.

E06: The Two Evil Wastes

For episode 6 of Continuous Improvement Journey’s podcast, we will discuss the law of operational and process wastes, which is a continuation of exploring each of the 13 Laws of System Optimization we have discussed so far in the previous 3 episodes.
In the lean community, you hear all kinds of talk about removing waste, eliminating waste, lowering inventory levels, and extravagant programs and posters about the 8 wastes. However, the generalized lean definitions of waste and the hunt to eliminate the 8 wastes in our organizations are missing the point and are typical of “kid-lean.”
But what about operational waste? Or in other words, what do we do about reducing the second category of waste, which contains about 75% of all our system waste, when process waste only contributes about 25% of waste?
I hope that these 13 laws of System Optimization will help give us a larger and all-encompassing perspective to help take us to the next level from our traditional lean manufacturing training.

E05: Variation—The Root Cause of All Our Problems

For episode 5, we will dive deeper into the Law of Variation, which is the most important and maybe the least understood law when running an organization.
Not only can the law of variation help us understand and resolve our past. It can significantly help guide our organization along our continuous improvement journey and help solidify our future by helping us create stable and, in a way, predictable processes and systems.
See The Medicine of Lean Six Sigma Online Course on Skillshare or the CIJourney.com website.

E04: Laws of System Optimization, Part 2

For episode 4 of Continuous Improvement Journey’s podcast, we will pick up where we left off in part one of episode 3 where we explored a high-level view of the Laws of System Optimization.
We will continue part 2 in covering laws 4 through 13. I hope that these 13 laws will become additional tools to refine and take us to the next level from our traditional lean manufacturing training.
As a refresher, or if you missed episode 3, the following are each of the Laws of System Optimization.
The law of variation. 
The law of operational and process wastes. 
The law of WIP (work in process) and process flow. 
The law of inventory optimization. 
The law of supplier relations.
The law of customer relations.
The law of employee relations. 
The law of design for manufacturing and assembly (DFMA).
The law of tolerances and total costs.
The law of employee training (TWI or training within industry). 
The law of standard work. 
The law of quality.
The law of resistance to change.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/continuous-improvement-journey/
The Medicine of Lean Six Sigma and the 5 Side Effects to Avoid on Amazon.

E03: Laws of System Optimization, Part 1

For episode 3 of Continuous Improvement Journey’s podcast, we will explore a high-level view of the Laws of System Optimization. I hope that these 13 laws will become additional tools to refine and take us to the next level from our traditional lean manufacturing training.
Episode 3 will act as Part 1 of an introduction of the Laws of System Optimization and will cover laws 1 through 3. The remaining introduction to the remaining laws will be presented in Episode 4.
The law of variation. 
The law of operational and process wastes. 
The law of WIP (work in process) and process flow. 
The law of inventory optimization. 
The law of supplier relations.
The law of customer relations.
The law of employee relations. 
The law of design for manufacturing and assembly (DFMA).
The law of tolerances and total costs.
The law of employee training (TWI or training within industry). 
The law of standard work. 
The law of quality.
The law of resistance to change.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/continuous-improvement-journey/
The Medicine of Lean Six Sigma and the 5 Side Effects to Avoid on Amazon.

E02: When 5S Goes Too Far

Is there a limit to when 5S is taken too far? Is 5S the first required step for every lean transformation? How does 5S increase the effectiveness of the entire organization and not just the shop floor?
For episode number 2 of Continuous Improvement Journey’s podcast, we will be exploring the topic...“When 5S Goes Too Far.”
The lean tool of 5S is a wonderful tool used to improve your organization's effectiveness. However, some organizations go a little too far with their 5S programs. 
Learn how to find the balance between the 5S improvement tool and the purpose of why the tool was designed in the first place so you don't run into the issue of implementing the dreaded 5S police or inflicting 5S on your clocks, garbage cans, and coat racks.
References: The Medicine of Lean Six Sigma and the 5 Side Effects to Avoid on Amazon.

E01: The 5 Lean Six Sigma Side Effects to Avoid

Why do so many companies struggle to find long-term success when implementing lean and six sigma? Let's explore the results from a casual research study performed by Continuous Improvement Journey that found the top 5 reasons or side effects to avoid when implementing lean or six sigma into an organization.
Free workbook guide to identify the #1 plague in your organization: https://cijourney.teachable.com/p/downloads