Rise Against Hunger Awarded Inaugural IISE Excellence in Sustainable Development

by Brion Hurley Rise Against Hunger is an international hunger relief nonprofit organization founded in 1998 that distributes food and life-changing aid to the world’s most vulnerable, mobilizing the necessary resources to end hunger by 2030. To date, they have packaged 450 million meals in 74 countries. Related to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, RAH’s effort […]

Lean Six Sigma Successes at Goodwill

by Brion Hurley This is an interview with Jess Schamberger, who is the Vice President of Operations at Goodwill of the Heartland in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She discusses some of the lean and Six Sigma improvements implemented in the donation receiving area, as well as the light manufacturing services they provide to local businesses. They […]

Teamwork Drives Lean Transformation at Carleton University

Carleton University hosted two successful pilot projects using the Lean formula that led to immediate improvements in their Graphic Services Department and Admissions Department. The Graphic Services Department wanted to run more efficiently and increase their production. With input and engagement received directly from staff, the employees’ suggestions for change were very successful. After implementing […]

Optimizing Processes in Louisville, Kentucky

In Louisville, Kentucky, Greg Fischer, businessman and Six Sigma Black Belt, became mayor in 2010. He initiated the transformation of public service through two strategic actions: LouieStat: An organizational performance review program that uses the total quality management approach of plan, do, check, act (PDCA) for problem-solving. Office of Performance Improvement (OPI): A centralized team […]

Improving Workflow and Space Organization in the Recreation & Parks Electrical Shop

The Structural Maintenance Yard’s (SMY) electrical shop is one of San Francisco’s parks and recreation centers. Electricians had a hard time finding the materials they needed to do their work because materials were placed haphazardly and lacked identifiable labeling. This disorganization also led to over and under-stock issues. Over a series of several rapid improvement […]

The Toyota Way in a Norwegian Classroom

I have long-admired the way Toyota does things, and I have for many years injected plenty of their principles into my educational practice because they focus on continuous improvement (kaizen) and respect for people. I know schools aren’t factories housing production lines but the 14 principles that make up The Toyota Way make a lot […]

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