An ASQ webinar was held on April 11th, 2025 featuring Jarrett Perlow, chair-elect of the ASQ government division and Clerk of the Court for the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He discussed the design and implementation of an agency-wide continuous improvement program within the federal judiciary. His presentation provides a compelling case […]
Bella Englebach interviews Kerry L. Bass about his work with ASQ to help make elections secure and fair. He discusses the variation in state election laws, the challenges of voter registration, long lines at polling locations, and how the Kano Model can explain voter expectations. You can visit “The Edges of Lean” podcast episode page […]
Written by Brion
Isaac Hughley, Process Improvement Specialist with the Indiana Department of Revenue presented at the monthly Indianapolis ASQ section meeting in September 2021. He discussed how kaizen events can be used in the public sector to address complex and unique challenges (especially during a pandemic). He shares an example of a kaizen event in which the […]
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The City of Coral Gables (FL) IT department worked together on response times and efficiencies with a Lean Six Sigma improvement project. The process empowered their team to look inward and outward, identifying opportunities that could make a difference over a short period of time. One initiative was to dedicate assigned IT liaisons to each […]
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Quality professionals possess a unique skill set that can be used to prevent problems outside of their organizations. The author shows how applying quality tools, such as Pareto analysis, failure mode and effects analysis, and quality function deployment, can help solve issues such as homelessness in Seattle, and deaths from diarrheal disease for children under […]
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In 2012, Louisville Metro setup a process improvement team to help solve problems within the city. Steve Pollock explains how he helped shift the internal improvement experts from reactive coaches to proactive consultants with a daily management system, in order to better engage with the different departments and agencies. They also reduced the lean training […]
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A presentation given by John Lafferty at an ASQ Blue Ridge chapter meeting. The improvement team from the Light of Marnie organization was trying to improve the image of the community, and help them better understand their stakeholders. The project cleaned up local roads and fixed potholes, improved the appearance to buildings and schools, and provided […]
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Willy Vandenbrande, founder and president, QS Consult, tells quality professionals they are in a perfect position to take on their organizations’ Social Responsibility (SR) initiatives, and that SR fits well into the future of quality. He discusses how achieving “quality of life” should include the entire ecosystem, not just optimizing one species (humans) at the […]
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When Jorge Perez noticed project management efforts were often haphazard and unfocused at the YMCA of the USA, he decided to complete a Green Belt-level training course, and wanted to introduce Six Sigma to the youth development department. The goal was to introduce a new method for managing and tracking projects into the organization. He […]
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Jeff Orlowski, President and CEO of the nonprofit organization LifeShare Transplant Donor Services of Oklahoma, talks about the unique challenges LifeShare team members face every day, how lean helps his team deliver on its nonprofit mission, and how his own views on leadership have been informed by lean thinking and practice. Read more at LEI:Â https://www.lean.org/LeanPost/Posting.cfm?LeanPostId=392
Written by Brion