Lean and SMART
At some point in all of our lives we’ve had things we’ve wanted to achieve, whether it was in 1st grade and all you wanted was to be the best at shooting chocolate milk from your nose, or your very...
View ArticleConfirm Your Scope with SIPOC Diagrams
One of my favorite continuous improvement tools is called a SIPOC diagram. A SIPOC diagram is used by a team to identify all relevant elements of a process improvement project before work begins. Using...
View ArticleLearning to See
Remember the Magic Eye pictures? They appear to be computer-generated abstract images but, when you look at them just right, out pops a 3-dimensional (3D) object. The object was there all along, but...
View ArticleInstant Application for Workshop-Related Tool
We are pleased to present this guest blog post by Kathy Wardynski, Manager of Purchasing and Process Improvement for Dining Services at Michigan Technological University. Last week I had the...
View ArticleSatisfying Internal Customers: It’s Still Important
We are pleased to present this guest blog post by Gregg Stocker, a lean advisor for Hess Corporation with over 20 years experience in a variety of disciplines including operations, manufacturing, human...
View ArticleDocument Management – A 5S Opportunity
I was recently given the opportunity to be a Lean facilitator for a 5S Kaizen event. The goal of the event was to organize the Van Pelt and Opie Library staff document management system. I found this...
View ArticleThe Perfect Cup of Joe
We are pleased to present this guest blog post by Annelise Doll, Digital Initiatives Librarian at the Van Pelt & Opie Library at Michigan Technological University. In the fall of 2015, I began...
View ArticleRome Wasn’t Built in a Day
Any college student from around the world will tell you how fast-paced and hectic it is trying to figure out the rest of your life. Between classes, student organizations, figuring out our financial...
View ArticleLean – More than a Buzzword at Career Fair
As the career fair has passed and students anxiously await interviews and follow ups from company representatives, I’d like to take this time to remind students about how Lean principles are more than...
View ArticleVisual Management of PDCA Rapid Experimentation
We are pleased to post this guest blog by Theresa Coleman-Kaiser, Senior Associate Vice President for Administration at Michigan Technological University. I have been practicing online coaching using...
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