CI Career Advice From an Operational Excellence Director

Importance of Kaizen Over Six Sigma:

• Advocates prioritizing Kaizen learning over Six Sigma due to its superiority in problem-solving and improvement methodologies.
• Highlights the diminishing significance of Six Sigma in the current landscape and its focus on process variation reduction, because automation and a proactive focus upstream is now more prevalent.

Key Skills:

• Emphasizes the value of honing process improvement and problem-solving skills.
• Suggests diving into value stream maps and process maps to grasp and enhance processes effectively.
• Stresses the misconception that many people believe they understand problem-solving and process improvement without deep practical knowledge.

Standing Out in Job Opportunities:

• Underlines the significance of excelling in problem-solving and process improvement as critical differentiators in job applications.
• Discusses the prevalence of individuals overestimating their abilities in these domains without practical execution.

Critique of Traditional Courses:

• Criticizes conventional courses for their focus on theoretical aspects, historical context, and insufficient emphasis on real-world application.
• Advocates for courses that teach not just the "what" but also the "how" of using tools, methods, and executing tasks effectively.
• Explains a direct, no-fluff teaching style aimed at delivering practical knowledge that aligns with real-world tasks and expectations.

Effective Resume Articulation:

• Stresses the importance of effectively articulating learned skills on resumes for job applications.
• Highlights the need to communicate learned insights, practical experiences, and metrics gained from courses effectively.

Course Forward:

Do you have any of these common Problem-Solving struggles?

# 5 Why Struggles
# Fishbone struggles
# Countermeasure development struggles
# Team-Based Approach struggles
# Use of Report/Template Struggles
# Problem recurrence struggles
# Change/Sustainment struggles

If someone can answer “Yes” to any of those questions… It’s very likely they haven’t developed these and other skills….

• Lead an A3 Problem-Solving Project (Kaizen Event), and Meetings using an A3 Problem-Solving tool/process.
• Deal with and prevent poor participation as a meeting facilitator.  What to do and why, focusing on how to prevent it in the first place.
• Do a process map of a process being analyzed. 

Assess these and other Problem-Solving and Kaizen Skills
- Either for yourself, your team, or your colleagues
- Receive a Summary Report
- FREE and Easy!

Here's the link to try it out:  https://www.beltcourse.com/team-problem-solving-skills-assessment

And please consider sharing it with others!