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Lean Six Sigma Principles: 7 Principles, Tools & Practical Examples

Lean Six Sigma Principles: 7 Principles, Tools & Practical Examples

Lean Six Sigma is one of the most practical approaches organizations can use to improve the way work gets done.

It brings together two powerful ideas:

Lean helps organizations identify and remove waste, improve flow and deliver more value to customers.

Six Sigma helps organizations reduce variation, prevent defects and make decisions using reliable data.

When these approaches are combined, the objective is simple:

Do the right work, in the right way, with less waste, fewer errors and more consistent results.

Lean Six Sigma is used across manufacturing, engineering, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, packaging, automotive, healthcare, logistics and many other industries.

But Lean Six Sigma is not about implementing every available tool.

It is about understanding the problem first and then choosing the right method to solve it.

What Are the Principles of Lean Six Sigma?

There are different ways of describing Lean Six Sigma principles. There is not one universally prescribed list that every organization or certification body must use.

In this article, we use a practical seven-principle framework that brings together the most important ideas of Lean and Six Sigma:

  1. Focus on the customer

  2. Understand how the work actually gets done

  3. Improve and smooth process flow

  4. Remove non-value-adding activities and waste

  5. Manage by facts and reduce variation

  6. Involve and empower people

  7. Improve systematically and sustain the results

These principles are connected.

You cannot properly improve a process if you don’t understand it.

You cannot understand it without observing it.

You cannot know whether it improved without measuring it.

And you cannot sustain the improvement without involving the people who operate the process.

Lean vs Six Sigma vs Lean Six Sigma

Before understanding the seven principles, it helps to understand the difference between Lean and Six Sigma.

AreaLeanSix SigmaLean Six Sigma
Main focusWaste and flowVariation and defectsWaste + variation
Main questionWhere are we wasting time/resources?Why is the process inconsistent?How can we make the process better and more consistent?
Typical tools5S, VSM, Kaizen, KanbanSPC, capability analysis, statistical toolsCombination of both
Main objectiveImprove flow and remove wasteReduce variation and defectsImprove overall process performance
Example problemExcessive waitingInconsistent product qualityWaiting + quality variation

A simple way to remember it is:

Lean asks: “Where is the waste?”

Six Sigma asks: “Why is the result varying?”

Lean Six Sigma asks: “How can we improve the entire process and make the result more predictable?”

The 7 Principles of Lean Six Sigma

1. Focus on the Customer

Everything starts with the customer.

This sounds obvious, but many organizations make an important mistake: they improve what is convenient for the organization rather than what is actually important to the customer.

For example, a company may proudly say:

“We have increased production by 15%.”

But if customers are still receiving orders late, the improvement may not have solved the real problem.

The first question should therefore be:

What does the customer really value?

That could be:

  • consistent quality

  • on-time delivery

  • shorter delivery time

  • correct quantity

  • reliable performance

  • competitive price

  • fewer complaints

  • consistent specifications

What is CTQ?

One useful Lean Six Sigma concept is CTQ — Critical to Quality.

A CTQ converts an important customer requirement into something that can actually be measured.

For example:

Customer saysCTQ / Measurement
“I need delivery on time.”OTIF %
“I need consistent quality.”Defect rate
“I need faster delivery.”Lead time
“I need the correct quantity.”Order accuracy
“I don’t want repeated failures.”Failure rate

This is important because:

If you cannot measure the requirement, it becomes difficult to manage and improve it.

Simple manufacturing example

Suppose a customer complains:

“Your products are always arriving late.”

A company might immediately blame production.

But the actual problem could be:

Customer order → planning delay → material waiting → production queue → quality inspection → dispatch delay

The solution is not simply “produce faster.”

The organization needs to understand where the total lead time is being lost.

What should you ask?

When applying this principle, ask:

  • What does the customer consider important?

  • Which customer requirements are measurable?

  • Which requirements are currently not being met?

  • Which process measures influence those requirements?

  • Are we improving something that actually matters to the customer?

Common mistake

Improving internal efficiency without improving customer value.

Lean Six Sigma should always connect improvement to the customer or business requirement.

2. Understand How the Work Actually Gets Done

One of the biggest mistakes managers make is assuming that the documented process is the same as the actual process.

Usually, it isn’t.

A procedure might say:

Material arrives → inspection → production → final inspection → dispatch.

But when you actually visit the shop floor, you may discover:

Material arrives → waiting → inspection queue → material movement → production waiting → production → rework → inspection → waiting for approval → dispatch.

The difference between these two processes is where many improvement opportunities are hidden.

That’s why Lean emphasizes going to the Gemba.

What is Gemba?

Gemba is a Japanese term commonly used in Lean to mean the actual place where work happens.

In manufacturing, that could be:

  • production floor

  • warehouse

  • maintenance area

  • quality laboratory

  • dispatch area

  • machine shop

  • assembly line

A Gemba walk means going there and seeing the process for yourself.

It does not mean walking around the factory looking for someone to blame.

The purpose is to understand:

“What is really happening?”

Why Gemba matters

Imagine a production manager receives a report saying:

Machine downtime = 8%.

The report tells you what happened.

But it may not tell you why it happened.

At the Gemba, you may discover that the machine is technically available, but operators frequently wait for:

  • tools

  • material

  • maintenance support

  • quality clearance

  • changeover instructions

Now the problem looks different.

This is why real observation is so important.

Value Stream Mapping

Another important Lean tool is Value Stream Mapping (VSM).

VSM helps visualize how material and information move through a process.

It helps the team see:

  • processing time

  • waiting time

  • inventory

  • information flow

  • material movement

  • bottlenecks

  • delays

  • non-value-adding activities

One of the most useful questions during a VSM exercise is:

“How much of the total elapsed time is actually spent doing work that creates value?”

That question can reveal enormous improvement opportunities.

A Simple Gemba Checklist

When visiting a process, don’t just observe machines.

Ask:

  1. Where does the process begin?

  2. Where does it end?

  3. Where does work wait?

  4. Where does material accumulate?

  5. Where does information wait?

  6. Where does rework occur?

  7. Where are people walking unnecessarily?

  8. Where does the process stop?

  9. What problems do operators experience every day?

  10. What does the documented process say versus what actually happens?

Common mistake

Trying to improve a process from a conference room.

Reports are useful, but they should be combined with actual process observation.


3. Improve and Smooth the Process Flow

Once you understand the actual process, the next question is:

Does the work flow smoothly from one step to another?

Imagine a factory where:

  • Machine A finishes 100 pieces.

  • Machine B can process only 60.

  • 40 pieces wait between the machines.

  • Inventory keeps increasing.

  • Operators spend time moving material.

  • Orders are still delayed.

Machine A may look highly productive.

But the overall process is not necessarily productive.

This is why Lean looks at the entire flow, not just individual machines.


What creates poor flow?

Common causes include:

  • large batch sizes

  • bottlenecks

  • excessive changeover time

  • uneven workloads

  • machine breakdowns

  • material shortages

  • unnecessary movement

  • long approval cycles

  • poor scheduling

  • excess WIP

  • rework


What can improve flow?

Depending on the process, organizations may use:

  • smaller batch sizes

  • line balancing

  • Kanban

  • pull systems

  • SMED

  • better production planning

  • bottleneck management

  • layout improvement

  • standard work

  • improved material availability

But there is an important point:

There is no single flow solution that works for every factory.

Single-piece flow can be powerful in suitable processes, but batch production may still make sense in some environments.

The improvement should fit the actual process.


4. Remove Non-Value-Adding Activities and Waste

Lean uses the term Muda for waste.

Waste is anything that consumes resources without creating corresponding value for the customer.

The commonly taught seven Lean wastes are:

  1. Overproduction

  2. Waiting

  3. Transportation

  4. Over-processing

  5. Inventory

  6. Motion

  7. Defects

Many modern Lean discussions also include unused human capability/talent as another form of waste.

Let’s understand them with a factory example

1. Overproduction

Making products before they are actually needed.

Example:

Producing 10,000 pieces because the machine is available even though the customer requires only 5,000.

This can create:

  • inventory

  • storage requirements

  • handling

  • cash tied up in stock

  • risk of damage or obsolescence

2. Waiting

People or machines are ready, but the next step isn’t.

Examples:

  • waiting for material

  • waiting for approval

  • waiting for maintenance

  • waiting for inspection

  • waiting for information

Waiting is particularly dangerous because it often looks like “nothing is happening,” while the clock continues running.

3. Transportation

Moving material unnecessarily.

For example:

Production → temporary storage → inspection → another storage area → next process.

Every unnecessary movement consumes time and resources.

4. Over-processing

Doing more work than the customer or process actually requires.

Examples may include:

  • unnecessary inspection

  • duplicate data entry

  • excessive finishing

  • unnecessary approvals

  • repeating information

5. Inventory

Inventory is not automatically bad.

Some inventory is necessary.

The Lean question is:

“How much inventory do we actually need, and why is the additional inventory there?”

Excess inventory can hide underlying problems such as:

  • unreliable suppliers

  • long changeovers

  • poor planning

  • quality problems

  • unreliable equipment

  • large batch sizes

6. Motion

Unnecessary movement by people.

For example, an operator repeatedly walking across the shop floor to collect tools.

This may seem insignificant once.

But if it happens hundreds of times every month, the accumulated loss can become significant.

7. Defects

Defects create obvious waste.

But the impact is usually larger than the rejected piece itself.

A defect can also create:

Inspection → sorting → rework → material consumption → machine time → delay → customer risk

That’s why preventing defects is generally more valuable than simply detecting them later.

5. Manage by Facts and Reduce Variation

This is where Six Sigma becomes particularly powerful.

Organizations often make decisions based on assumptions:

“The operator is making mistakes.”

“The machine is unstable.”

“The supplier is the problem.”

“This batch was bad.”

But an assumption is not evidence.

Lean Six Sigma encourages teams to ask:

“What does the data tell us?”

What is variation?

Variation means that a process does not produce exactly the same result every time.

For example, suppose a machine is intended to produce a dimension of:

50.00 mm

Actual results might be:

49.96
50.04
50.01
50.08
49.94
50.02

The process is producing variation.

The question becomes:

Is this variation acceptable, and what is causing it?

Why variation matters

Suppose a customer specification allows:

49.90–50.10 mm

A process may occasionally produce parts outside this range.

If the variation is not understood, defects may continue appearing.

Six Sigma provides statistical thinking and tools to understand these patterns.

Useful tools

Depending on the problem, the team may use:

  • Pareto analysis

  • Histogram

  • Control chart

  • Fishbone diagram

  • 5 Why

  • Scatter diagram

  • Process capability analysis

  • Measurement System Analysis

  • statistical testing

The important principle is:

Don’t collect data just because Six Sigma says you should. Collect data that helps you make a better decision.

Control Charts

A control chart can help distinguish between ordinary process variation and unusual signals that may indicate a special cause.

This is useful because teams sometimes react to every small fluctuation.

For example:

Monday: 4.2% rejection
Tuesday: 4.5%
Wednesday: 4.1%
Thursday: 4.3%

A manager may panic because the number changed.

But some variation is normal.

The question is whether the process is showing a meaningful signal that requires investigation.

That is the kind of thinking Six Sigma brings to process management.

6. Involve and Empower People

This principle is often underestimated.

A Lean transformation cannot succeed simply because management tells employees:

“From Monday, we are implementing Lean.”

The people who actually perform the work need to be involved.

Why?

Because operators, technicians, supervisors and process owners often know things that don’t appear in management reports.

They know:

  • which machine causes trouble

  • which material is difficult to handle

  • which setup step takes too long

  • which inspection creates delays

  • which standard is difficult to follow

  • which recurring problem nobody has solved

Simple example

A manager observes that an operator takes 45 minutes to complete a setup.

The manager may conclude:

“The operator needs to work faster.”

But when the team observes the setup carefully, it may discover:

  • 10 minutes searching for tools

  • 8 minutes waiting for material

  • 5 minutes waiting for maintenance

  • 7 minutes adjusting the machine

  • 15 minutes actual setup work

Now the problem is completely different.

The operator may not be the problem.

The system is creating the delay.

This is one of the most important Lean mindsets:

Improve the process before blaming the person.

How to Involve People

Organizations can encourage participation through:

  • Kaizen

  • suggestion systems

  • problem-solving teams

  • daily meetings

  • visual management

  • standard work

  • Gemba discussions

  • cross-functional improvement teams

But participation should be meaningful.

If employees repeatedly provide suggestions and nothing happens, the suggestion system will eventually lose credibility.

7. Improve Systematically and Sustain the Results

Finding a problem is not the same as solving it.

And solving it once is not the same as sustaining the improvement.

This is why Lean Six Sigma uses structured approaches such as DMAIC.

DMAIC means:

Define → Measure → Analyze → Improve → Control

Define

Clearly define the problem.

Bad problem statement:

“Quality is poor.”

Better:

“Customer rejection has increased from X to Y over the defined period.”

A good problem statement should make the issue understandable and measurable.

Measure

Understand the current condition.

Ask:

  • What is happening today?

  • How frequently does it happen?

  • Where does it happen?

  • How large is the problem?

  • Can we trust our measurement system?

Without a baseline, it becomes difficult to prove improvement.

Analyze

Now investigate why the problem is happening.

This is where tools such as:

  • Pareto

  • Fishbone

  • 5 Why

  • process analysis

  • statistical analysis

may be useful.

But remember:

A possible cause is not necessarily the root cause.

The team should use evidence to validate important causes.

Improve

Once the causes are understood, develop and test solutions.

For example:

Problem:

Long machine changeover.

Possible improvements:

  • prepare tools before shutdown

  • separate internal and external setup activities

  • standardize setup sequence

  • use visual instructions

  • improve tool availability

The improvement should then be measured.


Control

This is where many improvement projects fail.

The project team achieves a good result.

Everyone celebrates.

Three months later, performance returns to the old level.

Why?

Because the new method was never properly controlled.

Controls can include:

  • standard work

  • training

  • visual controls

  • process monitoring

  • control plans

  • reaction plans

  • ownership

  • regular review

The goal is:

Make the improved process the normal process.

Lean Six Sigma Tools: Which Tool Should You Use?

Don’t start with the tool.

Start with the problem.

ProblemPossible tools
Workplace disorder5S
Excess inventoryVSM, Kanban, Pull
Long lead timeVSM, Flow analysis
Machine downtimeOEE, TPM
High rejectionPareto, RCA, SPC, DMAIC
Human errorsPoka-Yoke, Standard Work
Long changeoverSMED
Unknown root cause5 Why, Fishbone, Data Analysis
Process variationSPC, Capability Analysis
Small continuous improvementsKaizen
Existing process with complex problemDMAIC
New process/product designDMADV

The tool is only useful when it helps solve a real problem.


How Lean Six Sigma Can Be Applied in Indian Manufacturing

Lean Six Sigma can be adapted to many manufacturing environments in India.

The actual opportunity will depend on the product, process, technology, workforce and business model.

Common improvement areas may include:

  • productivity

  • quality

  • machine downtime

  • inventory

  • lead time

  • changeover

  • rework

  • customer complaints

  • delivery performance

  • process variation

It can be relevant to sectors such as:

  • engineering

  • chemicals

  • pharmaceuticals

  • plastics

  • packaging

  • automotive

  • food

  • medical devices

  • logistics

The important point is that the same Lean Six Sigma solution should not be blindly copied from one industry to another.

A chemical plant and an engineering assembly line may both have an inventory problem, but the causes can be completely different.

Lean Six Sigma in Gujarat Manufacturing

Gujarat has a strong industrial base with different types of manufacturing and process industries.

For organizations operating in areas such as Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Valsad/Vapi, Bharuch/Ankleshwar and Rajkot, improvement priorities can vary significantly by industry and process.

For example:

Chemical manufacturing

Potential focus:

  • inventory

  • process stability

  • batch cycle time

  • yield

  • quality variation

Engineering manufacturing

Potential focus:

  • rejection

  • productivity

  • machine utilization

  • changeover

  • delivery

Packaging

Potential focus:

  • setup time

  • waste

  • productivity

  • quality

  • material utilization

Pharmaceutical manufacturing

Potential focus:

  • process consistency

  • deviations

  • rework

  • documentation

  • cycle time

The location itself does not determine the Lean Six Sigma solution.

The process problem determines the solution.

A Practical Lean Six Sigma Example

Let’s take a simple manufacturing example.

A company has a customer delivery problem.

Management believes production capacity is insufficient.

Instead of immediately purchasing another machine, the team starts with the process.
Step 1 — Define

Customer deliveries are consistently late.

Step 2 — Measure

The team measures:

  • production lead time

  • waiting time

  • WIP

  • changeover time

  • downtime

  • material availability

  • dispatch time

Step 3 — Go to Gemba

The team physically follows the order through the factory.

They discover that actual processing time is relatively small compared with total elapsed time.

Much of the time is spent waiting between operations.

Step 4 — Map the value stream

The team identifies:

  • large batches

  • excess WIP

  • bottleneck operation

  • long changeover

  • unnecessary movement

Step 5 — Improve

Possible actions:

  • reduce batch sizes

  • improve changeover

  • rebalance work

  • introduce appropriate pull controls

  • reduce unnecessary movement

  • improve scheduling

Step 6 — Control

The team monitors:

  • lead time

  • WIP

  • OTIF

  • changeover time

This example demonstrates an important Lean Six Sigma principle:

Don’t solve the problem you assume exists. Find the problem that actually exists.

How Do You Measure Lean Six Sigma Results?

A project should have measurable outcomes.

The appropriate KPI depends on the project.

Improvement areaPossible KPI
QualityRejection %, PPM, FPY
DeliveryOTIF, lead time
ProductivityOutput per labour hour
EquipmentAvailability, performance, OEE
ProcessCycle time
InventoryWIP / inventory days
CostCost per unit
CustomerComplaints / returns
FinancialVerified project benefit

One important point:

A Lean Six Sigma project should not be considered successful simply because a Lean tool was implemented.

Success should be judged by the improvement in the business or process result.


What Is DPMO?

DPMO means Defects Per Million Opportunities.

The commonly used formula is:

DPMO = Number of defects ÷ (Number of units × opportunities per unit) × 1,000,000

Example

Suppose a process produces:

1,000 units

Each unit has:

4 possible defect opportunities

And the process records:

20 defects

Then:

DPMO = 20 ÷ (1,000 × 4) × 1,000,000

DPMO = 5,000

DPMO is useful because it considers the number of opportunities for a defect rather than simply counting defective units.

The frequently cited Six Sigma benchmark of 3.4 defects per million opportunities comes from the conventional Six Sigma statistical framework and its assumptions. It should not be interpreted as a guarantee that every real-world process will automatically achieve exactly 3.4 defects per million opportunities.


DMAIC vs DMADV

These terms are often confused.

DMAICDMADV
Used mainly for an existing processUsed for designing a new process/product
DefineDefine
MeasureMeasure
AnalyzeAnalyze
ImproveDesign
ControlVerify

The easiest way to remember this is:

Existing process + performance problem = DMAIC

New process/product requiring design = DMADV/DFSS

What Is a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt?

A Lean Six Sigma Green Belt is a practitioner trained in Lean Six Sigma methods and tools.

Depending on the organization or certification framework, a Green Belt may support or lead improvement projects.

A Green Belt may work on:

  • process mapping

  • data collection

  • problem definition

  • root-cause analysis

  • Lean tools

  • statistical analysis

  • improvement implementation

  • team facilitation

  • process control

The important point is that Green Belt certification requirements are not identical across all training providers.

Therefore, when selecting a Green Belt program, don’t look only at the certificate.

Ask:

  • What does the curriculum include?

  • Is there an examination?

  • Is practical project work included?

  • Are statistical tools taught?

  • Is manufacturing application covered?

  • Who is conducting the training?

  • How is competence assessed?

Green Belt vs Black Belt
Green BeltBlack Belt
Often works on process-level improvementOften handles more complex improvement projects
May lead smaller projectsTypically leads broader projects
Uses Lean Six Sigma toolsUses deeper analytical and project skills
May combine improvement work with another roleMay have a more dedicated improvement role
Can work with Black Belt supportMay coach Green Belts

Exact responsibilities vary between organizations and certification systems.


Is Lean Six Sigma Certification Worth It?

A certification can be useful if it gives a person practical capability.

Useful skills include:

  • structured problem solving

  • process mapping

  • data analysis

  • root-cause analysis

  • Lean tools

  • statistical thinking

  • project management

  • process control

But there is an important difference between:

Having a certificate

and

Being able to solve a real business problem.

For an organization, the real value comes when trained people can apply the methodology and produce measurable, sustainable improvements.


Common Lean Six Sigma Mistakes

1. Starting with tools instead of problems

A company decides:

“We need 5S.”

But why?

If the actual problem is long changeover time, 5S alone may not solve it.

Start with the problem.

Then choose the tool.

2. Assuming the root cause

Someone says:

“The operator is careless.”

That is a hypothesis, not a proven root cause. Investigate the process.

3. Improving without a baseline

If you don’t know the starting point, it becomes difficult to demonstrate the size of the improvement.

4. Ignoring the people doing the work

A process owner or operator may understand the problem better than someone looking only at reports.

5. Measuring too many things

More data does not automatically mean better decision-making.

Measure what helps answer the business question.

6. Stopping after implementation

A new process is not automatically a sustained process.

The organization needs standards, ownership and monitoring.


Lean Six Sigma Readiness Checklist

Before starting a Lean Six Sigma project, ask:

QuestionYes / No
Do we have a clearly defined problem?☐
Do we know the baseline performance?☐
Can we measure the process reliably?☐
Have we observed the process at the Gemba?☐
Do we understand customer requirements?☐
Do we know the major sources of waste?☐
Do we understand the major sources of variation?☐
Is there a process owner?☐
Can we measure the expected business impact?☐
Do we have a plan to sustain the improvement?☐

The purpose of this checklist is not to give an organization a “score” and declare it Lean or not Lean.

It is simply a way to identify where the organization may need to strengthen its approach before starting a project.

Frequently Asked Questions About Lean Six Sigma Principles

What are the seven principles of Lean Six Sigma?

A practical seven-principle framework is:

  1. Focus on the customer

  2. Understand how work gets done

  3. Improve process flow

  4. Remove waste

  5. Manage by facts and reduce variation

  6. Involve people

  7. Improve systematically and sustain results

Different Lean Six Sigma frameworks may organize these ideas differently.

What is the main purpose of Lean Six Sigma?

The purpose is to improve process performance by reducing waste, variation and defects while increasing customer value and process consistency.

Is Lean Six Sigma the same as Lean?

No.

Lean primarily focuses on value, waste and flow.

Six Sigma focuses strongly on variation, defects and data-driven problem solving.

Lean Six Sigma combines the two.

What is the difference between Lean and Six Sigma?

A simple way to remember it:

Lean: Where is the waste?

Six Sigma: Why is the process varying?

Lean Six Sigma: How can we improve the process and make the result more predictable?

What is Gemba?

Gemba refers to the actual place where work happens.

A Gemba walk allows managers and improvement teams to observe the real process and understand problems directly.

What is Value Stream Mapping?

Value Stream Mapping is a Lean method for visualizing material and information flow through a process.

It can help identify waiting, inventory, bottlenecks and other improvement opportunities.

What are the seven wastes in Lean?

The commonly taught seven wastes are:

Overproduction, Waiting, Transportation, Over-processing, Inventory, Motion and Defects.

Unused human capability is also commonly discussed as an additional waste.

What is DMAIC?

DMAIC means:

Define → Measure → Analyze → Improve → Control

It provides a structured approach for improving an existing process.

What is DMADV?

DMADV stands for:

Define → Measure → Analyze → Design → Verify

It is associated with designing new processes or products rather than improving an existing process.

What is a Lean Six Sigma Green Belt?

A Green Belt is a practitioner trained in Lean Six Sigma methods who may support or lead improvement projects depending on the organization’s structure and certification framework.

Is Lean Six Sigma useful for small and medium-sized businesses?

Yes, provided the methodology is scaled appropriately.

A smaller company does not necessarily need a large Six Sigma project with complex statistical analysis for every problem.

For a straightforward workplace organization problem, 5S may be sufficient.

For a complex quality problem involving significant variation, a more structured DMAIC project may be appropriate.

Which Lean Six Sigma tool should a company use first?

There is no universal first tool.

Start with:

Problem → Process → Data → Cause → Appropriate tool

For example:

Excess inventory → VSM

Machine downtime → OEE/TPM analysis

High rejection → Pareto/RCA/SPC

Long changeover → SMED

The tool should follow the problem.


Is Lean Six Sigma only for manufacturing?

No.

The principles can be applied wherever there is a process that needs improvement.

That can include:

  • manufacturing

  • healthcare

  • logistics

  • finance

  • administration

  • supply chain

  • service operations

The tools and level of statistical analysis should be adapted to the process.


Final Takeaway

The real power of Lean Six Sigma does not come from knowing the names of dozens of tools.

It comes from developing the right way of thinking about problems.

A Lean Six Sigma organization asks:

What does the customer need?

Then:

How does the process actually work?

Then:

Where is the waste?

Then:

Where is the variation?

Then:

What does the data tell us?

Then:

What should we change?

And finally:

How do we make sure the improvement stays?

That creates a simple improvement cycle:

Customer → Process → Data → Root Cause → Improvement → Control → Results

For organizations in India—and particularly manufacturing organizations dealing with productivity, quality, delivery, inventory or operational challenges—the most important lesson is this:

Don’t start by asking, “Which Lean Six Sigma tool should we implement?”

Start by asking, “Which business problem are we trying to solve, and what evidence do we have about its cause?”

That change in thinking is often where meaningful improvement begins.


How Greendot Can Help

Greendot Management Consultancy works with organizations on areas including Lean Manufacturing, 5S, Kaizen, TPM, OEE, process improvement, operational excellence, quality improvement, ISO implementation and management development.

If your organization is considering Lean Six Sigma, the best starting point is not necessarily a training program or a new tool.

It is understanding:

Where are you today?

What is costing you the most?

What is affecting your customer?

Which process needs improvement first?

From there, the right improvement approach can be selected.

→ Explore Lean Manufacturing Consulting

→ Explore Lean Six Sigma Training

→ Talk to Greendot about your improvement challenge

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