Will Learning Cycles Replace Stage Gates

The differences in Design between Lean and Six Sigma are not in the tools that they use but in the paths, they have chosen to take. The initial paths of each into the design fields were driven by the fact that most cost and problems to include quality and variability were designed into a product/service Read More …

The Most Important Part of Work

It is necessary for organizations to standardize and maintain a product development process. It is has been proven over and over again that by doing this will allow for more creative action to take place, not hinder it. A quote from Plato: “The beginning is the most important part of the work.” A project needs Read More …

Prototypes provide a Pathway for Connecting with Customers

Prototyping is a way to introduce our products or services in a very disarming way. It is a way of saying, “I respect your opinion.” Creating that empathetic connection with others can have a profound impact on your company. We all prefer to buy services from people that we perceive to be experts in their Read More …

Exploration Instead Of Definition

The Define Phase is well documented in the Plan of PDCA, Define of DMAIC, Discovery of Appreciative Inquiry or even the Dream of Disney. In the Explore stage of EDCA what makes this phase different? Paraphrased from Nigel Cross’s book, Engineering Design Methods: Strategies for Product Design: Designers tend to use conjectures about solution concepts Read More …

Empathy is at the Heart of Design

The difference between the thought process embedded in EDCA (Service Design) and the other disciplines of Lean can be summed up in one word: Empathy! It is a major differentiator between the traditional process methodologies of Six Sigma, and I say this tongue–in-cheek, Lean. Many times when you review Design for Six Sigma, Lean Startup, Read More …

The Fundamental Idea of Iteration (PDCA) is Learning

“The fundamental idea of iteration (PDCA) is learning. To eschew PDCA is not only arrogant; it is inefficient & often ineffective,” says Shoji Shiba author of Four Practical Revolutions in Management : Systems for Creating Unique Organizational Capability. The Lean practice of PDCA is ideal for learning and creating knowledge activities. Following this process it Read More …