Book Description

"It has often been said that 'to improve, one must be prepared to measure the improvement' and 'one must inspect what one expects.' The Kerzner Project Management Maturity Model has provided this tangible measure of maturity. The rest is up to a company to set the expectations and to inspect the results."--Bill Marshall, Nortel Global Project Process Standards (from the Foreword)
Strategic planning for project management-a proven model for assessment and continuous improvement
Harold Kerzner's landmark Project Management has long been the reference of choice for outstanding coverage of the basic principles and concepts of project management. Now, with the Project Management Maturity Model (PMMM) detailed in this new book, Kerzner has developed a unique, industry-validated tool for helping companies assess their progress in integrating project management throughout their organization.
Strategic Planning for Project Management Using a Project Management Maturity Model begins by examining the principles of strategic planning and how they relate to project management. The second part of the book introduces the PMMM, detailing the five different levels of development for achieving maturity, along with benchmarking instruments for measuring an organization's progress along the maturity curve. These assessment tools can easily be customized to suit individual companies-a particularly valuable feature of the model.
Offering vital guidance for making project management a strategic tool for competitive advantage, this book helps managers, engineers, project team members, business consultants, and others build a powerful foundation for company improvement and excellence. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Quick Read, worth the time
This is a very quick read book that talks about a general prject management Model for Companies and especially Technology Organizations within companies.
The Model offered isn't as restrictive or expensive as CMM (CMU's Capability Maturity Model), and outlines how common methods / processes / foundations can be brought together in an overall strategy for Technology organizations to develop in to true Project Oriented groups, working effective within a greater organization.

Much-needed effort, but has pitfalls
This book represents an excellent effort to apply the capability maturity model(CMM) to project management. For reference, the CMM was originated by Mitre Corp. and developed by the Software Engineering Institute originally as a benchmark for determining an organization's software engineering capabilities. It has become a widely used benchmark in the software engineering community and has been extended to other domains, such as human resources (the People Capability Maturity Model) and other disciplines.

The book starts off with an introduction, followed by three chapters that lay the groundwork for the author's maturity model: The Need for Strategic Planning for Project Management, Impact of Economic Conditions on Project Management, Principles of Strategic Planning. The ideas and material presented here are very much applicable to program management offices.

Project Management Maturity Model (PMMM) is introduced in the next chapter, which ties project management to an enterprise-wide strategic planning initiative. It also provides a project management-centric view of capability maturity. The next five chapters are devoted to each of the five levels of the PMMM: Level 1 (Common Language), Level 2 (Common Processes), Level 3 (Singular Methodology), Level 4 (Benchmarking), and Level 5 (Continuous Improvement).

The value of this is project management practices can be assessed against a standard benchmark for capability, which is something that cannot be achieved by comparing these practices against Project Management Institute's Project Management Body of Knowledge.

There is one pitfall to the PMMM that the author proposes: it uses a different paradigm than the CMM, which is Level-1 (Ad Hoc), Level-2 (Repeatable), Level-3 (Defined), Level-4 (Managed) and Level-5 (Optimizing). This is not a problem outside of the software development industry and IT domain where the CMM is not known. However, because the CMM integrates project management into its process areas, the disparity of terminology, assessment paradigm and the model itself will cause confusion and make implementing the PMMM in a CMM organization a nightmare.

One thing I do like very much is the balanced approach the author takes. This is shown in a chapter titled "Special Problems with Strategic Planning for Project Management." Also, the case studies at the end of the book are excellent reading.

Here's the conundrum: the project management profession needs a benchmark and the PMMM is well thought out and thorough. However, the PMMM differs in many ways from the CMM. My personal take is at least the author drove a stake into the ground by raising an awareness of the need for a PMMM. He also has thought this through and the model itself is sound. I found the book invaluable and thought-provoking. It does lay the foundation for a PMO, as stated by a previous reviewer, and that is something that is only marginally addressed in the official U.S. PM standard (Project Management Body of Knowledge). The value outweighs the cited pitfall, in my opinion, and earns this book 5 stars and my recommendation that every serious PM read this book.

Its about time...
I have spent the last three years building Project/Program Management Office (PMO) infrastructures, processes, systems and project manager training programs. The reason I love this book is that it explains the vital need of strategic planning for successful project management. Most of the project managers I have worked with have little, if any strategic planning training. We have had a significant amount of success with the projects where we started with a strategic planning session. It is about time that someone wrote a meaningful and useful book on strategic planning for project management. Thank you Harold Kerzner. ... Read more

Book Description

An Industrial Engineer Magazine 2003 Engineer's Bookshelf selection! ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Wriiten for Implementers
Michel Baudin has written a very concise book on the subject of Lean assembly. So many authors tend to focus on the planning and motivation of the subject; this book delves into the practical implementation of Lean in an assembly process and presents the tools to do it.

I've used the concepts with my clients - they work! Mr. Baudin has an in-depth knowledge of the subject matter which will benefit all practitioners.

Lean Assembly
This excellent book should be read by all who are involved in lean systems. It is written with the practitioner in mind and is full of the type of information that you would expect from an experienced consultant such as M. Baudin. This well developed book shows practical tools and techniques that are not found in other lean books. For example, chapter 2 shows how to use Product-Quantity analysis for production layout. This important tool is virtually ignored in the current popular lean literature. Another one of the strengths of this book is that the author discusses how the different lean tools should be applied in different manufacturing settings. For example, he recognizes the differences between automotive assembly and electronic assembly and shows what will and will not work in these different settings. So, no matter what your product is or your production volume, you will find this book to be invaluable. If you only read one book on lean manufacturing, this should be it. So many of the current books on lean manufacturing are written at such a high level that they are virtually useless to those who must actually design and operate a lean manufacturing system. Baudin's book will help you implement lean, not just talk about it. ... Read more

Book Description

Written primarily for those responsible for the reliability of equipment and the production operation, this innovative book centers on developing and measuring true Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). The author demonstrates that true OEE correlates with factory output, provides a methodology to link OEE with net profits that can be used by reliability managers to build solid business cases for improvement projects, and draws on his own experience by presenting successful improvement applications in every chapter. Additionally, it will also help practitioners better understand Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) and develop an effective foundation to support Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM).

FEATURES

- Presents all essential definitions, a practice application, including three methods of computation, and reconciliation of OEE and various losses.
- Provides the platform and reasons for maintenance and production to work synergistically.
- Helps to identify the "hidden factory" that exists within the current system in order to begin leveraging its potential into real bottom line results.
- Integrates the famous "Theory of Constraints" aspects into an easy to understand shutdown strategy example.
- Contains many practical examples throughout to illustrate techniques and methods in a way everyone can easily understand. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A very simple tool that saves manufacturers thousands.
If you want to make someone's day, (and they are in maintenance or production:>), give them a copy of Mr. Hansen's book on OEE. He shows us how to capitalize on a very simple formula to save thousands by investing a little time and the knowledge in his book. It surprising how many do not know about OEE, so don't assume they do.

The overall performance of a single piece of equipment, or even an entire factory, will always be governed by the cumulative impact of the three OEE factors: Availability , Performance Rate, and Quality Reject Rate.

Availability X Performance X Quality= OEE

With the knowledge and utilization of the OEE calculation, it is common to realize greater than 40% increase in your bottom line. If you're making a profit now, just think of the opportunity. More importantly, OEE is the glue that sustains other initiatives by enabling all to clearly see where to focus, and the results of those focused efforts. The exciting point is that OEE is a simple method of measuring, you can start utilizing it Today!

My challenge to the industry is to Stop OEE Ignorance, and spread the word about this valuable tool. So I recommend you buy Mr. Hansen's book today.

The Hidden Factory Unlocked
As a practitioner of Equipment Reliability and the person responsible for Equipment Operational Effectiveness, I found Mr. Hansens' views of OEE extremely accurate and useful. His interpretations and the posturing of OEE with factory output demonstrates the importance of reliability to the corporate bottom line. Many companies continuously ignore the importance of unlocking the hidden factory and don't realize the waste generated by ignoring OEE concepts. Mr. Hansen, in 274 pages, gives a complete and compact version that any corporate manager, by being proactive and a visionary, can utilize to change costs into profits. Reliability and OEE technologies appear to be fairly new to much of the industrial world. Mr. Hansen decribes in his book a cultural change, that if followed,will help produce a payback welcomed by any corporate institution. His writing is easy to understand by both new and old Reliability/OEE practitioners. He has written in an orderly fashion with each chapter building on, and complementing the previous. The book describes in a step by step fashion the concept of true OEE, which when practiced will unlock the hidden factory. As Mr. Hansen points out; "If you are not supporting Reliability, then you are supporting failures". ... Read more

Book Description

HENRY FORD'S LEAN VISION Enduring Principles from the First Ford Motor Plant

William A. Levinson

In HENRY FORD'S LEAN VISION, William A. Levinson draws from Henry Ford's writings, the procedures in his factories, and historical anecdotes about the birth of lean in Japan to show that the philosophy that revolutionized Japanese manufacturing was the same philosophy that grew the Ford Motor Company into a global powerhouse. Levinson reveals how Ford was ahead of other modern visionaries and discusses why the very ideas that made his company such a success were abandonded in his own country, and why they finally found acceptance in Japan.

HENRY FORD'S LEAN VISION is a hands-on reference that provides the reader with proven principles and methods that can be applied in any business or service enterprise. It covers all aspects of building and running a successful enterprise, including Ford's principles for human relationships and the management of physical resources. ... Read more

Book Description

Completely revised and updated, this new edition of a classic reference focuses on the financial approach to the subject—a methodology that produces quantifiable results allowing a TPM program to be sustainable. And while clarifying what TPM is and what it is not, it clearly presents the economic value of TPM and shows how to calculate the Return on Investment (ROI) that a company can expect. It is the perfect resource for anyone who is considering implementing TPM or looking for ways of improving their current process.

New Features You’ll Find

- Various case studies that show how to explain the value of OEE to everyone in the organization, from the senior executive to the shop floor personnel.
- OEE discussions showing how to "dollarize" results and present the financial terms to executive financial personnel.
- A clarification of the goals and objectives of TPM, allowing TPM Champions to clearly present a TPM business case to their organizations.
- Explanations of the pitfalls that may be encountered during TPM implementation and how to avoid or correct these problems. ... Read more

Book Description

Lean Supply Chain Management A Handbook for Strategic Procurement Jeffrey P. Wincel

Lean Supply Chain Management provides procurement and supplier development professionals with a powerful and profitable method for strategic procurement.

Unlike other strategic procurement guides, Lean Supply Chain Management considers an organization's "business condition" as a contributing factor in the development of a strategic procurement strategy. That is, rather than taking a "one-size fits all" approach, the authors' more individualized approach illustrates techniques specific to organizations operating in a "standard" environment or "crisis" environment. In addition, Lean Supply Chain Management is the only book that incorporates lean methodologies as the key factor in its supply chain strategies.

Highlights include:
· Methods for developing and tracking strategic procurement initiatives
· Planning in the "standard" and "crisis" environment
· Coordinating supply chain management and lean manufacturing
· Performance measurement tools

Lean Supply Chain Management provides purchasers and supplier development professionals with the tools needed to transform procurement from a mere cost center to a profit generator. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Using the book
After reading Lean Supply Chain Management, we began adopting the practices in our operations in the U.S. and in England. We immediately saw improvements that we expected would take months to achieve. Without a doubt, we will continue to implement the improvements Mr. Wincel writes about in his book.

A Practical Guide to Collaborative Supply Chain Success!
With a 'no holds barred' approach to a complex topic, Jeffrey 'tells it like it is' in his first book, Lean Supply Chain Management: A Handbook For Strategic Procurement. Based upon his career as a procurement executive, he shares his thoughts and strategies in this insightful book combining theory and practical tools in an easy-to-read format. The case study interspersed throughout the book provides the real world, 'tools-in-action' perspective.

With 60% to 70% of the cost of a company's manufactured product now residing within the value chain of suppliers (i.e., bought out), he champions the creation of a Chief Procurement Officer to underscore the vital contribution that purchasing makes to corporate profits.

His book's underlying theme is the collaborative approach to supply chain management - working with the suppliers to improve designs and processes, optimize costs and reduce lead times while surprising and delighting the customer. Encouraging companies to put away the big sticks when they deal with their suppliers, he provides solid advice for supply chain management in standard as well as crisis environments. He demonstrates how sound principles of lean theory and action can be coordinated with enlightened supply chain management practices to add value to bottom-line profits.

This book puts the strategic focus back into the purchasing function. I highly recommend this book. ... Read more

Book Description

Getting the Right Product to the Right Place at the Right Time

Logistics and fulfillment management is unglamorous, complex and expensive, but it is one of the primary factors determining whether an e-business will be profitable.

Many enterprises (large and small) rush into the e-business model without adequate consideration of logistics and fulfillment systems.

The author walks the reader through the labyrinth of technical and outsourcing choices. This book covers, in depth, the processes and systems necessary to ensure that an e-tail or B2B commerce site can deliver its product to the customer in a quick, cost-effective and traceable manner --from the moment the customer clicks the "buy" button to the instant it is in the customer's hands, plus the after-sales issues -- returns, technical support, warranties, etc.

The book also explores the virtual world of e-business as its processes merge with the day-to-day realities of commerce: procurement, inventory management, supply chain management, order fulfillment and delivery of products to global customers.

A first class logistics and fulfillment management system brings numerous efficiencies and cost-savings through data sharing, collaboration and value chain visibility -- for both the B2B and the e-tail models. This is the first book to address the full impact of logistics and fulfillment and to take on how an e-business can handle the challenges all enterprises face when moving their business systems and processes online -- for good logistics is good e-business!

Janice Reynolds is a writer, editor, speaker and consultant in information technology and the Internet/intranet. Prior to starting her own consulting firm in 1995, Ms. Reynolds was the litigation manager of a large New York City law firm. She is the author of "The Complete E-Commerce Book". She has edited numerous technical books and led several e-commerce development teams. Ms. Reynolds provides advice to numerous budding entrepreneurs as the "E-commerce Expert" on Allbusiness.com. She also consults with numerous established companies concerning their Internet ventures. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Not worth 1/10th of its price !
As a (non-IT) executive of an established brick & mortar retailer which is about to start selling online, I wanted to get a god practical understanding of the many issues related to e-commerce logistics. I threw away this book after wasting on it 2 hours, when I realized I still had not learned a single new thing.
The author's hands-on experience with the subject is clearly limited, and the writing style is that of a consultant: if you take away all the buzzwords and the high-level and over-used strategical concepts, hardly any content is left.
This book is probably a compilation of marketing information found on the top 100 websites that come up in Google if you search for "e-commerce logistics". You may find the book useful only if you work in IT and need an overview of what various software vendors have to offer in this area.

Profitable e-commerce regardless of the product or service
Logistics And Fulfillment For e-Business: A Practical Guide To Mastering Back Office Functions For Online Commerce is a straightforward instructional manual to the basic logistics of designing, managing, and running an efficient model for profitable e-commerce regardless of the product or service being offered. From outsourcing technology; to dealing profitably with shipping costs (including the pros and cons of USPS versus other package shippers); to handling customer relations in e-Business; and much, much more, Logistics And Fulfillment For e-Business is a handy, user friendly, "how-to" reference with invaluable, practical advice for any merchant or entrepreneur setting up an e-storefront to supplement (or replace) a traditional brick-and-mortar based commercial operation.

The Author Understands the World of Multi-Channel
I bought another one of the author's book a few days ago and felt she had hit that technology right on the head so I decided to try her logistics and fulfillment book. I wasn't disappointed. I had basically given up trying to find a good book on logistics and fulfillment -- no one seemed to really understand the complexities of the multi-channel world.

This book not only deals with Internet based companies, it gives the reader the information necessary to integrate an online business with traditional channels. It provides complete knowledge of how goods flow from the initial source all the way to the customer's premise. The author explains how to reach the ultimate goal of a state-of-the-art logistics and fulfillment operation. The book details how to determine in real time the sales data, warehouse inventory, production plans, and shipment schedules as an order traverses the value chain. There is even a detailed explanation of the tools need to crunch the necessary numbers into some form of reliable forecasting.

The author really understands that the success in the world of multi-channel requires a well-defined business model and the tight integration between legacy and online applications and systems, specifically in the areas of product category, customer, order, distribution, fulfillment, data, and operational management. While the book does point out that logistics and fulfillment is no easy task, it also explains that optimal logistics and fulfillment is achievable and the end result will make all the effort and money spent worthwhile.

#1 Book on E-Commerce!
This book is the key to successfully planning (and implementing) an e-commerce strategy. While the subject can be on the boring side, Reynolds' writing style kept me interested and wanting more. Unlike most books in this space, and I have read nearly all of them, I was very taken with the expert way in which the concepts are logically presented and how the examples turned on so many lights for me. Reynolds is an obvious expert in this field and I wished she worked on some of the e-commerce start-ups I did - my portfolio would be fatter!!! Seriously, if you need to learn this material, THIS is the book. Now I wonder if she would write something on home-improvement???

Highly Recommend the Book
I enjoyed reading this book...the author had a lot of very enlightening points and the material was presented in a much more "down to earth", magazine style way than the average business/tech book. It offers a unique perspective of what the Internet has done to change the landscape of 'traditional' business. The book should be read by those running today's businesses, although, I did feel that it was written as much for middle management as it was for the upper echelon.

The author captured the idea of the Internet being a tidal force in the marketplace very well. I highly recommend reading this book for its unique perspective on the Internet and how it has changed business from both the customers' and supply chain's vantage point. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

This is an excellent book
A series of excellent articles on the new product processes. Especially recommend the article on "Make Projects the School for Leaders". A prediction for the future that many companies are beginning to experience. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Book Description

Although much has been written touting Six Sigma and its benefits, many are still confused about what exactly Six Sigma is and why it is extremely beneficial.

Six Sigma Fundamentals cuts through the "fluff" of conventional Six Sigma jargon and provides the reader with a solid understanding of what defines a Six Sigma initiative and what is expected from the organization, management, and customer. Each chapter fully addresses the concepts of the Six Sigma philosophy and explains the methodologies for real-world applications. Included with the text is a CD-ROM containing more than 75 ready-to-use Six Sigma forms.Six Sigma Fundamentals gives an overview to the entire process – from understanding the significance of "customer requirements" all the way to "Designing for Six Sigma" and "implementation strategy." The model tools, methodology, and goals are explained thoroughly, so that this powerful system may be applied to organizations that are concerned with drastic positive changes to both customer satisfaction and profitability.

With a focus on both manufacturing as well as non-manufacturing organizations, Six Sigma Fundamentals demystifies the methodologies, identifies the tools needed for accurate deployment, and enables the reader to explain the design of Six Sigma within the organization. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Is Dean Stamatis a convert?
Dean Stamatis has been known for his opposition to Six Sigma. The following are direct quotes from a paper that he wrote in Quality Digest:

"We don't need the Six Sigma methodology to improve efficiency and productivity in our products; rather, we need to stop issuing "letters of deviation" and "waivers" from our specifications (especially at the product submittal warrant stage)."

"We don't need the Six Sigma methodology to improve throughput and timing. Rather, we need to stick to the milestones of timing and follow the guidelines of APQP. We need management's commitment for consistency and concern for improvement."

"We don't need the Six Sigma methodology for transactional problems such as paying suppliers within 90 days to 120 days; rather, we need to recognize that suppliers have to be paid on timely basis."

So Dean did you really convert, or is this a convenient book to cash in on Six Sigma's popularity? ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Thorough treatment of multi-echelon,multi-indenture models.
Excerpted from the original Logistics Spectrum review by Dr. Jezdimir Knesevic, 1993

The book is written for the logistician who is concerned with the achievement of the required operational availability of systems, and whose main objective and responsibility is to make decisions related to inventory items, item location and investment in spares. The optimization methodology developed considers trade-offs between stock at the operating locations and supporting depots (also called the multi-echelon problems), and between stock levels for an item and its sub-items (also called the multi-indenture problems). All models developed are on an analytical nature, which provides the decision-maker with an efficient tool for the determination of optimal stockage policies.

The philosophical concepts of the book are addressed in Chapter 1, followed by the corresponding mathematical techniques in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 covers the mathematics related to the joint optimization of stock levels at operating and stockage/supporting bases. The estimation of demand rates that do not stay constant is considered in Chapter 4, where the negative binomial is used as a model, together with models that are based on the Poisson distribution (variance-to-mean ratios equal to one). The mathematics for a multi-echelon, multi-indenture optimization are developed in Chapter 5. The problem concerning periodic resupply for repairable items is addressed in Chapters 6 and 7. The associated concept is subsequently illustrated through an example application related to the Space Station Freedom. The main subject of Chapter 8 is the cannibalization problem and the associated mathematics. The last chapter, Chapter 9, of the textbook is dedicated to practical real-world problems relating to modeling and application of models, where both advantages and disadvantages are analyzed.

Undoubtedly, a book of of such great integrity deserves a place on the shelf or any person, library, or organization whose interests lie in the domain of inventory theory and its application to complex systems. ... Read more

Book Description

For project managers in charge of complicated, 10-person-plus projects, one of the best ways to take control and produce predictable, repeatable results is to focus on both complex theory and practical techniques.

Modern Project Management helps them do that, filling in the knowledge gaps and answering the questions of this often misunderstood process. By going through project management step-by-step, the book presents an integrated approach that balances theory, methods, psychology, and practice, and helps even novice project managers achieve superior results. Readers will learn how to:

* Plan the project to maximize productivity
* Motivate others to execute the plan
* Analyze the actual results
* Rework and tune the plan as the project is executed.

Also included with this book is a project management toolset called Modern Manager. Easily installed on a personal computer, this software is far more than just a scheduler. It features tools designed to help project managers plan, estimate, monitor, and control projects. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

A Solid Effort!
Author Norman R. Howes tackles project management in all its intricate bureaucratic glory, and brings the process up-to-date in what is essentially a book of instructions. Helpful in designing and tracking projects, this clear, crisp manual comes with Modern Project software, the program used to carry out the project management steps delineated in the book. The book, like any owner's manual, is very list-oriented. Howes does not teach you how to manage a project, either practically or theoretically, as much as he outlines the managerial process. His step-by-step guide focuses on detailed information telling readers how to take advantage of the software as they manage projects. While we from getAbstract recommend this guide specifically to project managers - who should keep it on hand, particularly if they use the related software package or want to learn more about it - the book is also designed to be used in corporate training programs and college classes.

Modern Project Management
Great book.Clear, well thought-out, and useful.I am using the method and tools to manage a series special event projects with 19 staff and 6 other vendors.Everyone has read the book so we all have a common understanding, and everyone is using the tool to generate reports - very cool.

Good practical stuff
Doesn't cover every aspect of PM but every aspect it covers is done very well.An easy read that can change how you do things.The enclosed software reinforces your knowledge.

Measuring Earned Value Correctly
I concur with other reviewers that this book is
extremely valuable, insightful, and comprehensive.It
provides clarification of several Project Management
concepts that are typically glossed over and sometimes
completely ignored in other texts.Perhaps the most
important contribution the author makes is in his
explanation of the subtleties of Earned Value - the
primary measurement for a project's performance.Many
Project Managers that I have worked with do not
understand how to measure Earned Value and end up with
incorrect measurements, or simply fail to use this
critical indicator altogether.I recommend this book to
all project managers who want clarification on this and
other topics that will help them improve their own
performance as managers.

A really modern treatment of project management
This book focuses on modern project management concepts and techniques, but covers the standard stuff like what you will find in the PMI PMBOK. The project management system that comes on the CD with the book contains tools you won't find even in expensive PM systems. There are at least a couple dozen tools on the CD and an example project you can use to try the tools out on. ... Read more

Book Description

Kovacich and Halibozek offer you the benefit of more than 55 years of combined experience in government and corporate security. Throughout the book, the authors use a fictional global corporation as a model to provide continual real-world challenges and solutions. New and experienced managers alike will find a wealth of information and practical advice to help you develop strategic and tactical plans and manage your daily operations.

* Contains real case examples to illustrate practical application of concepts
* Thoroughly covers the integration of physical, computer and information security goals for complete security awareness
* A handy reference for managers to quickly find and implement the security solutions they need ... Read more

Book Description

Six Sigma Simplified is a step-by-step guide to getting started with Six Sigma in any size company. Most existing companies are at level 3.5 sigma (1-2% error rate). Most startup companies are only at level 2 sigma (15-30%). Dramatic improvements are possible by following a simple process: Focus, Improve, Sustain, and Honor.

1. developing a Master Improvement Story that focuses on 50% or greater reduction in time, defects, and costs
2. defining the key problems to solve (less than 4% of your business creates over 50% of the waste, rework, and cost.)
3. highly focused teams of employees who analyze and determine the root causes and solutions in a day or less.
4. implementing and verifying the improvement has reduced defects, time or cost by 50% or more.
5. sustaining the improvement using flow and control charts.
6. recognizing and rewarding the improvement teams for their efforts.

Most companies find that they can make a one-sigma improvement in 12 months and a two-sigma jump in 24 months. Each jump will increase profits dramatically, because you're no longer spending money on waste and rework.

Once you get to 5-sigma, you may need to use more exotic techniques like QFD, Quality Function Deployment, and DOE, Design of Experiements to redesign your processes to deliver six sigma (3.4 defects per million) quality. For most companies, it will be several years before they reach this level of performance. Until then, you can get by with the tree diagram, line graph, pareto chart, Ishikawa diagram, and some control charts. Readers can download a free demo of these tools-the QI Macros addin macros for Excel-from .

Many companies are making the same mistakes with Six Sigma that they made with TQM in the 80's and 90's. They are measuring their progress by number of Black Belt's and Green Belt's trained and projects started. This is a mistake. The real measure of Six Sigma success is results that you can measure. In a $50 million dollar company or larger, each project should save $250,000 or more.

There's a secret to implementing any change or innovation like Six Sigma. That secret is in a book called the Diffusion of Innovations by Everett Rogers and the essence of that research is in Six Sigma Simplified. What's the secret? Start with only 4% of your employees who are early adopters of new ideas. Focus them on the 4% of the business that will yield 50% improvements. Make them successful. They will convince the next 4% and so on. Somewhere around 16% adoption of Six Sigma, the whole organization will reach a critical mass where it will adopt the change more easily than you can image. If, however, you try to train everyone, you'll risk offending the powerful laggards and late majority (the settlers). I call them the corporate immune system. If you irritate them, they can kill Six Sigma before it starts. The other benefit from this approach is that you limit your investment until Six Sigma starts to pay for itself. You'll also prevent wasting time and effort on projects ! that aren't valuable. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Sales Presentation
As I was reading this book, I felt like I was at a sales presentation. Lots of razzmatazz and little substance. It just skimmed over everything and didn't really explain anything. Then I got to the back of the book and found all the pages of products for sale by the author's company and realized that it was a sales presentation.

Greatly exceeded my expectations
The author skillfully manages to make learning relatively advanced statistics easy through stories, examples and anecdotes. Where the skills comes in is the wide range of complex topics that are introduced and clearly explained. To a highly technical reader this may come across as either condescending. However, the fact is that all of the important details and techniques are covered in great detail, and are wrapped in friendly prose. This ensures that hard-to-learn concepts need not be hard to learn, nor the learning process intimidating.

What I like is the systematic coverage of key concepts and knowledge areas, each of which builds upon the preceding topic. The book starts with compelling business reasons for embarking on a 6-Sigma initiative, and what 6-Sigma entails. It them introduces an approach for reducing cycle time and improving quality in a 2- and 4-step process. After establishing that framework, the book shows how to sustain the improvements using key indicators for process stability and capability, and how to effectively employ statistical process controls to proactively track them.

The foregoing alone would make this an excellent introductory book on 5-Sigma, but the author goes on to tackle advanced topics such as design of experiments, quality function deployment and benchmarking. These are certainly integral components of a complete 6-Sigma initiative, but I didn't expect to find them covered in an introductory book. I also liked the complete coverage of basic TQM tools and techniques at the end of the book.

If you need to either learn the fundamentals of 6-Sigma or train a non-technical workforce this is an ideal book. If you are going to teach or facilitate a 6-Sigma workshop you'll also want the author's "Six Sigma Instructor Guide" (ISBN 1884180140), which provides a syllabus and learning objectives that use this book as the student text.

Six sigma simplified
It's so refreshing to review a six sigma publication that doesn't pretend to be "rocket science", I particularly enjoyed the extremely simple application of the six sigma methodology and the de- mystifying of the six sigma methodology that tends to be extremely mystified in the majority of six sigma publications. This publication would be an excellent addition to any internal training initiative endeavouring to educate and inform employees of the intentions of this quality tool in a non intelectual way that allows for the integration of more complex mathematical methods of data collection, the clear way that the selection and use of control charts were presented was even understood by my colleauges who admit to being affraid of math. All in all this publication is a practical handbook for breaking the uninitiated into the six sigma philosophy. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Case only
This is case only book. You buy this book if you want to buy long questions with no answer. ... Read more

Book Description

Using an easy-to-read conversational style and down-to-earth approach, this book follows a fictional training seminar given to six management professionals who are "trainees" in project management. In the seminar, the trainees work through two major projects and several others--each project highlighting and refining different issues that will make the managers better at controlling a complex process and in avoiding and eliminating unnecessary stress for the project, themselves, and their employees. Exceptionally practical and applied, the book guides readers through a proven strategy for success and provides them with the tools they need to handle any project's unique combination of people, process, and tasks. Features dialogues in which the "trainees" discuss concepts presented and their own personal experiences in project management; interviews with expert project managers; special Skill and Tool boxes; and applications and problems for practice, some using project management software.Introduction to Project Management. Change. Leadership and Motivation. Communications. Teams. Diversity. Organization. Organization. Network Analysis and Duration Estimating. Managing Resources. Project Control concepts. Project Control Techniques. Final Project Challenge: Applying What You Know.For first-time project leaders in industry. ... Read more

Book Description

A company's ability to quickly adapt to the changing demands and requirements of its customers has become an essential requirement for it’s long-term survival. Managers must not limit their thinking to 'just' the product or project's value but more importantly what will make customers prefer their offerings to those presented by rivals. It's about a 'Result Focus' aimed not simply at what is made and how much it will cost to manufacture but how it will be useful to those who buy it: it’s about exceeding the customer’s experience and so beating the competition. This significant new book explains how rational thinking is key to leadership and competitive advantage. The author’s combine the theories of value engineering and knowledge management with leadership techniques to provide a methodology that will help you develop the technological advantages that will deliver desired results. Achieving results: how to create value is not another book of tools and techniques for value engineering. Many such books already exist. Unfortunately, few of them explain the theories underlying the practice that they preach. Readers are expected to enter into a blind faith that accepts the ‘magic’ of value engineering without question or even evidence or understanding. Achieving results: how to create value is a book that puts the value of science back into value engineering. It moves value engineering from being a low-tech art to a hi-tech methodology capable of being used by the likes of the Drug Discovery processes, NASA’s Mars mission and in charity work. The authors focus on the underlying theories that link leadership, value engineering and technology management. It argues that the practice of value engineering has hardly moved forward in the last 30 years because the underlying theories upon which practice is based have rarely been critically examined or explained and that the subjective models upon which practice is based have been promoted at the expense of objective models -- this is what the authors seek to overthrow. Achieving results: how to create value provides a new foundation for value engineering, and will help its many advocates to see it as a method that enables the improvement of artificial constructs, from artefacts to organizations. It will help you to become a leader and a value technologist who thinks not just of product or project value but also of how this value will bring improvement to your customers and shareholders. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Professor John Kelly, Glasgow Caledonian University
This book sets itself the task of being not "one more procedure and tools" book on value engineering ... but on being a challenging, thought provoking text concentrating on the theories of value engineering as a decision technology.

Its aim is to shift the focus from value engineering as a set of routine techniques into value engineering as a powerful thinking methodology.

In these objectives it succeeds taking the reader in a logical and thought provoking manner past the systematic and into the complex structures of perceptions and knowledge.

It is rare to sit and read a book at a single sitting but this is what I found myself doing being intrigued by the developing arguments and well-crafted points.

The author's state that the future for value engineering rests with the development of more rigorous approaches to thinking and decision taking, I believe that they have argued this point succinctly and convincingly.

Professor Dan. A Seni, University of Quebec
"This is an important work directed at executives, middle line managers, project managers and anyone else familiar with Value Engineering and Value Management, concerned with the value creating process either in the public or the private sectors, and this for a numbeof reasons.

First it sets the the traditionally technical process of value design in the broder context of the organization.

Secondly, it deals with some of the important theoretical issues concerning the nature of value improvement from a technological point of view.

Thirdly, it pulls together the threads of a disparate literature around key concepts of value and function. Finally, it maps out with examples and cases, the intellectual process of VE and VM.

In sum, the book ought to be of particular interest to practitioners, researchers and students who seek a view of value improvement within a broader intellectual context."

Professor Steven Male, Leeds University
Roy Woodhead and James McCuish have broken the mold in writing about value engineering. By using analogies and case studies throughout to explain and inform they have provided the reader with an insight into using VE as a robust thinking methodology.

The concepts behind value engineering have been explained in full and they take the reader through the process, tools and techniques in an enlightening way, challenging practitioners, students and researchers of VE to look at the methodology in a different light. They argue that to continue developing, value engineering must go beyond a set of tool and techniques into a methodology that becomes a rational decision support system to support senior management.

I found the chapter on functional analysis particularly informative, and I look forward to debating the arguments raised in the book with the authors when we next meet. I am sure other readers will enjoy the book and will find it difficult to put down.

A "must" in a leader's library
In their book "Achieving Results, How to create Value," Dr. Roy Woodhead and James McCuish bring the understanding and search for value by the producer and consumer to a higher intellectual plane by taking the reader deep into the principles and philosophies that influence decisions to improve value.

Woodhead and McCuish take the reader beyond the methodology to create value options. They stress that value creation requires more than presenting good value alternatives. Also required are good value decisions. Woodhead and McCuish build a compelling argument in support of a process that produces value based decisions, that support the development of best value options by dissecting and analyzing the decision making process. Of particular interest is using the Stage Gate process as a value-creating model.

Throughout the book the authors have demonstrated a unique ability to bring complex issues to an understandable level by presenting simple analogies one experiences in every day life.

As a value practitioner, I found the author's discussions of intrinsic and extrinsic functions and the principles and philosophies that form the foundation of function analysis and modeling, refreshing and thought provoking. I also find their description of the value practitioner in the role of facilitator reinforcing. The contributions to team performance by the facilitator are well defined as is the surrounding environment that influences the value practitioner's success.

Anyone interested in managing, engineering, or creating value for the purpose of value adding, or value improvement, must add "Achieving Result ... " to his or her value management reference library ... Read more

Book Description

Managing a project can be stressful enough without the added difficulty of coordinating project members working from different sites--or even continents! Managing Virtual Projects outlines techniques, practices, and products that are being effectively used by virtual project managers around the globe.

With more projects being outsourced every day, managers will turn here to get the knowledge they need on maintaining quality and budget controls, developing documentation standards, implementing essential technologies such as Microsoft's EPM or Primavera, and more.