2015 ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement – in Nashville! TAGS: ame | american society for quality | asq | blitz | conference | consulting | gaylord | lean | money | nashville | operations | opryland | process | quality | shingo | six sigma | sports | tedxcolumbiasc | time | wcqi | wcqi15 | world Greetings from Nashville! I am in town for the 2015 ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement (#wcqi15 for hashtag lovers)! This will be my third time attending the WCQI …Continue reading →

Presentation on the Designated Hitter and Root Cause Analysis TAGS: analysis | asq | baseball | blitz | consulting | corrective action | data | designated hitter | lean | major league baseball | operations | process | quality | red lobster | ron blomberg | root cause analysis | six sigma | sports On Tuesday, February 17th, I will be presenting an analysis of the implementation and impact of the designated hitter in Major League Baseball to the Central Savannah River Section (Augusta, …Continue reading →

ASQ Influential Voices: Why is Strategy Important? TAGS: asq | bill troy | blitz | consulting | cost | delivery | hoshin | influential voices | kanri | lean | operations | planning | priority | process | quality | safety | sports | sqdc boards | strategy This month’s entry from ASQ’s A View From The Q blog, written by ASQ CEO Bill Troy, centers around strategy – specifically, what is the purpose of strategy and how …Continue reading →

Quality Systems and Notre Dame Football Suspensions TAGS: blitz | consulting | davaris daniels | football | ishaq williams | keivarae russell | kendall moore | lean | national title game | ncaa | notre dame | operations | process | sports | suspensions The University of Notre Dame football program has taken a significant hit this past week, as four players – three slated as starters – are under investigation for academic misconduct. …Continue reading →

A Surge in Major League Baseball Giveaway Defects TAGS: american | blitz | bobblehead | china | consulting | continuous improvement | defect | giveaway | jersey | king soopers | league | lean | major league baseball | mets | miguel cabrera | mvp | national | oops | operations | phillies | process | promotion | sports | troy tulowitzki | truck | tulowizki | w.b. mason Over the last 30 days, there have been at least three significantly notable Major League Baseball giveaway snafus with roots in poor quality. First, the Colorado Rockies celebrated their superstar …Continue reading →

ASQ TV Features Quality in Athletics TAGS: asq | blitz | champions | consulting | futbol | iso 9001 | lean | liga mx | monarcas morelia | operations | process | quality | quality in athletics | quality systems | Soccer | sports | tiscc | tiscc chart Last month ASQ TV featured many elements and applications of quality in sports organizations in addition to bringing attention to the ASQ Quality in Athletics special interest group. Here are …Continue reading →

ASQ Quality in Athletics: A Call to Action TAGS: asq | athletics | blitz | consulting | continuous improvement | group | lean | nfl | operations | process | qatar world cup | quality | quality in athletics | richie incognito | safety | six sigma | sports | steroids The American Society for Quality features a relatively-new special interest group called Quality in Athletics. For the last few months, I’ve been in a mood. An angry mood, the kind of …Continue reading →

What Your Father Can Teach You About Lean TAGS: augusta national golf club | blitz | cars | consulting | directions | education | fathers day | free throw | golf | happy fathers day | lean | lean consulting | operations | process | rework | spark plugs | sports | time | training Happy Fathers Day to all of the dads, grandpas, great-grandpas, uncles, and dads soon-to-be out there. Fathers Day has evolved a little bit into a day of phone calls, golf, …Continue reading →

ASQ Influential Voices: Link Between Quality and Education – Part I TAGS: american society for quality | asq | bad | blitz | book | consulting | dallas | do as I say | education | empower | engage | good | influential voices | lean | learning | michelle rhee | operations | process | quality | sports | voices of quality | what do you think | workforce | world conference The final keynote speaker for the ASQ World Conference in Dallas, education reformer Michelle Rhee, stated that a low-quality education results in a low-quality workforce. I’m certainly inclined to believe …Continue reading →

What is Value? TAGS: baseball | bentley | blitz | cheap | chophouse | concessions | consulting | continuous improvement | cow | definition | kia | lean | luxury | operations | process | six sigma | sports consulting | steak | value | what is value As continuous improvement practitioners we are always discussing value-added versus non-value-added activities. We are also tasked with identifying cheaper or cost-cutting alternatives. Employees are considered valuable if they do the …Continue reading →

Around The Bases: NFL Draft Jerseys Edition TAGS: baseball | blitz | bryce harper | consulting | continuous improvement | cover | football | formula one | jerseys | lean | mark graban | martin maldonado | nfl draft | nfl draft jerseys | nike | operations | optimization | pit stop | process | respect for people | seth godin | sports | tear | video The NFL Draft and Nike came up with a neat concept in 2012 – a way to present each first round draft pick at the Draft in New York with …Continue reading →

New Florida State Logo and Bad Supply Chain Communication TAGS: blitz | change | china | consulting | design | face | flexible | florida state | football | guy moore | lean | licenses | logo | low price | merchandise | nike | obsolete | operations | process | six sigma | spear | sports | spring game | tallahassee | uniform Prior to their football team’s spring game, Florida State University and Nike unveiled a newly-redesigned uniform and set of logos. The changes to the team’s markings has been a source of …Continue reading →

2014 ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement Recap – ASQ WCQI in Dallas TAGS: anatole | asq | blitz | cheerleaders | conference | consulting | dallas | dallas mavericks | daniel zrymiak | division | enterprise | exhibit hall | gemba academy | green belt | handbook | hilton | hilton anatole | improvement | international team excellence awards | itea | jennifer stepniowski | lean | michelle rhee | networking | operations | process | quality | quality council of indiana | six sigma | sports The 2014 ASQ World Conference on Quality and Improvement is now over. While some of the ASQ Influential Voices have shared their experiences meeting folks and poring through presentations and …Continue reading →

Around The Bases: Tough Mudder Cow Patties Edition TAGS: augusta national golf club | blitz | campylobacter | coli | consulting | continuous improvement | course | craig sager | danger | donald sterling | dr jack ramsay | illness | lean | masters | mowers | nba | operations | poop | process | race | safety | six sigma | sports | tennis ball | tough mudder | trapeze fall The Tough Mudder is obviously a very popular endurance race series among the athletic and adventurous young adult population – obstacle courses through rough and dangerous terrain, the thrill of …Continue reading →

Norman Dale and Listening to Your Team TAGS: basketball | blitz | consulting | final shot | hickory | hoosiers | huskers | jimmy chitwood | jimmy chitwood final shot | lean | movie | norman dale | operations | process | six sigma | sports To continue our deep dive into the Lean principle of “Respect for People” we now take a closer look at a fictional basketball coach in a famous sports movie. In Hoosiers famous …Continue reading →