Vishwadeep Khatri

Hi Jayant, This is a good article and seems absolutely on track from start till end. If we look at the "how" in addition to the "why", there are several challenges. There are so many cases where right data was used but the inferences were wrong. Here is a link that highlights some examples - http://www.datavis.ca/gallery/missed.php Most business leaders do not know how to find the right sample size for carrying out a hypothesis test and end up concluding incorrectly. Many organizations rely on external statisticians who draw conclusions which may be right but carry little business value. There are other kinds of practical risks of promoting this approach. In a country like India - Researchers, Scientists, Artists, Designers, Chefs and the like tend to hide more than they share. At many occasions, they provide incorrect or incomplete information to others for the sake of job security. The question is this - If you wish to promote the right way of collecting and using data, what steps would you recommend for an organization? What could be the initial steps and what could be some of the simpler tools to use in the beginning? Who should be learning and using these methods initially?

Dear Rohang, The article is very well written. However, the last two sentences create a puzzle. Are you referring to some specific unit here? If yes, which unit is it and why is it being referred as "our unit"?

Hi Prateek, I am trying to understand your views of using both worlds at the same time. Are you trying to say that gut feel can be data driven, or that data driven decisions can be subjective? In my opinion, if your decision follows your intuition, you do not care about data. If you are a follower of data, you cannot go with your hunch. Your examples show that sometimes gut works and sometimes it does not. If you create hypotheses using gut feel, but finally take decision based on data, it is not an intuition based decision finally and shows that you are a supporter of DDDM. Or am I missing something?

I have not seen any post on this article so far. I thought it is apt to weave a response from the manager who just got your letter. Here is what the manager writes back - "Well, I can see certain comments in your letter which indicate that I have some inexpressible psychological factors and a feeling of insecurity. From the style you have adopted, it requires experience to indicate that your style of writing fails to create an environment of mutual respect. Being a believer in intent and final impact of actions, I have doubts over what you are trying to achieve. On the one hand, you mention my job as a manager being wonderful, and on the other hand you mention baselessness in my views. While your language may influence a reader searching for impressive english, it lacks the same element that you are trying to support, namely, evidence. While so many innovations and new products are created through ingenuity, I do not see great results coming out from data driven decisions. While I do see some merit in your arguments, my gut feel has resulted in good performance so far, as I KNOW the markets and its sentiments. There are numerous occasions where proponents of data usage have failed. Today, markets change with every competitive launch and data mostly shows things from the past and expectations derived from experience. I know for sure that companies like Nokia focused on data analysis while others like Apple and Samsung changed the entire market with forward thinking initiatives. I stick to my views as strongly as ever before and hope that with deeper insight, you shall understand that emotions drive people more than logic. It is because of emotional intelligence that I have led a big team successfully for such a long time. I hope my reply helps in putting things in right perspective. Let me know if you have any evidence driven arguments."

Team leaders benefit more by doing this program. For a caller, this program can help show the interest and aptitude in Management. It can help in initiating small improvements. You shall be able to bring bigger process changes only when you are allowed to. You may be allowed to work on bigger changes, if you have the potential and are able to present the aptitude well.

Dear Vishnu, LSSGB is a value added qualification which provides you a distinctive edge over other candidates for the job. It may not fetch you a higher salary than others but an edge over others vying for same position. For a job in Quality department, it enhances your awareness levels about most powerful methods in use today in corporate world and shows to the employer that you are willing and committed to building competence for such job. It also shows that you are more job-ready than others.

Dear Raghav, Food wastage and effective utilization of cabs seem to be two unrelated focus areas. Check which if any of these has a strong business case. If yes, create a project charterand seek approval. Even if the projects turns out to be DMADV, it is fine to progress with it. You can always post questions and seek answers here. Best Wishes for your project!

Hi Raghavendran, Do you have any queries? Feel free to post questions or initiate a discussion.

Hi Arvindh, SLA is acronym for Service Level Agreement. SLA's are external (with clients) and internal (with employees or internal teams). Meeting an SLA means carrying out a process with no defects or delays (or with acceptable levels of defects). Hope this helps.

Here are the software tools that participants will learn and practice during VCE program. Demand forecasting - GMDH Shell - Multivariate Time Series, Regression, Simulation as used in forecasting Customer Relationship Management - Salesforce.com - Understanding Sales cycle and forecasts for demand management. Operations scheduling For manufacturing - Max scheduler For services - World class manpower scheduling software solution shall be used for learning and practice. Resource Management - Netsuite Open Air - Managing multi-skilled environment, managing resource across different geographies, forecasting and reporting on resources.

Yes, agree with Somanathan. To add, a Lean Six Sigma professional with Value Chain Expertise can broaden his application area to include the supply side and demand side in his list of possible projects. Also, a professional of Value Chain/ Supply Chain areas can deep dive into the latest tools usage and practical applications by attending our VCE program.

Lean uses value stream mapping which considers activities WITHIN the company’s scope of control and operations. It has been found that many opportunities exist outside the company or in the support functions as highlighted in the definition of value chain above. While Lean Six Sigma projects can be done very well across value chains, it requires a good understanding of components of Value Chain for an LSS professional to be able to drive results (or to participate well in such projects)

A Value Chain Expert is a person who appreciates the contribution of parties involved in the value chain and has reasonable subject matter and application knowledge in Demand forecasting, Capacity Management, Operations scheduling, CRM, and SRM as a minimum: Demand Forecasting The ability to forecast demand is a key aspect to the planning of operations and information sharing with other partners in the chain. It is well understood that over-estimating or under-estimating demand can have serious consequences. In the VCE program, you shall learn predictive analytics, time series forecasting, knowledge discovery and curve fitting with the use of world class software. Operations Scheduling & Capacity Management – The planning and scheduling of operations include timing and quantities (this could refer to material or information or human resource depending on the industry). You will learn how to use exceptional scheduling software for your needs. Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Demand management is feasible if we are aware of near term sales events that are likely to occur. This requires learning and usage of some crucial CRM tools on world class software that provides a great set of opportunities to be cashed at the most appropriate time. In the VCE program, you shall learn about the world's leading CRM solution and the key possibilities it provides. Supplier Relationship Management The most successful organizations have always found ways to partner with suppliers in a way that they grow and win as partners. The key elements that drive Supplier Relationship shall be covered in the program.

There is nothing truer than the fact that “Customers always purchase a benefit or a solution when they buy a product or service.� We may like to take this one step further by saying that customer buys something that provides acceptable value at the time of purchase. The value derived by a customer is a sum total of value added by a chain of entities. Most companies have other firms or persons on the supply side (vendors, partners, infrastructure providers, material and information providers, manpower providers, and the like). Similarly, there are entities on the customer side (integrators, marketing partners, distributors, dealers, agents, buyers, purchasers, influencers, end users) The entire set comprising of the supplier sequences, the company, and the customer sequences create the value chain. The efficiency and the effectiveness of this value chain decide whether the customer will perceive and derive value (an acceptable combination of quality and prices) from the offering. Here are some examples of effective users of Value Chain in services and in manufacturing- GE considered its value chain pro-actively and ensured that suppliers developed world class abilities to enhance end user value. Airtel has been considering a large value chain of partners via outsourcing and insourcing activities. A credit card company finds that the agencies who bring in applicants are key value chain partners crucial for its success. BPO & KPO organizations see that forecasting, scheduling, resource management form key drivers of business and some of the best business impacting projects have been those that engaged the client (who is also the supplier). Some of the best cargo and logistics companies have worked with partners on both sides (supplier side and customer side) to achieve benchmarks in excellence. Online sellers like eBay depend on partner capabilities to ensure great delivery for their tangible goods. Automotive giants are very detail oriented users of value chain learning. Value Chain includes interlinked value adding activities and consists of inbound distribution, internal operations, outbound distribution, marketing & selling, and after sales service. These are supported by purchasing or procurement, research and development, human resource development (HRD), and corporate infrastructure.

What is finally important in all purchase decisions is value perception. This is a combination of quality and brand connection in one's mind. People do buy Chinese unbranded goods, many of which are not associated with great quality but definitely meet the value criteria. Take the example of remote controlled cars or mobile phones which do not last long but have extraordinary features that work for few weeks or months. At the price they are sold, they are considered to be of great value. Someone who appreciates "Apple" products for great quality may not always buy them even if he/she can afford them. To take this discussion further, the objective of Lean Six Sigma is not to enhance to quality of products or services but to increase value for the customer. This is what finally increases repeat and referral sales.

I-MR chart requires a test of normality and your data may be Non - Normal. It is okay to go with X bar for base-lining purpose.

Hi Kirthiga, Good question. I will need to know few things before answering your question. Are you taking this up as a Lean Six Sigma project? If yes, is it a DMAIC or a DMADV project? Why are you doing control charting? As a part of Measure phase or Control phase? Best Regards, VK

Value is different from Quality. The focus of Lean Six Sigma is on Value! The difference can be understood by looking at how American Customer Satisfaction Index is calculated. Value considers the investment w.r.t deliverable and not just the happiness derived by consuming/ experiencing the product/service. The key point, again, is that Lean Six Sigma, is not about Quality but about Value (which leads to satisfaction, loyalty, repeats and referrals)

"Lean Six Sigma is a business improvement methodology that maximizes shareholder value by achieving the fastest rate of improvement in customer satisfaction, cost, quality, process speed, and invested capital" If you carry out a google search with the above text, you shall find more than 1000 recent web results highlighting the same language. The world has acceptable this as the modern definition.

Sagar, I feel it is just that people think that they will do it some other time (even if they find no reason not to do it). It is good that some people started and set examples for others. The next person should be you.

More than 50% of top ten attributes of an MBA as demanded by Recruiters connect strongly with Lean Six Sigma competence. Remaining attributes have some linkages. View the complete report here - http://poetsandquants.com/2011/05/11/in-search-of-the-mba-superman-or-wonder-woman/2/ Feel free to discuss this topic here. (Sign up is an easy two step process, you can use Facebook to login.)

While the difference in opinion is welcomed, my opinion is to go with option 6 - all (for practical purposes). I agree that "if pigeon poops happen, the use of chemicals must happen" may be considered incorrect by some of you as there is an element of choice here. Probably, there is an element of choice or availability of options at each stage. For the practical problem-solving purpose, (in this case) as the Archaeology department is conscious and committed to its objectives, and alternative cleaning solution is unavailable - I am of the opinion that pigeon poops are a sufficient cause for use of this harmful chemical. We shall soon have another discussion on the practical use of "necessary" and "sufficient" in root cause analysis and problem-solving. Meanwhile, this discussion is open for more comments and opinions.

Dear Suresh, I feel that chemical is not a mandatory effect of Pigeon poops. So, probably, Pigeon poops is not a sufficient cause to ensure use of chemicals as it (chemicals) was a human choice.

Hi everyone, A good set of responses and I appreciate your interest in this question. The three strongest contenders are Option 1, 2 and 6. Dipak, Jaya, Sachin, Viswanathan, Ayush, fcaih0, Vijayasekar, Sahil, Sagar, SKS Rao, Shoukat, Anshu Goel, Vasudha, have responded with Option 6 - All. Ankit, Inderjeet, Lalith, Sumanth have mentioned Option 2 - A, B, C, D, F Madhu, Krishnamurthy, Abir, Vidya, R S Bahadur, LM Suresh Kumar, Deepa, Sunil Nair - Option 1 - A, B, C, D and E Well, we can think and discuss more - Question related to Option 1 - Is F (Use of chemicals) necessary as well as sufficient to explain Rapid Erosion? Question related to Option 2 - Is E (Pigeon poops) necessary as well as sufficient to explain F (Use of chemicals)? Question related to Option 6 - Are all the causes (A-F) necessary and sufficient to explain their respective next steps? Finally, what is the option you prefer - 1, 2 or 6? Well, we can change our choices if we want to.

Hi, Ramkumar Your comment is absolutely on the mark. The root cause is artificial light. Small clarification here - The posed question is about the "cause" being necessary and sufficient for the "next event". Here, we are not just referring to the root cause and the end result (although, these two matter the most), we wish to refer to each cause in the series.