ABSTRACT
Overview In.this.chapter.we.will.discuss.the.basic.tools,.methods,.and.concepts.of.Lean.in. the.context.of.six.common.process.workflows.found.in.most.organizations..These. common.workflows.include.financial.forecasting,.accounts.receivable,.new.product. marketing. research,. new. product. development,. and. supplier. performance. management..Our. goal. is. to.use. these.workflows. to.demonstrate.how. to. implement. Lean.Six.Sigma.within.service.and.office.operations..In.this.discussion.we.will.take. Lean. concepts. that. have. been. successfully. applied. to. manufacturing. operations. and.develop.analogues.to.service.and.office.operations..The.discussion.will.follow. the.sequence.shown.in.Table.3.1..But.prior.to.beginning.our.discussion,.we.will. introduce.and.discuss.the.seven.classic.forms.of.process.waste,.shown.in.Figure.3.1,. from.a.Lean.perspective..Other.factors.exacerbate.the.occurrence.of.process.breakdowns..These.include.a.lack.of.procedures,.poor.training.methods,.a.lack.of.process. standardization,.poor.process.design,.as.well.as.variable.demand,.which.strains.a. system’s.available.capacity..Available.capacity.is.calculated.as.design.capacity.minus. normal.allowances. for. things.such.as.employee.breaks.and.other.expected. losses. in.system.capacity..Actual.capacity.is.calculated.as.available.capacity.minus.unexpected.losses.due.to.process.breakdowns.
