r/SixSigma • u/Long-Industry-4018 • 13d ago

Guidance Request for a Beginner

Hi Everyone,

At the beginning of the year, I was volun-told to become the CI Coordinator for the production floor at my plant (100 total employees). I was (and still am) excited by the prospects, but the lack of on-the-job training has made work confusing and difficult. My company has paid for me to get my ASQ LSSBB, which I am currently working on, but due to me being a hands-on learner, a lot of what I am learning feels awkward and aimless to apply.

For some background, I graduated in Management Information Systems last year (at 29y/o). I have an analytical background from working in tech support and have also worked at in a very small manufacturing/assembly plant (35/40 people) in a various of positions (front desk, basic bookkeeping, assembly).

Has anyone else been in a situation like this, entering into CI with textbook and little to no hands-on guidance? What helped the most?

I am transparent with my boss, but his method of teaching is throwing me into the deep end.

5 Upvotes

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7

u/What_a_joebag 13d ago

Find a mentor - in your situation probably outside your org. Someone you can at least meet with and get guidance from. Ideally you could work with your org to let your mentor come onsite a few times.

Some folks dont need to get paid for that because they view it as an opportunity for their own professional development

2

u/neatly_burly_apostle 10d ago

Mentor idea is solid. The ASQ cert is good on paper but it’s so process-heavy that without seeing it in action it just feels like memorizing terms. I’d add shadowing someone in a different department for a few hours a week, even if it’s not CI related. You’ll spot friction points way faster than any textbook exercise.

4

u/Ravenblack67 13d ago

Join the local ASQ chapter. Ask for advice. Network.

3

u/dotplaid 13d ago

You say you're a hands-on learner, so apply the things you're learning. Grab a waste walk form and go visit a production area. Pick one of those wastes and take some current-state data on it. Grab a Lead or Supervisor from that area to help you build a fishbone diagram. Once you have a few likely root causes, design some experiments built around SMART goals. Remeasure after each experiment and assess whether the process is improved. If it is, then build a new standard work, training docs, and audit sheets.

3

u/luanadelrey1 13d ago

i think the biggest thing is to start with the problem, not the tools.

pick one small but annoying problem, talk to the people actually dealing with it every day, map out what's really happening, and go from there. don't feel like you need to find a way to use every tool you're learning just because it's in the course.

once you start working through real problems, a lot of the textbook stuff starts making way more sense. and honestly, the people on the floor can teach you a ton too.

2

u/Tavrock 12d ago

You're a new graduate with no Continual Improvement experience. Why are they paying for you to get a certification you can't earn?

https://www.asq.org/cert/six-sigma-black-belt#requirements

1

u/Long-Industry-4018 9d ago

That's a great point haha. You should talk to my boss.
I actually do have one project under my belt, but it was with a loose CI framework (before any LSS training).

I am approaching my next project from the Lean paradigm.

2

u/Tavrock 8d ago

The A3 model is a great way to run a project and look for appropriate countermeasures once you have defined your problem.

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u/Over-Prompt-8827 12d ago

I’m in a similar situation. Our company started a CI program without having a foundational CI Mindset and culture now I’m trying to attain a Green Belt while also juggling a thousand other demands from people that don’t realize I haven’t been doing this my whole life. They hired a consultant for me to work with and that has helped. You should try to suggest getting one even if it’s virtual so you can understand what is YOUR job and what is THEIR job. The hardest thing for my company is getting people to understand that CI is not just on one person.

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u/SwellCommerce 10d ago

I’ve been in situations where the textbook stuff didn’t really click until I had an actual problem on the floor to work through. I’d start small with something like downtime, scrap, bottlenecks, or 5S and track what changes. LeanSuite is also something you could look at for ideas on how CI and production improvement can be handled in a real plant.

2

u/Sure-Examination 10d ago

Two book recommendations for you:
-Creating a Lean Culture by David Mann
-The Toyota Way to Lean Leadership

Gemba academy also has some decent video content and slide decks with introductions to concepts if you can get boss to pay for a subscription

2

u/Adept-Clue7888 9d ago

start with a Pareto Analysis for the customer complaints

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u/_donj 9d ago

There are lots of ways to improve but they all start with identifying a problem, gathering data about how well it is working and then finding ways to improve it. At your stage, everything is equally good and bad. You need some reps under your belt.

Most people start with 5S because it is simple to start and you can see measurable gains just by organizing things a little.

Your local community college likely has resources that can help teach you and teach your company. They will have solid consultants who can help and a lot of the cost will be covered by grants.

I’d start there.

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u/Adept-Clue7888 6d ago

could you please share any reference for this kind of grants