Improvement is needed for an organization to survive because:

Process average or mean:

Process improvement activities typically include:

Understanding variation is important because variation:

Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, Total Quality Management are some of the new systems for managing and improving an organization. What is a common theme running through these approaches?

It is, unfortunately, common in business for managers to demand an explanation for variation that is, based on statistics, typical and expected variation, i.e., common cause variation. Alternatively, there may be obvious special causes in the data that may be shrugged off as “typical business fluctuations”. Which of the following statements about interpretation of variation are true?

In the advertising case study, the unexpected “V” shaped pattern in the plot of advertising dollars versus sales indicated what?

In the soccer case study, Coach Hau developed a flowchart of the steps one goes through to properly “head” the ball, and then developed unique drills to develop the team’s skills in each of these steps. This approach is an example of what statistical thinking principle?

What is tool that can be used to detect the structure variation?

Figure 2.16 shows a chart of the Dow Jones Industrial Average from 1990 through 2011. This plot reveals some obvious change points, such as the 2008 financial collapse, and some unexplainable short-term variation. Assuming that these are the only sources of variation in this plot, what source of variation is NOT visible in the plot?

The fact that processes tend to be dynamic, rather than static, is a key principle of statistical thinking. Which of the following is a natural consequence of this fact?

The Statistical Thinking Strategy illustrated in Figure 2.14 provides a graphic of the overall approach to driving improvement through statistical thinking. Which of the following is a key principle illustrated in this specific graph?

Service and non-manufacturing processes:

Improving the quality of process measurements is:

Process measurements are:

The primary goal of process mapping is to:

Process complexity is important because complex processes:

Sub-optimization occurs when:

The SIPOC model for a business helps everyone in the company see the business from an overall perspective by:
I.          Keeping a focus on customer needs
II.         Identifying inputs and outputs for each step of the process
III.       Displaying cross-function activities in simple terms
IV.       Helping maintain the big business picture

If you are thinking creatively about how to take existing tools and link and sequence them to develop a novel approach to solve important problems, this would be an example of:

Suppose the Problem Solving Framework were used to attack a problem where the process in question was inherently stable. Which of the following would be a likely result of this effort?

The Problem Solving Framework begins with a “Document the Problem” phase. The Process Improvement Framework does not begin this way, but rather begins with an “Understand the Process phase.” Which of the following are valid reasons for this difference?

Which of the following are valid statements about the DMAIC framework?

We learned in Chapter 3 that the measurement process is always important and worthy of our attention. However, in Chapter 4 we found that measurement can be absolutely critical to solving the problem. For which of the case studies in Chapter 4 was measurement NOT discussed as a critical issue?

Which type of variation was critical to resolving the realized revenue case study?