BMGI is among the world's leading companies in the process improvement business, but when it comes to process there are a number of challenges to be overcome. First, we often forget to ask, "why do I have this process in the first place?" Very often processes can be completely eliminated through the use of technology, but even better - when we understand the job-to-be-done by our process (also referred to as the problem to be solved by our process) - we often identify opportunities to solve the problem at a higher level - all but eliminating the process. Those that understand the principles of lean thinking are accustomed to efforts to eliminate wasteful, or non-value added steps in a process. Well, the ultimate in lean thinking is the elimination of entire processes. At BMGI, we utilize our D4 (innovation) tool set to pursue this goal.

Of course, often times we can't eliminate processes, in which case we must decide whether the process needs to be redesigned, or can just be fixed. For process redesign, we apply traditional Design for Six Sigma methods. And to improve a process, we apply Lean Six Sigma principles.

• Lean and Lean Six Sigma are a set of methods companies can apply to any manufacturing, transactional or service process to reduce waste, eliminate non-value-added actions and cut time.
• Six Sigma is a highly disciplined approach to decision making that helps people focus on improving processes to make them as near perfect as possible.
• Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) is a methodology for enhancing the speed and quality of the design processes inside an organization.