by Craig Johnson | May 11, 2026 | Education
A Monthly Note from Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center
This monthly note is designed to respect your time and sharpen your thinking: one useful idea, one real-world insight, and one small nudge toward better work.
One Useful Idea – Growth Comes from Changing Your Role
At the Green Belt level, you learn to apply tools, lead tactical-level projects, and improve specific processes. You build skill and confidence through practice. At the Black Belt level, expectations shift. The work becomes more strategic and influential:
Many professionals reach a point where they can do the work, but they are not yet positioned to lead strategic efforts. Progress often depends on stepping into that next level of responsibility.
Lessons from Real Work
Where Growth Slows Down
We see a common pattern with strong Green Belt graduates:
- They apply what they have learned
- They run projects and get measurable results
- Over time, progress plateaus at tactical-level improvements
- They lead improvement activities, but lack influence on improvement strategy
Those who move into Black Belt training often describe a shift in how they perceive and operate within their organization. One former student shared, “I found myself thinking differently about which problems to take on; which projects had the biggest impact on the organization, not just one department or function.” The concepts are familiar, but the scope and influence expand. Instead of leading local improvement activities, the Black Belt guides and influences the overall strategic direction of multiple areas, entire sites, or the organization as a whole.
This is where organization and career growth happen!
Take a moment to reflect:
“Am I improving the organization as a whole or just knocking out random acts of improvement?“
The answer to this usually points you to the next step. If you’ve already completed your Green Belt and are contemplating the next step, this is a natural time to continue building on that foundation. Our next Lean Enterprise (Black Belt) cohort begins next month (June 15-18).
Register here: https://utahleansixsigma.com/class-calendar/
If you know someone who would benefit from practical, no-nonsense Lean training, we appreciate the introduction, and we show that
appreciation with cash.
• Lean Foundations (Yellow Belt): $20
• Lean Leadership (Green Belt): $50
• Lean Enterprise (Black Belt): $100
Friends, colleagues, and family members all count. This is our simple way of saying thank you.
by Utah Lean Six Sigma | Mar 11, 2026 | Education
A Monthly Note from Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center
This monthly note is designed to respect your time and sharpen your thinking: one useful idea, one real-world insight, and one small nudge toward better work.
One Useful Idea – Respect for People Is a Performance Strategy
Lean is often described as a set of tools. It isn’t. It’s a system built on two pillars: continuous improvement and respect for people.
Respect, in this context, is not about being nice. It’s about designing work so people can succeed. That means:
When those elements are missing, collaboration breaks down. Not because people don’t care—but because the system forces guessing, defensiveness, and rework. Healthy process design reduces emotional friction. And when emotional friction drops, performance rises. Good collaboration doesn’t happen by accident.
Lessons for Real Work – Where Collaboration Actually Fails
In organizations, collaboration problems rarely stem solely from personality conflicts. More often, they stem from ambiguity. We worked with a cross-functional team that described their issue as “communication problems.” After mapping their workflow, the real issues surfaced: gaps in authority and unclear decision rights.
Two departments believed the other was making decisions that, in reality, weren’t being made by anyone until someone complained. So work stalled. Emails multiplied. Meetings expanded. No one was being unprofessional. The process was just unclear. Once ownership was clarified and documented, collaboration improved almost immediately. Not because people suddenly liked each other more, but because confusion was removed by defining the process.
When collaboration feels strained, look at structure before you blame people or culture.
In your next cross-functional meeting, ask:
“Who owns the final decision on this?“
If the answer isn’t immediate and unanimous, you’ve found your next improvement opportunity.
If you know someone who would benefit from practical, no-nonsense Lean training, we appreciate the introduction, and we show that
appreciation with cash.
• Lean Foundations (Yellow Belt): $20
• Lean Leadership (Green Belt): $50
• Lean Enterprise (Black Belt): $100
Friends, colleagues, and family members all count. This is our simple way of saying thank you.
by Craig Johnson | Dec 30, 2025 | Education
A Monthly Note from Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center
This monthly note is designed to respect your time and sharpen your thinking: one useful idea, one real-world insight, and one small nudge toward better work.
One Useful Idea – Continuous Improvement Loves Small Cycles
One of the quiet lies we tell ourselves is that improvement requires huge effort, energy, and perfect timing. Lean thinking disagrees.
At its core, continuous improvement is built on short cycles of reflection and adjustment. Plan something small. Try it. Check what happened. Adjust. No fanfare. No heroics. Just progress.
The most common mistake organizations make is waiting for “the big reset”. The new system, the new year, the new initiative. In reality, improvement compounds fastest when learning cycles are short and frequent.
This quiet week between Christmas and New Year’s is a perfect example. It’s calm, reflective, and mostly free of meetings. In Lean terms, it’s an unusually good moment to check and adjust before the next plan begins.
Lessons for Real Work – Why Kaizens Loves the Calendar Turn
New Year’s resolutions tend to fail because they aim for transformation instead of
calibration.
What actually works is asking better questions:
• What caused friction this year?
• Where did work slow down for no good reason?
• Which problems kept repeating?
In addition to the normal strategic planning, one organization we worked with tasked each leader at every level with picking one recurring annoyance their team had lived with all year. After some calibration (remember: no random acts of improvement!), they focused on fixing those problems. No banners. No slogans. Just relief. That’s everyday kaizen in its natural habitat: modest, practical, and quietly effective.
As you head into 2026, resist the urge to overhaul everything. Improvement doesn’t need a resolution. It needs attention
Before the year officially transitions to 2026, ask this question in your next conversation with
subject matter experts or planning meeting:
“What’s one thing we should stop accepting as normal next year?”
Listen carefully (remember: go see, ask why, show respect!). The answers may be very specific and very fixable.
If you know someone who would benefit from practical, no-nonsense Lean training, we appreciate the introduction, and we show that
appreciation with cash.
• Lean Foundations (Yellow Belt): $20
• Lean Leadership (Green Belt): $50
• Lean Enterprise (Black Belt): $100
Friends, colleagues, and family members all count. This is our simple way of saying thank you.
by Utah Lean Six Sigma | Dec 26, 2024 | Education
One of the most frequently asked questions we get at Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center is: How does Lean Six Sigma work? At first glance, Lean Six Sigma might seem like a complex, almost mystical body of knowledge—something that requires years of study under a seasoned expert. But in reality, the principles of Lean Six Sigma are straightforward and practical, and their effectiveness lies in applying them to real-life scenarios.
What Lean Six Sigma Really Is
Lean Six Sigma is essentially a toolkit—a collection of knowledge, skills, and abilities that help you analyze and improve processes. Just like mechanical engineering allows someone to design and optimize physical systems, Lean Six Sigma allows you to look at a process and ask: What’s working? What’s not? Which parts are causing inefficiencies or delivering poor results? The end goal is to create processes that deliver results consistently, in ways that meet or exceed customer expectations.
This toolkit isn’t about learning in a vacuum. In fact, the majority of learning happens by doing. In Lean Six Sigma, less than 10% of learning is from traditional classroom settings—the rest comes from practicing, applying, and solving real-world problems. So, if Lean Six Sigma sounds intimidating, remember: it’s meant to be used, tested, and adapted on the job.
Analyzing and Improving Processes
Lean Six Sigma equips you with the tools to analyze processes. You learn to understand which parts are working, which parts are “in control,” and which parts are consistently failing to deliver the expected outcomes. Imagine you’re looking at a factory assembly line, a customer service response chain, or a software deployment process. Lean Six Sigma helps you identify what’s going wrong—what’s generating those “bad outputs”—and, more importantly, which aspects of the process are impacting your customers negatively.
After analyzing the process, Lean Six Sigma provides a wealth of methods to help fix it. Spoiler alert: it’s rarely just one thing that’s causing an issue. Lean Six Sigma guides you through identifying, fixing, and then controlling those problems, so they don’t come back. It’s about understanding that processes can always be improved, often in more than one way, and then maintaining those improvements for long-term benefits.
Making Lean Six Sigma Work for You
The magic of Lean Six Sigma isn’t about the terminology or the idea of becoming a “belt” of some sort—it’s about gaining the skills you need to make processes better. Whether that means reducing waste, increasing quality, speeding up service, or simply getting consistent results, Lean Six Sigma is about providing the practical tools to do so.
At Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center, our mission is to keep it practical and effective. We understand that learning happens best when you’re actively involved in improving processes, not just hearing about them in theory. That’s why we encourage questions, interaction, and real-world practice—we’re here to help guide you through every step of the journey. No high-pressure sales tactics, just honest help to make sure you succeed.
If you have more questions about Lean Six Sigma—how it works, what it can do for you, or where to start—don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to support you on your continuous improvement journey. Let’s turn your interest into tangible skills that can transform your business and career.
by Craig Johnson | Feb 24, 2022 | Education
Tell me if you’ve heard this Lean joke before: A husband and wife walk into a bar the store…
The Setup
Two weeks prior, they had ordered a series of frames for new family photos to adorn their living room wall. They sat with the salesperson, weighed the options, paid a deposit, and left with an eagerness for the joy the images of their beloved family would add to their home. The photos would be particularly nice for the upcoming family summer party they were hosting in the very near future.
The couple waited patiently for those two weeks to pass. During this period of patient anticipation, they prepared the wall by removing the old photos and adding a touch of new paint. They measured and located where each hook would be placed.
The Crisis
Finally after the two weeks of waiting they excitedly drove back to the store to pick up their promised framed photos. They walked to the will call window, presented their receipt, paid the remainder of their bill…
And were told their frames weren’t ready.
The Fake Victory
Exasperated, the now-frustrated couple inquired as to why their frames weren’t ready. A litany of excuses were offered, followed by many apologies, followed by zero excuses. The proverbial ball had simply been dropped.
In a blur of activity, store workers swarmed like the bees in a disturbed hive. One ran to the back room to pull inventory. Another dashed across the showroom to pick up the prints from their storage room. Yet another busy bee disappeared behind a desk to make a series of phone calls, pulling more resources in. At the end of a very hectic 15 minutes the workers proudly presented the couple with their freshly packaged set of framed family photos.
The False Thrill
As the husband and wife left, the workers held a mild celebration. As a result of the (fake) victory, backs were patted. Cheers were raised. Fives were… highed. (Please forgive the author for that last one)
Once the excitement of spontaneous teamwork and the thrill of overcoming this hurdle subsided, work went back to normal. For months, workers fondly recounted stories of “that time we all came together”. Company leaders spoke about it at annual meetings.
Taking off the Rose Colored Glasses – A Lean Perspective
To be fair, using shared trials is a great way to build teamwork. There are, however, better ways to do this. Chief among those better ways are those that don’t include an unhappy customer. The first principle of Lean is to identify value. This means we understand exactly what our customers want and then spend the rest of our efforts in meeting those customer requirements.
The reality is that even though the team pulled together to get the order done, the victory was false – diminished value was provided to the customer. Yes, the customers got their frames, but as Taguchi taught us, anything that deviates from perfect is a loss of value. These customers got their frames – but they got them late. The company got paid, but what are the chances those customers return again? What are the chances they tell their friends and relatives about their negative experience? How much time did we spend responding to this self-inflicted emergency when we could have been doing value-added work? How much more of this chaos can our employees take before they seek greener, more peaceful and organized, pastures?
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See Defects as They Really Are
It does very little good for us to celebrate victory over our problems if we do nothing to learn from them and make sure they don’t happen again. When defects occur, recognize them for what they are: negative experiences that, although they can also be learning experiences, are nonetheless damaging to an organization. Defects should be investigated, analyzed, and eliminated. Controls should be put in place to ensure the defect doesn’t happen again. Basic Lean tools such as 5S, standard work, mistake proofing, and visual management should be implemented. For larger, more systemic problems, formal projects should be organized and given the support and resources needed for success. Lean practices, including those taught in the Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center courses teach us to pursue problem solving and improvements with relentless determination.
What’s Better Than Fixing Problems?
Fixing a problem, especially when a team really comes together to do it, can be really rewarding. The far better, albeit potentially less exciting, option is making sure the problem doesn’t happen in the first place. In the Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center Green Belt course, students learn to perform proactive problem solving. Students are taught to analyze a process to determine what could possibly go wrong, prioritize these failure modes, and then implement preventive measures to eliminate the threat of the defect occurring.
Get the Lean Training You Need
Utah Lean Six Sigma Training Center works hard to bring Lean training to Utah that is applicable, attainable, available, and affordable. We stand ready to meet your needs. To help you make the best choice possible when choosing a training provider, we’ve written an ebook to help walk you through a complex decision. Get your free copy here.
See you in class!
