Introduction: Preface and Acknowledgements
This book is just the beginning. It must be a dynamic process considering the fast pace of the modern world and evolving Lean Six Sigma practices accordingly. Therefore, students and anyone interested in learning how to apply Lean Six Sigma can benefit from this book not only now, but in the upcoming years. I welcome my colleagues and students who are willing to work with me to improve the book and provide students with an affordable solution in the long run. Of course, one textbook is not enough to learn about Lean Six Sigma. Nevertheless, I am hoping that this textbook will be a useful resource from which everyone can benefit.
In this book, I wanted to demonstrate how Operations Managers and teams can use Lean Six Sigma to improve their processes and products. You can find tools for a variety of Lean and Six Sigma approaches to problem-solving, process mapping, etc. in the tools at the end of the book.
In addition, instructors can download PowerPoint presentations prepared for each chapter in the “PowerPoint Presentations for Instructors” section. Instructors can access the files after they fill out the “Interest/Adoption Form”.
While writing this book, I benefited from the OER project management books published earlier. I would like to thank the authors, in particular Abdullah Oguz, Ph.D., PMP®, and contributors for their great work. These works are:
- Project Management, Navigating the Complexity with a Systematic Approach, Abdullah Oguz, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial
2. OhioLINK OER Course Redesign Training Program
This book would not be possible without the support of Cleveland State University (CSU). I was introduced to the world of Open Educational Resources (OERs) in the summer of 2023 with the Textbook Affordability Summer Symposium. During this symposium, I understood that this was definitely the solution that I have been looking for to ensure that students and all learners can access good quality resources free of charge. So, I decided to apply for the Fall 2024 Textbook Affordability Grant. Approval of my application led to a long and tiring, but very exciting process. This book wouldn’t have been possible without the greatest project team of Amanda Goodsett, the Librarian, and OER and Copyright Advisor, and Barbara Loomis, the Digital Scholarly Publications and Programs Administrator, both from Michael Schwartz Library of CSU. I am immensely grateful to Mandi and Barb for their assistance, suggestions, and infinite patience.
I also owe an enormous debt of gratitude to all the reviewers who gave me detailed and constructive comments on all the chapters.
Michael D. Okrent, Sc.D., PMP, Six Sigma Black Belt, Certified Quality Manager/Operational Excellence
