The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed [Paperback]

Michael L. George (Author), John Maxey (Author), David Rowlands (Author), Mark Price (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0071441190 | ISBN-13: 978-0071441193 | Publication Date: August 1, 2004 | Edition: 1

The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook blends Lean and Six Sigma tools and concepts, providing expert advice on how to determine which tool within a "family" is best for different purposes. Packed with detailed examples and step-bystep instructions, it's the ideal handy reference guide to help Green and Black Belts make the transition from the classroom to the field.

• Features brief summaries and examples of the 70 most important tools in Lean Six Sigma, such as "Pull," "Heijunka," and "Control Charts"
• Groups tools by purpose and usage
• Offers a quick, easy reference on using the DMAIC improvement cycle
• Provides comprehensive coverage in a compact, portable format

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Vital tools for implementing Lean Six Sigma--what they are, how they work, and which to use

The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook is today's most complete and results-based reference to the tools and concepts needed to understand, implement, and leverage Lean Six Sigma. The only guide that groups tools by purpose and use, this hands-on reference provides:

• Analyses of nearly 100 tools and methodologies--from DMAIC and Pull Systems to Control Charts and Pareto Charts
• Detailed explanations of each tool to help you know how, when, and why to use it for maximum efficacy
• Sections for each tool explaining how to create it, how to interpret what you find, and expert tips

Lean Six Sigma is today's leading technique to maximize production efficiency and maintain control over each step in the managerial process. With The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook, you'll discover how to propel your organization to new levels of competitive success--one tool at a time.

About the Author

Michael L. George is the president of George Group and author of Lean Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma for Service. John Maxey is a director at George Group. David Rowlands is the vice president of Lean Six Sigma for the North American Solutions Group, the sales, service, and marketing arm of Xerox. Malcolm Upton is a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt with George Group.

Product Details

• Paperback: 225 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071441190
• ISBN-13: 978-0071441193
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,022 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Quality Control
  • #3 in Books > Business & Investing > Industries & Professions > Industrial Relations
  • #4 in Books > Business & Investing > Management & Leadership > Total Quality Management

More About the Author

David Rowlands is the vice president of Lean Six Sigma for the North American Solutions Group, the sales, service, and marketing arm of Xerox.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

67 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding Quick Reference Guide, November 5, 2004

By 

Douglas Jones (North Carolina) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed (Paperback)

This pocket toolbook hits the "sweet spot" as a quick reference guide for lean six sigma practitioners. Don't expect this to be an in-depth treatment of the 70+ tools covered in this book. If you're new to the lean/six sigma disciplines, you need to start someplace else. However, if you are currently working in these disciplines and you need a reference with enough meat to remind you of how/why/when a particular tool should be used and also a little of the statistical foundations supporting the tool, then you will find this to be a very valuable book to own. I own just about all of the "pocket guides" and I often find them to be a little too cryptic and abbreviated to meet my needs. This book is a very nice middle ground between the often complex and verbose "learning textbooks" and the often times overly brief pocket guides. As with any first edition, there are some errors that slipped through the editing process, but I can still highly recommend this book as one to keep handy when your out there fighting those "quality and productivity" battles.

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Lean Six Sigma Pocket Book, January 11, 2006

By 

Thomas Sterling "Tom S" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed (Paperback)

This book was a GREAT reference book for understanding Lean Six Sigma tools on Transactional / Service projects. I just completed my Lean Six Sigma Black Belt training through my company. I was one of three individuals (total of 35) within the class that was focused on transactional / service projects. This being the case, the training was geared more towards manufacturing floor Lean Six Sigma tools. Trying to convert these tools from manufacturing to office was VERY difficult. This is were the book came in handy. Not only was a able to make the transaction, but I was able to use these tools to successfully complete my first Black Belt project in the transaction world.
I really liked how the book explained the use of Metrics of Time Effciency (Process Cycle Effciency - PCE).

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best of the pocket Six Sigma tool guides, May 26, 2007

By 

Erik Gfesser (Lombard, IL United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Lean Six Sigma Pocket Toolbook: A Quick Reference Guide to 100 Tools for Improving Quality and Speed (Paperback)

This text is simply the best of the various pocket Six Sigma tool guides currently available in the marketplace. Although this book is a quick reference guide as the subtitle suggests, there is enough substance here for it to walk on legs and provide learning material for those readers already familiar with basic quality concepts. Quite honestly, I am not sure how the authors arrived at the "Nearly 100 Tools" portion of the subtitle, because the tools presented here can be numbered in various ways. However, this aspect really does not matter. What matters is that all of the major Six Sigma tools are presented with a lot of nice diagrams, graphs, and other figures to give the reader a good sense of the fundamentals of any given tool. These well-encapsulated nuggets of information should serve as excellent memory joggers for some, and good starting points for those needing additional detail available in other texts or online resources. Especially helpful are the numerous brief "tips" sections throughout that point novices in the right direction. Note that the organization of the book might not be well suited for some, because it is not ordered according to the customary steps of the DMAIC process. To some degree, the first chapter points to various sections of the book during its cursory walkthrough of the DMAIC process, although the street signs are not very well planned. Despite some minor flaws, this book serves its purpose well.