Lean Six Sigma for Good

How improvement experts can help people

in need, and help improve the environment

Brion Hurley
This book is for sale at http://leanpub.com/leansixsigmaforgood

This version was published on 2017-11-13

This is a Leanpub book. Leanpub empowers authors and

publishers with the Lean Publishing process. Lean Publishing is
the act of publishing an in-progress ebook using lightweight tools
and many iterations to get reader feedback, pivot until you have
the right book and build traction once you do.

© 2016 - 2017 Brion Hurley

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Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Chapter 1 - Why Lean and Six Sigma? . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Chapter 2 - Beyond Profits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Chapter 3 - Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable Development Goals . . . . . 17

Chapter 5 - How I Got Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Chapter 7 - Strength in Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

Chapter 8 - Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

About the Author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

 Introduction
I have mixed feelings about writing this book. I have almost 20 years
of Lean and Six Sigma experience, but only 2 years as a volunteer
with nonprofits. Although there are more qualified people who
could deliver this message, there is an urgent need to get this
message out into the world. I would have preferred to wait until
I have many more years of volunteer experience under my belt, but
it seems irresponsible for me to stay quiet.
My goal for this book is to motivate existing Lean, Six Sigma and
continuous improvement practitioners to use their skills to help the
greater good.
There are two ways I’d like to motivate you:
1) Help your current company get more engaged in addressing
community, global and environmental issues. Your company needs
to get involved in order to tackle some of these major problems
(which we will discuss in Chapter 4). It’s not just the right thing to
do, it’s also good for their reputation, which is good for their bottom
line!
2) Help you spend some of your free time (outside work) helping
nonprofit organizations become more efficient, so they can have
a bigger impact on their mission with their limited funds and
resources.
The book is concise, and will not teach you anything technical about
Lean or Six Sigma. There are numerous books and websites that do
a good job of that (see Resources section at the back of the book).
If you don’t have a background in these skills, please continue to
read. You have other skills and experience (project management,
team building, facilitation, management, event planning, grant
writing, teaching, etc.) that are useful in solving problems within
Introduction 2

your community. You might also become more interested in Lean

or Six Sigma.
If you enjoy this book, please pass it along or share it with others!
I have setup a Facebook group to connect you with other readers,
to learn how you can get inspired to get more involved in your
community: https://www.facebook.com/LeanSixSigmaforGood/
Special thanks to friends and family who have given me feedback on
this book: Diane Lahr, Kjell Van Zoen, Matt Horvat, Will Gray, Tate
Hamann, Nick Novotny, Keun Lee, Rick Lahr, Rachael Woodley,
Marcelo Pinto, Pat O’Connor, Tiff Cremer, Carl Zemanek, Andrea
Hoffmeier, and Aaron Spearin.

Brion Hurley
 Chapter 1 - Why Lean and
Six Sigma?
Before you read this book from the beginning, you can skip to the
heart of the book in Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started
I accidentally fell into my job. I was good at math in high school,
and I was forced to pick a major in college. After stuggling with
computer science and biology, I went back to what was working,
Statistics. Later I would realize that there was a need for this skill,
and companies would pay me money! I feel fortunate that I landed
in this career path almost by accident.
In the late 1990’s, Six Sigma was gaining momentum in industry,
and coincidentally my skills would be even more in demand as I
entered the workforce in 1999. I started working full-time at Rock-
well Collins1 , a large aerospace manufacturer near my hometown
of Iowa City, Iowa. That’s where I picked up my knowledge in Lean
principles, which is another popular approach to solving problems.
Over the past 20 years, I’ve been trying to take the best of both
approaches, and to apply the correct approach to whatever problem
I was working on. Practicing these two approaches over many years
has given me the confidence that I can solve any problem thrown
at me. What an amazing feeling!
What makes the Lean and Six Sigma methodology effective is the
structured ways in which problems are solved. There are many
ways to solve problems, and most companies and organizations
often solve these problems incorrectly. They are inconsistent in
how they handle problems, with an incorrect focus on quick, short-
term cost reductions to meet financial metrics. For publicly traded
1
Rockwell Collins, http://www.RockwellCollins.com
Chapter 1 - Why Lean and Six Sigma? 4

companies, they are even more incentivized to achieve short-term

goals to align with quarterly and annual reports.
How companies solve problems can vary greatly, even from de-
partment to department. Some follow the Lean approach, while
others embrace Six Sigma. Some create their own approach, while
others do not use any formal methodology. It also depends on how
committed they are to the approach. Some say they are using Lean
or Six Sigma, but when you dig deeper, there usually isn’t much
going on. Others make it the way they run their business, but don’t
talk much about it. Bottom line, how a company solves problems
should be assessed based solely on their actions, not what they say.
Going forward, if I refer to an organization using Lean Six Sigma,
I’m assuming they are actually adopting and implementing the
principles to the best of their abilities, not just using the tools on
special occasions.
An organization that is fully implementing Lean and Six Sigma
should be following a structured problem solving approach, and
looking for the best long-term solution. The solution should main-
tain or increase employee and customer satisfaction. They should
collect and analyze data to reduce waste and inefficiency, which
will free them up to increase customer and stakeholder value. If a
company uses Lean and Six Sigma to lay off employees, they are
implementing it incorrectly, and this negatively impacts employee
morale! No one will want to participate in future improvement work
if they feel their job might be in jeopardy. There is usually plenty
of work that needs to be done within an organization, so free time
should be used to work on these other tasks. This should lead to
more value for the customer, without adding additional people.
Let’s look at an example.
If an organization is looking to reduce health care costs for the bot-
tom line of their company financials, and they follow the traditional
cost cutting approach of solving problems, they might come up with
the following quick, short-term solutions:
Chapter 1 - Why Lean and Six Sigma? 5

• Increase co-pays to employees for physician visits.

• Increase deductibles to employees for medical bills.
• Decrease quality of services to employees.
• Decrease number of places for employees to obtain services.
• Decrease access to services for employees.
• Use cheaper and less effective healthcare providers.
• Use cheaper and less effective medications.

The typical organization might achieve their cost reductions in

the short term with these solutions, but at what expense in the
long term? The costs are shifted to the employee, and services are
reduced, or the quality of care is degraded. Employees may decide
to delay care, leading to higher costs overall, both to the employee
and the company. The company may have achieved short-term cost
reductions, but sacrificed employee satisfaction while increasing
long-term costs. Employees will more likely leave the company,
which will increase costs to re-hire and re-train new employees.

In contrast, a Lean Six Sigma organization should look for waste

and inefficiency in the process, and will likely come up with the
following analytical, long-term solutions:

1. Identify the top drivers of health care costs by symptom or

treatment.
2. Investigate the root causes of the top drivers through analysis,
experimentation, employee interviews, and observations.
Chapter 1 - Why Lean and Six Sigma? 6

3. Change and improve the process and incentives for employ-

ees, to reduce long-term costs for the employee and the
organization.
4. Track and monitor costs to identify when changes occur in
the future, to quickly identify health care cost increases.

The company might offer health screenings at work, subsidized

gym memberships, incentives to bike to work, improved food in
the cafeteria and snack machines, or even personal trainers for at-
risk employees. The end result is that the organization will reduce
long-term health care costs to the employee and the organization,
while maintaining or improving the quality, access, and number of
services available to the employees. A win-win for everyone!
They might take a little longer to get to their cost reduction goals,
but the employee satisfaction will not degrade (and should improve,
if done correctly). The long-term costs will be much lower, not
only in health care expenses, but could reduce worker compensation
issues, or reduce missed days due to injury or illness.
This is the reason why Lean Six Sigma has been so successful
within some organizations, but has been rejected or abandoned at
other organizations. It comes down to whether the organization
leaders are looking for successful, long-term financials results, or
simply using the tools to achieve short-term results, but potentially
negative long-term results.
It’s easy to blame the organizations for this incorrect thinking,
but many improvement practitioners act just like the companies
they work for, making short-term decisions that impact their long-
term success. They make decisions every day in their personal life
that save them money in the short term, but end up costing them
more money or stress in the long term. You might opt for the less
expensive vehicle, but pay more in gasoline over the life of the
vehicle. You might buy less expensive food, but have more health
issues and costs in the future. You might take that job offer that pays
Chapter 1 - Why Lean and Six Sigma? 7

more money, but leads to more stress and less free time with your
family.

Key takeaway for Chapter 1: Are you focused on your

short-term financials (your paycheck), or your long-term
happiness and success?

In the next chapter, I will give you some ideas on how you can
start to shift towards more rewarding work, using your process
improvement skills.
 Chapter 2 - Beyond Profits
A Lean Six Sigma approach works for almost any kind of problem,
not just those within for-profit companies and organizations.
Did you know that nonprofit organizations and non governmental
organizations (NGO) have documented the following successes
using Lean and Six Sigma?

• Toyota Production System Support Center helped decrease

time to deliver food to Hurricane Sandy victims from 3 hours
to 1.2 hours2
• World Vision International helped decrease costs for mosquito
nets and office supplies in East Africa by $100,0003
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton helped reduce volun-
teer sign up times by 50% and reduced overtime by 65%4
• Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanza-
nia helped reduce the cycle time of a donor reporting process
by 70%5
2
Toyota Production System Improves Meals per Hour (video), http://bit.ly/1czyno8
3
Improving Processes in East Africa, http://bit.ly/2joj6Ch
4
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Edmonton Reduce Overtime and Increase Volunteers: http:
//bit.ly/2xrQCik
5
Two Years in Tanzania and a Whole New Understanding of Purpose http://bit.ly/
2y97Mjq
Chapter 2 - Beyond Profits 9

Toyota employees teach Hurricane Sandy food bank staff how to reduce time
to distribute food in New York

Even though there is plenty of opportunity to implement Lean Six

Sigma in for-profit organizations, I’d like you to shift your focus and
skills in a new direction, to help improve the environment (planet),
or help address societal (people) issues.
As I mentioned before, there are two ways you can do this:
1) Help your current organization do good (while you get paid)

• Improve environmental (planet) issues caused by your

current organization, such as carbon emissions, water and air
pollution, toxic waste, water usage, solid waste to the landfill,
and depletion of natural resources.
• Improve social (people) issues in your local community
with the support of your organization, such as trash clean-
up events, holiday adopt-a-family programs, clothing and
canned food drives, nonprofit fundraisers, and volunteer
team building days.

2) Volunteer your time outside of work hours to help others do good

(unpaid on your own time)

• Improve environmental (planet) issues at a local or global

level, such as promoting clean energy, pollution prevention,
Chapter 2 - Beyond Profits 10

green buildings, protected lands, water rights and conser-

vation, reductions in toxic waste, increasing composting
options, and energy conservation.
• Improve social (people) issues at a local or global level, such
as unemployment, pet overpopulation, homelessness, access
to education, access to healthy food, access to health care,
disease prevention, disaster relief, and animal rights.

Lean Portland volunteers Chelsey McIntyre and Matt Horvat (back) work
with Leif Amundson and Tom Patzkowski (front) at The Rebuilding Center
to review possible layout changes in Portland, Oregon

I would encourage you to start within your own organization. Even

if you get approval to spend only one hour per month on these
programs and initiatives, you will still get paid, and it will improve
your organization’s brand and reputation within the community.
Start by asking your manager if they will let you spend some time
on a people issue in your community, or a planet issue caused by
your company. You might be surprised at their answer, even if you
perceive that your organization is not concerned about these issues.
That being said, I feel that volunteering your time outside of work
should be part of your plan, regardless if your organization agrees
to pay for your time during work hours.
Chapter 2 - Beyond Profits 11

Key takeaway for Chapter 2: How could your organization

benefit by spending time on Planet and People issues in the
community?

Let’s discuss this in the next chapter on Sustainability.

 Chapter 3 - Sustainability
What is Sustainability?
There is a lot of confusion about the term “sustainability.” Most
people think that sustainability refers to long-term results that
are maintained after process improvements. While that is true,
sustainability has a much broader definition than that.
Here are some definitions I find useful:

• ”…meets the needs of the present without compromising the

ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”6
• ”…the capacity to improve the quality of human life while
living within the carrying capacity of the Earth’s supporting
eco-systems.”[^fooIUCN]
• A long term perspective of an organization that leads to
“…successful operations for at least 1500 years”7
• Decision making based on the triple bottom line (people,
planet, profit)8

How do you define sustainability? Use whatever definition bests

suits you, as there is no one right answer.
To keep things simple, let’s focus on the “triple bottom line” defini-
tion, where decisions should be made that equally weigh the trade-
offs between people, planet and profit.
6
United Nations General Assembly (1987) Report of the World Commission on Envi-
ronment and Development - Our Common Future, http://bit.ly/1kxW7OR
7
A Six Sigma Approach to Sustainability - Continual Improvement for Social Respon-
sibility, Holly A. Duckworth, Andrea Hoffmeier, http://amzn.to/28Sx45A
8
Cannibals with Forks - The Triple Bottom Line of 21st Century Business, John
Elkington, http://amzn.to/28XDndT
Chapter 3 - Sustainability 13

Sustainability exists in the overlap between People, Planet and Profits

Profit is already the primary focus. That is how most companies and
organizations make decisions today. What is needed is more focus
around people (social) and planet (environmental) issues.
There is a perception that organizations that start to focus on people
and planet will have a negative impact on their profits. However,
when people and planet are not considered, an organization cannot
survive in the long term. They cannot continue to provide their
products and services because raw materials are depleted or become
too expensive, or they cannot attract and retain employees to work
for them. This negatively impacts quality and delivery to their
customers, and their business suffers.
A new focus on the “triple bottom line” can actually drive profitabil-
ity and growth to companies. It can bring in stronger candidates for
job openings, open the market up to new customers, and reduce
the risk of fines, penalties and negative publicity (such as those
experienced by BP9 , Wells Fargo10 and Apple11 ).

9
Deepwater Horizon oil spill http://bit.ly/1xqaYQv
10
Wells Fargo Fined $185 Million for Fraudulently Opening Accounts http://nyti.ms/
2poL53K
11
Apple’s Chinese workers treated ‘inhumanely, like machines’ http://bit.ly/2gClFgA
Chapter 3 - Sustainability 14

According to SustainAbility and GlobalScan’s Sustainability Lead-

ers Survey in 201712 , the most sustainable organizations are:

1. Unilever
2. Patagonia
3. Interface
4. IKEA
5. Tesla
6. Marks & Spencer
7. Natura
8. Nestle
9. General Electric (GE)
10. BASF
11. Nike

These are well-known and successful businesses that place a strong

importance on People and Planet.
That being said, being on a sustainability list doesn’t mean these
companies are free from controversy, or are doing things perfectly.
They are simply balancing the triple bottom line better than the
majority of organizations (across a wide range of sustainability
categories). There are other rankings and lists you will find online,
so this is not meant to be an all-encompassing list of sustainable
organizations. Each ranking you find looks at different aspects of
sustainability. using different data sources and weighting criteria.
Another way organizations can show that they are attempting to
be more sustainable is by publicly communicating their progress
and impact. One popular framework is the Global Reporting Index
(GRI)13 , which is the first and most widely adopted global standard
12
The 2017 Sustainability Leaders, http://bit.ly/2tsf5lk
13
Global Reporting Index, https://www.globalreporting.org
Chapter 3 - Sustainability 15

for sustainability reporting. You can visit the website of any orga-
nization to see if they are publicly sharing their sustainability or
social responsibility report.

Patagonia created the Footprint Chronicles, which displays detailed informa-

tion about the sustainability of their entire supply chain on their website for
anyone to search

Aside from all the rankings and reports, here’s another test to deter-
mine the sustainability of an organization. How do they currently
make business decisions?

• Is it weighted by 33% profit (makes them money), 33% people

(good for community or employees) and 33% planet (less
harmful to environment)?
• Or is it 80% profit, 10% people and 10% planet?
• Or worse yet, is it 100% profit, 0% people and 0% planet?

The triple bottom line thinking became quickly apparent to Roberto

Pedote, Vice President of Finance at Natura Cosmeticos, S.A. (tied
for 5th on the list above), a successful cosmetics company in Brazil.
“I was asked to analyze three possible sites for a new service center
and make a recommendation to the executive committee. Following
my presentation and recommendation, I was asked “What impact
does this decision have on employment opportunities and income
distribution in the various regions? What are the possible envi-
ronmental impacts of each alternative and what are the different
levels of carbon emissions for each possible location?” It was an
Chapter 3 - Sustainability 16

experience I will never forget and it served to demonstrate that

sustainability is a serious issue to Natura’s leadership.”14
If most of the decisions at your company are based on profit,
you may have a harder time finding rewarding work within your
organization. You may need to spend time outside of work to have a
real impact on Planet and People, or potentially look for a different
employer.

Key takeaway for Chapter 3: Your improvement skills are

valuable, and we need those skills to help make our world a
better place!

In the next chapter, we’ll go into more detail about People and
Planet by looking at some sustainability goals established by the
United Nations (UN).
14
Natura Cosmeticos, S.A., Harvard Business School, http://hbs.me/2lUfDfK
Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable
Development Goals
On September 25, 2015, the 193 countries of the United Nations (UN)
General Assembly adopted the 2030 Development Agenda15 , which
consists of 17 goals and 169 targets.
Here are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s):

1. No Poverty
2. Zero Hunger
3. Good Health and Well-Being
4. Quality Education
5. Gender Equality
6. Clean Water and Sanitation
7. Affordable and Clean Energy
8. Decent Work and Economic Growth
9. Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
10. Reduced Inequalities
11. Sustainable Cities and Communities
12. Responsible Consumption and Production
13. Climate Action
14. Life Below Water
15. Life On Land
16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
17. Partnerships for the Goals

Let’s first look at the goals that fit into the People section…

15
United Nations website, http://bit.ly/2i3roua
Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable Development Goals 18

PEOPLE

© Ivansabo | Dreamstime.com - Homeless in Bogota

• (Goal 1) No Poverty - End poverty in all its forms every-

where - 20% of people in developing regions live on less than
$1.25 a day.
• (Goal 2) Zero Hunger - End hunger, achieve food security
and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agricul-
ture - 795 million people are undernourished (about one in
nine) in the world today.
• (Goal 3) Good Health and Well-Being - Ensure healthy
lives and promote well-being for all at all ages - Every
year, more than 6 million children die before age 5.
• (Goal 4) Quality Education - Ensure inclusive and eq-
uitable quality education and promote lifelong learning
opportunities for all - Globally, 103 million youth lack basic
literacy skills, and more than 60% of them are women.
• (Goal 5) Gender Equality - Achieve gender equality and
empower all women and girls - In developing countries,
girls still face barriers to entering primary and secondary
school.
• (Goal 8) Decent Work and Economic Growth - Promote
sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth,
full and productive employment and decent work for all
Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable Development Goals 19

- Global unemployment has reached 202 million in 2012, and

stable and well-paid jobs are needed to eradicate poverty.
• (Goal 9) Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure - Build
resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustain-
able industrialization and foster innovation - 800 million
people lack access to water, and 2.5 billion people worldwide
lack access to basic sanitation.
• (Goal 10) Inequality - Reduce inequality within and among
countries. More than 75% are living today in societies where
income is more unequally distributed than it was in the 1990s.
• (Goal 11) Sustainable Cities and Communities - Make
cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and
sustainable - Over 800 million people live in slums today.
• (Goal 16) Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions - Promote
peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable develop-
ment, provide access to justice for all and build effec-
tive, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels
- Bribery, theft, tax evasion and corruption cost about $1.26
trillion USD for developing countries each year.
• (Goal 17) Partnerships for the Goals - Strengthen the
means of implementation and revitalize the global part-
nership for sustainable development - More than 4 billion
people do not use the internet, and 90% of them are in
developing countries.

Now let’s look at the goals that fit into the Planet section…
Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable Development Goals 20

PLANET

Mount Hood as seen from highway near Portland, Oregon

• (Goal 6) Clean Water and Sanitation - Ensure availability

and sustainable management of water and sanitation for
all - 663 million people are still without access to drinking
water sources.
• (Goal 7) Affordable and Clean Energy - Ensure access to
affordable, reliable, sustainable and clean energy for all -
20% of people lack access to modern electricity, but it is also
the primary contributor to climate change.
• (Goal 12) Responsible Consumption and Production -
Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns
- The equivalent of almost three planets could be required
to provide the natural resources needed to sustain current
lifestyles at the current rate of population growth.
• (Goal 13) Climate Action - Take urgent action to combat
climate change and its impacts - Global emissions of carbon
dioxide (CO2) have increased by almost 50% since 1990.
• (Goal 14) Life Below Water - Conserve and sustainably
use the oceans, seas and marine resources - As much as
40% of the world’s oceans are heavily affected by human ac-
tivities, including loss of coastal habitats, depleted fisheries,
and pollution.
Chapter 4 - U.N. Sustainable Development Goals 21

• (Goal 15) Life On Land - Protect, restore and promote sus-

tainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably man-
age forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse
land degradation and halt biodiversity loss - Globally, 74%
of the poor are directly affected by the 13 million hectares of
forest being lost each year.

You can read more about each goal on the UN SDG website16
These goals do not cover all issues that you might be passionate
about. These are meant to give you some topics to consider. Re-
gardless of your interests, the idea is to select a cause that does not
have a profit motive, and put some of your time and effort towards
this cause. But don’t forget to bring your Lean and Six Sigma skills
with you! Too often people volunteer with organizations and leave
their work skills at home!

Key takeaway for Chapter 4: What cause resonates most with

you?

16
United Nations website, http://bit.ly/2i3roua
 Chapter 5 - How I Got
Started
I’d like to share my journey towards volunteering my skills, to give
you some more background on why I am writing this book.
One of the most rewarding volunteer projects for me was my work
on increasing recycling rates at Kinnick Stadium.
I grew up in Iowa City my whole life, and that is where the
University of Iowa is located. Kinnick Stadium is where the college
football team plays their games. I attended many games growing
up, and my dad worked security on the field for the team during
my youth. During high school, our football team would clean up
the stadium on Sunday mornings (after the Saturday home games).
It was not much fun, since it was usually early in the morning and
cold outside (two things I dislike).
After high school, I attended school at the University of Iowa, and
I was fortunate to play football in that stadium for 4 years.
During my awakening to the problems of climate change, and the
impact that humans are having on the planet, I decided to go back to
school to get more education. I enrolled in a sustainability certificate
program at the University of Iowa in 2010. After taking a few
classes, I started to make new connections within the university,
specifically in the Office of Sustainability, and the Athletics and
Facilities departments.
For about 6 years, I had moved away from Iowa, and was living in
Florida, so I hadn’t been attending football games very often. When
I moved back to Iowa, and started to attend football games again, I
started to notice the lack of recycling options inside and outside the
stadium.
Chapter 5 - How I Got Started 23

A light bulb went off in my head (probably a solar-powered LED

bulb)! Here is a problem that I knew how to solve, and I probably
have the network and connections to do something about it. Thus
began my first volunteer project to apply my skills to a cause I was
passionate about!
In fact, this was the first time I had ever initiated a volunteer
activity. In the past, someone had to ask me to volunteer, or it was
required or mandatory. I had been so focused on my own personal
and professional goals that I never stopped to look around me, or
think about how I could help others. At the time of the recycling
project, I had been practicing Lean and Six Sigma for about 10
years, and was gaining confidence in my ability to successfully
solve problems.

Volunteers perform a ‘Dumpster Dive’ waste audit after a football game in

Kinnick Stadium at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa

I approached the problem like a Lean Six Sigma project, with a

Project Charter, baseline data, sponsors and champions for the
project, and lots of enthusiasm to make some improvements. It was
not a very complicated problem, but there were some challenges.
After evaluating many different options with many stakeholders
involved, we decided to add recycling bins on the outside of the
stadium, and better educate the high schools students about what
can be recycled on Sunday mornings (the same group that I was
forced to volunteer with during high school). Each bin outside the
Chapter 5 - How I Got Started 24

stadium was staffed with student volunteers, to help educate fans

about what can and cannot be recycled. After the first year, we were
able to increase recycling diversion rates from 25% to an average of
50% in the first year. To sustain the improvements at around 40%,
the Delta Tau Delta fraternity agreed to take over the coordination
of the volunteers17 . The project started in the fall of 2012, and it is
still going today, which makes me very proud!
Around the same time as the football stadium project, I also kicked
off an electricity reduction project at work. Coincidentally, this was
the most rewarding project at work I ever had.
Looking at the company’s carbon footprint report, it was easy
to find the largest building within the company with the highest
electricity usage. I wanted to make a significant reduction in the
carbon emissions, and prove that Lean and Six Sigma could be used
to address environmental impacts within this organization.
This project was more complicated than the recycling project, so
I had to use my statistics background to help accurately estimate
the potential cost savings, and sell some of the improvement ideas
to upper management. We determined that the biggest opportunity
was to reduce the heating and cooling that was running 24 hours
a day, 7 days a week. After analyzing employee occupancy in each
area of the building, and addressing concerns from the employees,
we were able to set back the temperatures during off-hours. This
led to a cost reduction of $300,000 per year, and saved around
three million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity! This equates to
powering 400 homes per year, or the removal of 500 vehicles off the
road.
These projects didn’t happen overnight. It took years to get into
a position where I could launch these projects, and execute them
successfully.
If you’d like to learn more about these projects, I’ve compiled some
17
Kinnick Goes Green with Game Day Recycling (2016), http://bit.ly/2xt350B
Chapter 5 - How I Got Started 25

details on my other website: http://www.LeanSixSigmaEnvironment.

org 18
The success of these projects is what made me decide that I wanted
to spend the rest of my life helping others apply Lean and Six Sigma
techniques to address people and planet issues, as well as helping
companies increase their business, reduce risk and save money.
The topics I’m concentrating on right now are as follows:

• Vegan: Promoting a vegan lifestyle to reduce animal harm

and the environmental impacts of meat production19
• Solar: Increasing solar energy adoption to reduce carbon
emissions
• Food: Reducing wasted food going to the landfill to reduce
methane emissions impacting climate change
• Coffee cups: Promoting reusable coffee cup usage to reduce
tree cutting and cup production impacts

Key Takeaway for Chapter 5: If you don’t like the direction

your life is headed, only you have the power to make a change

18
Earth Consultants - Lean Six Sigma and the Environment, http://www.
LeanSixSigmaEnvironment.org
19
Dietary greenhouse gas emissions of meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans
in the UK http://bit.ly/2lo751c
 Chapter 6 - How You Can
Get Started
Making money is not the primary driver of motivation and job
satisfaction for a majority of people20 . The need to satisfy intrinsic
motivation was described in the book, “Drive” by Daniel H. Pink21 .
He states that when we achieve profit goals, the satisfaction is short-
lived. We are happier when we pursue purpose goals (people and
planet).

Not only is purpose a good thing for society, it’s also good for
us as individuals.

Volunteers assemble furniture at the Habitat for Humanity Restore in Ana-

heim, California

20
Does Money Really Affect Motivation? A Review of the Research http://bit.ly/19wgits
21
Drive - The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us, http://amzn.to/29uAVrl
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 27

Here are some steps I would recommend for moving towards more
rewarding and purposeful work.

1. Pick a problem or cause that you feel passionate about - If

you don’t have a passion around something larger than you,
others will push you towards their own goals and agenda. Go
back and review the UN Sustainable Development Goals in
Chapter 4 if you need some ideas.
2. Decide if your current work is aligned with this cause
- Determine if your company or organization is currently
working on, or actively supporting this cause. If they are,
then simply get more involved with that effort, using your
improvement skills. If they are not, then determine if it is a
cause they should get more involved with. Regardless of how
strong your organization is currently supporting this cause,
ask your manager if they are willing to allow a few hours
per week or month to support your time on this cause while
getting paid. Another option is to propose a volunteer event
with your favorite nonprofit as part of your department’s
team building efforts. Managers are often looking for ways
to get their teams together outside of work (with pay), and
helping a nonprofit is a perfect solution. These events can be
coupled with a team lunch, dinner or happy hour after the
event. In fact, many companies are already doing this:
• Salesforce.com allows employees 7 days of Volunteer
Time Off (VTO) per fiscal year for a volunteer activity
of their choosing.22
• For over 20 years, Timberland has allowed full-time
staff up to 40 paid hours for community service every
year.23
• McKesson’s volunteer program provides grants linked
to individual volunteer involvement with nonprofits,
22
SalesForce Volunteers, http://bit.ly/21nNcWc
23
Timberland Corporate Responsiblity, http://bit.ly/2iXrrfj
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 28

with extra dollars donated for serving on board of

directors and achieving milestones for the number of
hours logged.24
• West Monroe Partners has a 1+1+1 program, giving
back 1% of their time, talent and treasure to the greater
good. They also established a fellowship program that
gives employees’ a 3-6 month compensated leave to
support their philanthropic and humanitarian inter-
ests.25
• Rockwell Collins donated their lean consultants to help
facilitate events and projects within the community,
such as leading a 5S event in a prison facility26 , stream-
lining the state government processes, and improving
healthcare by reducing variation in patient anticoagu-
lation test results.27
• The Standard Insurance employees are eligible to re-
ceive up to 8 hours of company-paid time annually
to volunteer in their communities, either during work
hours or after hours, based on their preference.28 If your
company won’t allow time for you to support your
cause, and if you want to keep your current job, you’ll
have to volunteer outside of work. Unfortunately, this
is the case for most people. Another option is to find a
new job, where you can get paid part-time or full-time
to support this cause. The goal for step 2 is that you
commit to spending time (paid and/or unpaid) towards
a cause that you care about.
3. Find an organization that is already working on this
mission - If you are having trouble getting your company
24
McKesson Corporate Citizenship, http://bit.ly/1IYAjmm
25
West Monroe Partners - Volunteer Programs, http://bit.ly/2isinLT
26
Rockwell Collins and Iowa Prison Industries Event, http://bit.ly/2v4guPV
27
Using Lean Six Sigma Tools to Compare INR Measurements from Different Laborato-
ries Within a Community http://bit.ly/2jGMqjv
28
The Standard, Employee Programs http://bit.ly/2rNuFFO
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 29

or organization aligned with your cause, find a relevant

nonprofit organization (in your area or online), and get
engaged. A simple internet search using your city and some
keywords related to your favorite cause will help you find
organizations you can get involved with. If nothing exists,
maybe you should start your own nonprofit organization!
4. Reach out and make a connection with the organization
- Most organizations have a website with contact informa-
tion. Review their website, attend an upcoming meeting or
volunteer event to learn more about what they do, and find
out what their challenges and struggles are.
5. Offer your assistance and expertise - Once you’ve made
some connections within the organization, the next step is
to prove your commitment to the group. This can be done
through attendance, participation and volunteering numer-
ous times. After you have built up some credibility, then
you can discuss your skills and background with them, and
how you think you can help them improve. Please avoid
explaining how you’re going to fix them, and how terrible
their processes are during your early meetings with them.
We always need to show respect anytime we are helping an
organization make improvements.
6. Identify a specific problem - Work with the organiza-
tion to identify what problem they need the most help
with, and give suggestions on how you think your skills
can help address this problem. Do some research online
to find Lean or Six Sigma case studies that relate to this
cause, so you can help the organization see how your skills
can be useful to them. The Toyota Production System Sup-
port Center (TSSC) website29 has excellent videos showing
the work they’ve done with nonprofits. I’ve also created a
website of case studies, videos and interviews explaining
how Lean and Six Sigma have been applied to government
29
TSSC Nonprofit Projects, http://www.tssc.com/nfp-main.asp
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 30

agencies and not-for-profit organizations. Visit http://www.

LeanSixSigmaforGood.com30 to search by industry, country
or keyword. If you find examples that are not listed on the
site, please contact me using the forms on the website.
7. Conduct an event or project - If you’ve got a strong Six
Sigma background, start with a Project Charter, and fill it
out with the leadership in the organization. Once approval is
gained, mentor and coach them through a DMAIC project. If
you’ve got a strong Lean background, suggest a kaizen burst
event or gemba walk to observe the problem firsthand with
a small team of people, and help identify waste and quick
process improvements. If you’re interested in learning more
about DMAIC, gemba, or other Lean and Six Sigma concepts,
see the Resources section. If you are supporting causes far
away from where you live, consider traveling to see firsthand,
do research online, or watch videos to really understand the
current state. This is why it is ideal if you can find local causes
and organizations to work with, so you can go to the “gemba”
and provide hands-on support. If that’s not possible to visit
in person, but you are good with a computer or on the phone,
you might be able to help with social media, website updates,
automation of processes, raising money, or data entry.
8. Document results - Once you’ve identified improvements
and are seeing some success, capture the improvements through
anecdotes, observations, photos, videos and metrics. Remem-
ber, you should have good baseline metrics before you start,
so you can compare before and after results. Share those
results with your friends, family and co-workers. Pictures
and videos are essential in today’s world, and social media is
a great avenue to get the word out. Post it to the Facebook
page31 for this book, so others can see what you’ve done.
Make sure you keep it focused on the organization and
30
Lean Six Sigma for Good book, http://www.LeanSixSigmaforGood.com
31
Lean Six Sigma for Good Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/
LeanSixSigmaforGood
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 31

cause you are working towards, and avoid too much self-
promotion.
9. Repeat - Once you’ve had some successes, go back to Step
#1 and make sure you are still passionate about the cause
you selected. Maybe your experience was not what you
expected, and you want to pick a new cause. Perhaps you are
still passionate about the cause, and want to continue with
another problem within that organization, or perhaps shift
directions and work with a different organization.

Some of you might be thinking about donating money instead of

volunteering your skills, since you are limited on time. However, if
the organization is inefficient, then your $50 donation might only
get $25 worth of value towards the mission. Your skills could help
that organization get $35-45 of value from all future $50 donations,
which is far more impactful than your individual donation.
When you decide that you are still passionate about the cause, you
might look more seriously at changing jobs. Some organizations
offer part-time and full-time work, although the pay may not be as
competitive as what you are getting at your current job. If you’re not
ready to make a career change, you can also investigate a reduction
in hours, so you can spend more time pursuing this cause.
During my last six months at Rockwell Collins, I wanted to increase
the number of volunteer hours I could contribute each week. I
requested and received a reduction in hours from 40 to 30 per week.
This freed up 10 extra hours available during the week to pursue my
passions (including writing this book). This did reduce the amount
of money I brought home, but the rewarding work I was doing with
my free time more than made up for it, and I didn’t feel like I was
working two full-time jobs anymore. In addition, I still maintained
a couple hours per week of paid time to continue my environmental
efforts within the organization, which I really enjoyed.
Although I have focused mainly on helping not-for-profit organiza-
tions in this book, and I have even suggested you leave your current
Chapter 6 - How You Can Get Started 32

organization to pursue causes you are passionate about, I don’t want

you to give up on your current job quite yet.
I encourage you to make an honest attempt to change the culture
from within your for-profit organization. You’ve already started to
change the culture using Lean Six Sigma, so that experience will be
helpful in making your organization more sustainable.
In fact, I think you are one of the most qualified individual in
your organization to lead this effort!
This quote from a book titled “Finding Purpose: Environmental
Stewardship as a Personal Calling”32 by Andrew J. Hoffman accu-
rately describes my feelings about sustainability and business.

“Never forget, the market is the most powerful insti-

tution on the planet, and business the most powerful
entity within it. Businesses can transcend national
boundaries and often possess resources that exceed
those of many countries. You might lament that fact,
but it is a fact. If business does not lead the way toward
solutions for an environmentally sustainable, carbon-
neutral world, there will be no solutions.” - Andrew J.
Hoffman

Key takeaway for Chapter 6: If you don’t help your

organization move in this direction, who will?

32
Finding Purpose - Environmental Stewardship as a Personal Calling by Andrew J.
Hoffman, http://bit.ly/2ioZD01
 Chapter 7 - Strength in
Numbers
One of the reasons I put this book together was to share the
excitement I had with my own journey towards helping others, and
reducing our impact on the environment. My excitement was fueled
in large part by my experiences with two volunteer groups, and one
benefit consulting company.
The first group is the Sustainable Development Division33 of the
Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers (IISE). The group was
established in 2011 by John Corliss34 . Although I’m not an Industrial
or Systems Engineer by education, I was impressed with their
drive to embed sustainability into these disciplines, and they were
one of the few organizations promoting sustainability along with
process improvement. I decided to start helping out by becoming
the webmaster for the division, and I started attending the board
member call-in meetings once per month. They also host numerous
meetings and networking activities during the annual conferences.
I’ve been fortunate to speak on Lean Six Sigma and Sustainability
topics at every annual conference since 2013.
I’d like to tell you about two wonderful people I met through the
division.
Joel Brock35 has been using his Industrial Engineering skills to help
local animal shelters run more effectively. In addition to applying
his skills to the cleaning and feeding processes for the animals, he’s
also gained valuable leadership and job experience, learned about
33
Sustainable Development Division of the Institute of Industrial and Systems Engineers
(IISE) website, http://bit.ly/2i3CjbY
34
John Corliss LinkedIn page, http://bit.ly/2isvmNC
35
Joel Brock LinkedIn page, http://bit.ly/2z0YXcn
Chapter 7 - Strength in Numbers 34

new industries and processes, has made great connections in the

community, and has learned new skills. He often reminds us about
the many opportunities within nonprofits, such as board leadership,
strategic planning, volunteer recruiting and management, paid staff
positions, grant writing and fundraising, campaign development,
community outreach and event management. These experiences
can give you a competitive advantage when pursuing new work
opportunities (within or outside your current company). You can
learn more about Joel’s experience in a 2017 IISE webinar36 .
Kate (Fisher) Groot37 , a consultant with Nationwide Children’s
Hospital38 , helped setup the first community service project for
IISE. Volunteers attending the annual conference sign up to help
a nonprofit located in the area of the conference. Not only is
the work rewarding, but it gives volunteers a chance to network
with other like-minded conference attendees. The first event was
a beach clean-up in Puerto Rico. The project is usually held the
day before the conference starts, and volunteers help the nonprofit
organization with whatever project they deem important. After
the half-day event, the volunteers make observations and provide
feedback on how the volunteer work could be done more efficiently.
I helped organize the service project prior to the 2016 annual
conference in Anaheim, California. We helped build furniture and
unpack donated dishes at the Habitat for Humanity Restore39 .
36
Joel Brock webinar - Career Benefits an Engineer Can Receive Through Non-Profit
Leadership, http://bit.ly/2gKyLIr
37
Kate (Fisher) Groot LinkedIn page, http://bit.ly/2j6GHnn
38
Nationwide Children’s Hospital, http://bit.ly/1N2I4K9
39
Recap of 2016 service project at Restore, http://bit.ly/2i7Hw0U
Chapter 7 - Strength in Numbers 35

Ricardo Thierry Aguilera and Joel Brock help organize donated clothes at Le
Chaînon, a women’s shelter in Montréal, Quebec (Canada), prior to the 2014
IISE Annual Conference.

The next group I got involved with is Lean Portland40 , a volunteer

group of Lean and Six Sigma consultants in Portland (Oregon),
which was established in 2012 by Matt Horvat41 . The group started
small, with just a few consultants and one nonprofit. Over the
past few years, it has grown to dozens of active consultants, more
structured meetings, and more defined roles and responsibilities.
The short-term goal is to make meaningful impact with dozens of
nonprofits. In the long term, I am hoping to help spread the pro-
gram outside of Portland. The team has twice-monthly meetings,
a monthly happy hour, and regular meetings with the nonprofits.
Having a large team of resources is essential, to ensure there is no
breakdown in support for the nonprofits when life gets in the way
(which happens often within a volunteer group).
Setting up a local Lean and Six Sigma volunteer consultant group
might be a good option for you, especially if you are hesitant to get
started on your own. Lean Portland started out as a LinkedIn Group,
and grew from there. Contact me if you are interested in setting
up a similar group in your community, or visit the Lean Portland
40
Lean Portland, http://www.LeanPDX.org
41
Matt Horvat LinkedIn page, http://bit.ly/2iWZ7K4
Chapter 7 - Strength in Numbers 36

website42 or LinkedIn Group page43 to follow our progress.

The third group I’ve been involved with is the Sherpa Sustainability
Institute44 . Holly Duckworth and Andrea Hoffmeier have taken
their passion and experience for process improvement and sustain-
ability, and developed a program called Continual Improvement
for Social Responsibility (CISR). Along with online training, they
have developed a support network of coaches to help individuals
follow a structured process to make an organization more socially
responsible and sustainable. I was one of the first coaches in the
program, and highly recommend you check out their program
offerings (even if you don’t have a strong Lean or Six Sigma
background).

Key takeaway for Chapter 7: Are you willing to help setup or

join a volunteer group in your local area?

42
Lean Portland, http://www.LeanPDX.org
43
Lean Portland LinkedIn Group, http://bit.ly/2iWWGr8
44
Sherpa Sustainability Institute - Coaches, https://www.sherpasustainabilityinstitute.
com/coaches
 Chapter 8 - Summary
You have a powerful skill set that can make your current organiza-
tion more sustainable, which is good for business.
Those skills can also help not-for-profit organizations become more
effective and efficient, which is good for society.
If you are excited about those two statements above, please follow
the steps below:

1. Decide on a cause that motivates you.

2. Get involved in the cause by volunteering for a related
nonprofit or mission-driven organization.
3. Determine if your current job aligns with that cause.
Yes? Get additional time approved to support that cause
during your work hours (and get paid).
No? Talk to your organization to see if they would allow
you to volunteer during work hours and get paid. If not, you
might consider looking for a new job that is more supportive
or better aligned.
4. Launch Lean events and Six Sigma projects to improve the
cause you are passionate about within that organization.
5. Share your successes with friends, neighbors, online web-
sites, and social media. Visit the Facebook page45 for this book
to see what others have accomplished.
6. Repeat and go back to Step #1.

45
Lean Six Sigma for Good Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/
LeanSixSigmaforGood
Chapter 8 - Summary 38

Thank you for taking the time to read this book. I hope you found
it valuable.
If you like this book, please share this with other Lean and Six
Sigma practitioners you know. The preferred method of sharing is
by directing people to the book page46 to download it digitally for
free, or download the audio version.
And don’t forget to connect with other readers on the Facebook
page: https://www.facebook.com/LeanSixSigmaforGood/47
In my next book, I’ll be gathering stories of people just like you, who
have taken the next step, and used your skills to make a difference
in the world!

Key takeaway for Chapter 8: What is the ONE next step you
are going to commit to take after reading this book?

46
Lean Six Sigma for Good book, http://www.LeanSixSigmaforGood.com
47
Lean Six Sigma for Good Facebook Page, https://www.facebook.com/
LeanSixSigmaforGood
Chapter 8 - Summary 39

50% of all profits from this book will be donated to Everybody

Solar48 , a nonprofit organization that provides solar power to local
charities to help them reduce electricity costs and direct their
limited resources to the communities they serve. This donation
applies only to hard copies sold, not to the free downloads (of
course). If hard copy books are printed, every attempt will be
made to print them in the most environmentally-friendly way,
using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper with the
highest recycled content available, petroleum-free inks, and the
least impactful transportation methods.

Donated solar panels are lifted to the roof of the nonprofit organization Com-
mittee on the Shelterless (COTS) in Sonoma County, California. © Everybody
Solar.
48
Everybody Solar, http://www.EverybodySolar.org
 Resources
Lean Six Sigma and Sustainability Books

• A Six Sigma Approach to Sustainability: Continual Improve-

ment for Social Responsibility http://amzn.to/2iOIQXn
• An Introduction to Green Process Management http://amzn.
to/2iQuZ0y
• Beyond The Bottom Line: Putting Social Responsibility To
Work For Your Business And The World http://amzn.to/
29bQxlr
• Compression: Meeting the Challenges of Sustainability Through
Vigorous Learning Enterprises http://amzn.to/2iwkYDU
• Creating a Lean and Green Business System: Techniques for
Improving Profits and Sustainability http://amzn.to/29iWTgX
• Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us http:
//amzn.to/2zCTXZI
• Finding Purpose: Environmental Stewardship as a Personal
Calling http://amzn.to/28X60Ch
• Green Intentions: Creating a Green Value Stream to Compete
and Win http://amzn.to/2iOD5bS
• Green Logistics: Improving the Environmental Sustainability
of Logistics http://amzn.to/2iQmJO4
• Green Manufacturing: Case Studies in Leadership and Im-
provement http://amzn.to/2iQurrp
• Green Manufacturing: Fundamentals and Applications http:
//amzn.to/2j3wh84
• Green to Gold http://amzn.to/2jfLsKz
• Green Your Work: Boost Your Bottom Line While Reducing
Your Carbon Footprint http://amzn.to/2j3rLGJ
Resources 41

• Improving Profitability Through Green Manufacturing http:

//amzn.to/2joKWOM
• Lean and Green: Profit for Your Workplace and the Environ-
ment http://amzn.to/2i36gUR
• Lean for the Nonprofit: What You Don’t Know Can Cost You
http://amzn.to/2jhczbU
• Lean Startups for Social Change: The Revolutionary Path to
Big Impact http://amzn.to/29eBK9S
• Lean Sustainability: Creating Safe, Enduring, and Profitable
Operations http://amzn.to/2iQoaMF
• Lean Waste Stream: Reducing Material Use and Garbage
Using Lean Principles http://amzn.to/2i5eS0n
• Six Sigma for Sustainability http://amzn.to/2i1olaM
• Statistics for Censored Environmental Data Using Minitab
and R http://amzn.to/2jfMxlV
• The Lean Sustainable Supply Chain: How to Create a Green
Infrastructure with Lean Technologies http://amzn.to/2i1v9Vu

A link to all the books above: http://bit.ly/2i35jvC

Lean Six Sigma and Sustainability Websites

• Lean4NGO http://www.Lean4NGO.org
• Lean Impact http://LeanImpact.org
• Lean Portland http://www.LeanPDX.org
• Sustainable Engineer (IISE) http://www.SustainableEngineer.
org
• Benefit (B) Corporations http://www.BCorporation.net
• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) - Lean Toolkits https:
//www.EPA.gov/lean
• Sherpa Sustainability Institute http://bit.ly/2isxFAC
• Lean and Sustainable Consortium http://bit.ly/2ipfZWB
• Lean Six Sigma and the Environment (Earth Consultants)
http://www.LeanSixSigmaEnvironment.org
Resources 42

• Lean Six Sigma for Good http://www.LeanSixSigmaforGood.

com
• Green Manufacturing Specialist Certificate http://GreenManufacturing.
Purdue.edu/
• Lean Green Institute https://LeanGreenInstitute.com

Lean and Six Sigma References

• Lean Enterprise Institute http://www.lean.org

• iSixSigma http://www.iSixSigma.com
• 6Sigma.US https://www.6Sigma.US
• Shmula http://www.Shmula.com
• BMGI http://www.BMGI.org
• StatStuff http://StatStuff.com
• Gemba Academy http://www.GembaAcademy.com
• Visual Workplace http://www.VisualWorkplace.com
• The Quality Group http://OpusWorks.com
• Smarter Solutions https://www.SmarterSolutions.com
• Quality Training Portal http://www.QualityTrainingPortal.
com
• Enterprize Excellence http://EnterprizeExcellence.com/
• Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma Definitions http://bit.ly/
2i3uo9V
• Business Performance Improvement http://www.Biz-PI.com

Lean and Six Sigma Podcasts

• Earth Consultants (my podcast) http://apple.co/2iOJ28K

• Gemba Academy with Ron Pereira http://apple.co/2i5frqU
• Lean Blog with Mark Graban http://apple.co/2ipjAUj
• E6S-Methods with Aaron Spearin and Jacob Kurian http://
apple.co/2iUKCGH
Resources 43

• Visual Workplace with Gwendolyn Galsworth http://bit.ly/

2jfQZRk
• Lean Startup Conference http://apple.co/2i3fDnf
 About the Author
Brion Hurley is the owner of Business Perfor-
mance Improvement (BPI), a Lean Six Sigma
consulting firm in Portland (Oregon) focused
on sustainability. He currently teaches Six
Sigma and Lean classes, facilitates lean events
and kaizen workshops, performs statistical
analysis, and mentors practitioners through improvement projects
in manufacturing, service and office processes.
Prior to BPI, he spent 18 years at Rockwell Collins49 as Princi-
pal Lean Six Sigma Consultant. He was hired in 1999, and has
worked out of 3 different facilities: Cedar Rapids (Iowa), Melbourne
(Florida) and Wilsonville (Oregon). He drove sustainability efforts
at both the corporate and regional level by applying process im-
provement techniques to reduce electricity and solid waste. He also
established and managed multiple green teams and Earth Day Fairs.
He is certified as a Master Black Belt and Lean Master, and has
numerous sustainability certifications, including CISR Certified
Practitioner50 . He has a bachelor’s degree in Statistics, a master’s
degree in Quality Management and Productivity, and lettered four
years in football as a placekicker and punter at the University of
Iowa.
He volunteers his time with local nonprofits through Lean Port-
land51 , and is a member of the Institute of Industrial and Systems
Engineers (IISE) Sustainable Development division, which is work-
ing to bring sustainability to the engineering field. He is currently
49
Rockwell Collins, http://www.RockwellCollins.com
50
Sherpa Sustainability Institute - Coaches, https://www.sherpasustainabilityinstitute.
com/coaches
51
Lean Portland, http://www.LeanPDX.org
About the Author 45

President of Recycling Advocates52 , a nonprofit organization in

Portland that is “dedicated to creating a sustainable future through
local efforts to reduce, reuse and recycle.”
Key Sustainability Projects

• Enhancement to the recycling program at Kinnick Stadium,

which increased the diversion rate from 25% to 50%
• Led Six Sigma project on electricity reduction that saved
$300,000 per year
• Led Rockwell Collins (Wilsonville facility) to the Clackamas
County Leaders in Sustainability Gold Certification

In his personal life, he has installed solar panels on his home in

Florida, went a summer without air conditioning in Florida, cut out
all meat and animal products from his diet (vegan), downsized to a
single-wide mobile home, takes his coffee cup and to-go container
with him everywhere he goes, collects detailed data on his personal
carbon footprint, and is currently leasing an Chevy Spark electric
vehicle (EV).
His wife Vera was integral in helping him understand how his
actions were impacting the environment. They have been married
since 2008, and have lived in Portland since 2013.
You can learn more at http://BrionHurley.com, or connect with him
on LinkedIn53 . He is available to speak to your Lean and Six Sigma
department or networking group on this topic, either in-person or
via webinar.

52
Recycling Advocates, http://www.RecyclingAdvocates.org
53
Brion Hurley LinkedIn profile, http://bit.ly/2ipgPm0