The document discusses how process improvement techniques are combining traditional Lean Six Sigma methods with design thinking. It argues that design thinking can help address gaps in Lean Six Sigma by developing deeper empathy for customer needs through techniques like observation. The document outlines how the Define and Measure phases of Lean Six Sigma's DMAIC model are similar to the Understand, Observe and Define phases of design thinking. It concludes that combining Process Improvement with Design Thinking provides benefits like driving customer loyalty while also improving efficiency, and that this trend of merging the two approaches will continue gaining momentum.

1. Design & Process
Delivering Customer Happiness

2. 2
Contents
• Background: “Change Ahead”
• Process Improvement At A Crossroads
• Why Design Matters
• Design Thinking + Process Improvement
• Lean Six Sigma
• Design Thinking
• A Dynamic Duo
• The Road Ahead

3. 3
Background
‣ Recent trends are re-shaping the
way people think about process
improvement
‣ Progressive companies are
combining traditional Lean Six
Sigma process improvement
techniques with an emphasis on
design
‣ Result is processes, products and
services that are more human-
centric and enjoyable for those
who use them
Process improvement techniques are changing

4. 4
Crossroads
Process improvement and tools are at a crossroads
• Significant difference between the
effective, simple and intuitive use
of technology and process that we
have come to expect and our actual
experience
• Success of companies such as
Apple, Amazon, Google, and Zappos
has more business leaders focused
on the importance of good design
and customer delight

5. Why Design Matters
• We are in the Age of the Customer
• Customers have more power, choice
and influence than ever before
• What we think and feel about our
interaction with an organization’s
products and services is increasingly
important due to the rise of social
media
• Social media brings a new level of
transparency to what consumers
are thinking and feeling about a brand
Power is in the hands of the customer
5

6. 75%Gartner predicts that by
2015 75% of consumers
will tell their friends about
their bad experiences
using social media (up
from 25% in 2010).
6

7. Deep Customer Insight
• Lean Six Sigma process improvement helps make processes:
- more efficient, by removing waste
- more predictable, by reducing variation
• Although Lean Six Sigma seeks to capture the “voice of the customer,” it
tends to lack deeper examination, understanding and empathy for customer
needs and desires
• This is where design thinking comes into play
• Design thinking brings a fresh approach and new tools that drive customer
understanding
Design Thinking addresses a gap in Lean Six Sigma
7

8. Merging customer empathy with process-centric tools
Design Thinking + Process
Design
Thinking
Empathy for the context of a
problem, creativity in developing
solutions, and rationality to fit
solutions to the context.
Process
Improvement
Identify, analyze and improve
existing business processes
within an organization to meet
new goals and objectives.
8

9. Design Thinking + Process
Lean Six SigmaDesign Thinking
‣ Lean Six Sigma follows the five phase
DMAIC process
‣ In DMAIC, the Define and Measure phases
are similar to the Understand, Observe and
Define phases of design thinking
‣ While Lean Six Sigma pros emphasize
measurement in these phases, design
thinking pros add more qualitative research
upfront to create empathy for the customer
In design thinking, practitioners observe
people
They watch how they behave and interact
They talk to people about what they are
doing and how they are feeling
The Understand and Observe phases of
design thinking help practitioners develop
a sense of empathy.
Comparing aspects of the two approaches
9

10. A standard design cycle
Design Thinking
Understand Observe Define Ideate Prototype Test
Divergent
Convergent
ConvergentDivergent
Practitioners observe people during the design thinking process. They watch how they
behave and interact. They talk to people about what they are doing and how they are feeling.
They ask questions and reflect on what they see. The Understand and Observe phases of
design thinking help practitioners develop a sense of empathy.
10

11. A Standard Lean Six Sigma improvement cycle
Lean Six Sigma
11
Define ControlMeasure Analyze Improve
‣ Define the
problem, the
voice of the
customer, and
the project goals.
‣ Measure key
aspects of the
current process
and collect
relevant data.
‣ Analyze the
data to
investigate and
verify cause-and-
effect
relationships.
Determine what
the relationships
are, and attempt
to ensure that all
factors have
been considered.
Seek out root
cause of the
defect under
investigation.
‣ Improve or
optimize the
current process
based upon data
analysis using
techniques and
standardize work
to create a new,
future state
process. Set up
pilot runs to
establish process
capability.
‣ Control the
future state
process to
ensure that any
deviations from
target are
corrected before
they result in
defects.
Implement
control systems
and continuously
monitor the
process.

12. 12Copyright © 2013 GreenFrog. All rights reserved.
Process Improvement + Design Thinking =
A Dynamic Duo
12

13. A Dynamic Duo
- Albert Einstein
A better understanding of customer needs can help Lean Six Sigma pros balance goals
The combination brings significant benefits
13
Drive enjoyable
interactions that
improve customer
loyalty
Drive efficiency and
remove waste

14. A Dynamic Duo (cont)
- Albert Einstein
The combination brings significant benefits
14
!
• Design thinking can also benefit from the discipline and structure
that Lean Six Sigma provides
• Business process pros emphasize the ongoing quantitative
measurement of processes and the introduction of controls to help
ensure consistency
• These techniques help ensure that a well-designed process
continues to perform well and delight customers

15. The Road Ahead
• As this trend gains momentum, we’ll
continue to see strategies for using
design to optimize and transform
business processes
• Is your organization one of the many
embracing design thinking and
sending practitioners to programs
such as Stanford’s d.school?
• Are you noticing more and more Lean
Six Sigma practitioners who
emphasize design?
• Let us know what’s working in
your workplace
A trend that will gain momentum in coming years
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Contact Me
!
@DaveBirckhead
www.davebirckhead.com