Obscura

Humans Are Equal

"Human beings are equal; cultures are not. A culture that celebrates femininity is not equal to a culture that trims the genitals of her girls. A culture that holds the door open to her women is not equal to one that confines them behind walls and veils. A culture that spends millions on saving a baby girl’s life is not equal to a one that uses its first encounter with natal technology to undertake mass abortion simply because baby girls are not welcome. A culture with courts that punish a husband for forcing his wife to have sex with him is not equal to a culture with a tribunal that decrees a young woman be gang-raped for talking to a boy of an allegedly higher caste. A culture that encourages dating between young men and young women is not equal to a culture that flogs or stones a girl for falling in love. A culture where monogamy is an aspiration is not equal to a culture where a man can lawfully have four wives all at once. A culture that protects women’s rights by law is not equal to a culture that denies women their alimony and half their inheritance. A culture that insists on holding open a position for women in its Supreme Court is not equal to a culture that declares that the testimony of a woman is worth half of that of a man. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream of racial equality [in America] has become a reality for some and remains a dream for many. It has become a reality for the few people privileged enough to live in this culture that values the human individual regardless of race or gender. It is this culture that provides me with the vocabulary, the legal tools, the material resources, the platforms, and most of all, the opportunity to meet like minded individuals who will stand for the rights of those fellow girls and women who haven’t been as lucky as me or you. It is within this culture that it pays to fight for equality. Unfortunately, it is this culture that is under threat today. Many of those born into it take it for granted--or worse, apologise for it. So dear men and women of colour, and dear women of all colour: Let’s join together to protect this culture of life, this culture of liberty, this culture of 'ladies first.' — Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Somali-Dutch moderate-conservative feminist who now lives in USA

posted by Cobb @ 7:48 AM

Genchi Genbutsu

Genchi Genbutsu (????) means "Go and see for yourself" and it is an integral part of the Toyota Production System.

The notion is that rather than simply hear or read about a problem and make a suggestion for improvement, one should actually go to its direct location and experience the situation first hand. All too often an issue is raised on a conference call, in a meeting, in the board room or even over email. Then, from the remote location, a solution is created (by a team or sometimes an individual) that will somehow alleviate the circumstances. It is as if a doctor in New York is called for a consult from a fellow colleague in Seattle and by simply listening to a description of the patient and the presented symptoms he correctly diagnoses the medical problem and prescribes the proper course of treatment and medication. Even if he was sent X-rays, cat scans and lab results, an accurate conclusion is highly unlikely. Thus, Genchi Genbutsu says that the only course of action to take is for the doctor in New York to fly to Seattle so that he can examine the patient himself.

posted by Cobb @ 8:04 AM

DMAIC

Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control. Incremental process improvement using Six Sigma methodology. See DMAIC Methodology

Pronounced (Duh-May-Ick).

DMAIC refers to a data-driven quality strategy for improving processes, and is an integral part of the company's Six Sigma Quality Initiative. DMAIC is an acronym for five interconnected phases: Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control.

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Each step in the cyclical DMAIC Process is required to ensure the best possible results. The process steps:

Define the Customer, their Critical to Quality (CTQ) issues, and the Core Business Process involved.

Define who customers are, what their requirements are for products and services, and what their expectations are

Define project boundaries ­ the stop and start of the process

Define the process to be improved by mapping the process flow

Measure the performance of the Core Business Process involved.

Develop a data collection plan for the process

Collect data from many sources to determine types of defects and metrics

Compare to customer survey results to determine shortfall

Analyze the data collected and process map to determine root causes of defects and opportunities for improvement.

Identify gaps between current performance and goal performance

Prioritize opportunities to improve

Identify sources of variation

Improve the target process by designing creative solutions to fix and prevent problems.

Create innovate solutions using technology and discipline

Develop and deploy implementation plan

Control the improvements to keep the process on the new course.

Prevent reverting back to the "old way"

Require the development, documentation and implementation of an ongoing monitoring plan

Institutionalize the improvements through the modification of systems and structures (staffing, training, incentives)

From GE's DMAIC Approach, http://www.ge.com/capital/vendor/dmaic.htm

posted by Cobb @ 6:39 AM