What our customers say
In a rapidly changing world, both top and middle managers are constantly having to transform the way they work. Leaders and managers are mobilising their workforces through the use of structured Lean Six Sigma processes. Operators are not only solving problems in their areas, but when these employees are correctly trained and coached, a 100% success rate is possible.
Some of our Blue Chip Clients Operational Excellence Journeys
Please select journey below, by clicking on logo.
SAB Limited
Fry’s Metals
Indwe Risk Services
PFG Building Glass
SAB Limited
Industry: Food and Beverage and Manufacturing
Methodologies: Lean Six Sigma – Strategic Operation Practices
Tools: Various tool-kits and individual tools developed and aligned to Lean Six Sigma
Who was developed: SAB, Coca Cola SA, EFES Russia, and the SAB Supplier network.
Initiated in Manufacturing, before later being extended to technical experts and then every employee down to the level of shop floor team leader. The final part of this process was to extend it to SAB suppliers as well.
Types of training completed include: Master Black Belt; multiple waves of Black Belt; Green Belt; and multiple customised programmes, internalised within the business, encompassing problem solving, process thinking and statistical thinking for the SAB supplier management group and its suppliers.
In respect of the training outlined above, coaching was always an integral part of this process, while an SAB-Branded Certification was also developed by Novel Idea. Furthermore, we developed more than 30 waves of Black Belts and 10 waves of Green Belts, as well as coaching and guiding the Manufacturing Development Managers to develop capacity internally.
In addition, we also developed SAB/ABInbev’s Supplier Network companies, including Nampak, Megapak, Consol, Coleus and Valpre, as well as launching and deploying within Coca Cola and working throughout EFES Russia’s operations, using translators.
Some of the key benefits these customers achieved were as follows:
Reference: Dr Dino Petrarolo – Previous Global Head of Manufacturing development for SAB Miller
Fry’s Metals
Industry: Manufacturing
Methodologies: Lean and Six Sigma
Who was developed: A selection of employees from a variety of functions
Type of training completed: Champion; Master Black Belt; Black Belt; Green Belt; and Internal – various Lean Training
Coaching on application: Yes
Certification: Novel Idea Certification
Our Interaction: Ongoing
Financials: Confidential, signed off by the business
Arthur J Scott, Managing Director for Lead Operations at the Zimco Group, said at the recent Novel Idea Operational Excellence Symposium that “Building a Culture of Execution takes a lot more than a simple decision; it is learned over time and practiced until it becomes habit. As a leader, one should not underestimate the effect of your words and actions in creating and shaping the culture”.
Novel Idea’s role here is an ongoing one focused on the development of Master Black Belt, Black Belt and Green Belt employees.
With regard to the benefits the customer obtains from this journey, Fry’s Metals send their delegates to the Novel Idea public programmes, gate reviews and initial coaching took place on-site. Despite the numbers trained, a success rate of 100% was achieved, where the Master Black Belt, Black Belts and Green Belts were all certified on two projects each.
Indwe Risk Services
Industry: Insurance – Indwe Risk Service
Methodologies: Lean Six Sigma, Novel Idea’s NI3&E Fast Track Programme
Who was developed: Top talent
Type of Training completed: Champion development for the Exco Team; Master Black Belt; Black Belt; Selected Green Belt
Coaching on Application: Yes
Certification: Novel Idea Certification
Our Interaction: 3 years
Financials: Confidential
We undertook a champion workshop for deployment planning, as well as conducting project selection and resources allocation. This included the development of selected Top Talent Belts, as selected by the Exco Team.
Among the benefits achieved is that all Black Belts were certified in under one year, over two projects. The Master Black Belt was certified in 18 months (full deployment), while Lean Six Sigma was internalised as the way they work – later on all improvements were applied to IT workflow optimisation.
PFG Building Glass
Industry: Manufacturing
Methodologies: Multiple
Who was developed: Selection of employees from manufacturing functions
Type of Training completed: Master Black Belt, Black Belt, Green Belt, and Yellow Belt
Coaching on Application: Initially, although today this is internalised by the MBB
Certification: Novel Idea Certification
Our Interaction: Ongoing
Our role: Ongoing role of the development of Green Belt and Yellow Belt
Financials: Confidential, signed off by the business
Harold Du Toit, Master Black Belt, shared PFG Building Glass’ 11-year journey with Novel Idea, showing how Operational Excellence is lived in the way that they work. In doing so, they have achieved something very few organisations achieve – moving beyond continuous business improvement and on to operational excellence.
“It is the people that make Operational Excellence work,” says Harold Du Toit, adding that living operational excellence must be the way to work.
“It is your people that make it work,” he says. His advice to generate buy-in is to show people that it works – through Lean Six Sigma DMAIC project execution. Once you have shown the leadership that it works, he adds, they buy into, and believe in, Lean Six Sigma and its crucial role in Operational Excellence.
According to du Toit, once your basics are in place, you can build onto this and customise it for your specific organisation. After all, everything you do must align with your business and strategy. He has compared multiple approaches and has, over the years, implemented a variety of methodologies. With this experience, he finds that the DMAIC Methodology from Lean Six Sigma can be applied to everything you do, as it provides the structure one needs.
