Forrest W. Breyfogle III is a Professional Engineer and ASQ (American Society for Quality)
Fellow who founded Smarter Solutions in 1992. As a management thought leader and innovator, he
developed the Integrated Enterprise Excellence (IEE) business management system. IEE provides
radical management advancements in utilizing and integrating scorecards, strategic planning, and
process improvement.

His two-book, two novel-written series describes the IEE system and its benefits. These two
books’ titles are Management 2.0: Discovery of Integrated Enterprise Excellence and Leadership System 2.0: Implementing Integrated Enterprise Excellence. His 5-book IEE book set provides the how-to-implement details. IEE Enterprise Performance Reporting System (EPRS) software offers the vehicle for a behind-the-firewall implementation of IEE in an organization.

Breyfogle was named “Quality Professional of the Year” for 2011 by Quality Magazine and in 2012 was awarded alumni of the year by Missouri University of Science and Technology (more than 10 testimonial statements are included in this linked-to video when Forrest received this award). He also received the prestigious Crosby Medal from the American Society for Quality in 2004 for his
book, Implementing Six Sigma, and was presented the Leadership Award at the 2013 Lean & Six Sigma World Conference. He served on the Board of Advisors for the University of Texas Center for Performance Excellence from 2003-2012.

He began his career with IBM in development and later transferred to the product test organization. Within these organizations, he became very interested in the benefits derived from the wise use of statistical techniques. From 1980 to 1992, he served IBM in applying Six Sigma methodologies to testing, development, manufacturing, and service organizations.

Breyfogle has conducted numerous Lean Six Sigma workshop sessions and Master Black Belt, Black Belt, Green Belt, Champion, and Executive training sessions worldwide. He has coached various individuals and organizations on the wise application of Lean and Six Sigma techniques.

Smarter Solutions, Inc. has had the honor of serving a distinguished group of Fortune 100 clients and many others in a wide variety of industries. Also, he has authored or co-authored over a dozen books and published over 150 technical articles for many publications. He has been interviewed by television, radio, and publication editors about managing organizations’ dynamics and applying all enterprise improvement methodologies. He has an MSME degree from the University of Texas and a BSME from Missouri University of Science and Technology (Rolla, MO).

Forrest Breyfogle is a Professional Engineer and ASQ Fellow who founded Smarter Solutions in 1992. As a management thought leader and innovator, he developed the Integrated Enterprise Excellence (IEE) business management system. IEE provides radical management advancements in utilizing and integrating scorecards, strategic planning, and process improvement

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Before discussing your latest book, Minitab and Lean Six Sigma, here are a few general questions. First, was there a turning point (if not an epiphany) years ago that set you on the career course you continue to follow? Please explain.

My BS and MS degrees are in Mechanical Engineering. In 1975, while working in Development at IBM, I took a Design of Experiments (DOE) course from Bill Diamond, which changed my life. Bill’s DOE class was ahead of its time.

How he taught the DOE approach was much better than Taguchi's techniques, which became popular in the United States a few years later. This class taught me the power of wisely applying DOE and statistical methods, and I immediately started using DOE techniques in IBM’s development processes.

Who and what has had the most significant impact on developing your thoughts about process improvement? How so?

After a few years of applying DOE and other statistical techniques in IBM development, I transferred to a new-product test group at IBM. In 1980, I approached my IBM management with a proposal that I become a full-time internal statistical consultant, which IBM management agreed to. I was not assigned any specific work at IBM for the last ten years, and I found my process-
improvement work helping people and functions through networking within the company.

During these last ten years at IBM (and later), the teachings of Edwards Deming, Walter Shewhart, Peter Senge, Jim Collins, and other gurus significantly impacted my thinking about business management and organizational improvements.

I had a great IBM internal statistician mentor, Stan Wheeler, who enhanced my statistical and non-statistical thoughts about process improvement.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, IBM had some tough times. My first book, Statistical Methods for Testing, Development, and Manufacturing, was published in 1992. At this point, IBM created and was undertaking a Market Driven Quality program based on Motorola’s Six Sigma program that touted ten times improvement in metrics in two years, which to me was unrealistic.

In this 1992-published book’s appendix, I included a roadmap for executing a Six Sigma project, which I received permission from Motorola to print. This roadmap for implementing Six Sigma improvement projects was much better than IBM’s interpretation of ten times improvement in metrics in two years.

At this point, I had more faith in myself than in IBM (before Lou Gerstner became IBM’s CEO in April 1993 and made some positive changes within the company); hence, in July 1992, I took a bridge to retirement after 24 years and founded Smarter Solution, Inc.

In the mid-1990s, I worked with the group that initiated Six Sigma in GE under Jack Welch to conduct Six Sigma Black Belt training at Bombardier in Northern Ireland and Toronto.

In 1999, I modified my first book and wrote arguably the first technical book on Six Sigma, Implementing Six Sigma: Smarter Solutions® Using Statistical Methods. The second edition of this book won ASQ’s Crosby Medal in 2003-2004.

Through my company, Smarter Solutions, Inc., I and others taught our enhanced approach for implementing Six Sigma; however, I noted that organizational Six Sigma deployments often do not last. Organizations may report 100 million dollars in savings, but nobody can find the money; hence, leadership terminates or significantly reduces their Six Sigma efforts.

Because of this Six Sigma shortcoming, I created and described in several published books in 2008-2010 an Integrated Enterprise Excellence (IEE) business management system, which includes Lean Six Sigma techniques in the five-book set described IEE implementation. Later we at Smarter Solutions, Inc. added software to facilitate the IEE business measurement and improvement
methodology.

One of my favorite quotes, to which I would like you to respond, is from Peter Drucker: “There is surely nothing quite so useless as doing with great efficiency what should not be done at all.”

When most ponder this Drucker quotation, they think about the applicability of Drucker’s quote to specific undertaken tasks. I extend the application of Drucker’s passage to current organizational practices, e.g., business metric reporting, goal setting, strategic planning, and process improvement. I am making this statement because many of these everyday corporate
practices can lead to unhealthy, if not destructive, behaviors, i.e.,  “should not be done at all.”  My books describe a 9-step IEE business management system that addresses these issues.

What are the defining characteristics of a workplace culture where personal growth and professional development are most likely to thrive?

Embracing a system-thinking, team-based, business-management approach that leads toward achieving the “3 Rs of business,” i.e., everyone doing the Right things and doing them Right at the Right time.

Looking ahead (let’s say) in 3-5 years, what will be the most significant challenge CEOs will face? Any advice?

I think it is interesting that when a business starts having major financial problems, the organization often will look into hiring a new CEO to  “turn things around.” In Louis Gerstner’s book Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance?, Gerstner describes how he was able to turn IBM around in the mid-1990s (after I left the company).  In his book How the Mighty Fall, Jim Collins describes what Gerstner did as an exception for corporations, i.e., hire an outsider CEO to turn around a company. In any case, what Gerstner did to turn IBM around was not long-lasting.  Why?  I believe what Gerstner did was not a long-lasting change to IBM’s business management system.

Traditional approaches to management goal setting and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) tracking can lead to unhealthy, if not destructive, unintended consequences. I believe that this is what IBM did and was a source of the company losing its guiding direction.

The complexity of business is growing; no one person can manage this complexity entirely. It is unreasonable for medium and large companies to believe hiring one person (e.g., a new CEO) can turn things around. Instead of searching for a superman or superwoman to undertake this “impossible task,” the organization must focus on enhancing its overall business management
system. To me, this is the most outstanding challenge CEOs will face.

IEE provides a system for management that helps their organization move toward achieving the 3Rs of business. IEE addresses the commonplace business management scorecard and improvement issues described in a one-minute performance metric video. IEE also provides:

o A single system for addressing ISO requirements, implementing Deming's philosophy, fulfilling the Baldrige award and Shingo prize criteria

o Click the mouse to understand performance metrics and their processes available 24×7 to all authorized from CEO to line operator

o Transparency so bad things do not get ignored

Obviously, that’s a lot and of great value. Easy to list, difficult to achieve.

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Forrest cordially invites you to check out these websites:

Smarter Solutions link.

His Amazon link.

His YouTube videos link.