10th annual lean and Six Sigma conference to deliver largest program schedule yet

Six Sigma Master Blackbelt and motivational speaker Rob Bryant keynotes ASQ's lean manufacturing conference in March 2010. Topic areas include responding to a global economy, defect reduction, social responsibility, more.

By Renee Robbins November 18, 2009

As organizations continue to look for ways to eliminate waste and improve the bottom line to survive the current economy, lean and Six Sigma continue to be an important part of their business plan. Professionals will have an opportunity to enhance their skills at the American Society for Quality 10th annual Lean and Six Sigma Conference.

Keynote speakers promise to inspire and educate manufacturing professionals who go to Phoenix AZ March 8-9, 2010. There professionals can also take part in the conference’s largest program ever: more than 50 sessions and workshops, with focus areas on increased global value; delivering excellence; technical/statistical tools; cost, waste, defect reduction; responding to a global economy; and social responsibility. The full program and session descriptions can be found online.

Speaker Rob Bryant is the Global Infrastructure Services (GIS) vice president of process improvement/Six Sigma and the Master Black Belt for Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC). He also is a renowned motivational speaker who draws from his personal triumph of overcoming paralysis after a 55-foot fall in 1982. Bryant’s fall-the result of a design change in a pulley that removed a 49-cent cotter pin-is one of the reasons he refocused his life’s work on quality and safety. He wrote the book "Walking Through Adversity: 7 Steps to Overcoming Life’s Challenges," and currently supervises more than 200 Six Sigma projects annually.

Speaker Roger W. Hoerl leads the Applied Statistics Lab at GE Global Research. He is a Certified Master Black Belt, has been named a Fellow of the American Statistical Association and ASQ, and has been elected to the International Statistical Institute and the International Academy for Quality. Hoerl has co-authored several books with speaker and consultant Ronald Snee, including "Statistical Thinking: Improving Business Performance."

Speaker Alexander Eksir is vice president of Raytheon’s Integrated Defense Systems (IDS) business unit and serves as mission assurance executive for IDS and Raytheon at large. Eksir serves as the Raytheon IDS lead for Raytheon Six Sigma and quality, and is responsible for the development and integration of Raytheon’s mission assurance road map.

Speaker Forrest W. Breyfogle III was awarded the Crosby Medal for Implementing Six Sigma and, in a professional career spanning more than 25 years, has established himself as a leading edge thinker, prolific author, innovative consultant, world-class educator, and successful business executive. He is currently located in Austin, TX, where he founded Smarter Solutions, Inc.

The American Society for Quality (ASQ) www.asq.org has more than 85,000 individual and organizational members.

– Edited by Renee M. Robbins, managing editor, MBT www.mbtmag.com

See also:

Six Sigma payoff: Lift-truck maker raises $1.5-million savings from green-belt, black-belt programs

Graban: Hey, Reuters, Six Sigma Did Not Start at Toyota!