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Lean Six Sigma, as applied by the City of Gananna, was presented by Jennifer Teal at the Hickory House on 9/19/2017.  The Hickory House, conveniently located in Gahanna, was a fitting venue.

The meeting was well attended.  Everyone was eager to hear how a city government came to a knowledge of Six Sigma and where they found application for its principles.  Anyone that missed this interesting speaker and topic also missed a delicious rib dinner.

Jennifer Teal is the City Administrator of the City of Gahanna.  She has been the driving force behind the implementation and education of Six Sigma in the city government of Gahanna.  A black belt herself, she has helped the city council and other government officials and employees find common ground to discuss the growing needs of a city with a shrinking budget.  This has helped break the cycle of endless blame gaming and finger pointing and set them on a path of improved efficiency and realistic budgeting.

Jennifer's topic was Lean Gahanna - Building a Lean Culture in Gahanna, Ohio.  She outlined the process whereby she came to the position of City Administrator and how she spread the Lean Culture throughout all levels of the city.  After the state reduced funding to municipalities and tax revenues dropped due to a poor economy and failed levies, Six Sigma became a viable path to help the city survive and eventually thrive.  Gahanna's infrastructure was greatly expanded years ago in very rapid order.  Now, all the roads, bridges and similar assets need maintenance or replacement all at the same time.  This places an enormous strain on the budget.

Jennifer Teal spearheaded a project to document each employee's job and then review and justify what was being done and by whom.  This process revealed overlap, ambiguity, variability and incorrect procedures.  They were then able to align jobs to those best suited to perform those tasks.  They were able to define what those tasks were and exactly how they were to be performed.  They were able to document the correct way those tasks were to be performed.  This process exposed many forms of waste, which translated into real economic savings for the city.  By educating others in the city organization, the Lean process has spread and continues to reap new savings while empowering employees to make their jobs and their city better.

North of John Glenn Columbus International Airport on I-270, this is the view of the restaurant you are likely to see.