Please respond to the following 4 questions

Q1

“Process Improvement and Problem-Solving Tools” Please respond to the following:

please select one of the two subjects to discuss.

·         Among the tools (e.g., graphics tools, knowledge-based tools, etc.) that the author discussed in the textbook, determine the type of tool that you would use for process improvement framework. Next, determine the type of tool you would use for problem solving framework. Justify your response. 

·         research articles on process improvement and problem solving tools. Select one (1) business project that used one of the tools discussed in the textbook. Evaluate level of the efficiency and effectiveness of the utilization of the tool within the project that you selected. Justify your response. 

Q2

The data in below table lists country code and the order to remittance (OTR) time for hardware / software installations for the last 76 installations (from first to last). OTR is the time it takes from an order being placed until the system is installed and we receive payment (remittance). Because this company does business internationally, it also notes the country of installation using a country code. This code is listed in the first column.

Data table: http://imgur.com/a/0lHdw

Use the date in table above and answer the following questions in the space provided below:

1.       Does the OTR time appear to be stable?  Why or why not?

2.       If you were to use a control chart to evaluate stability, which chart would you use?  Why?

3.       What can you learn about the distribution of the installation process? 

4.       Does it appear that the country has an impact on installation time? Why or why not?

Q3

“Building and Using Models” Please respond to the following:

Note: Online students, please select one of the two subjects to discuss.

·         Imagine that you are a business manager for a mid-sized company. Propose one (1) overall strategy to build an effective business model in order to both monitor / control changes in business process and predict future business performance for your company. Provide a rationale (e.g., verification process) for your response.

·         Per the textbook, in order to understand the causal relationship in business process, manager often asks “whys” to drill down the root cause of failures. Select one (1) project from your working or educational environment and propose at least three (3) “why” questions that you would ask in order to identify root cause of problem. Justify your responses

Q4

The data in the table below is from a study conducted by an insurance company to determine the effect of changing the process by which insurance claims are approved. The goal was to improve policyholder satisfaction by speeding up the process and eliminating some non-value-added approval steps in the process. The response measured was the average time required to approve and mail all claims initiated in a week. The new procedure was tested for 12 weeks, and the results were compared to the process performance for the 12 weeks prior to instituting the change.

Data table:http://imgur.com/a/2LO9u

Use the date in table above and answer the following questions in the space provided below:

1.       What was the average effect of the process change? Did the process average increase or decrease and by how much?

2.       Analyze the data using the regression model y = b0 + b1x, where y = time to approve and mail a claim (weekly average), x = 0 for the old process, and x = 1 for the new process.

3.       How does this model measure the effect of the process change?

4.       How much did the process performance change on the average? (Hint: Compare the values of b1 and the average of new process performance minus the average of the performance of the old process.)