Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Certification Lean Concepts and Waste 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which Lean concept focuses on making problems and waste immediately visible so they can be addressed quickly?
- Kaizen
- Visual management (Correct answer)
- Poka-yoke
- Heijunka
Correct answer: Visual management
Visual management uses visual signals, indicators, and displays to make the status of processes and problems immediately apparent to everyone.
Question 2: A call center measures average handle time but never measures the rate of repeat calls for the same issue. Which waste is likely being overlooked?
- Transportation
- Defects (Correct answer)
- Motion
- Inventory
Correct answer: Defects
Repeat calls indicate a defect — the first interaction failed to resolve the customer's issue, requiring rework in the form of another call.
Question 3: What is the purpose of 'leveling production' (Heijunka) in Lean manufacturing?
- To maximize machine utilization at all times
- To smooth out production volume and mix to reduce unevenness and overburden (Correct answer)
- To increase batch sizes for efficiency
- To focus production on the highest-profit products
Correct answer: To smooth out production volume and mix to reduce unevenness and overburden
Heijunka levels production by distributing work evenly over time, reducing the Mura (unevenness) that causes Muri (overburden) and Muda (waste).
Question 4: A physician always orders a full panel of 20 lab tests for every patient, even when only 3 tests are clinically indicated. This is which type of waste?
- Waiting
- Defects
- Extra processing / overproduction (Correct answer)
- Non-utilized talent
Correct answer: Extra processing / overproduction
Ordering unnecessary tests is overproduction and over-processing — providing more service than the customer (patient) needs or benefits from.
Question 5: In Lean, 'continuous flow' means:
- Running machines continuously without breaks
- Processing one unit at a time and passing it immediately to the next step (Correct answer)
- Maintaining a large buffer of work-in-process between stations
- Producing in large batches to reduce setup time
Correct answer: Processing one unit at a time and passing it immediately to the next step
Continuous flow (one-piece flow) moves individual units through the process without batching, dramatically reducing lead time and inventory waste.
Question 6: Which of the following scenarios best illustrates 'overproduction' waste in a service environment?
- A bank teller waiting for customers during a slow period
- A team preparing 50 copies of a report when only 10 attendees will be at the meeting (Correct answer)
- An employee walking to a shared printer
- A loan application requiring three signatures
Correct answer: A team preparing 50 copies of a report when only 10 attendees will be at the meeting
Printing 50 copies when only 10 are needed is overproduction — producing more than is required wastes materials and effort.
Question 7: What is the relationship between waste elimination and customer value in Lean thinking?
- Eliminating waste has no direct impact on customer value
- Eliminating waste reduces cost and lead time, which improves the value delivered to customers (Correct answer)
- Waste elimination benefits only internal operations, not customers
- Customer value and waste are unrelated concepts in Lean
Correct answer: Eliminating waste reduces cost and lead time, which improves the value delivered to customers
By eliminating waste, organizations reduce costs and lead times, enabling them to deliver more value to customers at a lower price and faster speed.
Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt Certification Lean Concepts and Waste 5
Which Lean concept focuses on making problems and waste immediately visible so they can be addressed quickly?