Continuous vs. Continual

[Steven_S_Prevette@RL.gov]

In reply to Roger Key's comment about transformation, I would only put forth
my own experience at Hanford.  Transformation has definitely been a set of
discrete events.  In the measurable data, there is rarely a smooth ramp as a
result of transformational change.  I have been relatively amazed at, once
an improvement action takes hold (which may be several months after it was
"initiated"), that the data very quickly moves to a new level and stabilizes
out.

In the non-measurable (and important) world, I have found that the
transformation has been marked by several "watershed" events.  Providing the
Red Bead Experiment, which only takes one hour, provides a very discrete and
substantial step change amongst the audience.

I would typify the transformation as a stair step series of discrete events.
Not one huge change, as is promised by "reengineering" and several other
"American" methods, but also not a continuous change (whether linear or
non-linear).

Steve Prevette
ESH Planning and Performance
Fluor Hanford, A Fluor Global Services Company
ASQ Certified Quality Engineer
steven_s_prevette@rl.gov
509-373-9371
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