1. CPI Awareness Course - 2 hours

This course is designed to provide participants with an introductory understanding of CPI and the principles of a lean system, its recognized wastes, and other CPI tools.  In addition to an hour of classroom instruction and discussion, one hour is devoted to a powerful, hands-on simulation exercise designed to demonstrate, in four successive rounds, CPI concepts, their implementation and the benefits of CPI systems thinking over traditional process methodology. This Awareness course is taught by an expereinced Level 3 Facilitator/Mentor, an equivalent to a LSS Master Black Belt.  The advantage of such an expereinced instructor is that they can field any implementation questions from "Why are we doing this?" to "How hard is it?" to "How do we get started?" No question will be unanswered.

Class Size:                   20

Prerequisites:               None

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       We suggest every employee obtain this training so they understand what CPI/LSS is and how it can improve their lives. M2M will begin this training; however, your own Level 1 trainees will complete the training for your employees.

Given the pre and post-briefing activities associated with each presentation, we can present up to three CPI Awareness courses per day.

2. Senior Leader Education - 4 hours

This course introduces senior leaders (CEO, VP, Division) to the challenges presented by CPI implementation efforts.  The course is taught by an expereinced Level 3 Facilitator.Mentor, the equivalent of a LSS Master Balck Belt. Topics include the details of CPI from the leaders’ perspective, their roles and responsibilities in the effort, and those actions critical to a CPI culture change.  Included in this course is a one-hour participatory exercise designed to illustrate the classroom concepts.

Class Size:                   20

Prerequisites:               None

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Instructional Materiel: $200 per course

Recommendation:       Every Senior Manager should receive this training. Line Supervisors should attend the Awareness course first, then get a 2 hour Management top off later in the program.  Since the course is taught by an expereinced Level 3 or equivalent LSS Master Black Belt, it is a great opportunity for leaders to ask frank questions on the conduct of the implemnetation in their organizations, and what will be expected of them personnally.

3. Senior Leader Mentoring – The number of days is flexible but should include coaching for and during Executive Boards and key decision meetings.

This course is designed to provide a senior leadership team, normally the CEO and Executive Board, with mentoring and guidance, once they complete Senior Manager Training and begin implementing CPI culture and improvements in their organization. Mentoring will be accomplished by an expereinced Level 3 Facilitator/Mentor, an equivalent to a LSS Master Black Belt.  Included in this Mentoring will be the completion of a 3-4-day Enterprise Value Stream Analysis (EVSA) activity, which is a Strategic Planning session conducted with all members of the Organization’s Senior Staff, which will help the organization focus their CPI efforts in the most critical areas.  This includes one hour each month working with the organization’s senior CPI Support Team. The mentor will focus upon developing leadership CPI content expertise, as well as leadership skills, as they conduct senior board meetings, training sessions, and strategic planning activities with organizational leadership.

Class Size:                   2

Prerequisites:               Senior Manager Education

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:      We suggest about 10 days per year to ensure continuity, plus the 3-4 day

                                    EVSA.

4. Change Manager (CM) Education – 8 hours

This course provides organizational Change Managers (division levels and below) with the substantive expertise sufficient to commence CPI culture implementation in their specific area of responsibility. This course is taught by an expereinced Leavel 3 Facilitator/Mentor which is an equivalent to a LSS Master Black Belt. Attendees should be organizational POCs or those tasked with implementing a culture change to CPI/LSS across their organizations.  Course sections include:

Ø      Lean & CPI Principles and their application

Ø      Leadership, Team Building and coaching

Ø      Pre and Post Team activity Management

Ø      Sustaining CPI Gains

Ø      CPI Tool Awareness

Class Size:                   20

Prerequisites:               None

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Instructional Materiel: $ 100 per course

Recommendation:       All assigned CMs should attend.  The number varies with size of the

                                    organization and level of activity.

5. Level 1 (Green Belt) Facilitator Education – 32 hours (4 days)

This course is designed to provide participants with general awareness of all tools and techniques required to facilitate simple, 1-week CPI events, and would be eqivalent to a LSS Green Belt.  The course includes classroom instruction and participatory exercises, all designed to transfer sufficient knowledge for participants to effectively manage a team during a CPI event.  The course sections include:

Ø      Basic Lean and CPI Tool Use (Problem Solving, Error Proofing, Cellular Design)

Ø      Team Development and Team Building

Ø      Meeting Dynamics

Ø      Facilitator’s Guide to a CPI Event

This course should be combined with the Level 1 Mentoring course described below, to provide participants with certification as Level 1 (Green Belt Equivalent) Facilitators.

Class Size:                   12

Prerequisites:               CPI Awareness course or participation in at least one CPI event

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Instructional Materiel: $ 500 per course

Recommendation:       An organization should conduct this training as soon as possible when it

                                    decides to train their own facilitators. This ensures all Events not only

                                    improve processes, they also train their own facilitators.

6. Level 1 (Green Belt) Facilitator Mentoring – Part A, B, C  - all spread over approximately 2 - 3 calendar months

     Parts A, B & C of this course, taken together, are designed to certify trainees as Level 1 Facilitators, which is equivalent to a LSS Geen Belt.  It provides them with mentoring and guidance as they move through three, 1-week stages - from Part A - Observer, to Part B - Co-facilitator, to Part C - Independent Facilitator, taking sole responsibility for conducting 1-week events or projects.  Mentoring activities will focus upon knowledge transfer of those skills matching the Standard Skills Matrix published in the forthcoming Department of Defense CPI Guide.

     M2M presumes an attrition rate of 15% from the Level 1 (GB) Education course (12-2=10 Level 1 Trainees) before the start of Certification Events.  Therefore, Part A is structured for 4 participants to observe one 4-day event conducted by one mentor.  Part B is structured for 2 participants to co-facilitate a 4-day event; ideally, one mentor oversees two such events simultaneously or integrates one event with another 2-day activity.  Part C is structured for 1 participant; it requires one participant to assume the leadership role in conducting a 4-day event. Ideally, one mentor oversees two such events simultaneously or integrates one event with another 2-day activity.  M2M has discovered that in Parts B and C, closely monitoring the co-facilitators or the independent facilitator approximately 50% of the time over his/her 4-day event provides participants with an optimal balance between fostering their independence and supporting their need for guidance.

Part A - Observer    

Class Size:                   6

Prerequisites:               Level 1 (GB) Education

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       Each Trainee should observe an event after the academics so they can

                                    reorient their thoughts on how to Facilitate their own events. Previous

                                    events participated in normally will not be counted.

Part B – Co-facilitator   

Class Size:                   2

Prerequisites:               Level 1 Education & Level 1 Mentoring Part A

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       Trainees will be paired into teams of two to perform this event. They will

                                     split all the tasks to ensure they get equal training

Part C – Independent Facilitator   

Class Size:                   1

Prerequisites:               Level 1 Education & Level 1 Mentoring Parts A & B

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       This event is the Certification event which should show the trainee can

                                      conduct an event entirely on their own.  Mentors will monitor.

7. CPI Kaizen-Training Event - 32 hours (4 days)

This course is designed to train a team to conduct a Kaizen event,  also know as a Rapid Improvement Event (RIE), and implement process improvement in a given area. It focuses primarily on the use of the VSM or Problem Solving Guides in the Facilitator guide. It begins with 4 to 8 hours of academic instruction, including a hands-on exercise that helps participants visualize the benefits of CPI.  The content and level of instruction depends upon the CPI experience and education level of participants, as well as the complexity of the event’s subject problem. 

This is followed by 3 to 3.5 days of actual improvement activities, focused upon a designated area and problem(s), utilizing the lessons learned in the instruction portion of the event.  The results are measurable process improvements, the elimination of wasteful activities and the transfer of knowledge to participants.  This training event may be purchased in one or more increments.

Class Size:                   20 max

Prerequisites:               None

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       While the content and results of these events are already included in Level

                                    1 and 2 Mentoring courses, individual Kaizen-Training events are

                                    frequently added to the full program, on an as-needed basis as pilot events

                                    or to supplement the need for improvement activities in critical areas.

8. Practical Problem Solving – 16 hours (2 days taught together)

This course is designed to teach Facilitators and Managers how to solve problems based on Data and a logical step by step process.  This course will be taught by an experienced Level 3 Instructor, the equivalent of a LSS Master Black Belt.

Class Size:                  20

Prerequisites:              None

Cost:                           At negotiated daily rate 

Recommendation:      All Mid and Floor Managers should receive this training.

9. Level 2 Facilitator Education – 64 hours (8 days divided into two, 4 day sessions separated by 1-2 weeks)

This course is designed to move Certified Level 1 Facilitators (GB) to the next level.  It will provide them with advanced tools and instructor techniques to make them Instructor Facilitators, equivalent to LSS Black belts, who can train and mentor new Level 1 (GB) Facilitators as well as conduct the more difficult and complex projects at Division, Wing or higher organization levels.  Academics and exercises focus on developing instructor skills and techniques.  The course sections include:

Ø      Team Management

Ø      Project Planning

Ø      Instructor Techniques

Ø      Additional CPI Tools

Ø      Advanced Tools (Pull Systems, New Process Development, Quality Control)

Ø      Practical Problem Solving

Ø      Policy Deployment and Change Management

Ø      Train-the-Trainer Methodology

This course should be combined with the Level 2 (BB) Mentoring course described below, to provide participants with certification as Level 2 Facilitators (BB).

Class Size:                   6

Prerequisites:               Level 1 (GB) Certification

Cost:                            At negotiated daily rate

Instructional Materiel: $ 500 per course

Recommendation:       Two course, 12 participants. One, 8-day course (taught in two, 4-day sessions) 6 participants

10. Level 2 (Black Belt) Facilitator Mentoring – 6 days, designed to align to a Level 1 class Certification

The course is designed to certify Level 2 (BB) Facilitators and is reserved for Level 1 Facilitators with 6 months of experience (conducting over ten 1-week events or three projects) and completion of the Level 2 (BB) Education course.  The mentor will train and coach the candidate as he/she trains and mentors new Level 1 trainees during 1-week events or projects.  The Level 2 candidate must successfully bring to certification at least two Level 1 trainees.  In addition, the Level 2 candidates must demonstrate a working knowledge of all required CPI tools.

Class Size:                   6

Prerequisites:               Level 2  (BB)Education, 6 Months Level 1 experience, 10 events or 3 Projects

Cost:                           At negotiated daily rate

Recommendation:       This course is taught once there are enough Level 1s ready to progress to

                                    the next level as Instructors.

11. Level 3 (Master Black Belt) Facilitator Education and Mentoring Course – 10 days (4 days classroom education and 6 days mentoring spread over the course of approximately 6 months)

This course is designed to take select, certified Level 2 (BB) Facilitator, raise their level of lean and CPI mastery, and prepare them to conduct enterprise-level projects and serve as the organization’s senior CPI advisor capable of leading the entire CPI Support Organization. This certification would be the equivalent of a LSS Master Black Belt.  Candidates must be CEO-recommended Level 2s (MBB) with at least one year of experience conducting over 50 1-week events or 15 projects.  The candidates must successfully design, implement and complete an approved CPI project of sufficient complexity.