Erie County Employees Earn Six Sigma Green Belt Certification

October 30, 2008

Employees honored after successfully completing first Lean Six Sigma projects

Erie County Executive Chris Collins presented nine county employees with their Six Sigma Green Belt certification today. These employees successfully completed training and spearheaded the County's 2008 Lean Six Sigma pilot projects. These projects alone generated over $1.3 million in savings. Erie County's total Lean Six Sigma effort - lead by Deputy County Executive Al Hammonds and Six Sigma Director Bill Carey - helped taxpayers save nearly $2 million this year, far surpassing expectations.

"A year ago, I was in the final stages of campaigning for County Executive on the platform of running Erie County like the $1 billion business it is using the principles of Lean Six Sigma," said Erie County Executive Collins. "The taxpayers of Erie County overwhelmingly responded to that message. Now ten months in office, that is exactly what my administration is doing. In addition to driving efficiency and reducing waste, Lean Six Sigma is empowering county employees to suggest changes to their work process. As a result, Erie County is realizing significant cost savings and improving the quality of services provided to the public."

The 2008 Green Belt projects represent a cross section of county departments and functions, and were driven internally by county employees.

The 2008 Six Sigma Green Belt Inaugural Class:

Peter Curtis - Mental Health

Jim Hart - Parks

Shaun Hughes - Social Services

Stan Jemiolo - Parks

Tim Konicki - Social Services

Kevin Madoo - Public Works

Marie Morilus-Black - Mental Health

Amy Rockwood - Health

Gary Zawodzinski - Public Works

"I want to personally congratulate our nine member Green Belt inaugural class for their hard work, dedication, and shared commitment to moving Erie County forward," said Collins. "The public should be proud to have these employees working on their behalf every day."

Erie County's Six Sigma program receives critical support from the Center for Industrial Effectiveness at the University at Buffalo and from Canisius College.