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Milwaukee, Wis., May 19, 2011— Telefónica, Buenos Aires, Argentina, took top honors for the second year in a row, winning the Gold Award in ASQ’s 26^th Annual International Team Excellence Award Process at the 2011 World Conference on Quality and Improvement May 16–18, 2011, in Pittsburgh, Pa.

A dynamic finalist competition included 29 teams from seven countries who vied for international recognition and the ASQ Gold, Silver, and Bronze awards.

"I dedicate this award to the hundreds of Telefónica workers back in Argentina—all who helped to make this possible. Though we are the team here, they all helped to make it happen,” said Jose Insua, Telefónica team captain. Telefónica’s team used Lean Six Sigma to decrease the time it took to solve broadband network issues and saved $400,000 USD in the process. Insua talks more about the experience in this video.

The finalists’ projects showcased creative and innovation solutions and organizational cost-savings, using quality tools—such as Lean Six Sigma—to demonstrate valuable business results. 

The 2011 International Team Excellence Award Process winners were recognized in a spirited ceremony at this year’s conference in Pittsburgh:

GOLD Winner

Company: Telefónica Argentina, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Team: Surfing Is Not So Complex
Project: By using Six Sigma methods and the DMAIC discipline, the team was able to find solutions to broadband network problems affecting many customers. The primary function of the process under analysis was detection, diagnosis and solution. The primary goal was to implement solutions in less than 96 hours in 95 percent of problems detected. At the end of the project, the team obtained a result of 48 hours in 100 percent of cases, and achieved a savings of $400,000 USD.

SILVER Winner

Company: The Boeing Company, Long Beach, Calif., United States

Team: Critical Path Tooling
Project: The project showcased how a potential aircraft production line stopper issue became a lean tooling process and quality improvement opportunity. The team highlighted how a high-risk $9 million USD proposed solution to this problem was accomplished by a medium risk $600,000 lean solution. The project’s primary objective was to resolve the issue of building parts and not shuttering the assembly line. Goals were to develop a cost-effective solution that would also improve part quality. Tools utilized included FEMA, decision matrix, lean 3P, affinity diagrams and fishbone diagrams. The project supported the vision support plan goal of maintaining unit cost, focusing on controlling cost increases that would not create product value, and ensuring on-time receipt of compliant supplier parts. Cost avoidance was $8.4 million USD, a cost savings of $2.9 million USD.

BRONZE Winner

Company: Movistar Argentina, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Team: Less Is More
Project: The team applied standardized Movistar methods of Six Sigma and the DMAIC methodology to increase customer satisfaction. The primary function of the process under analysis was customer attention in 53 commercial offices around the country, including processes performed by 900 employees. The project had two goals: first, to maximize sales revenue, and second, to increase customer satisfaction establishing an emotional bond. The team increased the annual sales revenue by $7.5 million USD at the end of the project, and moved on the customer satisfaction index from 7.6 to 8.0.

Since 1985, more than 950 teams from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Colombia, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Philippines, South Korea, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and the United States have participated in this team recognition process—the only one of its kind in the United States. Organizations such as Ford, 3M, Alcoa, Bayer, Boeing, Humana, Reliance Industries Ltd., the largest business enterprise in India, and Telefónica, a major cell phone operator in Argentina, have all showcased proven results with long-term implications, resulting in cost-savings of millions of dollars. 

Next year’s International Team Excellence Award Process Final Round will be held at ASQ’s 2012 World Conference on Quality and Improvement in Anaheim, Calif., May 21–23, 2012. Submissions for next year’s competition can be submitted this summer. For information on how to participate in the 2012 International Team Excellence Award Process, visit http://wcqi.asq.org or email gbalagopal@asq.org.

About ASQ

ASQ is a global community of people dedicated to quality who share the ideas and tools that make our world work better. With millions of individual and organizational members of the community in 150 countries, ASQ has the reputation and reach to bring together the diverse quality champions who are transforming the world’s corporations, organizations and communities to meet tomorrow’s critical challenges. ASQ is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wis., with national service centers in China, India and Mexico. Learn more about ASQ’s members, mission, technologies and training at www.asq.org.

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Lynda Nicely

414-298-8789, x7587

lnicely@asq.org