Services

iSquared is a client-centered consulting firm. We recognize that change is a process—an ongoing transition from the old to the new. That's why we follow a flexible framework when working with clients to:

We use this framework to address your challenges:

We provide a full continuum of services to address these challenges. Our services range from one-off project execution to full deployment of analytical resources, along with scoping and chartering a portfolio of projects for the entire company.

	Your Challenges		Our Solutions
	Growing In-House Awareness & Expertise Process Improvement Improving Organizational Effectiveness		Training and Consulting Speaking Engagements Strategy Planning Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis Program Design and Evaluation Change Leadership Presentation Effectiveness

Click the orange links to the right to learn about our solutions.

Training and Consulting

iSquared understands that everyone learns in different ways. Some of us learn by listening, others by watching, others by reading, and all of us by doing. Our Lean Six Sigma Training strives to address all learning styles. It is highly interactive, effective, engaging, and enjoyable…just ask our participants.

Lean Six Sigma helps your organization execute flawlessly, and we know it inside and out. We’ve trained 500 Six Sigma black belts and green belts, as well as 1000 champions over the last nine years. Just think of the difference they’re making in the business world—achieving quick improvements in customer satisfaction, cost, quality, process speed, and invested capital.

Our fusion of Lean and Six Sigma training has both management and technical components. On the management side, it focuses on getting the right process metrics and goals, the right projects, and the right management systems to successfully complete projects and sustain gains over time.

On the technical side, we focus on enhancing process performance, using process data, statistical thinking and methods and a disciplined and focused process-improvement methodology.

The results? Radical improvement of an organization’s performance, and the ability to make appropriate decisions in the face of uncertainty.

“Rick was one of the most engaging instructors I have seen in my 23 year career. I learned a lot not only about Six Sigma, but also facilitation techniques I observed.”
      Ben McClure - Manager, ConocoPhillips

“The insight, knowledge and experience you provided to the members of the class were delivered with a style and manner that encouraged the students to want to learn, absorb and retain as much as possible."
      Mike Geheres - Systems Support, EG&G Technical Services

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Speaking Engagements

iSquared’s Richard Schleusener has presented for years to audiences large and small about Lean Six Sigma and change management. Audiences applaud his knowledge, energy and presence.

Choosing iSquared to address your audience allows you to establish a pressing issue as a priority, and then frame and explain it in an articulate, considered way. It will give your team a common vocabulary to discuss the challenges and opportunities your organization faces and aid you in building program commitment.

Rick is prepared to speak about topics ranging from how to develop reliable and relevant success metrics to how to flourish during times of change. Past titles of speeches have included Paths to Find Meaning in Data, Principles for Developing Leaders in Chaotic Times, and Six Sigma for Prevention of Pathology Errors.

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Strategy Planning

For your organization to be successful, you must understand your customers’ priorities. Only then can you align your goals with theirs. We perform an analysis to understand your assumptions about the environment, your mission, and what capabilities are required to accomplish your mission in the given environment. Then we work to:

Statistical tools and Six Sigma processes offer vehicles to develop and test your primary operational assumptions. We give you these tools because your organization’s assumptions ultimately drive decisions and dictate desired results and success criteria.

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Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis

Each form of analysis, qualitative and quantitative, has advantages and disadvantages. Complicating matters further, each path toward understanding the problem can lead you to a different conclusion.

Quantitative data can be predictive, and research has borne this out. A 1996 study by Grove and Meehl compared process experts against data-driven personnel, showing that data-driven decisions yield better predictions than process experts.

But using quantitative analysis alone can mislead and distort priorities. Indeed, in his 1974 Nobel Prize economics lecture, Friedrich von Hayek declared, “…in the social sciences often that is treated as important which happens to be accessible to measurement.” Simply put, a quantitative approach is not always adequate, particularly when working with people or organizations.

The key, then, is to be flexible in our approach. iSquared brings a portfolio of analysis tools, including both:

Quantitative approaches
iSquared can perform complex quantitative analytics, and then present conclusions in a simple, memorable way. We’ll develop an assessment, and explain results using a hands-on method, PowerPoint slides, or both.

Qualitative approaches
iSquared can collect words, ideas and feelings to flesh out what is important to your customers. An open-ended exploration creates opportunities to tap into the voices of your customer base, or even your own diverse workforce, to find new possibilities.

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Program Design and Evaluation

A tested, methodical approach is important whether designing a new program or evaluating a current operational program. iSquared’s analysis begins by verifying program necessity, followed by determining the scope of the program and how it should function.

Much of the same applies when analyzing an existing effort. iSquared research methods explore desired outcomes, and how well your processes deliver those outcomes today. This information is used as a way to “pull the curtain back” and offers a way to prioritize opportunities.

An illustration of how this might operate within your organization can be found in iSquared research for a California foster care program to reveal:

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Change Leadership

According to a McKinsey study, 2/3 of all change efforts fail. This is because leaders are often unprepared to address change’s human dimension.

Leaders must have a plan, but what should it look like? By assessing change capacity across departments and vertical levels, we gain insight into what makes your organization tick. We then use this information to develop the capacity for change, equipping your people to move forward through even the choppiest waters.

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Presentation Effectiveness

The success of an intervention rides on the effectiveness of those communicating it, such as managers and project leaders. Effective communications can help surmount the political landmines, territory issues, competing initiatives, complex data and the drama of human emotion that often accompany interventions.

Effective communicators tailor their presentations to the needs of their audience, communicate their messages clearly and concisely, and know how to encourage and manage audience participation.

Whether you’re addressing several thousand people or a key stakeholder in a one-on-one setting, we can help you deliver your key messages in a crisp and powerful way.

Here are a few highlights of what you can expect to learn from iSquared's presentation skills training:

Refine your message
Before you ever take the podium, we’ll help you define your audience and solidify a clear, powerful message. You’ll learn how to organize your presentation to hook your audience, hold their attention, and repeat and substantiate those messages your audience must remember.

Enhance your personal presentation skills
Learn to make impactful presentations with passion, conviction and substantiation. We’ll share proven tactics for coming across as professional, credible and confident. You’ll be equipped to present highly complex information in a clear and simple way so your audience doesn’t get lost. With our help, you’ll learn how to keep your public speaking safe, interactive, and fun, while eliminating behaviors that diminish your credibility.

Manage your presentations like a pro
Successfully facilitate meetings that stay on track and produce results. Professionally manage conflict and encourage participation so every voice is heard.  You’ll learn how to stay calm under pressure and successfully deal with hecklers and naysayers without alienating your audience.

Expect the unexpected
Unstructured, off-the-cuff question-and-answer sessions can intimidate the most seasoned public speaker. However, a candid Q&A session can leave a more positive and lasting impression on an audience than a structured presentation. No need to fear the Q&A session; we'll show you how.

Harness the power of presentation tools
If everyone knows that a picture’s worth a thousand words, why do presenters so commonly abuse PowerPoint, packing slides with too much text? Learn the fine art of creating presentations with just the right amount of text and images, and just the right amount of speaking, to keep your audience interested and engaged.

Above all, our presentation skills training can help you become a more effective communicator by bringing together your communication objectives, a clear understanding of your audiences and your unique presentation style.

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