Education
James Török received his Bachelor’s Degree in Japanese Studies from Georgetown University in Washington, DC and his Master’s Degree in Business Information Systems from Boston University. James gained his qualifications for behavioral training from Dr. Baldinger & Partner,in Germany and is a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt.
Professional Experience
James has over 15 years experience in helping companies improve the way they do business. Process improvement and cost reduction have been his concentration since 1993 (Total Quality Management, Activity Based Costing), with a focus on Lean Six Sigma in particular since 1997 for which he has a Master Black Belt qualification and has published articles in professional journals. He is currently working to combine behavioral elements (team development, management, intercultural issues and corporate social responsiblity) along with the technical ones within a broader Lean Six Sigma framework.
Languages
A native English speaker, James is fluent in German, French, Dutch and Japanese (including reading/writing capability). He has delivered Lean Six Sigma training and coaching in English, German, French and Japanese and has supervised the translation of Lean Six Sigma training materials into Japanese.
Recent projects include
- Green Belt and Black Belt training and coaching for a European railways company.
- Champions and Green Belt training for an Austrian electronics firm.
- DFSS training for a European chemical company.
- Green Belt training for the Japanese operations of a French conglomerate.
- Green Belt, Black Belt and Champions Training and coaching for an American automobile parts supplier (Europe and Japan).
- Beyond Lean Six Sigma”: Project leadership and soft-skills training for Black Belts
- Leadership training/coaching, Green Belt training and project coaching for an American pharmaceuticals company (Europe and South Africa).
- Black Belt training and coaching for a major German industrial conglomerate.
- Black Belt training and coaching project team leaders at a large US chemicals firm (Europe and USA).
- Training of over 450 Black Belts at numerous firms throughout Europe within a large US financial services group.
- Participation in a Business Process Reengineering project for a well-known American manufacturer of leisure clothing.
- Activity Based Management (ABM) training for a large European electronics manufacturer.
- Intercultural Management seminars for a German automobile manufacturer.
- Team development and project management skills for Lean Six Sigma Black Belts.
Publications
Torok, James 2004. ‘The Wherefore and Y’, Quality Progress, American Society for Quality, Milwaukee, WI, USA. Feature article about Lean Six Sigma project definitions and project pipelines. (Forthcoming)
Torok, James 2004. ‘We May Be Closer Than We Think; How the lessons learned in quality and process management can help companies to accept and manage broader social responsibility’, Social Responsibility, Ansted University Press, United Kingdom. (Forthcoming)