The AI Process Excellence Framework (APEX) fuses Lean Six Sigma discipline with 9 families of AI tools — and the BUILD agentic stack. It's how every class turns "interesting" into hours saved, errors cut and results you can show your boss.
Built on decades of process-improvement practice
Applied across 10 industries, frontline to C-suite
Aware → Capable → Led
Plus the new BUILD agentic stack
Our five promises: start with your real work · keep it practical · stay tool-agnostic · use real examples · always show the payoff
Whatever shiny new app launches next week, it fits one of these families. Learn the families once; evaluate any tool forever.
Chatbots, LLMs, voice assistants
Drafting, summarising, translating
Data analysis, pattern recognition
Risk scoring, recommendations
Workflow bots, process orchestration
Forecasting, demand planning
Image generation, video, vision
Semantic search, document intelligence
Error detection, validation
Beyond single tools: Blueprint your AI workspace with Projects, package expertise as reUsable Skills, Integrate your systems with Connectors (MCP), extend with PLugins, and govern it all with Defined guardrails. Taught hands-on in Series D (W41–46) and woven into every bootcamp capstone.
Explore Series D →TIMWOODS-AI maps the eight classic Lean wastes to the AI that quietly removes each one.
| Waste | AI family | What it looks like fixed | |
|---|---|---|---|
| T | Transport | Automation & RPA | Documents route themselves |
| I | Inventory | Analytical AI | AI-driven demand forecasting |
| M | Motion | Conversational AI | Answers surface instantly — no hunting |
| W | Waiting | Automation & RPA | Bots trigger the next step automatically |
| O | Overproduction | Decision Support AI | Reports generated on demand only |
| O | Over-processing | Generative Text AI | AI writes the first draft, you refine |
| D | Defects | Quality Assurance AI | Errors caught in real time |
| S | Skills | All families | Talent freed for higher-value work |
The classic improvement cycle, with the right AI lending a hand at every phase.
4–8 hours
You'll learn: to spot AI-ready tasks, run your first real prompts, and know the 9 families cold.
2–3 days
You'll learn: to design AI workflows, validate outputs, and build reusable Skills and custom assistants.
3–5 days
You'll learn: to lead full DMAIC-AI projects, design governed agentic workflows, and prove value in numbers.
You'll never memorise acronyms to benefit — but here's the full toolkit your trainers run on.
| Framework | Level | Purpose | Core tool |
|---|---|---|---|
| RDATA | L1 | Recognise AI opportunities in any role | R-D-A-T-A criteria scan |
| TIMWOODS-AI | L1–L3 | Identify & eliminate the 8 wastes | 8 Wastes × AI matrix |
| ATSF | L2 | Select the correct AI tool category | 7-question decision tree |
| PIA | L2 | Write prompts that produce quality output | Role / Context / Task / Format |
| AOQF | L2+ | Validate AI output before real use | A-R-C-T-E checklist |
| DMAIC-AI | L2–L3 | Run improvement projects with AI | 5-phase DMAIC × AI |
| AI Kaizen | L3 | Rapid AI-enabled improvement events | 5-phase Kaizen method |
| APIM | L3 | Embed AI into operational workflows | 5-stage methodology |
| AVMF-X | L3 | Measure business impact + sigma | 5 dimensions + Sigma D5 |
| BUILD ✦ | L2–L3 | Assemble Skills, Projects, Connectors & Plugins into governed agentic workflows | 5-layer agentic stack canvas |
After every project we measure five dimensions — so the benefit is something you show, not something you claim.
We'll tailor the rollout to your people, start with a measured pilot, and put the results on one page for your leadership.