This third episode of the DNA season of the National Institute of Justice's (NIJ's) Just Science podcast series consists of an interview with Julie Sikorsky, who describes her DNA lab unit's procedures and benefits from implementing Lean Six Sigma, which is a business management principle that has reduced her lab's backlog by reducing turnaround time by 45 percent.
Sikorsky manages the DNA unit of the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, which serves about 30 law enforcement agencies. After discussing her educational and career background that brought her to being an analyst in and then the manager of a DNA forensic lab unit, the interview focuses on how she has used the business principle of Lean Six Sigma as a vehicle for increasing the efficiency of continually expanding DNA analysis. Her management effort was launched under a grant from the U.S. Justice Department's National Institute of Justice (NIJ), which supported the establishment of a separate DNA screening unit that focused on setting priorities and efficient procedures for DNA analysis, using the management principles of Lean Six Sigma.