Explained below are some of the processes and procedures that businesses can deploy to ensure the continuity of 6 Sigma implementation projects.
Charting Out Implementation Plans and Strategies
Continuity of implementation projects can be easily affected if proper plans and strategies are not formulated prior to the actual implementations. This is why businesses first need to concentrate on doing their homework (i.e. devise an appropriate roadmap for carrying out the implementations).
For this, businesses need to conduct brainstorming sessions to seek input and suggestions from all the potential stakeholders such as employees, team members, Green Belts, Black Belts, Master Black Belts, Project Sponsors, middle and top management and department heads. The brainstorming sessions should preferably be conducted under the guidance of a senior management member having prior experience in Six Sigma implementations.
This person should ideally be able to set the right tone and give the right direction to the discussions in order to achieve the desired results and avoid getting stuck with input and suggestions that sound like mere wish lists.
Making Available the Required Resources
Another factor that can easily affect the continuity of Six Sigma implementation projects is the unavailability of essential resources required during the implementations. Here, resources refer to both human resources as well as material resources. Depending on the type of project, human resources may be composed of 6 Sigma professionals such as Black Belts, Green Belts, and Master Black Belts whereas material resources may comprise of new tools and equipment, Information Technology (IT) systems, and the required infrastructure.
When these resources are made available at the right time, at the right place, and in the right quantity, it becomes much easier for the implementation team to ensure the continuity of the Six Sigma implementation projects. To get the desired results, businesses need to create a separate logistics team, responsible for making available the necessary material resources to the implementation team as and when needed. In case of human resources, the HR department can be called in to play their part.
Maintaining continuity is necessary because then it becomes much easier for the implementation team to complete the implementations within the stipulated time and costs. If continuity is not maintained, chances are high that the project might get derailed, leading to increased implementation costs, something that would defy the very basic tenets of Six Sigma implementation projects. These implementations are meant for improving quality and reducing costs and not for achieving the opposite. Businesses that want to realize the full potential of Six Sigma should thus undertake all the initiatives that are required for ensuring the continuity of the implementations.
Even though the implementation techniques and tools put into practice by Black Belts could differ, Kaizen is by far the basic methodology used for such purposes. Additionally, it has been observed that principles of Lean Six Sigma are time and again merged with Kaizen concepts for providing faster and much better results.
Kaizen Basics
Six Sigma and Kaizen are said to be alike as they both are based on the principle that every organization is composed of a series of business processes, which have to be changed occasionally to accomplish better quality and efficiency.
The following are some basic Kaizen procedures Black Belts put into practice for identifying problem areas and looking for operational results.
Identifying Key Problem Areas
During this procedure, the Black Belt and their team members focus their strengths on recording the various features of the business process for making the identification process considerably faster and easier. After the various elements of the given process are recorded, it turns out to be very easy for the implementation team to identify problem areas and advise corrective measures to solve them.
Mapping of the process is useful in recording the aspects of a complex business process that has many sub-processes or sub-parts.
Getting the Timing Right
Analysis of the time value is conducted whenever the efficiency of a particular business process relies on the time spent for completing various sub-processes within the main one. This helps the Black Belts in weighing the actual time taken for the process against the standards that have been set. When the less efficient sub-process is identified, the Black Belts use the previous process maps for identifying the problem areas causing the slowdown, contained by the sub-process.
Focusing On Key Processes
There are instances where, due to limited time, it is impossible to evaluate every business process. In times like these, Black Belts employ value stream mapping for recognizing processes that offer maximum value and the ones that offer minimum value. Value stream mapping is very helpful whenever there is some improvement in quality that has to be carried out in a diminutive time for making it easier for Black Belts to focus their quality improvement programs only on maximum value providing processes.
This procedure is usually used in organizations where the real number of low value processes is considerably larger than the high value processes. This procedure may not be necessary in organizations with fewer processes or in organizations with high value processes.
Every Kaizen procedure illustrated above can be independently or simultaneously used on the basis of the type of business process in question. The Black Belts can always put their innovative skills and experience to use in conjunction with the given procedures to easy identify and solve critical issues with regard to Six Sigma implementation projects.
Tony Jacowski has sinced written about articles on various topics from University, Six Sigma and Information Technology. Tony Jacowski is a quality analyst for The MBA Journal. Aveta Solution's Six Sigma Online offers online six sigma training and certification classes for lean six sigm. Tony Jacowski's top article generates over 90500 views. Bookmark Tony Jacowski to your Favourites.