How To Implement a six sigma program

The biggest misconception small-business owners have about Six Sigma may be to assume the process-improvement program is useful only for large manufacturers.Nothing could be further from the truth.

“Six Sigma is a collection of tools to improve processes and is applicable to any kind of business,” says Bob Olson, a Six Sigma instructor at Central Piedmont Community College.

“Six Sigma can benefit service and production companies of all sizes who have identified change as a critical business need,” says Charlotte business coach Cathy Critz, owner of Solutions FYS Inc.

She adds: “A good Six Sigma candidate company is typically customer-driven with defined processes, is comfortable with data and fact-driven management, is open to exploring options and is tolerant of failure. Every option is not successful.

Six Sigma systematically guides companies to define, measure, analyze, improve and control improvement projects and processes. Companies that use it report lower costs, less waste, improved process capability and significantly improved customer satisfaction.

Once you decide Six Sigma can benefit your company, the next step is to decide on the infrastructure you will use to implement it. Will you hire an outside consultant to advise you? Will you hire a black-belt Six Sigma expert (the highest level certification possible) to come to your site and lead the effort?

You may choose to seek training for individual staff members to be certified in Six Sigma techniques. Then you need to decide how many employees need training and at what level.

Programs range from a three-hour executive workshop to familiarize management with the program to 60 hours of classroom and online instruction that also includes direct project experience.

“Don’t over-train your people — keep focused on your goals,” advises Gary Klipp, who developed training software for Six Sigma when he was at The Quality Group. He is now retired from the Charlotte firm.

Critz says many companies choose to bring in a black-belt consultant to oversee the Six Sigma process and to help train personnel who are seeking certification.

If your company is very small, or if you have budget concerns, see if you can team with other small firms for joint training and consulting.

There are other steps to take to ensure your company’s Six Sigma program is effective. Management support is vital, Olson says. “Without management commitment, you’ll only see pockets of improvement. You need to empower your change agents.”

If you don’t, you’ll fail, Klipp says. “You need to free in-house leaders from other tasks and give them authority, as well as a title. If they don’t have authority, they will butt heads with other managers. Teams are usually cross-functional and cross departments, so people from several departments need to be involved.”

Process improvement should be continual, and it needs to become part of the way you do business. But keep in mind that specific projects related to Six Sigma need to have specific beginning and end dates. They may last two weeks to several months.

“The Six Sigma team develops solutions, which are then turned over to an implementation or operations team,” Klipp says.

Never forget the big picture, he says. “Sustainability is the biggest tissue. If improvement is not maintained, you’ll come back three years later to the same problem.”

It’s also important to determine the specific return on investment for each project. “It can be frustrating if you don’t know your ROI,” Klipp says. “You need to accurately figure out what you expect cost savings to be and then correctly compute and track them.” TOPTIPS •Recognize Six Sigma can be effectively utilized by small firms in any industry. •Be open to change, committed to an ongoing process and comfortable with Six Sigma’s measurement techniques and data analysis.

•Get the advice, support and staff training necessary, but don’t pay for more than you really need.

•Give your staff the authority it needs to get the job done. Bea Quirk is a Charlotte-based free-lance writer who can be reached at beawrites@aol.com. The Article Source : http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/stories/2008/08/04/smallb4.html