Playing Defense—Sustaining Momentum
After a couple of years, Six Sigma may become old news, and more recent issues or problems may divert managerial attention. This phenomenon has been faced by all organizations deploying Six Sigma, so it is leadership's response to it that determines whether or not the deployment will be successful in the long term. In Chapter 3 we noted that implementing the remaining infrastructure elements was the key to successfully making this transition. Recall that these infrastructure elements were identified as part of the overall deployment plan developed in the launching the initiative phase (Chapter 4). Some of these infrastructure elements were implemented during the managing the effort phase (Chapter 5), such as the systems for selecting projects and Black Belts. You are now going to close the loop and implement the remaining infrastructure elements identified in your deployment plan. These elements will enable you to sustain momentum without the same level of personal attention from senior leadership that you have had up until now.
Holding Project Gains
The improvements obtained from Six Sigma projects are held by implementing the project control plans, ensuring that all employees associated with the process are trained in the new way of operating the process and performing periodic process and financial audits. A control plan (AIAG [1994]) contains the information needed to monitor and control a process and to maintain improvements, and is finalized during the control phase of a DMAIC project. It contains specific activities required to monitor and control the process, including answers to the questions who, what, when and how? It also contains the reaction plan that defines what should be done by whom, and who should be informed when something goes wrong.
The control plan is effective when it contains all the information needed to ensure that the process is in a state of control, is in a form easily used by the operators (process workers), and is, in fact, used to operate the process. An evergreen document, it is continually updated to reflect the current methods and measurements used to monitor and control the process. Clarity, completeness, conciseness, and simplicity are key characteristics of effective control plans.
An example of a control plan adapted from the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) is shown in Figure 6-2. Control plans are process-specific, having many different forms and including a variety of types of information such as process steps, FMEA findings, measurement system indices (such as Gage R&R values) and process capability indices. The right control plan for your process is the one that contains the information needed to monitor and control your process and to maintain the gains of improvements projects.
Figure 6-2. Control Plan Example
Part of the control plan and project closure report is a schedule for the process and financial audits. The goal of the process audit is to see whether the process is being operated as directed by the control plan and standard operating procedures, and whether the process performance levels are being maintained. An effective way to integrate process audits into the normal work procedures is to make them part of the ISO 9000 audit. Both control plans and ISO 9000 audits have provisions for changing the standard operating procedures as more effective means to operate the process are found.
The financial audits determine whether the projected monetary gains are being realized. These audits, typically done by the financial organization, generally follow the financial performance of a project for 12 months after project closure. They help validate the results, build credibility for Six Sigma, and identify opportunities for improvement. Recall that documentation of financial benefits is a key success factor for Six Sigma. It is equally important to maintain the financial gains.
There also needs to be a concerted effort to ensure that all persons connected with the process, whether old hands or recently assigned, are trained in the new way of working. The adequacy of the training can also be checked as part of the ISO 9000 audit. The overall training system will be discussed later in this chapter. Some organizations train all process operators as Six Sigma Yellow Belts. Yellow Belt training is usually given by the Black Belt, typically lasts two days, and focuses on the measure and control phases of DMAIC. Although accountabilities vary considerably based on organizational philosophy and structure, in typical organizations the operators' (process workers') principal responsibilities are to take process data and to control the process.
Quarterly and Annual Reviews
Quarterly reviews conducted by the chief executive serve to monitor the health and effectiveness of the overall Six Sigma system. In large organizations these reviews should also be held at the business and function level. The goal is to check on the functioning of the overall Six Sigma infrastructure, including all relevant systems and processes. Table 6-1 is based on the elements of the deployment plan (see Chapter 4), but augmented with some specifics that have been developed since, such as review of selected projects and overall financial results. Table 6-2 shows a typical outline for such a quarterly meeting. The key Six Sigma processes to be reviewed are progress toward financial goals, training progress (particularly in the first two years), and the project selection process including the project hopper. It is not imperative that all processes be checked in each quarterly review, but certainly all processes should be checked at least once per year.
A good strategy is to formally review the critical processes in each of the first three quarterly reviews. The fourth quarter or annual review should probe in more depth, reviewing all the processes and developing an annual plan and goals for the coming year. Obviously, the annual plan and goals should link tightly to the overall strategic plan and goals from the deployment plan.
The annual review is a good time to check the project hopper for sufficient projects to reach the financial goals set for the coming year, and whether the project portfolio (mix of projects) is sufficient to satisfy the goals of the organization. Do you have the right mix of projects as categorized by business unit, functional unit, cost reduction vs. cost avoidance, strategic vs. tactical, revenue enhancement vs. cost reduction, quality improvement, etc.?
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| Note: Materials to be discussed at the review should be sent to review team 2-3 days prior to review. |
Consider taking an organizational survey of the Six Sigma deployment every 18–24 months to check on deployment progress, and to identify opportunities for improvement (Snee [1995]). This survey should measure the feelings and attitudes of all employees. Honest, unfiltered feedback from employees is difficult information for senior leadership to obtain, but very important. The results of the survey are useful input for the annual planning sessions. Organizations change slowly and the 18–24 month frequency is usually sufficient to detect improvement needs and any trends that have occurred.
The Training System
To sustain Six Sigma long term, organizations will need an overall training system. Portions of this system will already exist by this phase, and Executive, Business Leader, Champion, Black Belt, Master Black Belt (MBB), and Green Belt training will be under way. It is now time to think holistically about the organization's overall training needs relative to Six Sigma for years to come.
Key elements of a long-term training system are:
Six Sigma Awareness training for new people
Ongoing Champion, MBB, BB, and GB training
Champion, MBB, BB, and GB refresher training
Advanced Black Belt training
Initial MBB training
Six Sigma training in different languages
Six Sigma curricula for operations, administration/transactional, and new product development processes
Leadership Green Belt training
Advanced Black Belt training is typically needed because some skills specific to certain technical areas are not part of the general Black Belt training. Some examples include mixture experimentation for the chemical, coatings, and foods industries; multidimensional tolerancing for the assembly industries; and advanced process control and process variance component studies for the process industries. There are additional or advanced skills that the Black Belts need that couldn't be part of their original training because of time limitations. Some examples include advanced regression analysis and modeling techniques, complex multi-vari studies, and advanced design of experiments. Supplemental Black Belt materials and topics from Hoerl (2001) are given in Table 6-3.
Organizations are dynamic and people move in and out for various reasons. The training system must include processes for training new executives, Champions, Black Belts, MBBs, and Green Belts. Some training will be job dependent; for example, engineers and financial personnel will need different kinds of training. In general, we recommend tailored training to the degree feasible. Existing executives, Champions, Black Belts, MBBs, and Green Belts can also benefit from brief refresher courses, particularly when they stay in these roles for an extended period of time. New topics or techniques will likely be added to courses over time, and refreshers provide a convenient means for those previously trained to stay up to date. To sustain Six Sigma momentum, training needs to be a sustained system, not simply a one-time event.
Multinational companies will need to develop training materials and instructors to deliver Six Sigma training in multiple languages. In our experience you can often deliver Executive, Champion, MBB, and Black Belt training in English in most industrialized countries, but Green Belt training needs to be in the native language. Learning Six Sigma is challenging enough without having to struggle with the nuances of a foreign language. Accurate translation of technical material is very difficult, and for digital training systems there are often unique challenges translating into double-byte languages such as Chinese or Japanese (for which characters are stored as two bytes instead of one).
A training system is much more extensive than a list of courses. A good system will include processes for developing and presenting new courses, keeping track of who has attended courses and/or passed exams, identifying people in need of specific training, translating materials, qualifying instructors, and providing managerial reports.
The organization must think carefully about how the training system will be managed over time. In most situations, a Six Sigma provider manages the training system initially, but what happens when the contract expires? Taking over the responsibility for managing the training system from the Six Sigma provider helps make Six Sigma part of the culture—how things are done around here. Many organizations put MBBs in charge of managing the training system, perhaps through a Training Council, since training is a key role of MBBs.
Leadership Green Belt Training
It takes time before your entire management team has the required Six Sigma skills and experience. GE recognized this and decided to train all its professionals as Green Belts, as well as making Green Belt status a condition of promotion for professionals. Jack Welch said, “with Six Sigma permeating much of what you do, it will be unthinkable to hire, promote or tolerate those who cannot, or will not, commit to this way of work” (USA Today, 2/27/98).
When management supports it in this manner, Six Sigma is an effective leadership developmental tool. Leaders learn how to use Six Sigma to improve an organization and its processes in all businesses, all functions, and all cultures. They see how Six Sigma develops personnel, providing breadth of experience by allowing people to work on a variety of processes, empowering people to improve processes, teaching teamwork, and developing leaders. Leadership Green Belt training also results in all leaders hearing a common message that helps create alignment around the objectives and goals of Six Sigma. Leaders with such perspective will ensure that the gains of Six Sigma are maintained.
Iomega reported, “Six Sigma is the best people development tool we have ever deployed” (English [2001]). Through its Six Sigma projects Iomega, which provides storage products for digital items, developed a common language and common approach for process design, improvement, and management. DuPont, Honeywell, and 3M are also providing Six Sigma training for their leadership.
We focus on Green Belt training as a leadership tool to ensure that all leaders have experienced Six Sigma at the gut level. Green Belt training is needed at the beginning of implementation, because none of the senior leaders will have held MBB or Black Belt positions. The need for Leadership Green Belt training will decrease over time as more leaders have Black Belt and MBB experience.
The goal of the Green Belt Leadership training is for the leaders to develop a deeper understanding of Six Sigma, and to learn how to use it to improve the organization. Six Sigma training works best when it is project-based, but it can be difficult to find appropriate projects for the leaders to work on. Training without a project is of less value; it can leave the impression that the leaders are just getting their tickets punched and are not serious about learning the methodology. A similar result can occur if the projects are not viewed as important, or the leaders don't do a good job and poor results are obtained. So we have come full circle, finding that project selection is a potential Achilles heel of Leadership Green Belt training, just as it is for other types of Six Sigma projects. Here are a few suggestions for finding appropriate projects.
Focus on the work the leader actually does. This will ensure that the project is meaningful, not duties added to an already overflowing plate. Recall from the discussion of non-manufacturing applications that all work can be viewed as a process, but with general business processes it is much harder to actually see the process. Experienced MBBs should be able to help the Leadership Green Belts see the underlying processes in managerial activities such as budgeting, evaluating performance, and allocating resources. Many senior executives feel that they spend too much time in unproductive meetings. All would appreciate improvements to the meeting process. Implementing and managing the systems and processes that are part of the Six Sigma infrastructure (the focus of Chapters 5 and 6) would make excellent leadership DFSS projects. A senior HR leader could implement a new reward and recognition system; an IT leader could design a new tracking and reporting system; finance leaders could work on designing the financial auditing system for projects. Large projects such as these might need to be split up into several smaller projects, and additional team members will likely be needed to address details (such as writing computer code). Nevertheless, relevant, important project areas like these tend to be much more fruitful than projects that are perceived as “moving the water cooler.” Other examples of topics for Leadership Green Belt projects are given in Table 6-4.
Our recommendation is that every Green Belt, including senior leadership, do at least one formal project. We do not believe you can get a “gut-level” appreciation for Six Sigma without actually doing it yourself. Through careful project selection, and mentoring from experienced MBBs, Leadership Green Belts can successfully complete meaningful projects. While extra mentoring from the MBB can be extremely helpful, the MBB must carefully avoid even the perception that he or she is doing the project for the Leadership Green Belt.
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Six Sigma Organizational Structure
By now you have realized that some Six Sigma infrastructure is needed to sustain momentum. If properly designed and implemented, this infrastructure will be value-added, with minimal bureaucracy. Note that we recommend a lean infrastructure, one that is primarily automated and requires minimal human staffing. For example, the project tracking and reporting system should be digital, so that additional personnel are not required to process paper reports. Despite its leanness, the infrastructure will require some human guidance to manage and improve it over time. Therefore you will need a formal Six Sigma organizational structure to clarify roles and responsibilities for managing the infrastructure. This organizational structure will likely have begun in the managing the effort phase, but needs to be completed and invigorated now because of the extension of supporting systems and processes in this phase.
Organizational structure is particularly important now that the direct involvement of the Six Sigma provider is winding down. In many Six Sigma deployments the provider handles much of the initial organizational effort. Transition to an internal organizational structure is an important step in becoming self-sufficient. It is particularly important that the training system is well managed, and does not miss a beat as the provider's efforts wind down.
If the transition is not properly handled, a leadership vacuum will be created when the provider fades out of the picture. The best way to avoid this is to have a formal, functioning organizational structure, such as an active Six Sigma Council led by the overall Six Sigma Leader, to manage the effort going forward. This implies more than just naming Champions, MBBs, Black Belts, and so on. You need a functioning team that works like a “well-oiled machine” to properly lead and coordinate all aspects of the Six Sigma deployment.
By “active” we mean that all members must participate regularly. It does little good to list the company's top leaders as council members if they do not participate. As noted earlier, we may also set up Six Sigma Councils within individual business units or functions. The leaders of the business unit and functional councils are usually members of the overall council, resulting in interlocking membership, which aids in communication and coordination across the organization.
For example, when Roger Hoerl was Quality Leader (Six Sigma Leader) of the GE Corporate Audit Staff (CAS), he also was a participant in the GE Quality Leaders' Council (overall Six Sigma Council). In addition, he led the CAS Quality Council that also consisted of:
The CAS Vice President (head of CAS)
Head of all financial service business audits (GE Capital)
Head of all industrial business audits
CAS HR manager
CAS IT leader
An MBB
This organizational structure worked well for a couple of reasons: (1) it ensured that the CAS Six Sigma effort was aligned with the overall direction of GE's Six Sigma deployment, due to the interlocking membership; (2) the participation of the key decision makers in the CAS council ensured alignment within CAS.
For example, when the council made policy decisions about certification criteria, training requirements, and so on, all the key leaders conveyed the same message. If the leaders had not participated in these decisions, there would have been an opportunity for second-guessing, misalignment, or organizational conflict at the top. All members, including the vice president, made their active participation in this council a priority. The HR and IT representatives contributed significantly to training, reward and recognition, career development issues (HR), and tracking systems for projects, training, and certification (IT). Six Sigma Councils typically include the Six Sigma Leader, representative (not all) Champions, representative MBBs, leaders of Finance, HR, IT, and any other relevant functions or participants.
Six Sigma Leaders Must Work Together as a Team
It is important not only that an organizational structure be in place to lead and manage the Six Sigma effort, but that the key Six Sigma players work together as a team. A team functions well when each player does his or her job well and knows what the roles and functions of all the other players on the team are. For example, it is important that the Black Belts understand the roles of the Champion and other Six Sigma team members so they will know where to go for help.
Similarly, it is critical that the functional group leaders know the role of the Black Belts so they can provide them with data, expertise, and resources. This attitude helps everyone learn his or her role and function effectively. The Six Sigma Sweep sports analogy can help us deepen understanding of this requirement.
“The Six Sigma Sweep”Columnist George Will tells us “sports serve society by providing vivid examples of excellence.” This can be true with Six Sigma. Sports provides vivid examples and analogies that help us understand why Six Sigma is so effective—the fact that it provides a strategy, methodology, and an infrastructure that enables all the leaders to work together as a team improving the performance of the organization. When you think of excellence and success in the sports world, Vince Lombardi quickly comes to mind. He was the coach of the Green Bay Packer football team that won five National Football League titles and the first two Super Bowls in the 1960s. Many subsequent successful football coaches were students of Lombardi's. How did he do it? His success came from careful thought, detailed planning, lots of practice and hard work, and a clear focus on the goal. These success factors also apply to Six Sigma. What was his methodology? The famous Packer Sweep was Lombardi's signature play, and a key component of his success. This was a running play where the running back carried the ball to the outside behind two lineman (pulling guards). Lombardi practiced this play more than any other, refining it until his players knew that they could run it anytime against any opponent. Anyone who saw Green Bay play football during the Lombardi years will recall the sweep in which the guards Jerry Kramer (64) and Fuzzy Thurston (63) pulled out of the line and led the running back Jim Taylor (31) around the end while each of the other players completed their assignments. Interestingly, Lombardi did not invent this play—he borrowed it from the then-Los Angeles Rams—but he certainly perfected it. He also developed many variations. On every play each player knew his job, and that if each did his assignment the play would be successful. The play was so important to Lombardi's offense that Coach John Madden recalls him devoting an entire one-day seminar to the subject (Madden [1985]). Lombardi discussed the play, its philosophy, its fundamentals, its objectives, what each player's role was, and why the play couldn't be stopped if each player executed well. Each variation of the sweep was discussed in the same detail. There are many similarities between the Packer Sweep and Six Sigma. First, Six Sigma was not totally original. It built on the work of others and continues to be enhanced. Six Sigma works because it emphasizes focus, planning, constant practice (every project is a practice session), and dedicated leadership. There are well-defined roles and if each person does his or her job, as defined by the process, the projects will be successful and Six Sigma will achieve its goals. Six Sigma can be the signature business strategy and management process that separates an organization from its competition—providing focus, reducing costs, growing revenues, empowering and developing people, enhancing teamwork, and providing a common corporate language and methodology. In the process, Six Sigma improves an organization's performance, sweeping money to the bottom line, just as Lombardi's Green Bay Sweep gained yards, put points on the scoreboard, won games, won conference titles, and won Super Bowls. We refer to this use of Six Sigma as a signature business strategy as the Six Sigma Sweep. This analogy actually goes much deeper. There are 11 roles on the Six Sigma Sweep team just as there are 11 positions on a football team. These roles are detailed in Table 6-A (also see Chapter 4) and are shown schematically with linkages in Figure 6-A. While there are many analogies, we will resist the temptation to match the roles on the Six Sigma team with those on a football team. The important point is that these roles have to work together as a team just as the players on a football team have to work together to be successful. Figure 6-A. A Six Sigma Sweep Team
If the people in these roles perform their job as defined and understand the roles of the others on the team, just as Lombardi required of his players, the Six Sigma Sweep will work. Organizational performance will improve, money will be swept to the bottom line, and the organization will be well down the road to success. In fact, when an organization moves out in front of its competition using Six Sigma, and continues to use Six Sigma effectively, the organization will most likely always be ahead of its competition. It is unlikely that the competition will ever catch up. We again recall the AlliedSignal manager's admonishment, “Six Sigma works if you follow the process. If it is not working you are not following the process.” (Madden, J. (1985). Hey, Wait a Minute! I Wrote a Book. Random House, New York, NY.) |
