| "The more I learn about customer satisfaction, the less | | | | technology or even an internal matter like |
| I know," the CEO of a Fortune 500 company recently | | | | organizational change can occur. |
| lamented. By the time some companies get to | | | | The Robust Mechanisms Of Six Sigma |
| understand their customers' needs fully, it will be too | | | | As with all other aspects of life, failures are always |
| late. Management is often flooded with customer data | | | | attributed to Six Sigma but not the successes. A |
| detailing their satisfaction levels among other things. | | | | successful Six Sigma implementation essentially |
| However, the data has been collected only as an | | | | requires a rock solid commitment from top |
| exercise, not as a means to end customer | | | | management. Despite this, Six Sigma continues to |
| dissatisfaction. | | | | question any authority, critically shaking most of the |
| Can't Anyone Achieve Six Sigma? | | | | beliefs that the organization had about itself. As it goes |
| There is no doubt that Six Sigma has enjoyed the | | | | deeper, it potentially shakes the foundations on which |
| seat of power like no other management tool has to | | | | organizations exist. |
| date. The milestones crossed by the methodology are | | | | The inordinate delay in data gathering is another |
| also non-controversial. Then where are there any | | | | obstacle to get Six Sigma out of the starting block. |
| problems and why is doubt being cast upon its ability to | | | | Sometimes the data is not divulged and other times it |
| deliver? | | | | genuinely takes time to gather. Other priorities coupled |
| Paddy Rao, Associate VP of a large software | | | | with this pushes the implementation team to rush |
| services company, a Champion and Master Black Belt | | | | through the deployment. |
| himself, cites a major stumbling block for Six Sigma | | | | Add to this the possibility of selecting the wrong |
| implementation, which is cultural change. A sudden | | | | project. If this happens, no matter how well you slog |
| change in the way people work and an altered | | | | out later, the deployment will be a loser from the |
| reporting structure is what people find as obstructions | | | | beginning. You will invariably fail to see a much different |
| to their routines. "Sometimes it takes ages to break | | | | result from that of the original. |
| this mindset", says another Black Belt who worked | | | | Indeed, it is the robust inbuilt mechanisms of Six Sigma |
| with Rao. | | | | that have worked for its success in almost all cases. |
| Anyone that says they have successfully implemented | | | | One genuine concern about Six Sigma is about the |
| Six Sigma means only that they have completed the | | | | cost of implementation, which very nearly challenges |
| implementation. It doesn't mean that they have actually | | | | the ROI. As one CRM specialist put it, "where ROI has |
| achieved 3.4 defects per million. You will notice many | | | | catapulted because of CRM, Six Sigma has been |
| things changing as you go about deploying Six Sigma. | | | | credited for it". This is the reason that Six Sigma is so |
| The market changes, you may see a change in | | | | widely accepted, despite the costs. |