six sigma

[Hookeye]

I remember a BUNCH of GM management and butt kissing salaried going on and on about the "Lopez diet".
Used to make fun of them.
Really got a charge out of it when he defected and gave VW some secrets.
Cult of supervision.

 

[Hoosierkav]

Definitely, management support has to be there, and buy-in from the front line folks. It can be a great tool to identify problems and put forth tactics to see what is really going on, and identify solutions. Some things are simple (Kaizen), like the aforementioned drawer organizer--if you can spend $1 on a chunk of plastic that keeps you from rummaging through your desk, it is money well-spent. If you can identify flow or quality issues and improve the process (reduce waste or process time, etc.), the operation is better. It doesn't have to get crazy with math--a person with a stop watch and simple data collection can be just fine.

It fails when leadership sees it as a way to downsize; a good company will improve efficiency (quality/process time) and be able to use those "displaced workers" elsewhere. If employees are not valuable, they're expendable.

But, back to the OP. There are a million and one books out there--go to the library and see what you can find. Mark Graban has a healthcare blog on this topic; you might find some good rabbit trails there. As far as classes go, an employer might not recognize the piece of paper you spent $2000 getting. Coursera.com has one process improvement class (4 wk, self study) that might have some value. Some businesses might be willing to let you sit in one of their in-house classes if you ask nicely (or pay a little bit).

 

[smittygj]

Again I say run from it. In the end everyone loses (being sarcastic but somewhat truthful) !!!

 

[jd4320t]

It can be great and always looks wonderful on paper. The meetings are often and it helps out with promotions. People at my level, production operators, hear about it yet aren't ever involved enough.

After years it is now a joke to me.

 

[Libertarian01]

Alright, learning moment for me.

In my business classes it was mentioned once, briefly, and never again.

My basic understanding was that it is a process to follow to constantly improve reliability and efficiency in a company, most often with production. It looks for ways to organize and cut out waste all decreasing production time.

So my question would be is the above generally accurate?

If it is, is Six Sigma something that could work well but that everyone needs to be on board and fully implement it for it to be fully functional? In other words, you can't have "most" of the management pushing and a few guys not really getting into it, thus undermining its value? Because I know there are some situations like this, where everyone needs to be on board or it just won't work well. As people are resistant to change and like "doin' thangs the way we've always dunnit" they don't fit well with a company trying to change with the times and improve. Of course you also have people who will fight everything because they didn't think of it.

Doug

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Alright, learning moment for me.

In my business classes it was mentioned once, briefly, and never again.

My basic understanding was that it is a process to follow to constantly improve reliability and efficiency in a company, most often with production. It looks for ways to organize and cut out waste all decreasing production time.

So my question would be is the above generally accurate?

If it is, is Six Sigma something that could work well but that everyone needs to be on board and fully implement it for it to be fully functional? In other words, you can't have "most" of the management pushing and a few guys not really getting into it, thus undermining its value? Because I know there are some situations like this, where everyone needs to be on board or it just won't work well. As people are resistant to change and like "doin' thangs the way we've always dunnit" they don't fit well with a company trying to change with the times and improve. Of course you also have people who will fight everything because they didn't think of it.

Doug

Sometimes "doin' thangs the way we've always dunnit" isn't necessarily a bad thing. I've seen "improvements" really muck things up and make things way more complicated than they need to be. There's a reason the saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" came to be.

 

[dak109]

I will stick by my original thoughts. And add, it is another tool, with different terminology, to attempt to correct production issues. When a company spends hundreds of thousands of dollars to implement it, and saves hundreds of dollars, it is a waste. A truly good company that takes care of its employees can obtain the same savings and production increases by listening to the employees suggestions for increased productivity. In the end companies have too much money invested in it to abandon it.

 

[rhino]

As an outsider to the system, I've seen people's careers advance rapidly at least in part because of 1) extensive knowledge of and certification in Six Sigma, and 2) being able to use the tools correctly to improve the processes.

As with most other tools, it can be used effectively or it can be used as a weapon or it can be used as a canard. Kind of like having a gun doesn't necessarily mean that you can effectively defend yourself, nor is the object itself sufficient for a comprehensive plan to defend yourself.