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All Access Why YOU Need Lean Six Sigma – Part 2
Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is an approved methodology that has produced measurable financial benefits over the past 20 years.
One particular way in which Lean Six Sigma helps in the development of a sustainable quality culture is by assessing business process performance in an unbiased fashion.
Apart from manufacturing, where the product is created and visually inspected, the defects can easily be checked for quality; the other functions within an organization will need help to control quality.
How do we inspect our product for its development, if it is a loan, an insurance policy, or the transfer of dental records from a local practice to a specialist clinic?
The facts are that most of these products and processes are indeed invisible, meaning that we rely on a tranche of information to complete the task and deliver the product or service.
As a result, it is increasingly difficult to conduct quality control on information transfer, so we must have a mechanism in place to notify us that, for example, transfer between a branch and the back office has slowed drastically, with the result that customers are being made to wait for a maximum of, let’s say, ten days to open an account.
Straightforward Lean Six Sigma tools such as value stream mapping and process maps can bring to light things that have been assumed or poorly understood. By making what resides inside people’s heads or systems visible on a map, an organization can identify opportunities for improvement and create a baseline for current performance.
Of particular merit are two further points that emphasize Lean Six Sigma’s strength in promoting sustainability:
Lean Six Sigma projects are typically linked to business-critical issues. This ensures that the Lean Six Sigma teams are assigned to address challenging problems, deliver quantifiable benefits, and get the level of attention and support required for long-term success.
Lean Six Sigma provides a standard approach to problem-solving. Management and executives can be sure that the appropriate level of rigour has been applied and that the team has worked to find the root cause.
In short, Lean Six Sigma stops employees from jumping from a problem statement to a “solution”.
Developing an LSS corporate strategy for differentiation
The Lean Six Sigma methodology helps an organization successfully make the transition to one that differentiates itself from others by:
- Offering top-level service
- Simultaneously provide products or services that the customer values
- Having the lowest level of operating expenses
This transformation takes place because the organization better understands the needs and wants of its customer base, can measure and monitor its vendor’s performance, and improves its internal business processes.
If differentiation between competing products or services is shrinking, how do customers differentiate between companies when the products offered are the same?
How does a house buyer choose between lenders when deciding on a loan provider? The rates are almost identical.
The answer to this question is the foundation of quality in an organization, both from a product and a service delivery dimension.
The more we understand what the end buyers want and how we perform to their expectations, the more precise the roadmap for improvement will be. This is precisely how Lean Six Sigma is utilized in today’s marketplace to create differentiation.
Assisting in overcoming operational challenges
Regardless of an organization’s industry or size, three challenges can prevent it from operating effectively, leaving it with inefficient processes and poor service delivery.
These three challenges are:
- Introducing new processes or products with a complete understanding of risk and recognizing what could go wrong, how to address it, and its impact on other parts of the organization. Another missing link is success metrics, knowing if the goals have been reached.
- One at a time changes or improvements – thereby being in reactive mode will adversely affect one process while trying to fix another, and not allowing for a cohesive, strategic fix
- Lack of appropriate in-process and executive metrics and need to know what to measure, how to measure it, and how often. This is exacerbated by failing to drive continuous improvement based on employee “noise level”.
These challenges arise because organizations need a systematic problem-solving platform or a business culture based on process management and data-driven decision-making.
Executives need a systematic and structured approach to dealing with business issues, and most often, the structured approach comes directly from the quality strategy that has been implemented.
The strengths of Lean Six Sigma are that it helps organizations overcome these challenges by providing a common language, training, and a problem-solving set of tools.
Lean Six Sigma Masterclass – Everything you ever wanted to know about DMAIC
Boosting the core fundamentals of L6S
Lean Six Sigma takes the features of Lean ( speed), and combines them with Six Sigma (stability and accuracy). This Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Masters Series will teach you how to streamline processes, improve business performance and supercharge your career
