Home | Business | Project Management
Six Sigma is a quality improvement technique that aims at reducing wastage by restricting the number of defects to not more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities that might exist for such defects to occur. Reduced wastage naturally results in lower production costs, which in turn helps an organization to maximize profits. Six Sigma also helps in developing customer loyalty and satisfaction because reduction in the number of defects means better quality products or services. Most Common Controversies One of the most common Six Sigma controversies is related to employee dissatisfaction, which results because employees think that they will lose their jobs or will be shifted to other positions after the implementations are over. This can prove detrimental for the organization's aims and objectives because the employees are less likely to lend their full support and cooperation in an environment that forces them to think negatively. In such a scenario, it is very much possible that the implementations may take more time for completion or in the worst-case scenario, may get scrapped altogether. Another common controversy is associated with the selection of the implementation team. This controversy arises because of differences in opinions related to the composition of the implementation team. Some senior management members believe that the implementation team must consist of existing employees whereas others believe that Six Sigma professionals such as Green Belts and Black Belts must be hired to carry out the implementations. This ultimately can result in enmity and ego clashes between senior management members. How To Overcome The Controversies If we look closely, we will find that most of the above stated controversies are basically due to lack of proper information dissemination and lack of clarity related to the common goals and objectives. It is quite natural for employees to fear job losses, especially when there is a lack in communications between the project sponsors and the employees related to the real purpose of the implementations. To allay the fears, it is necessary to inform the employees that they will not lose their jobs and that adequate compensation packages have been put in place for employees who might have to leave the organization for better opportunities elsewhere. The controversy related to the composition of the implementation team can be overcome by identifying the real needs of the implementation. For example, if a business process is easy, existing employees can carry out the implementation and in case a process is complex, the implementations may require the services of experienced Six Sigma professionals. The basic thing to do for overcoming any of the controversies is to concentrate on achieving the end objective rather than waste time and effort in selecting a particular implementation method or technique. Businesses need to realize that controversies are a part of Six Sigma implementations and that they do not need to get hyperactive when faced with any of the common controversies stated above. The only thing that needs to be done is to analyze the controversy logically, find the underlying reasons, and solve them accordingly so that the implementation are properly completed within the stipulated timeframe.
Information and Articles: http://www.mastersmba.com
Providing Information on various topics, please browse our other Articles for more informative resources, we house information on every topic imaginable so regardless of your needs you can be assured to find the answer here. If you wish to reprint this on your own website, simply click the "Web Version" in the right menu, and you are presented with a pre-formatted document to use.
A lot of the information is written by the Master Article team, and published exclusively on the MastersMBA.com website, and we do our best to research all information to ensure it's as accurate as possible. However at times we also publish documents given to us by other sources, we do examine these documents to ensure they are as accurate and correct as possible however at times they discuss highly specialized fields making it hard to authenticate the validity of every fact in the document. These are written by specialists in their respective fields, and we do trust their integrity and judgment however it's always a good idea when doing any research to consult a number of sources and form your own conclusion based on a number of view points.
