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SBTI Lean Six Sigma Podcast
#3
January 6, 2006
Six Sigma Reinvigoration
Debby Sollenberger & Bill Hertzing
http://www.sbtionline.com/podcast/Six_Sigma_Reinvigoration.mp3
http://www.sbtionline.com/podcast/Six_Sigma_Reinvigoration_transcript.php

Bill Hertzing: Hi, this is Bill Hertzing and this is the SBTI Lean Six Sigma Podcast. Right now, I am sitting here with Debby Sollenberger, Vice-President for SBTI. Debby, thank you for taking time to join us.

Debby Sollenberger: My pleasure, Bill Thank you.

BH: Debby, what are we going to discuss today?

DS: Well, Bill.I have many people asking me about how revitalize or reinvigorate if you will their Six Sigma deployment. That means that a Company has started their Six Sigma journey, but came to a spot where they need to assess and maybe perhaps realign how that Six Sigma Change Initiative is going. Maybe it's not getting the results they originally expected or perhaps they started out with a 'toe in the water' approach and now it's time to roll Lean Six Sigma out to the enterprise. Whatever their history, many Companies want to harvest the results that a rigorous Lean Six Sigma deployment promises. With that, they talk about reinvigorating it.

BH: If they already have a Lean Six Sigma Deployment in place at their Company, why do they pursue this discussion with SBTI?

DS: Well Bill, like everything in the universe, there is a lot of variation.variation around what we all call Lean Six Sigma.variation how we approach and deploy Lean Six Sigma. To us, meaning to SBTI, a Lean Six Sigma Deployment has several critical characteristics. Such as, being strategically aligned activity, scoped into key projects, executed by respected resources that yield real, direct financial results that the Company Leadership is depending upon. However, not all Companies take this approach from the onset of their deployment. That means that every Company that has considered Six Sigma may be doing it differently.meaning variation.

BH: What then IS reinvigoration.what does that mean?

DS: Well, reinvigoration means understanding where your deployment is at its current state and then making it better. Reinvigoration can take many forms.again depending upon where a Company is in their Lean Six Sigma journey. The first step, as with everything in Six Sigma, is to measure.to assess your deployment in its current state.in other words conduct a critical analysis of your deployment. And, based on what you find, reinvigoration may mean going back to basics. Back to basics meaning understanding the known critical to quality deployment dimensions.and making sure they're not overlooked. OR.Reinvigoration may not be a back to basics issue.reinvigoration may mean that it's time to extend your great deployment.take your current deployment successing further across the organization.

BH: So, you're saying that reinvigoration means either getting back to the basics of a good deployment and getting them all right, or it means to extend your deployment further across the organization. Would you give us some details on each side of these opportunities?

DS: Sure thing.Well, let's start with back to basics. What are the basics of a great Lean Six Sigma deployment? There are several critical to quality elements.first and foremost is Leadership Commitment and Involvement.are your leaders leading your Lean Six Sigma deployment.that's important.change happens from the top down. So, maybe it's time to reengage them. Secondly, a great Lean Six Sigma deployment needs the involvement of your best and brightest resources as what we call Black Belts. Additionally, projects are a critical dimension. Are they aligned to your business' strategic plan? And, are they scoped appropriately for success? Another dimension is the Lean Six Sigma methodology itself.is it robust, and are you disciplined in following it? Still another is your communication.is there a great and well-executed communication plan in place? Does your Company understand what is happening with Lean Six Sigma, and are they aware of the results of your Lean Six Sigma activities? Do they understand their role with Lean Six Sigma? Another critical element is the financial results.Lean Six Sigma is about the results.is there a rigorous financial rule set the defines what success means at your Company. These are several of the key critical to quality dimensions of a great Lean Six Sigma deployment. Now let's turn to extending the success of your Lean Six Sigma deployment.what does that mean? To us, SBTI, it can mean several things.such as:

1. Extending to other functional departments that are not presently involved in your current Lean Six Sigma deployment.such as Human Resources or Information Technology or Legal, Engineering, etc.

2. Extending your deployment to involve more of your employee population.more black belts and more green belts to build the foundation of knowledge and change your culture.

3. Extend your Lean Six Sigma product lines.perhaps you've concentrated only on variation reduction projects and techniques and now it may be time to look at the lean techniques.this means to eliminate waste in processes before optimizing them, or it's time to extend into your innovation processes with Lean Design for Six Sigma.

4. Another option is to extend to your supply chain.if your products depend heavily on your supply chain, near perfection will not happen until you ensure that your suppliers are providing near perfection to you.that may mean creating the expectation that your key suppliers use Lean Six Sigma tools and techniques themselves, and

5. When it's appropriate, there may be an opportunity to take Lean Six Sigma to your Customers.to make yourself more 'sticky' with your customers.

BH: So, who should be thinking about Reinvigorating Lean Six Sigma?

DS: Any company who has started some aspect of Lean Six Sigma.whether a pilot project, a proof-of-concept Departmental deployment, a specific problem area that required Lean Six Sigma discipline, or a Functional deployment., should periodically measure their progress, evaluate where they are against a world-class Lean Six Sigma deployment, and make mid-course corrections. As we said, that can mean getting back to the basics of a great Lean Six Sigma deployment, or extending their good deployment to a broader base of their enterprise.

BH: What should a Company do if they want to continue this line of thought on Reinvigorating Lean Six Sigma?

DS: Any one who is interested in further discussion of Reinvigorating or simply Assessing their Lean Six Sigma Deployment should contact me at Sigma Breakthrough Technologies, Inc. My goal is to assist Companies of all sizes and at all stages of progress with getting what they are entitled to with a top notch Lean Six Sigma deployment.

BH: Very well then. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us.

DS: My pleasure, Bill. Thank you.

BH: That wraps up this episode of the SBTI Lean Six Sigma Podcast For a direct download or transcript of this podcast, visit sbtionline.com/podcast . Or, you can subscribe to this podcast through many of the popular podcast directories like iTunes, Yahoo, Podnova, Odeo and more. We welcome any type of feedback. You can email us with questions, comments, topic suggestions at podcast@sbtimail.com. Again, that address is p-o-d-c-a-s-t@s-b-t-i-m-a-i-l.com . For more information on this or many other topics visit the SBTI main website at www.sbtionline.com or call 888-752-7070. I'm Bill Hertzing. Thank you so much for joining us. I'll see you next time.