Companies frequently undergo reorganization, but are these reorganizations always beneficial? Year after year, decade after decade, change occurs in all companies with no respect to the size of the company. Some ask, “Is change truly going to benefit the company or are egos just intent on being the ‘hero of the hour’?” Some changes make a lasting impression of increased positive attributes, while others leave a bitter taste of negativity throughout the company. What approach should your company take in creating a positive burning platform of change in achieving and reaping all aspects of Six Sigma success? We are questioned daily on how to deploy Six Sigma successfully without running into the common pitfalls of change.

Daily interactions with companies who have come to respect and utilize our services have led us to define firmly the burning platforms of Six Sigma. For there to be a change in any business situation, there must be direct fundamental changes in how the business operates and executes its business strategy. Many companies are able to identify areas of improvement or change needed throughout the organization. However, one of the problems with change is having the discipline to identify and plan, and then being disciplined in executing and achieving the desire results. Most problems occur when the goals of change are not SMART: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Tangible. If you can’t be SMART in what you want to achieve, then you can’t obtain the true value of the goal.

What techniques and tactics can be utilized to help your company in implementing a successful Six Sigma deployment? In my book Implementing Six Sigma 2nd Edition, I speak of how Tony Robbins states that the only reasons people change are to seek pleasure or avoid pain, with the latter force being the more powerful. I believe that both incentives, used in moderation, specifically seeking pleasure prior to avoiding pain, can provide a positive burning platform for organizations (refer to the various business examples included in the Change Management section of my book Implementing Six Sigma 2nd Edition; Part VIII, Chapter 51).

For example, CEO Jack Welch implemented the ultimatum type of change whereby he led from the top-down approach, demanding the ‘change or else you’re fired’ mentality. This type of motivation does suggest rapid and immediate implementation, but we understand that your company may not be the GE which Jack Welch led. Perhaps it is best for your company to implement the burning platform approach of Six Sigma much more slowly as expressed by Ben Bissel. Bissel talks about settlers being “creative” in the naming of areas in the new-found world (i.e., if they were from York they named the new area New York). Simply put, the settlers needed to build on the familiar as do your personnel in the company when a change initiative takes place. The familiarity of the environment creates such a strong foundation and positive reaction for executing change. Whether or not you have executive buy-in, this slow approach will help your company to build a firm foundation.

Whether a hasty or laggard implementation, often companies stall with Six Sigma. They have difficulty identifying and selecting projects that are beneficial and in alignment with the true needs of the business. Unfortunately, companies push projects into a system instead of allowing the business needs to select projects (for more, refer to my ASQ Six Sigma forum magazine article - 21 Common Six Sigma Problems).

Our IEE system allows the change agent leader to work one-on-one with process owners on how they are looking at and reporting metrics, demonstrating the value of the IEE approach for examining data along with helping the team to create and document their value chain. When this positive information is presented to executives, first off-line and then as a group, this can become an incentive for others who have not progressed as rapidly within the organization to make fundamental improvements (i.e., a smoldering platform under their feet to get them going in the right direction).

In closing, if you want success in executing a burning platform, it is truly my recommendation that you find a tactic best suited to your company.

Join us in next month’s article as we discuss the alignment of the Integrated Enterprise Excellence (IEE) system to Edwards Deming’s Methodologies. Until Next Time...

Forrest Breyfogle III

If you have comments on this article, please send your comments to enews@smartersolutions.com. We would greatly appreciate understanding your perspective on this article.

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