Six Sigma Implementation Structure

Implementation of the Six Sigma program is very demanding. Simply explaining the implementation of Six Sigma to employees and expecting them to implement the program is an approach that is clearly not enough for a program such as Six Sigma that has a demanding level of excellence. This type of approach would cre- ate numerous unanswered questions and have undefined directions for almost all employees. Specifically, inexperienced employees would struggle, developing their own version of what the Six Sigma program is or ought to be and how it should be carried out. Generally, this type of approach would yield a very poor success rate and probably lower program acceptance and expectations. It could also shorten the program’s life. A practical strategy is required. It must include all nec-

Organization structure is one of the challenges in implementing the Six Sigma program. In the last 10 to 15 years, major corporations such as Motorola, GE, and Xerox have implemented the program very successfully. Their organiza- tional structures had a critical role.

The Six Sigma Challenge

Once executive leaders of a business have decided to implement the Six Sigma program, they must challenge each employee in the business. Six Sigma involves all employees.

Because the process is physical and tangible, and metrics are commonly uti- lized to judge the output quality in a manufacturing environment, it is easy (and obvious) for manufacturing employees to implement the program. (Remember: Administrative and service activities do not have similar metrics.)

Each employee in the business provides some kind of service. Therefore, employees must assess their job functions and/or responsibilities in relationship to how the Six Sigma program will improve the business. Employees should define what would be their ideal service goals in support of customer (internal and external) needs and wants. Once their goals are established, employees should quantify where they currently are in relationship to these goals. Then they must work to minimize any gaps to achieve Six Sigma goals in accordance with target dates.

Prerequisites for the implementation structure and the functional concept of the organization as presented in Figure 1.3 include:

• Businesses with profitable Six Sigma strategies are successful. • Profitable businesses must maintain effective infrastructures.

• Profitable businesses are continually improving and revising through executive planning.

• Businesses must be creative and customer-focused. • Implementation of Six Sigma is a team process.

• Executive leadership and senior management must be part of the process.

• Six Sigma is not a quick-fix process. It requires a months-long to multi-year commitment.

• Key participating leaders must be supported by an organizational infrastructure with key roles:

– Executive Leadership – Steering Committee – Champion

Chief Executive’s Commitment

Once the business leader (Chief Executive) expresses his/her commitment to con- verting the business into a Six Sigma organization, he/she establishes the chal- lenges, vision, and goals to meet customer needs and wants. The new metrics and new way of operating the business are also established. Old vs. new ways of doing business are compared. New ways of working toward excellence and establishing a common goal for all employees in the business reduce variability in every process they perform.

Executive Sponsorship Steering Committee Master/Champion Experts/ Project Teams Expands involvement to additional associates Reports lessons learned and best practices Motivates and sustains change

Control the key process input

variables Business

strategy

Employees’ Role

Each employee in the business is involved in the Six Sigma program and has a sig- nificant role in bringing the business to a world-class level of performance organ- ization. Commonly used roles and responsibilities include (see Figure 1.3):

– Executive Leadership – Steering Committee

– Champion

– Big Group: Master, Expert, Team Leader, and Team Members

Executive Leadership

Along with already-identified responsibilities, leadership must link the Six Sigma program to an overall business strategy (see Appendix A1 for additional informa- tion). Business strategy depends on the state of the business. Commonly defined states of business include:

• Matured Business—Typically there is no growth in a matured busi- ness, e.g., in an e-mail communication and electronic on-line bill pay- ment environment, a hard copy mail-generating business would be considered to be a matured business.

• Growing and/or Changing Business—To meet customer needs and wants, these businesses are either growing and/or changing, e.g., the automobile industry is changing in the U.S. and Europe, but it is growing in countries such as China and India.

• Infant Business—These are new businesses that are growing very rap- idly, e.g., biomedical research in equipment, genetic research, etc. Executive leadership must allocate sufficient resources to support the Six Sigma program. A business must grow in terms of revenue, profit, and cash flow. Leadership must direct the financial group to validate all Six Sigma programs with return-on-investment (ROI) status.

Business leadership must also have total commitment to the implementation of Six Sigma program. Their responsibilities can be summarized as follows:

• Establish a Six Sigma Leadership Team. • Tie Six Sigma to overall business strategy. • Identify key business issues.

• Create customer feedback processes.

• Allocate time for experts to make breakthrough improvements. • Set aggressive Six Sigma goals.

• Allocate sufficient resources.

• Incorporate Six Sigma performance into the reward system. • Direct finance to validate ROI for all Six Sigma projects.

• Evaluate the corporate culture to determine if intellectual capital is being infused into the company.

• Expand involvement to additional associates.

Steering Committee

The Steering Committee is a high-level group of managers (executives) who reports program status and achievements to the business CEO in relationship to overall business strategy. The Steering Committee must continuously evaluate the Six Sigma implementation and development process and make necessary change, as well as:

• Define a set of cross-functional strategic metrics to drive projects. • Create an overall training plan.

• Define project selection process and criteria.

• Supply project report-out templates and structured report-out dates. • Evaluate diversity issues and facilitate change.

• Provide the appropriate universal communication tools whereby individuals must feel that there is something for everyone.

• Collect lessons learned and share best practices.

Champions

Champions are managers at different levels in the business. They define the stud- ies and/or projects. Projects are either improvement or characterization studies. Project savings could vary from several thousand dollars (U.S.) to as much as a million dollars. Savings depend on business size, project scope and duration, and project activities. A Champion’s function is to inform the steering committee and keep track of the project team’s progress. Champions also provide high manage- ment visibility, commitment, and support to empower team members for success. They provide strategic directions for the projects and ensure that changes, improvements, or solutions are implemented. They must motivate experts and sustain change. Champions officially announce the project team and the project completion after all project objectives are met and the documentation is com- pleted. They also organize the team’s presentation to senior management. Champions are also responsible for:

• Selecting at least one project in each standard business unit that will have the most benefits.

• Selecting the experts from the cross-functional team members. • Identifying the appropriate project leaders among the experts. • Monitoring team progress and help remove barriers.

• Converting gains into dollars.

Big Group: Master, Expert, Team Leader and Team Members

Responsibilities of this large group can be divided into subgroups: Master and Expert, Team Leader, and Team Members

Master—A Master (also Master Black Belt) is generally a program-site tech- nical expert in Six Sigma methodology and is responsible for providing technical guidance to team leaders and members. Often a Master is dedicated to support the program full time. A Master is considered to be an expert resource for the teams: for coaching, statistical analysis, and Just-In-Time (JIT) training. A Master, along with team leaders, determines team charter, goals, and team members; formalizes studies and projects; and provides management leadership. A Master can support up to ten projects.

Expert, Team Leader, and Team Members—These resources are a critical part of studies and projects:

Expert. Generally, an Expert is not a full-time member of the team. An Expert is invited to participate when there is a need for explanation, advice, technical input, etc. An Expert trains and coaches team members on tools and analysis. An Expert also helps the team if there is any misunderstanding or incomplete under- standing of the process.

Team Leader. A Team Leader (at the least a Black/Green Belt-trained person) is responsible for implementing the team’s recommended solution to achieve the defined goals of the Six Sigma project. He/she is an active member of the team and also is in charge of the overall coordination of team activities and progress. A Team Leader is responsible for assigning responsibilities to all team members, tracking the project goals and plans, managing the team’s schedule, and handling administrative responsibilities. Improvement projects must demonstrate substan- tial dollar savings and significant reduction in variation, defects, errors, and mis- takes. The Team Leader position is not necessarily a full-time team assignment unless the project requires a full-time Team Leader or if the Team Leader is lead- ing two or three projects.

Team Members. Team Members are employees who maintain their regular jobs, but are assigned to one or more teams based on their knowledge and expe- rience in selected Six Sigma projects. They have full responsibility as Team Members in the project. Team Members are expected to carry out all assignments between meetings, devote time and efforts toward the team success, conduct research as needed, and investigate alternatives as necessary.

Common responsibilities of Master, Expert, Team Leader, and Team Members include:

• Measure the process.

• Analyze/determine key process input variables.

• Improve the process as they recognize and make changes as necessary. • Control the key process input variables.

• Develop the Expert’s network to enhance communication. • Convert gains into dollars.

• Use the Six Sigma DMAIC process to solve problems and/or improve process.

If Master, Expert, and Team Members were compared, a few distinctive qual- ities would be found (see Table 1.3). A conceptual flow chart is presented in Figure 1.3.

As indicated earlier, the Six Sigma Implementation Structure and the Project Selection are almost parallel processes.