Six Sigma Adoption Issues

It is now a proven fact that people are resistant to change and this fact is also applicable to the employees of an organization. The employees are often uncooperative when Six Sigma is introduced for the first time in an organization as they think that it is an unnecessary indulgence on part of the organization. Some employees are also of the opinion that they might lose their jobs or will be shifted to other jobs due to the implementations. These misplaced opinions and attitudes can prove detrimental to the success of six-sigma projects, making it necessary to take the employees into confidence before starting the implementation process.

How To Resolve Attitudinal Or Cultural Issues

The first step towards the successful six-sigma adoption in an organization should be geared towards understanding the current work culture and the general attitude of employees. The basic aim is to understand what exactly the employees think about the proposed implementation project and how they think it will affect their existing work conditions. In small organizations having less than hundred employees, it is easy to gauge the general mood of the employees by conducting personal interview sessions.

In comparison, large organizations cannot even think about interviewing all their employees, as it would result in enormous wastage of productive time. Large organizations can opt for sample surveys or issue questionnaires to gauge the existing attitude of the employees. Based on the collected data, departmental managers can then point out the most common misconceptions of their employees and conduct direct meetings with the employees for removing those misconceptions.

Providing Continuous Support And Guidance

Convincing employees about the importance of six-sigma is just a part of the overall strategy and does not in any way guarantee the successful adoption of six-sigma in an organization. The success also depends on the type of support and guidance provided by the top management to six-sigma teams at every stage of the implementation process. Very often, the objectives and goals of two different teams may clash with each other, creating confusions as to what is the right way of carrying out the implementations.

This can ultimately lead to interpersonal differences within members of the same team or within members of two different teams. To avoid such situations, top management should make sure that the work is properly delegated and there are no overlapping tasks or responsibilities. Top management should also stress providing continuous support and guidance to individual teams so that any emerging inter-personal problems can be effectively nipped in the bud, before they transform into problems of monolithic proportions.

Although cultural issues may seem difficult to resolve, they are not insurmountable and if proper methods are employed, they can be resolved with ease. Resolving cultural issues is not only necessary but is also unavoidable as it plays an important role in determining the success of Six Sigma implementation projects and eventually the success of the organization.