CHAPTER 10 – Training the Organization for Six Sigma


SUMMARY

A Six Sigma organization is a “learning organization.” It is constantly gaining new information and insights from its customers, external environment, and processes. The knowledge it acquires is in turn used to respond to new ideas, products, services, and improvements, and then measure the results and learn some more.

Training plays an important role in a “learning organization,” so you can expect a lot of training in a Six Sigma organization. In fact, continuous training in every phase is a key ingredient in achieving success.

Your company’s Six Sigma training should focus therefore on the skills and methods your people need most to fulfill their role(s) throughout the whole project. Your training module should have the following essentials:

  1. Emphasize “hands-on” learning – immediately put concepts and skills into practice.
  2. Provide relevant examples and links to the “real world” – exercises and examples should reflect your business process and its specific challenges.
  3. Build knowledge in two ways:

    4. a. describe in common terms the key principles and ideas
    b.put tools into a context (e.g. DMAIC or Six Sigma Roadmap) to make their relevance clear.

  4. Cater to a variety of learning styles – have varied and fun visuals, games, and exercises.
  5. Make training something more than learning – reinforce messages about buy-ins, change, and themes of the effort.
  6. Make training an ongoing effort – have “refreshers” regularly
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COMMENTARY

So much has been said about the effect of training on achieving Six Sigma success. This is the only way to go, actually. It may have been presented in such an easy manner, but training means big budget. That is why it always poses as a major obstacle. Many managers just don’t want to spend that much on training for two main reasons.

First, they think it is unnecessary. In fact, in any cost reduction measure, training always comes in as the first casualty.

Second, they are not sure if their people will stay with the organization long enough to make a difference. Their belief is that the more you train your people, the more they become “saleable” to other companies.

With such attitude, any Six Sigma effort will go down the drain. They should be confronted with the question: “If you think training is expensive, think of the cost of ignorance.”

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