I remember in one of the Six Sigma forums that I attended, participants from a big pharmaceutical company threw this question: How do we choose Six Sigma projects? or How do we determine the need for a Six Sigma project?
The question might have come as a surprise to many of us, but thinking about it now, the question makes a lot of sense. Many companies that go into Six Sigma, or want to go into Six Sigma, don’t really know how to go about it. Lucky are those whose management recognizes the need for consultants because they are helped. But for those who discover the methodology along the way, it can be tough.
Going back to the two questions, I think the answer to that would be to go into systems thinking first. An article on iSixSigma has a good discussion on applying systems thinking to the practice of Six Sigma.
Systems thinking takes cause-and-effect thinking to a higher level and encourages the user to see not just the linear causal connections but also the web of causal interconnections that come into play in real systems.
Click HERE to find out how systems thinking can help you to go Six Sigma.
