Why So Many Lean Manufacturing, Six Sigma and Other Improvement Projects Fail

Ever wonder why you didn't get the results you expected from your Lean Manufacturing or Six Sigma project?           

I've had several customer's ask me this very question lately.  It seems to be a common misconception that implementing the latest and greatest improvement tools such as Lean or Six Sigma would fix all of their problems... Or at least the Lean and Six Sigma consultants would have you believe that.  Truth be told, there is more to improvement than these consultants would have us believe.  To them I say, a great carpenter knows how to use many tools, not just a hammer.  When you only know how to use a hammer every problem looks like a nail.

The following bullets include the fundamental criteria that all process improvement practitioners should be cognizant of when driving successful improvement projects:

High Return on Investment (ROI)

• The project must be in line with the business strategy.
• The project deliverables must be quantifiable.
• Use a decision matrix to prioritize Low effort / high reward!

Rapid Implementation

• A time-line that is too aggressive will exhaust available resources.
• A time-line that is too long will cause loss of interest in the project.
• Breakdown complex projects in to 3-4 month sub-projects and celebrate interim successes to maintain momentum!

Ownership & engagement by all levels of the organization

• Leadership must provide the resources necessary for success.
• Project KPIs must be deployed throughout the organization, improvement is not a one person job -its everyone's job.
• Make your projects visible to all employees, including the results, and ensure they individually understand how they can contribute to the achievement of the improvement!

Sustainability

• Projects must include development of robust controls to lock in improvement.
• Capture improvement knowledge as company knowledge within policies and procedures (and other media)!

Choose the right tool for the job

• Not every project is a Lean Project (Lean tools may be the right choice if the issues are waste related.)
• Not every problem is a Six Sigma problem (Six Sigma is a tool designed specifically for process variation reduction.  If you have excessive variation Six Sigma may be the tool for you.)
• Do a thorough root cause analysis before choosing the improvement tool to implement!

Headquartered in Milton Ontario, Graham Hill Consulting is a boutique process improvement consulting firm that provides consulting and training for SME businesses in the disciplines of quality, environment, and health & safety management.  Whether you need registration to one of the many ISO standards (ie ISO9001, ISO14001, OHSAS18001) or are simply looking to lay a foundation on which to build a culture of continuous improvement, our management system implementation is second to none.   

With almost two decades of experience, we can help take your business to the next level. Our proprietary "Lean 6ix" improvement methodology blends the process approach of six sigma and the tools of lean manufacturing for rapid and sustainable process improvement.

Get in touch with us to set up a free consultation or to inquire whether our services are right for you.

Graham Hill Consulting

Mobile:  416-884-3989

Email:  mailto://info@ghill.ca

Web:  http://ghill.ca