Lean Six Sigma System challenges and opportunities

I will not provide an exhaustive discussion at this time, but rather some main points that might attract the attention of companies, organizations, practitioners, software providers etc. about what we are missing in creating a Lean Six Sigma System. What are some of the Lean Six Sigma System’s characteristics?

  Structure as it contains parts (components) that are directly or indirectly related to each other.

  Behavior that exhibits processes that fulfill its functions or purposes. We can see that some companies are doing better while others cannot even get to implement Lean. The main reason is lack of understanding of the purpose and function of Lean Six Sigma.

 Interconnectivity as the parts and processes are connected by structural and behavioral relationships. We miss both structure and behavior. Consultants are competitive and limited in knowledge and skills. There is no database from where data can be collected and used, interpreted etc. It would require companies to become transparent and provide such information.

 Decomposition System’s structure and behavior may be decomposed via subsystems and sub-processes to elementary parts and process steps.

 Speed of implementation System has a behavior that in relativity to its surroundings can be categorized as fast and strong. Lean Six Sigma as a system has no such performance since the tools, knowledge, interaction, behaviors etc. are tribal.

In biology, there are large databases freely available where researchers access information, perform research to produce value-added knowledge base and present outcomes which can have large implications in the areas as biology, drug development, environmental development, human behavior, medical equipment, food industry etc.

By comparison, in the Lean Six Sigma System we have some dispersed and sporadic knowledge that are applied with a very limited effect at some levels by some companies or organizations. Where are we going from here on?

Comparing data bases that contain DNA and protein sequences, biomolecules and their structures, functions, reactions and interactions and practical tools for analysis and discovery with the current Lean Six Sigma System, our practices, tools and methodologies are underdeveloped and immature. Consultants have a competitive attitude but generally Lean Six Sigma as a system lacks the vision of its own future. So what if we have control charts in every single business area and check the processes to be within prescribed/predetermined control limits if in general the companies lost their vision about the role of quality in our lives? We know how to measure quality at the brain level and yet, we do not know how to measure quality in companies because data is spread and located on many drivers by using mainly excel spreadsheets, people have never been trained to interpret and follow the data to make decisions. Why do we see these large discrepancies?

One of the main causes is that large databases in biology etc. are supported by Gov. or large institutions that want the “brain” to think and produce while Lean Six Sigma was successfully used only by a limited number of companies. On the other hand, in Lean Six Sigma we compete for market shares because the main idea is to drive the cost lower while increasing profits. This is the main wrong step since quality shall be the reason on why we need to have a Lean Six Sigma System.

I heard about Healthcare training RN’s in Lean Six Sigma and expecting some extraordinary results. Do we not understand that RN’s do not know math therefore statistical data will become a nightmare for many of them to learn? I then heard about Healthcare industry requiring from the Lean Six Sigma certified practitioners to have experience in the industry. Lean Six Sigma as a methodology teaches tools that can be applied at any level and in any company, organization etc. It is not the industry that develops the quality standards for Lean Six Sigma. Any person who has been certified that possesses the knowledge should be able to start and complete any project in any industry or functional area.

Moving forward, we will need tools that are made freely available and people who are capable to learn and acquire the Lean Six Sigma knowledge by interacting and sharing. Generally, there is an attitude of withholding information because that gives to some a misconception into how much money they will make as consultants in the future. What we all miss by behaving in this way is that we make Lean Six Sigma inaccessible from a system perspective therefore reducing the chances of further development.

The only two tools that should be used to manage the Lean Sigma projects are MINITAB and Quality Companion. Yet, there is very limited use of these tools in companies for diverse reasons as lack of statistical, analytical knowledge or due to high license fees per user.

Also, whenever someone decides to learn statistics, they should also be aware that there is a certain level of mathematical knowledge required. Since many students are not even aware of the difficulties they will encounter, we might have to develop further certification programs in math and statistics such that we can provide more help to future practitioners.

There are information and myths surrounding Lean Six Sigma but not enough action taken to create a robust  System.