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In this blog post I shall touch upon business transformation via three most popular Continuous Improvement methodologies, namely-  Lean, Six Sigma and Kaizen.

Lean concept though has been cited in ancient Japanese folklore, it was introduced as a Management methodology by Toyota around 1940s to improve their auto business. Since then there has been no looking back for Lean. Several organizations both from Manufacturing and Service sectors have embraced Lean and reaped huge dividends.

Six Sigma developed at Motorola around 1970s specially to sort out quality problems. Six Sigma takes the idea of quality to a whole new level. A process that operates at Six Sigma has 3.4 or lower defects per million opportunities.

Six Sigma is far and away the most mathematically driven method for reducing waste and errors in an organization. Measuring your business from a Six Sigma perspective requires time, dedication and company-wide participation; hence, it is definitely not for everyone. Though there is a certain magic to seeing a company from a purely mathematical perspective. For one it can transfer a desperate business situation into one that can be optimistically turnaround. All one must do is reduce € in the equation y = F(x) + €

Tip: Use a Pivot Table to perform fast, detailed analysis on large data sets. Once you set up a Pivot Table the way you want it, it will continue to operate and update as you add to or modify the data behind it.

Tip: Pareto principle is that 80% of negative results are due to 20% of inefficiencies. Identifying the inefficiencies that make the biggest impact can lead to fast and tremendous improvements in efficiency across an organization via Six Sigma.

Kaizen as a concept is even older than Lean. Kaizen in Japanese means ‘Make Better’. Kaizen is the art and science of consistently and continually improving a process in small steps. Accrued over time, such incremental improvements result in huge benefits. Kaizen is best for Lean organizations, small teams and organizations that give employees some degree of autonomy and responsibilities.

Kaizen is not a one-time planned process but rather an approach to work that places the focus on greater business efficiency e.g. Kaizen in a series of constant small improvement. Kaizen improvement would never add difficulty or unpleasantness to an employee’s workflow. Employees are highly involved in the Kaizen-based business improvement process via all types of Kaizen be it Gemba Kaizen, Modular Kaizen etc.

Tip: Get people that don’t know the process involved in the Gemba Walk, as they come in with open mind and are more likely to ask critical questions.

Working Lean, Six Sigma, Kaizen or any other continuous improvement methodology requires good amount of research into existing processes, identification of problems & their causes and potential solutions.

What tools are available for researching the far-reaching implications of a potential solution before you implement it?

There are over 100 Continuous Improvement tools to choose from. The  choice of tool depends on the size of the organization and the size of its problem. However, Value Stream Mapping is a favorite tool to begin with, to take a bird’s eye view of the process, problems and decide whether improvement is required and what would be its impact on company’s over all financials.

It’s said a leaky pot never gets filled-up. Same is true for a problematic business process. The process will never truly gets sorted out unless root cause(s) for the inefficiencies are identified and solved. Brainstorming, 5 Whys, Control Charts, Ishikawa diagram may be used to identify root causes of problem.

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About Shruti Bhat PhD, MBA, Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt
 
Dr. Shruti Bhat is an award-winning Business Excellence Leader, Global Continuous Improvement Mastermind, Best-selling Author and Speaker. She is Continuous Improvement Advisor to several start-ups, mid-size and growing firms in Canada, USA, India, Africa and Emerging markets. She has authored eight business books and is an invited speaker at several national and international conferences, symposia and workshops.


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Six Sigma uses a method known as DMAIC, which stands for Determine, Measure, Analyze, Implement and Control. Lean Six Sigma is more focused on observation in order to make decisions that can benefit the company’s productivity. It is more focused on shorter cycles that show where the benefits and errors lie through experimentation and observation. 
  
This allows for small changes to be made as they recognized, whereas Six Sigma is more of an overall assessment. Six Sigma is typically used for a serious problem that requires much attention to detail in order to come with a quick solution, however Lean Six Sigma is implemented as a long-lasting solution to improve the organization of a company. 
 
Lean Six Sigma requires the whole company to learn and implement the changes, whereas Six Sigma tends to just use teams instead. This is often more desirable for a large company that does not want to train all its employees but it can cause miscommunication, misunderstandings and feelings of separation. Lean Six Sigma requires each individual in a company to learn and develop skills that help the company lower waste and improve  productivity. 

Smaller companies will have a harder time using Six Sigma than Lean Six Sigma, since it requires much planning, analyzing and training in order to get the desired results. Small companies do not have the manpower to function without key members of the time, whereas larger companies can spare individuals from each department. Though some smaller companies choose to train and develop in increments at a time and put them together in the end, instead of fully engaging in a Six Sigma at one time. 
 
It is necessary to have at least a single employee to undergo Six Sigma or Lean Six Sigma at any time in order to provide training to the other employees. Many companies find it beneficial to hire outside help in order to train staff without disrupting day to day operations. 
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While there are a number of benefits to Lean Six Sigma methodology, there are several potential drawbacks as well. The first and foremost limitation is that it requires a large modification in the workplace. The reason that Lean Six Sigma tends to fail at times is because  companies were not aware of the drastic management changes that are required to  implement the methodology, which include effort and time. 
  
It is estimated that it takes an average of two years to adjust to the changes that Lean Six Sigma requires. If there is
 not enough time or effort giving to implementing Lean Six Sigma then its chances of failure increase significantly. Another contradictory aspect is that Lean Six Sigma is meant to save money. While this is true, many companies feel the need to pay for additional resources or external help, such as consultants, which can end up costing the company more at first. 
  
Since the focus of Lean Six Sigma is largely focused on the customer, sometimes the process of initiating the methodology can leave employees feeling stifled and inadequate (though this typically happens whilst the process is being set up and has its benefits later down the line). Customer satisfaction is one of the primary goals of Lean Six Sigma and other aspects are sometimes put on the back burner until issues surrounding customer satisfaction have been resolved. 
 
Large businesses have a better chance of success when it comes to Lean Six Sigma than smaller businesses do. This is due to the fact that employees are required to receive accreditation in Six Sigma in order to go along with the changes and to be an asset to the company. Some companies choose to forgo employee certification due to the costs but still end up spending a lot of time and money with training, despite it taking place in the workplace. The reason that education is essential is because there are many stages to understanding how the methodology works and to know how to use it to enhance the business. 

During the time that employees are being trained for Lean Six Sigma, whether at another institute or in the workplace, there will be lack of productivity in terms of work. Many employees can find it frustrating and confusing to understand the stages of Lean Six Sigma, which can lower self-esteem and even cause some to leave the job entirely. It is a process that requires a lot of foresight because the results are far from immediate.


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The methodology of Lean Six Sigma is the combination the principles of Six Sigma and another process improvement technique referred to as 'Lean'. It is used to optimize the operations of a company whilst lowering waste and increasing overall value. ​Although Lean Six Sigma techniques has traditionally been used in manufacturing set-ups, it is very popular even in service industries because of the immense benefit it offers.

Some of the promising benefits of using Lean Six Sigma methodology are-
 
Lowered costs are a large reason that Lean Six Sigma is a preferred method for companies. By improving the procedures and analyzing their effectiveness, companies are able to lower overall costs, whilst lowering the number of errors, defects and ineffective materials used as well. Analyzing the stages is an important factor in Lean Six Sigma and it helps to figure out what steps are not necessary to the company. This often results in better value to the customer and less maintenance costs.  
  
Customers are a strong focus point and a key element for most companies. It is important to satisfy the customer and to reach their requirements in order to give them the best product or service possible. It is essential to have high-quality products available to the customers as well as improve the methods of other customer related issues such as service and delivery. Companies know that a happy customer is the best kind of customer because they will keep using the company and also suggest it to their friends. All these factors make customer satisfaction a vital part of any business’ success. 
 
Employee involvement is also essential to any company, for a company cannot function well if the employees are not fully involved or engaged in the process. Lean Six Sigma aims to motivate employees by providing them with enough participation and encouragement. They are a key part to customer satisfaction and to increasing the processes along the way. Employees strive to have a big impact on the company and have been found to perform much better when they are a part of the bigger picture. Raised self-esteem and knowledge of importance in the company can have a dramatically positive effect on the entire company. 
 
Another reason that Lean Six Sigma is well regarded is because it shows that the product and the company are of high quality. A unique aspect of Lean Six Sigma is that it increases, or maintains, the quality of the quality whilst improving the efficiency as well, which is done through various stages of the methodology. Companies that implement Lean Six Sigma methodology lower their costs, increase performances and have a better end result. 


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