Six Sigma an important management tool

Six Sigma is today perceived by the corporate world as an important management tool. Six Sigma is identified as the most productive business improvement model in the globe.

The European Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (ECCSL) hosted a seminar recently on Six Sigma, corporate processes, in Colombo, targeting CEOs, directors and senior managers of companies from all avenues of the business sector.

Considering that only a few companies here, use Six Sigma, ECCSL expected a turnout of 30, but the Trans Asia hall was packed with people. ECCSL's general Manager, Sujeewa Perera said that the high turnout was a measure of the number of Sri Lankan corporates who wished to improve their performances.

The resource person, Simon Northcott has been residing in Sri Lanka since 2001. He set up and ran Advent International, a Ceylon Tobacco subsidiary, delivering ERP systems and support to BAT, and management consultant to the group and Sri Lankan companies. Since 2004, Northcott has operated as an independent consultant delivering world class manufacturing and Six Sigma Business Improvement methodology based in Colombo.

He has over 10 years' experience in the oilfield service industries, and a further 14 years with manufacturing companies in UK. Today, his expertise ranges from the industries oilfield, plastic and rubber processing, nuclear engineering, IT and consultancy.

Six Sigma was initiated by Motorola in the late '80s and adopted by GE in the '90s as the major change agent.

Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving towards six standard deviation between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process -from manufacturing to transactional and product service. It includes what is also described as the Japanese quality method being very statistical, the Tokyo Production System/Method and is based on the quality philosophy of Deming and Juran.

Northcott said that there are some very good reasons why Six Sigma has been adopted so widely around the world:

The philosophy is proven; the step changes in performance can be dramatic-most users see breakthrough performance changes; decision making is fact based; statistical tools are used to determine root causes of process variation; program and project delivery is highly structured; results are fully measurable.

Once learned, the tools and techniques become a way of life and allow your business to consider achievement of world class as reality, not a wish.

Some of the companies using Six Sigma in Sri Lanka include standard Chartered Bank, Keells, Brandix and the caterpillar distributor, the seminar was told.