| Independent business owners may have heard about | | | | problems on their own. Tools are already in place with |
| Six Sigma and may occasionally wonder what it's all | | | | Six Sigma. |
| about, especially if the business owner is pondering a | | | | For example, Six Sigma may have been used in a |
| specific business problem. That person may think, "I | | | | food manufacturing plant to reduce cost and produce |
| wish I understood some of those techniques." A few | | | | a higher quality product. This same product (let's use |
| adventurous small business owners may even have | | | | potato chips as an example) is shipped to a grocery |
| gone out and researched Six Sigma only to back | | | | store - the small business. The potato chips have a |
| away because Six Sigma training felt like overkill for | | | | short shelf life. Does the store owner then use Lean |
| their small auto shop or restaurant or convenience | | | | Six Sigma to ensure the stock is moving at the right |
| store. They may wonder why they would use a | | | | pace, there is no overstock, and sales are at a |
| world class methodology for their small business and | | | | premium? Inventory control methods are traditionally |
| disregard its value for a small scale enterprise. | | | | used for weighing these issues, but do they look at |
| Missed Opportunity | | | | all the variables that Six Sigma would look at? |
| Every business has processes, whether it's an | | | | What about a trucking company; the product being |
| individual newspaper stand trying to expand to two | | | | shipped most likely had a Six Sigma review and the |
| or an international shipping company that goes to | | | | product is of good quality and produced in the most |
| every known port. Lean Six Sigma was developed to | | | | efficient manner. However, has the trucking company |
| focus on process efficiency, to reduce manufacturing | | | | applied Lean Six Sigma to their processes? Is the |
| inconsistencies and to produce a consistent, | | | | timing for pickups efficient or are truckers spending |
| high-quality product. | | | | long wait times? Are trucks coming back from hauls |
| A small business owner has these same macro | | | | empty? |
| problems, but on a micro scale. Does that mean they | | | | Is Six Sigma Too Complex? |
| shouldn't use the techniques developed by some of | | | | Comprehending the business school language of Six |
| the highest level quality management people in the | | | | Sigma Training can, at first look, appear rather |
| world? No, a small business owner should use the | | | | confusing to a small business owner that runs a |
| tools and methodologies learned by others to create | | | | plumbing company, but it doesn't have to be. It's all |
| a positive impact on their small business. It's a smart | | | | about learning the tools but more importantly applying |
| business move. A tire company doesn't have to | | | | the tools. If you have five employees or fifty, you |
| reinvent the wheel and try to solve their production | | | | have processes and you can create efficiency. |