For hundreds of years, businesses all over the world have been chasing better results and improved performance.
Far too many of us accept inefficiencies, or we write them off as a cost of doing business because we know it can be difficult to change the status quo and generate sustainable improvements. Lean Six Sigma challenges that mindset and offers a range of tools and methodologies to help businesses from all industries improve the performance of their teams.
Busting inefficiencies and reducing errors have the potential to bring widespread improvements to any organisation. For that, we’re going to take a closer look at how Lean Six Sigma can help your business reduce deadweight and carry out its spring cleaning.
Cut back on costly inefficiencies
When a business is hurting, operational inefficiencies are often to blame.
It’s easy for inefficiencies to accumulate quickly. A holdup in communication in one area can lead to a slow down in production somewhere else, and ultimately everyone involved gets less work done. Before you know it, inefficiencies become entrenched methodologies, and staff continue to work the hard way because “that’s how it has always been done.”
A Lean Six Sigma certification teaches businesses how to identify and analyse their processes and then make measurable, sustainable improvements. Establishing new systems that help guide your staff can have far-reaching benefits for your employees, customers and the bottom line. Wasting less time and money on double handling, poor client communication and badly structured tasks means a more successful organisation overall.
Improved employee satisfaction and retention
As much as some employees may find themselves resistant to change, productive teams are happy teams. Kicking goals and finishing projects together helps team members bond with one another and offers a sense of achievement that can improve workplace culture, performance and mood.
Lean Six Sigma teaches managers to help employees streamline and rationalise tasks, reducing the frustration and headaches that normally come along with working inefficiencies. Empowering your staff to work smartly and reach measurable goals improves their long-term satisfaction, which can have the knock-on effect of reducing staff turnover.
Form better relationships with your clients
You guessed it! Businesses that perform better internally can also expect a boost in their approval rate with clients. Not only are your teams equipped to produce better work in a more cost-effective way, but Lean Six Sigma tools will also drastically improve your communication and the overall look and feel of your business.
Since reducing inefficiencies will often mean spending more time in contact with your customers, building rapport between staff and clients becomes simpler. And applying these tools to your business premises will result in a tidier and more professional looking building. Imagine the boost in a customer’s first impression when they come into your office to find it looking tidy, functional and ready to perform.
Don’t forget, happy customers are the lifeblood of what most businesses do, and positive word of mouth is still one of the best ways for an organisation to promote itself.
Sustainable changes for long-term success
Facing up to the inefficiencies and deadweight in your business can be a daunting task. Employees can be reluctant to change or slow to adapt to new ideas, and new habits can be difficult to sustain in those environments.
The tools offered as part of Lean Six Sigma training help managers make changes that are sustainable. It’s great to find and fix problems and see those short term improvements, but the true benefit to businesses lies in the long-term: how much better could your business perform in a five-year span if the changes you made became permanent? Lean Six Sigma makes it possible to enact change that will be around for the long term and to continually review and improve your systems to avoid sliding back into old habits.
Need corporate Lean Six Sigma Training? Contact Thornley Group today!
Thornley Group is an industry-leading training and consulting organisation bringing Lean Six Sigma to businesses all over Australia. Our courses not only equip your staff to perform better, but they also help managers cultivate their ability to lead and build the skills to enact positive changes. Contact us today to discuss our certifications and training and find out how we can help your business.