Six-Sigma Not so Valueless Afterall!

Earlier this week my wife (who works with us sometimes) was at the Boston Knowledge Management Forum, where one of the trendy things to talk about was how six-sigma is now an dated old tool, useful in the manufacturing environment where systems are predictable, but not useful for complex systems…like managing a modern corporation. 

Well…duh!

Part of what we are seeing above is, of course, the need for academics to look down their nose at anything not on the horizon, or not of their own invention.  And part of the above is the stating of the obvious as if it was a revelation from on high.  (We often state the obvious to clients too, not as a revelation though, but rather as a reminder that basics count.)

Or is it so obvious?  Take a look at the latest Business Week (10/8/07), page 88.  The article there describes how six-sigma is used to foster innovation at some leading companies.  More specifically, it shows how it is used to implement innovative ideas and roll them out company-wide.

The truth is that six-sigma is a tool.  It applies to any repetitive activity (that would be a process.)  It applies at the meta-level to many strings of non-repetitive activities (a meta-process.)  It applies to a greater or lesser degree. And it most certainly applies to many marketing and sales processes.

Ron White likes to say “You can’t cure stupid”, which is true  Our version of that is much more positive, though: “You still need management smarts.”

What A Difference A Decade Makes

About 10 years ago I locked my keys in my Hertz rental car in 8 below weather in Minneapolis. I called Hertz for help and they told me (seriously) to bring the car back to the airport and they would give me another set of keys. I pointed out that if I could do that, I would not have called. I asked if they could send a locksmith out to make a new key. She said no they did not do that. I was stumped until I remembered I belonged to AAA and they would help me. They came out, unlocked the car (it really is pretty easy to break into a car if you have the right gadgets) and I was all set. No cost and just a 45 minute wait.

Needless to say I was less than impressed with Hertz’s #1 service and I let them know. Not that it mattered to them.

Here it is 10 years later and this time I lost my Hertz car keys. I’m really not sure how it could have happened, but people who have known me for years seem to find it highly plausible. Anyway, this time I called the AAA first and they came out and unlocked the car, but the keys were not in it. So now I really am in a bind. I reluctantly call Hertz, since based on my prior experience, I do not expect any help. Boy was I surprised. You’d have thought the Hertz customer service person had personally lost my keys herself. She apologized for me having the problem and then began to work through the solutions.

First she offered to send out a locksmith to make a new key. I pointed out that I had rented a Volvo and that I thought they had special keys. She confirmed I was right and that option would not work. She then went to plan B, which was to send a tow truck out to tow the car and provide me a ride to the airport. Her #1 concern was whether that would take too long and cause me to miss my plane. No problem we determined.

She then said she would arrange everything and call me back in 10 minutes. Eight minutes later she called back, apologized again for me being inconvenienced and told me a tow truck would be there within 45 minutes. I asked her how they were going to tow a vehicle that was unable to be put into neutral, she said “they have their ways.” However, about five minutes later she called back with the tow dispatcher on the line who wanted to confirm there was enough space around the car to work their “magic.” There was.

At about the 35 minute mark, the dispatcher called again to say they were running behind and it would be another 20 minutes before the driver could get there. He arrived, hooked up my 4-wheel drive Volvo to his tow truck and we were off to the airport. He dropped me and the car at the Hertz car care facility where they promptly checked me in and gave me a personal ride to the airport.

What a difference a decade makes!!

 Mitch