Green Six Sigma

Chapter 4More of Green Six Sigma

‘The golden rule is that there is no golden rule.’

– George Bernard Shaw

4.1. Introduction

The success of Six Sigma and Lean Six Sigma cannot be faulted. The rigorous Six Sigma process combined with the speed and agility of Lean Six Sigma has produced definitive solutions for better, faster and cheaper business processes. Through the systematic identification and eradication of non-value-added activities an optimum value flow is achieved, cycle times are reduced and defects eliminated. However, business managers do understand the grey areas of distinction between different quality initiatives and justifiably are expressing concerns, including raising the question ‘How do we sustain these results?’ Thus, we need FIT SIGMA. The next question is ‘How do we sustain the environment?’ Thus, we need Green Six Sigma. It follows that as Green Six Sigma is based on FIT SIGMA, any reference to FIT SIGMA will also apply to Green Six Sigma.

Figure 4.1 Main barriers to quality movement

A survey by Basu (2001)¹ has shown that there are considerable barriers to achieving and sustaining results in quality initiatives. These are illustrated in Figure 4.1.

The biggest obstacle appears to be the packaged approach of the programme, causing a paucity of customised local solutions. Furthermore, due to the ‘top-down’ directive, middle managers are often not ...