SIX SIGMA FOR CUSTOMERS’ SATISFACTION AND EMPLOYEES’ MORALE
BY OLUWANISOLA SEUN EMMANUEL
EZINE ARTICLE EXPERT AUTHOR
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED (C) 2009


Six Sigma means different things to organizations and individuals. It could mean quality measurement/awareness/consciousness or better still a mere discipline. Since there will always be deviation from standard, most organizations now sees six sigma as a vital too for guarding against expensive errors in product and minimize defects.

Six sigma covers areas like product quality, process quality and service quality. In fact, the central focus of it is setting, ensuring, maintaining and controlling quality of product or service. Six sigma has two major processes: the DMAIC and DMADV processes. The first three letters of the two processes D, M, and A (acronym) stand for Define, Measure and Analyze while I and C in DMAIC stand for Improve and Control. D and V in DMADV stand for Design and Verify.

DMAIC is a process for existing process and its improvement while DMADV process is used for developing new product quality process.

The question is that, 'what does Six Sigma teaches?' The core of the course is 'to make customer happier and increase profit'. A bank here in Nigeria has its slogan as 'happy customer, happy bank'. What does this denotes? It simply means that if the objective of Six Sigma would be achieved when organizations learn to focus on customers’ and employees' satisfaction, motivation and happiness. This is centre to profit making, advancement, market expansion, corporate social responsibility and the likes.

I have come to understand the importance of Six Sigma to an organization. From learning to identifying customers' problems or challenges, analyzing such problems to identify the root cause and finding alternatives to solving such problems. Then, choosing the best alternative that best solve/address the problems in question, implementing the course so chosen and put in place control strategies to ensure that the result is achieved and where there is deviation (known via checks and balances). At the end of it all, there should be means of verifying or overhauling the process to see if the results are achieved and if not, it should be re-applied (i.e. reapplication of strategies).

The employees' motivation cannot be overlooked in the process. Without the employee the whole issue of customers’ satisfaction will not be achieved because they deal with the customers either directly or indirectly. Employees’ satisfaction could be in any form ranging from carrying the employees along in decision making, increase their salary, ensure working environment, promote them in due time, send them on training, etc. When an organization thus has good and motivated workers, the end results are: increased productivity, increased profit, reduced cost, and CUSTOMERS’ SATISFACTION which is the purpose of six sigma.

very good

hope soon we have six sigma agencies in nigeria