How can you present your Lean and Six Sigma findings effectively to management and customers?

1 Know your audience

Before you prepare your presentation, you need to understand who your audience is and what they care about. Are they senior executives, middle managers, frontline workers, or external customers? What are their goals, challenges, expectations, and concerns? How familiar are they with Lean and Six Sigma concepts and terminology? How much detail and data do they need to see? Knowing your audience will help you tailor your message, tone, and format to suit their needs and preferences.

3 Show the process and the data

Another essential part of your presentation is to show the process that you have analyzed and improved using Lean and Six Sigma tools and methods. You need to illustrate the current state and the future state of the process, highlighting the changes and improvements that you have made or proposed. You also need to back up your findings and recommendations with data that shows the current performance, the gaps, the root causes, the solutions, and the expected outcomes. You can use charts, graphs, tables, diagrams, and other visual aids to make your data clear and compelling.

4 Highlight the benefits and the risks

Once you have shown the process and the data, you need to highlight the benefits and the risks of your improvement project. You need to quantify and qualify the benefits that your project will deliver, such as cost savings, efficiency gains, quality improvements, customer satisfaction, and competitive advantage. You also need to identify and address the risks that your project may face, such as technical issues, resource constraints, stakeholder resistance, and market changes. You need to show how you will mitigate and manage the risks and overcome the challenges.

5 Call for action and support

The last and most important part of your presentation is to call for action and support from your audience. You need to tell them what you want them to do next, such as approve your project, provide feedback, allocate resources, or implement changes. You also need to ask for their support and commitment, such as endorsing your project, sponsoring your team, championing your cause, or promoting your results. You need to show them how they can benefit from your project, how they can contribute to its success, and how they can help you achieve the goal.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?