What are the best ways to maintain a Lean Six Sigma culture in a high-turnover workforce?

1 Define and communicate your vision

The first step to maintaining a Lean Six Sigma culture is to clearly define and communicate your vision, goals, and expectations to your workforce. You need to explain why Lean Six Sigma is important, what benefits it can bring, and how it aligns with your organizational values and strategy. You also need to provide regular feedback, recognition, and support to your employees to keep them engaged and motivated. Use various channels and formats, such as posters, newsletters, meetings, and online platforms, to reinforce your message and create a shared understanding.

2 Train and empower your employees

The second step to maintaining a Lean Six Sigma culture is to train and empower your employees to apply the methodology in their daily work. You need to provide them with the necessary tools, resources, and guidance to identify and solve problems, implement improvements, and measure results. You also need to encourage them to participate in projects, teams, and events that promote collaboration, learning, and innovation. You can use different levels of training, such as white, yellow, green, or black belt, to certify and reward your employees for their skills and achievements.

4 Adapt and innovate your practices

The fourth step to maintaining a Lean Six Sigma culture is to adapt and innovate your practices according to the changing needs and expectations of your customers, market, and industry. You need to embrace change as an opportunity, not a threat, and foster a culture of curiosity, experimentation, and creativity. You also need to leverage new technologies, methods, and ideas that can enhance your efficiency, quality, and value proposition. You need to involve your employees in the process of change, and solicit their feedback, suggestions, and solutions.

5 Celebrate and share your successes

The fifth step to maintaining a Lean Six Sigma culture is to celebrate and share your successes with your workforce and stakeholders. You need to acknowledge and appreciate the efforts and contributions of your employees, and reward them for their performance and improvement. You also need to showcase and promote your best practices, achievements, and lessons learned, and inspire others to follow your example. You can use different platforms and channels, such as newsletters, webinars, case studies, and testimonials, to spread the word and build your reputation.

6 Learn and grow from your failures

The sixth and final step to maintaining a Lean Six Sigma culture is to learn and grow from your failures. You need to accept and embrace failure as an inevitable and valuable part of the learning process, and not as a sign of weakness or incompetence. You also need to encourage your employees to report and analyze their failures, and use them as opportunities to identify root causes, implement corrective actions, and prevent recurrence. You need to foster a culture of trust, transparency, and accountability, and avoid blaming or punishing your employees for their mistakes.

7 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?