We have all been hearing about Six Sigma and how it has been a revolution in modern business. Let us take a look at what Six Sigma is and how you can learn from it to benefit your organization.
Six Sigma is a business methodology that brings about an improvement in business processes. It utilizes Statistical analysis instead of using intuition or guesswork while making a major decision in the organization thereby ensuring the best possible outcomes. If you undergo training, you will be assisted from the process of training and certification to implementation of the strategies in your company. Employees of a company can get certified at various belt levels such as black, white, green, yellow etc.
The color represents your proficiency. For example, a black belt will have successfully led ten or more teams through complex Six Sigma projects. He or she is a proven change agent, i.e. a leader, a facilitator, and a technical expert in Six Sigma management. Here are some Traits that you should learn in order to become a Change Agent in your organization.
1. To become an effective change agent, you must recognize the importance of your own perceptions and the perceptions of those around you. To solve complex problems or bring about change, you should choose to perceive situations in a way that you will act as an agent who is in control, rather than someone who accepts bad outcomes and feels like a victim of fate.
2. You should take ownership of the outcomes that come as a result of your decisions or actions and remedy them or think of possible remedies for the future.
3. Do not seek directions from people constantly. Instead of being instructed on getting something done, Change Agents take initiative and constantly better themselves to benefit the company and the business.
4. Give credit to others. This is an important aspect of being a leader and Change Makers are always good leaders. Give credit to those who work with you and acknowledge their contributions and achievements, This will motivate them to consistently work better.
5. Learn from your mistakes. Learning is a continuous process. As mentioned earlier, you have to take ownership of your actions. Making a mistake is natural and this may bring negative outcomes. Analyze the outcomes and mistakes and learn from them.
6. Share Information before it is needed. This is a very important trait of any Change Agent. If you possess information that another person may need to perform a task, don’t wait for the last moment before sharing it. Sharing it beforehand may save you precious work hours and assist in the planning of the task more efficiently.
7. Overcome your fear of the unknown: Reorganization or other large changes may be necessary for the success of a project or better results. Do not hesitate or fear the unknown impacts this might bring about. Perform an analysis of the possible impacts and make a decision based on the results.