Why Preparation is Key to Business Success

In today’s global market, the difference between the successes and the failures is no longer measured only in terms of financial performance and market share. What is now being factored into the equation — and rightfully so — is the value being delivered to the customer, which requires a clearer understanding of the elusive and ever-changing customer needs and the ability to translate those needs into critical-to-business elements.

In order to keep up with this demand, many organizations decide to implement a quality improvement program. To develop and sustain any performance improvement program, you first need people trained to do the job. Training can take many forms, depending on the approach your company decides to take. The two most adopted methodologies are Lean and Six Sigma, and many organizations now train for both disciplines so that they can harness the power of each. Both the Lean and the Six Sigma methodologies have proven that it is possible to achieve dramatic improvements in cost, quality, and time by focusing on process improvement. Either methodology can generate measurable breakthrough results, but only if the methodologies are implemented correctly.

While the Internet has created a proliferation of online and self-study courses, the reality is that both Lean and Six Sigma, to be learned effectively, require interaction with an instructor who is considered a master in the field and who has also successfully mentored or completed dozens of projects. Learning on your own may provide you with the fundamentals of the methodologies and an understanding of the various tools in the performance improvement toolkit, but it will not replace the knowledge of when and how to apply the methods and tools, the pitfalls associated with each, integration challenges, and change management.

Learn more about the Juran Difference and give us a call to get started at your organization — we’re here for you.