I'll Give You The Facts

I know mass-market business publications cover technology issues, but I usually expect to read articles about Six Sigma on tech-geek web sites. BusinessWeek, however, is diving right in with a couple of pieces questioning the role and value of the best practices framework in an economy that demands fluidity and innovation. The main article examines 3M's efforts to reignite the sparks of creativity that slowly have been extinguished by the rigid conformity that is Six Sigma. Think I overstate? Try this:

Efficiency programs such as Six Sigma are designed to identify problems in work processes  and then use rigorous measurement to reduce variation and eliminate defects. When these types of initiatives become ingrained in a company's culture, as they did at 3M, creativity can easily get squelched.

The requisite sidebar broadens the issue beyond 3M, telling us that "as its popularity endures, the notion of Six Sigma as a corporate cure-all is subsiding." One company that found out the hard way -- to my delight, as a disgruntled ex-customer -- was Home Depot, whose former CEO was a devotee of Six Sigma. Profits soared but worker morale and customer satisfaction plunged under Robert Nardelli, who apparently was fond of saying, "Facts are friendly." You know what's friendlier? I'll tell you. Not making someone wait eight weeks to get back his $2,000 for the lawn mower he ordered and then, literally an hour later, cancelled before any paperwork had been processed, never mind product delivery made. Apparently their magical electronic payment system only works when they're collecting the money. Must be a Six Sigma thing. Go Lowe's!