Disclaimer: I love Rockford, IL. It is an intriguing city and to me, appears to be most liveable. It is unfortunate that it has one of the highest unemployment rates in Illinois.
I'm a true believer when it comes to promoting Quality (with a capital "Q") Programs as a way to greater productivity and a better life in general. I was first introducee to TQM in the mid-nineties and later became acquainted with Six Sigma and the "GE way". I was always proud to be a GE employee. Six Sima was pushed through many (maybe all) GE companies and the business I worked for was no exception. The GE business I worked for (TGEBIWF) implemented Six
Sigma in fits and starts. TGEBIWF was, as many other organizations, a finance organization (TGEBIWF was actually part of GE Capital). We didn't really make anything. We bought "stuff" and either leased or re-sold it. Sure you can do projects to improve the customer experience, such as billing processes or service cycle-time, which, don't get me wrong, is important. The main problem with quality at TGEBIWF was that we were dependent on an industry that was not on the same quality page, so to speak. There was another program at GE where GE Black Belts would "consult" with customers to bring the GE quality technology to their organizations. It was called "At the Customer, For the Customer". I would often imagine how much better TGEBIWF could be if we brought that same concept to our suppliers.
Anyone working for an organization pushing six sigma and/or lean processes down the supply chain? Please comment as I am interested.
I recently read an article in Technology Review (January/February 2008) by John Hockenberry. It was titled "You Don't Understand Our Audience" and chronicled Mr. Hockenberry's career in media and specifically as a correspondent on NBC's Dateline. NBC, of course, was and is owned by GE. He describes the absorption of the news division into the corporate culture of GE after 1986. GE's managers were trying to see if the "same tactics that made the production of turbine generators more efficient could improve the production of television news." Mr. Hockenberry likens GE's Six Sigma "goal-oriented blather" to Maoism. "Champions" and "Black Belts" were Mao's "Cadres" and "Squad Leaders". An interesting comparison. Maybe Six Sigma and other quality methods are not "one-size fits all". Maybe we need to look at quality problems with a particular mindset and yet still remain flexible in our solutions.
I remember one story told by a professor at Cal State, Stanislaus illustrating how different Americans were from the Japanese when it comes to the concept of Total Quality. He was visiting Japan and observing workers at a micro-chip plant (if memory serves me). He noticed how carefully the workers would handle the product. The explanation was zen-like. Something about spirit and respect for the materials and product. I don't believe it is a cultural difference but rather a difference in mindset. Perhaps, at the risk of over-generalizing, if American managers and workers were to have more respect for process, we could once again become the economic powerhouse we once were. The key is we have to "make" things.
The photgraph is from Anderson's Japanese Gardens in Rockford, IL. An island of perfection in an American city where manufacturing was once king and is now one of the worst places to live in America.
