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How do I get my Champion to support my project?
Getting the weight of the organisation on your side
Experience has shown that obtaining Champion support for a Lean Six Sigma project is one of the major success factors, and anyone attempting to undertake a project without this support may find it much more difficult than it need be.
So what we can we do to ensure we get the Champion support we need?
We must first of all understand the role of a Champion in a Lean Six Sigma organisation.
Champions have three major roles. These work at a deployment level and also at a project level:
Deployment role
- Ensure linkage of project goals with organizational goals
- Identify, prioritize and launch improvement projects
- Manage Black Belts
- Ensure that best practices are shared throughout the organization
- Monitor the deployment and make corrections
- Communicate and publicize the results of the Six Sigma program
- Ensure that projects are cross functional, and that focus is not lost on delivering new, innovative solutions to the customer
Resources role
- Identify, motivate, and "free-up" the best people to become Black Belts
- Work with other stakeholders to ensure that their objectives are not impacted
Support role
- Remove organizational barriers
- Recognize and reward all team members including Black Belts and Master Black belts
- Provide visibility for successful projects with a focus on tangible results
- Develop and implement a comprehensive training plan to support Six Sigma implementation
Now this is a long list and it is unlikely that any Champion is going to be able to fulfill all these roles equally well, but it is quite common that Champions are not fully aware of the strategic position they play in a Lean Six Sigma deployment.
It is therefore useful to engage with your Champion at the earliest opportunity and make sure that they are aware of what is expected of them and talk through the specific needs or requirements that you have.
They are usually senior and busy people and some may seek to try and delegate some of these tasks to you. Make sure they are aware that the Champion tasks cannot be delegated because if you had their experience and authority you wouldn't need a Champion in the first place!
What you can do, however, is to ensure that they are fully aware of the nature and objectives of your project and understand the importance of it. This may mean some background work to collect data about the project, why it is being done and what benefits will flow from it. These benefits may relate to improving customer service, reducing losses, improving efficiency or speed of response. The majority of projects will be able to deliver some financial benefits to the organisation, something most businesses are looking to do in the current climate. A good understanding of why a project is being done will be a first step in getting support.
If the Champion cannot be convinced of the importance of the project then perhaps it is the wrong project. Of course this should never happen because the Champion should have played a major role in selecting the project in the first place but "stuff happens" as they say, and this situation is not that unusual - especially if the Champion's role is not fully understood.
Assuming you have overcome this obstacle then strike a simple bargain with the busy and maybe reluctant Champion. This is that you will update them as often as they require, in the manner they require, and seek to overcome any obstacles you can on your own, but that if you do need their clout they will be there to support you! This usually works.
We have seen that obtaining Champion support for a Lean Six Sigma project is one of the major success factors, and we have discussed how you might go about obtaining it. Remember to have a good understanding of why the project is being done, develop a good relationship with the Champion, and you will have the weight of the organisation on your side as you undertake your LSS project.
To help build relationships between Champions and Belts, SigmaPro is offering a complimentary place on our 2-day Champion programme in October free of charge for every Black Belt booking. See www.sigmapro.co.uk for further details.
Author Biography
Mike Titchen
Six Sigma Master Black Belt
Read about Mike here
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