By Amy McKee

Last week, we covered the Improve and Control phases within the DMAIC framework.

If you have incorporated people in the first three phases, it will make the improve and the control phases substantially easier. However, people are still a critical component of these two phases and setting the right conditions for success will ensure they walk away open to the possibility of more improvements in the future. Here are 3 more tips to include during the Improve and Control framework:

1. Listen To All Levels.

The biggest complaint from employees during testing is often that no one is listening to them. Start with the assumption that everyone is doing the best they can, then LISTEN to the employees during testing and implementation to ensure their concerns are being addressed. People are much more open to change when they feel like they feel part of the process.

2. Communicate Effectively.

The majority of people don’t change the way they do things because someone tells them to. They change because they want to.

a. Communicate how employees benefit from making the change. (If you didn’t make it easier on employees, it will be substantially harder to implement.)
b. When training is needed, remember that some people learn more by seeing, others by hearing, and others by doing. Hit their curiosity button based on their interests, explain the process, demonstrate the process, let them practice the process, let them teach others the process, and leave them feeling good that they can do the process well.

3. Celebrate Successes.

At the end of the day, people will remember how they felt about the project. Celebrate successes along the way and especially recognize everyone’s individual efforts at the end. This will motivate people, incentivize positive behaviors, and increase the likelihood that they will want to DMAIC again in the future!