However, this should not be used as a reason to defame Six Sigma, because even in the relatively small number of cases where Six Sigma was implemented in non-corporate organizations, the desired results have, in fact, been derived.

For better understanding, let's discuss how Six Sigma can be just as affective in non-corporate organizations as it is in corporate businesses.

General Problems Faced By Non-Corporate Organizations

As an example, we take the case of Canada Post. Just before the Six Sigma implementation, this organization was doing its job just as usual and everything seemed fine on the surface. However, the situation inside was quite different because the organization was facing some very grave issues at that time. It was slowly but steadily losing business to competitive forces that included courier agencies and similar companies.

What was even worse was that its archaic systems and processes were not helping much in alleviating these problems. The situation seemed to worsen with each passing day, so much so that many of the insiders had already started looking for new jobs.

However, things changed dramatically after Six Sigma was implemented on the recommendations of some senior members who stressed organizational reforms.

How Were The Issues Resolved Using Six Sigma?

The organization's main concerns were its archaic systems and growing inefficiency, which together made it difficult to offer any real competition to outside forces. This is why Six Sigma implementations in this organization first tried to weed out the inherent inefficiency and also the factors that were contributing to the growing inefficiencies. This was done by using one of the most successful Six Sigma methodologies, namely DMAIC (which stands for Define, Measure, Analyze, Implement and Control).

During the first phase of the implementation, all the delivery systems and processes were identified and subsequently categorized based on their criticality. After this, efforts were made to identify problem areas and devise unique and innovative solutions for overcoming those problems. To get the best possible results, input and feedback was sourced from all the stakeholders, including employees, implementation team members, senior management and members of top management.

Finally, the most appropriate solutions were devised and implemented where they were needed. In the last phase, both manual and automated control systems were set up in order to measure the progress being made and also to ensure that the desired results were being achieved.

It would certainly not be right to generalize things based on a single case study, but since the basic Six Sigma concepts and methodologies seem quite practical and fool-proof, it would not be wrong to assume that if used in the right manner, Six Sigma can prove just as beneficial for non-corporate businesses as it has for corporate businesses.

As such, there is no reason why non-corporate government undertakings should not embrace Six Sigma and derive the associated benefits.