So you have implemented a process improvement methodology, like Six Sigma, and it was successful. While this is a reason to celebrate on its own, there’s still more work to be done. One question that pops into mind is: how do we make sure the positive results of the process improvement stick? As an organization, you don’t want to go through a Six Sigma event only to have the promising results gradually revert over time.

是的，我們已經(jīng)推行了某個(gè)流程改善方法，比如，六西格瑪，并且推行的很成功。雖然，這是值得讓自己慶祝的理由，不過(guò)，我們還有更多的工作要去做。我突然想到這么一個(gè)問(wèn)題：如何確保流程改善的積極成果，能夠得以持續？作為組織，我們不想僅僅通過(guò)某一起六西格瑪事件就能隨著(zhù)時(shí)間的逐漸推移而取得讓人滿(mǎn)意的結果。

With that in mind, one thing that becomes clear is that there’s a need for continuous improvement, or as the Japanese call it: “Kaizen.” This means improving anything, whether it is a process or product, on an ongoing basis. When your organization adopts a culture of continuous improvement, all improvements made will become cemented, meaning the organization will be optimized and primed to smoothly deliver value to customers uninterrupted.

有鑒于此，有一件事情很清楚，那就是：我們需要持續改善，或者日本人所說(shuō)的“Kaizen”。這意味著(zhù)要持續改善一切，無(wú)論是流程，還是產(chǎn)品。一旦組織采用持續改善的文化，所獲得所有改善都會(huì )得以鞏固，意味著(zhù)：組織會(huì )得到優(yōu)化，并準備順利地為客戶(hù)提供持續的價(jià)值。

So how does an organization ensure they build a culture of continuous improvement? Here are six principles to follow.

那么，組織應該如何確保建立一種持續改善的文化呢？以下是需要遵守的六大原則：

Focus on making small changes

專(zhuān)注于小的變化

Many organizations think continuous improvement is only about implementing big changes only. But large changes are disruptive and can often face resistance from employees. On the other hand, small improvements, when done incrementally, are less disruptive and more manageable. This means the whole organization doesn’t need to grind to a halt whenever improvements need to be made.

許多組織認為，持續改善只是為了實(shí)現重大的變化。但是重大的變化是帶有顛覆性的，而且常常會(huì )遇到員工的抵制。另一方面，即便完成小的改善，其顛覆性也會(huì )更小，且更易于管理。這意味著(zhù)，只要需要改善，整個(gè)組織就不需要陷入停頓。

Look in the 6Ms

關(guān)注6M變化

Six Sigma has the concept of 6Ms, which are believed to be behind process variation. In every process, there’s an expected amount of variation in output that is considered natural to it. However, there is some variation that is unnatural to the process known as special cause variation. This causes the variation in output to differ greatly to the point of producing non-conforming products.

六西格瑪中有6M的概念（Man, Machine, Material, Method, Measurement, Mother Nature，即：人員、機器、物料、方法、衡量與環(huán)境），6M這被認為是流程出現變化的幕后因素。每個(gè)流程中，都有某個(gè)在生產(chǎn)流程上被認為是預期的變化點(diǎn)。當然，有一些變化點(diǎn)對流程來(lái)講是不正常的，這些被稱(chēng)為：特殊原因導致的變化。這使得生產(chǎn)流程的變化與生產(chǎn)不合格產(chǎn)品大為相同。

By focusing on eliminating the 6Ms, which are man, machine, materials, mother nature, measurement and method, processes can be improved on an ongoing basis.

通過(guò)重點(diǎn)消除人員、機器、物料、方法、衡量與環(huán)境的變化（注，英文原文中是由錯誤的，結合上下文，應該指代的是6M的變化點(diǎn)，而非6M），我們可以對工藝進(jìn)行持續改善。

Mistakes teach lessons

錯誤是教訓

Nobody likes to make mistakes, especially if they are costly. However, mistakes can also serve as a valuable lesson on what works and what doesn’t. Employees carrying out the continuous improvement effort need to feel that mistakes are part of the process. They must be given enough room to experiment without being reckless and fearing blame. That way, they will feel comfortable in revealing what they did wrong in order to produce the undesirable results.

沒(méi)有人喜歡犯錯，特別是代價(jià)高昂的錯誤。事實(shí)上，錯誤也可以作為某個(gè)有價(jià)值的教訓，可以告訴員工什么是有效的，而什么是無(wú)效的。開(kāi)展持續改善的員工，要覺(jué)得錯誤也是流程的一部分。他們必須有足夠的空間進(jìn)行嘗試，無(wú)需用所顧忌，也無(wú)需害怕受到指責。如此，他們能在揭示自己做錯了導致不良的結果上會(huì )感到好一些。

Ideas from employees have value

員工的想法是有價(jià)值的

Management should take a top-down approach to continuous improvement. Feedback from employees from the lowest levels should be treated like gold since the further down the chain we go, the more that person is in direct contact with the process being improved. And the more direct their knowledge of the process is, the more they are likely to know how to make effective improvements. It is up to management to listen to what their employees are saying in order to make informed decisions.

管理層應該采取“自上而下”的方法來(lái)持續改善。最底層的員工的反饋，應該被視為財富。因為，我們走的越遠，員工與流程之間的直接聯(lián)系就越緊密。他們對該流程了解越清楚，就越可能知道如何高效地進(jìn)行改善。為了做出明智的決策，管理層應該去聆聽(tīng)員工的看法。

Continuous Improvement is everyone’s job

持續改善是每個(gè)人的工作

When the question about who is responsible for continuous improvement is asked, the answer should be that everyone is involved. It doesn’t matter if that person is a janitor, operator, leader or manager. It must be clearly communicated that every employee on every level should take ownership and be involved in all ongoing improvement efforts.

如果有問(wèn)：“誰(shuí)負責持續改善”，答案應該是：每個(gè)人都參與到持續改善中。不管是門(mén)衛，還是操作員工，也不管是領(lǐng)導者，還是經(jīng)理，都應該清楚這一點(diǎn)。我們必須清楚地傳達這么一個(gè)信號：所有級別的所有員工，都應該負責，并參與所有正在進(jìn)行的持續改善中。

Measure effectiveness constantly

持續衡量有效性

Without coming up with a yardstick for measuring success, it would be hard to know if the improvement efforts are working. Process improvement efforts always have an end goal in mind, and results must constantly be measured to ensure the organization is moving towards that goal. Also, by coming up with a way to measure the success, what works can be made apparent for repeatability and what doesn’t work can be eliminated.

如果想不出衡量成功的標準，那么，我們會(huì )很難知道改善工作是否有效。要記住，流程改善始終要有個(gè)最終的目標，并且必須不斷衡量結果，以確保組織是朝著(zhù)該目標前行的。此外，通過(guò)提出某種衡量成功的方法，對于可重復性來(lái)說(shuō)，哪些起作用及哪些不起作用應該被消除，都會(huì )是顯而易見(jiàn)的事情。