Chapter 14: How to Avoid the Pitfalls of E-Mail on Six Sigma Projects

Reality Check

A good example of how to use the Checklist: Reading Nonverbal Cues came when a Six Sigma team sponsor was giving feedback on the just-in-time Six Sigma training a Black Belt had just delivered to a project team. The sponsor had nothing but glowing things to say about the program. She stressed that the participants had been engaged and that all of them had left the program excited about getting started on the project. She praised the Black Belt’s teaching skills and mentioned how rare it was to find someone good at both the technical and training aspects of Six Sigma.

Despite the positive words, however, the Black Belt noticed that the sponsor wasn’t making eye contact and was leaning away with her arms crossed. She seemed to be speaking faster than normal, too. The Black Belt was puzzled, and finally asked if something might be bothering the sponsor. The sponsor grew quiet and moved a few steps away, then finally admitted that the funding had been cut for the project and she felt she had just wasted the time of the Black Belt and the participants. The two were able to have a more direct conversation after that, and made plans for deploying the recent trainees to other teams. The sponsor’s relief was obvious and the two were smiling and laughing by the end of the conversation.

Had the Black Belt not noticed the “disconnect” between the sponsor’s words and her nonverbal cues, he would have left the meeting on a high ... only to be acutely disappointed when the lack of project funding was announced. And he would have been scrambling to figure out what to do with the recent trainees. Instead, by the time the trainees heard that their original project was off, they had already learned about their new assignments from the Black Belt. Their level of enthusiasm for Six Sigma remained high, and they were still able to make a contribution to the organization—although not on the original project. The Black Belt felt like part of a solution to the problem, rather than a victim of it.