Imitation in Large Complex Organizations: A Case of Design for Six Sigma in the Automobile Industry

Abstract

As companies seek to become lean enterprises, they can take several alternative paths. One extreme is to mechanistically copy tools that work in another company's context to give the appearance of “doing lean” (mechanistic); another is to work to learn and adapt the principles to the local environment developing a culture of organizational learning (organic). Companies that have had some degree of success with lean in manufacturing often decide to move upstream to the engineering design phase. One set of tools for doing this is Design for Six Sigma (DFSS). This article recounts a detailed case study in which executives managing a mechanistic organizational culture, General Motors, decided to copy DFSS, which was purported to be a key success factor in Hyundai's greatly improved product quality. By converting the problem into one of mechanically copying specific tools, General Motors failed to incorporate DFSS into a learning culture, and the process led to mechanistic individual learning of rote procedures with little sustained organizational learning by the company. A model for effective implementation of programs like Design for Six Sigma is proposed.

Keywords:

• lean
• transformation planning
• Six Sigma