Page 98 - Six Sigma Demystified

Chapter 4 DEF INE STAGE 79

Team members need to follow through effectively on commitments in a
timely manner. They must contribute to discussions, which includes active lis-
tening, offering constructive and nonjudgmental feedback, and active sharing
of ideas. Team leaders can be given feedback regarding what seems to be work-
ing and not working.

team leader responsibilities

Team leaders must accept their responsibilities for leadership:
• Keep the team focused. Use the charter’s goal, objectives, and scope state-
ments to focus the team. Stick to the DMAIC structure: Don’t try to
analyze or improve until you’ve defined and measured.
• Enforce ground rules. Ground rules provide important protocol to teams,
ensuring consistency and fairness for members. Typical ground rules in-
clude respectful and inviting communication, consensus- based decision
making, and prompt completion of action items.
• Ensure that conflicts are resolved in a positive manner. Actively listen to
concerns raised by interested parties, and then address the concerns. Con-
cerns cannot be ignored or maligned. Data should be collected so that
concerns can be understood and addressed properly. While this may take
“extra” time, the cost of not addressing these concerns is often a failure to
achieve project buy- in, which can be fatal to a project’s objectives.
• Schedule, facilitate, and manage team meetings. Meetings should have a de-
fined agenda, and the leader should ensure that the team sticks to it.
• Report regularly to project sponsors and stakeholders (as discussed previously).

• Ensure that barriers are removed (if necessary by the sponsor). When road-
blocks are encountered in a project, it is especially important for the
team leader to use his or her consensus- building skills effectively. The
project sponsor has the ultimate authority to clear roadblocks but should
exercise authority to clear roadblocks only when all other options have
been unsuccessful.

• Develop team member skills. Within each stage of DMAIC, use brainstorm-
ing tools to expand the team’s thinking, followed by data- analysis tools to
focus on a solution.

In an initial team meeting, the team leader should review and circulate the
ground rules. The team should agree (through consensus) on the project pur-