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Strategically focused training in Six Sigma way: a case study

Ashish Pandey
Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, India and Invertise Institute of Management Studies, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India
Abstract
Purpose The purpose of the current study is to examine the utility of Six Sigma interventions as a performance measure and explore its applicability for making the training design and delivery operationally efcient and strategically effective. Design/methodology/approach This is a single revelatory case study. Data were collected from multiple sources. In depth interviews of Six Sigma champion, black belt and green belt executives were conducted for understanding the Six Sigma interventions in HR function in general and in training functions in particular. Findings Application of Six Sigma approach was found to be helpful for better alignment of training function in MNC bank with the organizational requirements. Six Sigma changed the role of the function towards proaction. Research limitations/implications This study has usual limitation of single case study research. Moreover, the impact of Six Sigma and its dependence on organizational structure, organizational culture, leadership role, social embeddedness, role stress etc. are identied as areas for future research. Practical implications The study brings out the applicability of Six Sigma approach for HR department and training function. Originality/value The paper delineates the application of Six Sigma approach in training function. It explores the applicability of this approach to ensure the training effectiveness by pulling the training function closer to internal and external customers requirements and by its strategic alignment with organizational goals. Keywords Training evaluation, Six sigma, Organizational planning Paper type Case study

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Received June 2006 Revised November 2006 Accepted December 2006

Introduction The predominant source of market value of business organizations has been shifting from tangible xed asset to intangible assets like human capital, customer capital, brand equity etc. (Henson, 2003; Kaplan and Norton, 2004; Ulrich and Smallwood, 2005). Intangible assets are emerging as a powerful source of sustainable competitive advantage. In the wake of emerging business realities human resource management (HRM) has become of strategic importance (Lado and Wilson, 1994; Lange, 2003). The human resource (HR) function is emerging as a proactive player in managing human capital operationally and strategically. HR function with its internal functioning aligned with strategic objectives of the organization is emerging to be a strategic partner and change agent in industrially developed countries as well as in developing
This study is result of constant support and guidance of Professor Jyotsna Bhatnagar, Associate Professor of Strategic HRM at MDI, Gurgaon. Valuable input from Sunita Chugh and Vanita Yadav, both FPM Scholars at MDI, are also gratefully acknowledged.

Journal of European Industrial Training Vol. 31 No. 2, 2007 pp. 145-162 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0309-0590 DOI 10.1108/03090590710734363

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country like India, though at a moderate level (Bhatnagar and Sharma, 2004, 2005; Schular and Jackson, 1999; Barney and Wright, 1998; Conner and Ulrich, 1996). Amongst the different roles HR function performs, developmental role of HR (education and training) is found to be a major challenge in managing human capital (Lange, 2003). Training is one of the ways of building and nurturing human competence that would be enabler in achieving organizational objectives. This function can be directly linked with strategic orientation of the rm (Garavan et al., 1999). By performing the developmental function with strategic orientation HRD contribute to the organizations service, quality and productivity objective (Geber, 1995; Fitz-enz and Phillips, 2004). In spite of the strategic importance of HR function, HR professionals in general are more frequently expected to justify their contributions to their employer and to account for their existence (Fitz-enz, 1984; Gow, 1985; Sheppeck and Cohen, 1985, Fitz-enz and Philips, 2004). This paper attempts to highlight the strategic signicance of HR function and critical issue of measurement of the contribution that the HR function makes with specic reference to training. After reviewing the of effectiveness and efciency measurement models of HR the paper explores the applicability of Six Sigma approach in this context. It presents a detailed case study of implementation of Six Sigma approach in the training function at a multinational bank in India. The paper has ve major sections. The rst section presents a review of approaches, methods and models for measurement of HR and gives theoretical background of training effectiveness evaluation models and approaches. The second section starts with an introductory note on Six Sigma approach, describes the research site, context of application of this technique in the organization studied and the methodology of the study. In the third section we elaborate on different steps of Six Sigma and its application in training function in the organization studied. The fourth section aims to present results of application of this technique in the organization studied and major learning achieved for general application of Six Sigma in HR function. The paper concludes with theoretical implications, limitations of the study and Six Sigma approach. Theoretical background The current section presents a brief review of different approaches and methods of measurement of HR and HR function. The rst part of this section is about general evaluation of HR function and later part is focused on reviewing evaluation of training and development activities. Sinha and Gahlot (2000) reported the usages of HR accounting models in organizations like ONGC, BHEL, SPIC, VSNL etc. The focus in these models was on Human capital and not HR function. It is based on the economic concept of human capital. Capital is dened as a source of income over a period of time and is the present value of future incomes discounted by a certain rate. The model in effect identies an individuals expected economic value to the organization to his future earnings for his remaining active service life. The major shortcoming of HR accounting model is that it ignores a persons inherent qualities, traits and skills and the environment of the organization. Further, it ignores the probability of talent ight and transfer (Sinha and Gahlot, 2000).

Though HRD audit has been used in many organizations in India but it is mainly viewed as an organizational development intervention (Rao and Vijayalaxmi, 2000). It provides neither the pivotal strategic perspective, nor a sophisticated quantitative technique to measure the HR function. At a micro level, the HRD audit maybe considered as an audit of systems and their functioning. At a macro level, the HRD audit is an assessment of the three critical Cs of HR (Rao, 1999), which are: (1) competence (of the workforce); (2) commitment (of the management); and (3) culture (of the organization). Human capital index (HCI) is another matrix based on nancial value of human resources and different HR functions (Cascio, 1991; Grojer and Johanson, 1998; Flamholtz, 1999). HCI is a methodology of Watson Wytt, which is used to calculate the correlation of human capital and share holder values. HCI represents the relationship between certain human capital practices and value creation by the rm. Technique like Tobin Q is also a valuable tool to determine the changing relationship between tangible assets and market value (Mayo, 2000). Tobins Q compares the value of a company given by nancial markets with the value of a companys assets. It is calculated by dividing the market value of a company by the replacement value of its assets. There is Human Capital ROI, which is calculated by the following formulae in the western nations (Revenue (Op Exp (Comp Cost Benet Cost EPTNW)/(Comp Cost Benet Cost EPTNW) * EPTNW is excluding pay for time not worked. These models are quite useful for internal analysis of HR activities but doubts have been raised whether these will provide convincing evidence to line executives of the any actual value added. Sveiby (1997) reports that nancial approach alone to express the people competencies has not been entirely useful to managers. Use of both nancial and non-nancial approaches is now a more common theme in literature. Moreover, operational metrics do not provide the analytics that are necessary to push the HR function to a transformational role and a closer alignment to business strategy (Weiss et al., 2005). In the current business perspective metrics in HRD are of prime importance not only to inform but also to drive strategy. Research reveals that that organizations tend to focus on background functional efciency measures. Operational metrics do not provide the analytics which is necessary to push the HRD function to a transformational role, to bring it closer alignment to business strategy and to demonstrate its worth (Blancard and Thacker, 1999; Weiss et al., 2005). Metrics are needed to direct the HRD efforts towards the strategic intent of the rm and to empower it to express its contribution in operationalizing organization strategy. Some managers shy away from measuring their intangible assets because these measures are usually softer or more subjective, than the nancial measures they conventionally use to motivate and assess performance (Kaplan and Norton, 2004). In fact, the Accenture High Performance Workforce Study 2002/2003 found that a major shortcoming in many companies is a lack of measurement on the impact of HR, which is preventing executives from understanding where and how they should best apply resources (Jamrog and Overholt, 2004).

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Training evaluation: approaches and methods In the past, Kirkpatric (1959, 1998) model has largely guided the training evaluation (Blanchard et al., 2000). There are a total of four hierarchically ordered levels in his model: Reaction, learning, behavior (transfer) and organizational results. Plant and Ryan (1992) at international level and Yadapadithaya (2001) in the Indian context report that training evaluation described by Kirkpatrick (1959, 1998) is applied only at level of trainees reaction. However, with the rise of TQM in early nineties managers learnt that everything can and should be measured (Kelly, 1993). Managers are now asked to show what difference training and development activities make to the effectiveness of the rm business. According to Endres and Kleiner (1990) successfully measuring effectiveness in management training should include evaluation in key areas such as including emotional reaction and knowledge gain measured after training interventions. For enhancing the effectiveness of training, evaluation of its integration with organizational life is being advocated by researchers. The quality assurance evaluation model of Akin-Ogundeji (1991) is based on this thought. Maynard (1993) considers the role of experimental evaluations and nds them to be a powerful method for assessing programme effectiveness. Based on research studies in India Pareek (1997), Rao (1984) and Kar (1985) emphasized the need of commitment at all levels in the organization for training to be effective. Training effectiveness is being recognized in terms of change in employees behavior and performance. Comparatively less attention in the literature is found regarding its strategic and customer orientation. Plant and Ryan (1992) have suggested a system of training effectiveness evaluation, which forms the basis of individual analysis and also allows group deciencies to be explored over time. The method is based on self-perceived skill gap measurement at individual departmental and organizational levels. McKillip (2001) in his study showed the linkage between job analysis and training evaluation. Harrison (2000) identied the linkage amongst learning and knowledge process with strategic progress of an organization. Nevertheless, strategic training has been the general concern of HR function since long. OConnell (1986) identied the six steps in strategic training process. Steps included in his model are; engagement of organizational leadership, identication of strategic objectives, needs analysis, design of intervention, development of implementation and evaluation of success. Strategic orientation of training and development is also being advocated by Horwitz (1999). He evaluated the HRD needs and training as its subsequent activity from a business strategy perspective. Horwitz (1999) concludes that a strategic approach to training and development necessitates more rigorous evaluation of effectiveness and resolution of responsibility for training. Phillips (1999)suggested a ROI system for evaluating training programs for their role in business results. It consists of ve steps: reaction and planned action (What is the participants reaction to the program? What do they plan to do with what they have learned?); learning (What skills, knowledge, or attitudes have changed? By how much?); applied learning on the job (Did participants apply what they learned on the job?); business results (Did the on-the-job application produce measurable results?); and return on investment (Did the monetary value of the results exceed the cost of the program? ROI approach is an extension of Kirkpatrick model (Phillips, 1999) and places specic emphasis on evaluation (Phillips, 1999, p. 16). Whereas an

organization-wide approach such as Six Sigma emphasizes evaluation at each step of training i.e. planning, design, delivery and impact. The Six Sigma approach is applicable in most of the other organizational functions i.e. operations, sales etc. and can be an approach covering overall organizational functioning. Six Sigma: an introductory note The term Six Sigma denotes the standard variation of a normally distributed phenomenon and positioned at or beyond 99.998 percent level on X-axis of normal distribution curve. For a business process to perform at Six Sigma means it produces only 3.4 defects out of every million opportunities. Six Sigma is not only a technique but is also a philosophy and more of a movement across the organization (Wyper and Harrison, 2000). This was pioneered by Motorola and was later popularized by GE and AlliedSignal. Though Six Sigma was rst used in manufacturing set up its scope is expanding from manufacturing to the elds like sales and HR (Fleming et al., 2005; Sodhi and Sodhi, 2005) and has opened up new opportunities (DeFeo, 2000). It has initiated metrics based thinking in these domains. Dow Chemicals HR resource center saved $3.2 million in nancial benets through Six Sigma implementation (Linda, 2004). Ford reports more than $1 billion saved since 2000, as a result of Six Sigma initiatives. HR practitioners at Ford Europe and Intel have signicantly improved their internal processes based on such initiatives (Bhatnagar et al., 2004). Six Sigma denotes the organizational mindset in which people make decisions based on data, look for root causes of problems, dene defects based on external or internal customer, seek to control variation, track leading indicators of problems to prevent them (Lanyon, 2003). Six Sigma is organized around individual projects with nite timelines. Each project begins by forming the team that identies the customer needs. The team measures how these needs are being met, and analyzes the variables that affect customer satisfaction, how it improves the process and looks in to the control issue of the process. All these steps are called DMAIC (dene, measure, analyze, improve and control) for improving business processes. Need for the study Six Sigma aims for scientically measuring the selected function through rigorous measurement, and has soft processes, like team thinking, brainstorming etc. built into it. The new metrics like HR scorecard or dashboard concept (Beatty et al., 2003) are also a part of this process. Further, it plugs the lacunae of measurement effectiveness, which was found to be a major drawback with existing HR related metrics (Beatty et al., 2003). Six Sigma not only informs current efciency and effectiveness of the process but also pivots the process towards organizational strategy synchronization. The current study describes the key tools used for its implementation in HR function. It is aimed to examine the utility of Six Sigma interventions as a performance measure and discusses its application for making the training delivery operationally efcient and strategically effective. This research highlights a success story of Six Sigma intervention in training function. In the paper special emphasis is laid on Six Sigma green belt projects under taken up in multinational service organizations to clarify the process of Six Sigma implementation.

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Design and methodology of the study The study was conducted with the permission of the Six Sigma champions of the respective organizations. Data was collected from multiple sources, according to Yin (2002) recommendation. In depth interviews were conducted for understanding the methodology of Six Sigma interventions in HR function. In-depth interviews of black belts and green belts executives were conducted. Each interview was partially structured and lasted for 60 to 90 minutes on a one-to-one basis inside the organization, of which detailed notes were taken. Views presented here include both mainstream and counter views of organizational members in a coherent manner so that it would provide comprehensive picture of the situation and create possibility of getting genuine insight about the organization and the research phenomenon under study. Supporting secondary documents like Six Sigma implementation chart, project summary on power point les were also collected to ensure the further clarication and validity of the information shared by interviewees. Interviews of the champion of the Six Sigma in the organization were also conducted to understand the place and role of Six Sigma within the strategic network of the rm. Research site and place of Six Sigma in larger organizational context This study was conducted in a multi national bank located in the National Capital Region (NCR) of India. We have given a pseudo-name (MNC Bank) to respect the condentiality of the bank. In Indian operation of this bank, HR provides services to 1,200 employees in four business divisions operating from four geographically dispersed locations. The Head of Delhi location stated that for the MNC Bank branding was mainly a human capital function and by achieving service objectives HR delivers the brand promise. Central quality team from the corporate ofce of MNC Bank initiated the Six Sigma training and project with internal change agents in the HR function. Six Sigma was adopted by the company to meet the customer need and process capability. A quality leader of the MNC Bank, in one of the interviews stated:
Six Sigma is more than just a tactical cost saving initiative. It is a commitment to manage through processes, and not through functions. The world over this organization is engaged in many mergers and acquisitions. Six Sigma has helped it to give direction to the regional banks of different structures to assimilate in the larger fabric of Banks multinational network.

This is an unusual step in a nancial institution. Six Sigma deployments were interwoven in the strategic framework of the corporation. This was a component of the total quality management system that allowed the organization to plan and execute strategic breakthroughs while effectively managing continuous improvement performance. Figure 1 denotes the place of Six Sigma in a larger strategic framework of the MNC Bank. Six Sigma deployment plans were seen as a navigation system to reliably and effectively reduce variability of performance through planned breakthrough goals. Such plans were integrated with critical few strategies, initiatives and measures, vital to achieve vision and mission of the organization, and this is evident through a graphic description in Figure 2. The Six Sigma projects were deployed through out the organization and were reviewed regularly. Focus, alignment and frequent reviews were the governing principles in this journey of excellence. Titles and key roles of different team members are shown in Figure 3, as found in the organizations.

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Figure 1. Six Sigma in strategic framework of the MNC bank

Figure 2. Six Sigma in strategic context

Six Sigma is an organization wide intervention, where every associate is responsible for implementing this across the organizational levels. Training for Six Sigma is an important step to make it successful. Special training is necessary for master black belts, black belt and green belts. A half-yearly training and organization wide training is mandatory for quality fundamentals. Table I explains the HR Six Sigma training in detail.

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Figure 3. Key roles of Six Sigma project

Role Champions training

Training goal

Duration

Train senior leaders in key concepts Two days of Six Sigma and their role in supporting it in the organization. Training for how to support the green and black belts on their projects and how to pick the projects they work on Develop advance skills to conduct development plan for customer satisfaction and productivity improvements Develop skills to drive and plan customer satisfaction and productivity improvements Six months, consisting of four weeks of classroom interspersed with project work (100 percent of persons time) Ten days to two weeks, over a six-week period, plus project work in between (50 percent of persons time)

Black belt

Green belt

Other team members

Table I. Training for Six Sigma team

One-day program Basic training program to link business processes to customer satisfaction leveraging a transaction service business issue to learn tools and techniques

Source: Organizational document

HR was instrumental in achieving the objective of customer satisfaction in the bank. Six Sigma and HR processes were integrated and directed towards achieving service excellence for increased customer satisfaction, enabling the organization to increase market share and revenue growth. Six Sigma in HR was instrumental in achieving two fold objectives: rst objective was to achieve process excellence and the other was to achieve service excellence in banking operations. Its contribution to the achievement of strategic objectives and bottom line was to be presented in tangible ways. Implementation of Six Sigma had facilitated the HR function to perform this task better. Role of HR function in MNC bank revolved around: . compensation; . training and development; and . social brand imaging. Global quality circle of the organization initiated the Six Sigma movement in Asia in 1997. In the HR department of the bank this intervention was initiated in 2003. Six Sigma team Chief Operating Ofcer was the change leader of the team. Six Sigma team in India comprised of: a change leader, a black belt and a green belt quality leader. Depending upon the project HR process owners and internal customers also join the team. Green belts were generally process owners who scheduled the Six Sigma project and drew the action plan. The Six Sigma team with the use of improvement tools implemented the desired changes and deployed the control mechanism to make the changes sustainable. Training for Six Sigma was an important step to make it successful. Training in the standard format was imparted to Six Sigma team. Half-yearly training for quality fundamentals was necessary through the rank and le in the MNC Bank. DMAIC model of Six Sigma deployment Implementation and change model DMAIC (Dene, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control) remains the same for any process. The rst step towards the journey of Six Sigma HR starts with the ordering of the processes, which would have pivotal impact on customer satisfaction and enabled maximum leverage. HR functional efforts are directed toward internal customers (employees) of the organization. In the MNC Bank three processes were initially identied for Six Sigma projects: (1) training result; (2) taxation; and (3) compensation. Dene This step starts with identication of the services provided by the organizational function to internal or external customers. Services are than prioritized in terms of their criticality for satisfaction of customers. As the Six Sigma process needs a lot of resources both physical as well as human this is a crucial decision. Particularly those processes are ideal for Six Sigma project, which are cost intensive, strategically important, have clearly dened process owners and are important for the customers. Project selection is done based on the following:

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customer satisfaction survey; pareto diagram; benchmarking; and prioritization.

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Voice of customer through the customer satisfaction survey, Pareto chart, benchmarking and expense record provided main lead to the problem identication. In MNC Bank all the above stated methods were used for identifying the problems in for the success of training. Through the internal customer survey, effectiveness of training initiatives were found to be only 49 percent as against 56 percent, global score of the corporation. Benchmarking also revealed that world class organizations like Johnson and Johnson achieved up to 70 percent customer satisfaction for training initiatives. Expense data for the training activities in India showed the negative difference from global standard of the corporation. Training and development activities were part of competence building and motivational factors for employees. Signicant resources were spent on these activities. These facts made a strong case for Six Sigma intervention in training initiatives. Measurement What you measure is what you improve is the principle applicable in Six Sigma development plan. Criteria for the performance measurement of any process selected was based on critical to quality (CTQs) and critical to cost (CTCs) questions related to that particular process. Process mapping claried who were the customers and what were their priorities. Attributes having highest impact on quality and customer satisfaction are called Critical to quality questions (CTQ). Critical to process (CTP) questions were identied by delineating sub processes. CTPs were critical to manage CTQs. These questions were identied for each process. According to the Black belt in the HR function in MNC Bank following questions were asked as criteria for choosing right metrics: . Do metrics tell what you really want to know? . Do metrics adequately represent customer experience? In this step the alignment of training to the business strategic objectives was the single most important concern to guide the action plan. In this stage clear denition of the process scope and measures of performance were chalked out. Two measurements were identied: (1) Primary metric. Learning and development index which depicts the customer satisfaction from training on various parameters (availability of learning opportunities, application orientation etc.) in percentage basis was taken up to measure the activity. (2) Secondary metric. The cost per man-hour training was the secondary metric chosen for the process. In Asia on the basis of 2002 man-hour vs. cost parameter certain man-hours production was extrapolated on certain cost. In the Six Sigma initiative 33 percent increase in man-hour was made an objective within the cost estimation made for 2003. Keeping cost levels the same as per simple extrapolated levels increased in the man-hour training gures, which specied the measurement.

Analysis The objective of this step was to nd out when and where the defects occur. Denition of performance objective in light of baseline and target was given. Probability of target was plotted. Timing for current baseline process was dened. Sources of variations were found through different statistical tests like chi-square, ANOVA etc. According to the HR department of the MNC Bank training effectiveness scores for different segments (hierarchical level wise, location wise and geography wise) were calculated. On the basis of the ndings of these techniques brainstorming sessions were conducted within the team. Fishbone analysis was conducted to understand the cause and effect relationship of the defect in the process (Figure 4). Fishbone analysis is generally used as complementary method for generating the list of potential root causes. Problem statement was written within the head of the sh. The four major bones of the sh are created and labeled for the four generic inputs i.e. material, methods, manpower, and machines. Problems relating to these inputs are identied. These specic input related problems eventually found to be contributing to main problem. These inputs were required for any successfully completed operation in manufacturing, administration, or services. The main objective of analysis was to nd out the root cause of undesired quality level. Again the instruments used were Pareto, voice of customer, hypothesis testing etc. In this step focus was not on measure of performance but on controlling the inputs that control the measures. In MNC Bank following factors were identied inuencing training effectiveness: . coaching; . client information; . product knowledge; . training need analysis; and . formal training procedure. These factors surfaced through Pareto analysis. Figure 5 depicts the result of Pareto analysis. Voice of customer Voice of customers emerged as an important dimension in the analysis of the problem.

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Figure 4. Fishbone diagram

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Figure 5. Pareto analysis of the training environment

The following factors were identied from this method: . learning opportunity should be available to all as a matter of right and not as managers discretion; . training should be linked with growth opportunity within the organization; . associates need speaking and facilitation opportunities; and . organizations should provide opportunities to apply skill acquired in trainings. Analysis step provides insights to the causes of the problem. Accordingly, process technique like shbone analysis was also used for analysis. Improvement In this step the team determined the ways to attain Six Sigma capabilities. This was the process of narrowing down the work area. Further investigations were concentrated on these root causes. Finally, those root causes which leave high impact on quality and could be controlled were picked up for improvement. Action plans were made for rectifying the root causes. This was the result of answers of questions like what is to be done? Who is responsible for what? etc. Such action plans were important documents, which served as a proof of the milestones achieved in the quality improvement process and guideline for future actions. As the team went deeper into investigation and solution implementation it discovered new actions needed to be undertaken. These were also to be added in the action plan. In this way action plans used at different points were the blueprint of the team activities. Green Belt and head of this project said that:
[. . .] in this journey the process and quality of its delivery remains the focal point not the individuals handling them. We emphasize upon the problem solving instead of problem xing.

Improvement started with prioritizing the root causes to be worked upon. All the identied causes were accessed on parameters of their practicality for implementation. In the MNC Bank following root causes were prioritized for improvement:

. .

training was not directly linked with associates career progression; associates needed opportunities to apply skill and competencies acquired from training; and associates needed involvement and participation in the process of internal trainings.

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Counter measures and activities were dened. Persons responsible for xing the cause were communicated. Process capability at Six Sigma level was decided by process owners (Green belt), facilitator and sponsor of the Six Sigma team.

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Controlling This step was aimed to insure the institutionalization of the improvement. The before and after analyses was conducted. Process capability was ensured through three steps: (1) Predictive impact of each counter measure was outlined; (2) Modus operandi of implementation of counter measures was decided. Vendors were identied, a budget was approved and system requirement study was commenced; and (3) Controlling process was outlined. Quarterly HR review system was placed within the system.

Results of Six Sigma intervention Training in MNC bank after this project was better aligned with the organizational requirements. Process owners of the training activities after implementation of this project were awarded green belt status. In MNC bank where there were only two black belts and ve green belts in Asia this was a signicant achievement. Internal customer satisfaction surveys conducted after the implementation of Six Sigma depicted positive outcomes and reported a 14 percent rise in satisfaction level amongst internal customers with training. There were many advantages of Six Sigma intervention in training function. Six Sigma changed the role of the function towards proaction. Cycle time for activities like training need analysis, delivery design etc. was brought down signicantly. It also saved nancial cost within the training function. Six Sigma focused on changing what employees did and put a major emphasis on tying process improvements to customer needs. Importantly, emphasis was on measurement, which at one level should be tied to higher-level processes and eventually to strategic objective and customer satisfaction and not only with ROI. These initiatives communicated within the organization the capability of HR function to measure its processes and improve them and match up to the organizational expectations. It also communicated that quality leaders in HR can challenge the status quo and HR could be instrumental for strategic implementation within the organization.

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Discussion Most Six Sigma projects focus on sub processes or sub- sub-processes, monitoring two or three measures. Yet not all projects achieved Six Sigma level. As most practitioners explained, Six Sigma is a goal; the ultimate idea is to improve the process and to reduce the variation in the process as much as possible. Some major learnings in the implementation of Six Sigma at MNC Bank were as follows: . For Six Sigma implementation initiatives a streamlined, reliable information gathering and retrieval systems is primarily required. . Selection of right project, identication and removal of the root cause of process fault are critical success factors. . All team members should have a common approach to management of project. Each team member should be provided clear denition of the project, project scope and deliverables and his or her role. . An important and unavoidable part of the job of quality leader is to get over the resistance on technical, organizational or personal level. Failing to consider human side of change may prove to be a bane for success of Six Sigma projects. . Clear and encouraging reward system for Six Sigma implementation should be set up to ensure the involvement of the employees. Additionally, the Focus group discussion at the MNC Bank brought out some dis-satisfactions with Six Sigma. These were: . MNC bank monitors the processes and determines Six Sigma projects from a central location, while some other organizations (e.g. GE, Johnson and Johnson) distributes Six Sigma efforts throughout the divisions of the organization and allows the divisions to determine their own projects. . Some middle-level managers expressed the necessity of taking small projects related to sub-sub processes . There is glaring complaint among the associates that it is too statistically oriented and requires a large investment. . Sometimes variance was noted in the customer requirements itself. General applicability of Six Sigma approach in HR function Six Sigma intervention is an attitude, a way of thought and action in an organization. This propelled the training function closer to the business strategy and provided the tools for assessing the learning transfer and institutionalization. It led to greater acceptability of the HR function in general and training function in particular, through improved parameters of service delivery. The case study brings forth learnings for functioning of the HR function in general. This approach promotes data based thinking amongst employees of HRD function. Application of Six Sigma approach calls for the function to enter into proactive mode particularly for designing and delivery of training and development programs. Design and delivery of training programs should be systemically linked with voice of customers; i.e. trainees, their superiors and the top management. Only reaction-based evaluation data falls short to gives the comprehensive picture of training and

development programs. A comprehensive data collection and analysis gives big picture. Top management and line management should move beyond sponsors role and should be ready for deeper involvement. Six Sigma is not one-time implementation mechanism but an on going process. HRD function should have strategic and proactive orientation and should be continuously in touch with the voice of customers, benchmarking, evaluation of training programs and root cause analysis; for enhancing the efciency and effectiveness of training programs. Limitations Research is a continuous journey and the limitations serve as learning triggers. This study has limitations in terms of number of rms it covers. More number of replicating such studies may be useful for drawing lessons for greater generalization. Future research if conducted with actors approach may have better possibilities to generate grounded theory research in this eld. Certain limitations of Six Sigma approach were also identied. Six Sigma as a technique largely relies upon objective data and in this perspective a concern is yet to be addressed that to what extent a phenomenon can be captured through only objective reality? Any human phenomena will have its subjective implications and this aspect of the Six Sigma HR process is yet to be explored. If we consider organizations being representative of collective human life, then its inter-objective and inter-subjective aspects become necessary to be studied. The impact of Six Sigma and its dependence on organizational structure, organizational culture, leadership role, social embeddedness, role stress etc., is yet to be addressed in detail. The challenge before academics and practitioners across the board is to address these issues, in future research. Conclusion Strategic intent of the rm, technical expertise of the workforce and organizational culture should be intertwined with the practice to make it success. Gratton and Ghoshal (2005) termed these processes as signature processes. These processes are the industrial best practices that synchronize with the socio-cultural system of the organization and make it the differentiator. We can conclude that success of Sx Sigma as a management initiative in above mentioned corporation is largely due to its alignment with organizational way of functioning. This is the technique based on the responses and expectations of external as well internal customers hence can bring in a balance between performative and critical approaches of HRD (see Hatcher, 2006). Further, the study contributes to the strategic HRD literature, where Six Sigma is seen as a movement from control oriented HRD to empowerment oriented developmental efforts (see ODonnell et al., 2006). In fact it also brings in the congurational approach into light, where the congured best practice of the right leader and the right embedded cultural context brings in success for the emerging strategic HRM intervention. If this is present then training effectiveness evaluation can be made more measurable and accountable through incorporating customer voice into the fabric of training delivery model, make the training strategically aligned that saves money for the organization and dovetails the value proposition.

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Horwitz, F.M. (1999), The emergence of strategic training and development: the current state of play, Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 23 Nos 4/5, pp. 180-90. Jamrog, J.J., Overholt, M.H. and Measuring, H.R. (2004), Measuring HR and organizational effectiveness, Employee Relations Today, Summer. Kaplan, R.S. and Norton, D.P. (2004), Measuring the strategic readiness of intangible asset, Harvard Business Review, Vol. 82 No. 2, pp. 52-63. Kar, A.B. (1985), Integrated training methodology in industry, Indian Management, July, pp. 3-8. Kelly, A. (1993), Measuring payback from human resource development, Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 25 No. 7. Kirkpatric, D.L. (1998), Evaluating Training Programmes: The Four Levels, Barret Koechlar Publishers, San Francisco, CA. Kirkpatric, D.L. (1959), Techniques for evaluating training programmes, Journal of ASTD, Vol. 11, pp. 3-9. Lado, A.A. and Wilson, C.M. (1994), Human resource system and sustained competitive advantage: a competency-based perspective, Academy of Management Review, Vol. 19 No. 4, pp. 699-727. Lange, M. (2003), Human capital management: strategies and technology for competitive advantages, in Hanson, R. (Ed.), Headscount, Peoplesoft, New York, NY, pp. 333-57. Lanyon, S. (2003), At Raythoeon Six Sigma works, too, to improve HR management processes, Journal of Organizational Excellence, Vol. 22 No. 4, p. 29. Linda, H. (2004), HR Magazine, Vol. 49 No. 3, p. 78. Maynard, R.A. (1993), Evaluating employment and training programmes: lessons from the USA, International Journal of Manpower, Vol. 14 No. 3. Mayo, A. (2000), The Human Value of the Enterprise, Nicholas Brealey Publishing, London. McKillip, J. (2001), Case studies in job analysis and training evaluation, International Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 283-9. ODonnell, D., McGuire, D. and Cross, C. (2006), Critically challenging some assumptions in HRD, International Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 4-16. Pareek, U. (1997), Training Instruments for Human Resource Development, Tata McGraw-Hill, New Delhi. Plant, R.A. and Ryan, R.J. (1992), Training evaluation: a procedure for validating an organizations investment in training, Journal of European Industrial Training, Vol. 16 No. 10. Phillips, J.J. (1999), ROI: the search for best practices, The Manchester Review, Vol. 4 No. 2, pp. 11-18. Rao, T.V. (1999), HRD Audit, Sage, New Delhi. Rao, T.N. and Vijayalaxmi, N.V.S. (2000), Organizational development in India, Organizational Development Journal, Vol. 18 No. 1. Rao, T.V. (1984), Role of training in human resource development, Indian Journal of Training and Development, July-September, pp. 118-22. Schular, R.S. and Jackson, S.E. (1999), The New HRM: Creating the Strategy Business Partnership. Strategic Human Resource Management, Blackwell, Oxford. Sheppeck, M.A. and Cohen, S.L. (1985), Put a dollar value on your training programs, Training and Development Journal, Vol. 39, pp. 59-62.

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Sodhi, M.M.S. and Sodhi, N.S. (2005), Six sigma pricing, Harvard Business Review, May, pp. 135-42. Sinha, A.K. and Gahlot, P. (2000), Human resource accounting explained, Indian Management, July. Sveiby, K.E. (1997), The New Organizational Wealth: Managing and Measuring Knowledge-based Asset, Berrett-Koehler Publishers Inc., San Francisco, CA. Ulrich, D. and Smallwood, N. (2005), HRs new ROI: return on intangibles, Human Resource Management, Vol. 44 No. 2, pp. 137-42. Weiss, D.S., Knightsbridge, G.S.W. and Finn, R. (2005), HR metrics that count: aligning human capital management to business results, Human Resource Planning, Vol. 28 No. 1. Wyper, B. and Harrison, A. (2000), Deployment of Six Sigma methodology in human resource function: a case study, Total Quality Management, Vol. 11 Nos 4-6, pp. S720-8. Yadapadithaya, P.S. (2001), Evaluating corporate training and development: an Indian experience, International Journal of Training and Development, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 261-74. Yin, R.K. (2002), Case Study Research, Design and Methods, 3rd ed., Sage, Newbury Park, CA. Further reading Barney, J. (1991), Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage, Journal of Management, Vol. 17 No. 1, pp. 99-120. Brewster, C. (1999), Strategic HRM: the value of different paradigms, in Schuler, R.S. and Jackson, S.E. (Eds), Strategic Human Resource Management, Blackwell, Oxford. Boxall, P. and Purcell, J. (2003), Strategy and HRM, Palgrave Macmillan, New York, NY. Fintz-enz, J. (1990), Human Value Management, Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, CA. Hendorson, K.M. and Evans, J.R. (2000), Successful implementation of Six Sigma: benchmarking General Electric Company, Benchmarking, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 260-75. Larson, A. (2003), Six Sigma Demystied: A Company Wide Approach to Continuous Improvement, AMACON, New York, NY. OConnell, D.J. (1986), A six-stage programme for strategic OA training, Todays Ofce, August, pp. 44-5. ODonnell, D. and Garavan, T.N. (1997), Viewpoint: linking training policy and practice of organizational goals, Journal of Industrial Training, Vol. 21 No. 9, pp. 301-9. Sackman, S.A., Flamholtz, E.G. and Bullen, M.L. (1989), Human resource accounting: a state of the art review, Journal of Accounting Literature, Vol. 8, pp. 235-64. Ulrich, D. (2001), From partner to player: extending the HR playeld, Human Resource Management, Vol. 40 No. 4, pp. 293-307. Business Standard (2002), The Watson Wyatt Asia Pacic human capital index study, Business Standard, 17th, December, pp. 1-3. About the author Ashish Pandey is a research scholar with the Fellow Program in Management, at Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, Mehrauli Road, Gurgaon, India. He is also Faculty at Invertise Institute of Management Studies, Bareilly (UP). He can be contacted at: fpm04ashish_p @mdi.ac.in To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: reprints@emeraldinsight.com Or visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints

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