At a recent Quality Control conference Joe De Feo, President of the Juran Institute outlined some concrete ways in which companies can improve service quality and accuracy.  The Institute, which advocates a lean Six Sigma approach to service quality proclaims that throught the incorporation of Six Sigma major savings can be achieved through waste reduction, cycle time reduction methodology, and overall increases in inventory and cost efficiency.  The recommendations, although seemingly commonsensical, are often overlooked because of their simplicity by many management teams, costing companies a great deal of potential savings.  Reed Business Information Reports:

1. Winning: do not get stuck on early results and celebrate;
2. Do not change leadership before the initiative takes hold;
3. Keep the effort fresh so the organization doesn’t tire of it;
4. Maintain the infrastructure to ensure the implementation happen effectively (and continue training);
5. Do not forget the customer during a merger or acquisition;
6. Observe and consider effect of macroeconomic events outside the organization.