The Indian business environment is getting competitive, especially with the global economic downturn and the key to survival for Indian SMEs therefore, around 17 million of them, is to become even more competitive and productive. It is imperative for them to do so considering the fact that they have low shock absorption capacities. And it becomes all the more important because collectively, as per the industry estimates available, they account for about 40% of India’s industrial manufacturing output and 49% of exports from the country. Their growth percentage is more than that of the entire industry put together.
The Small & Medium Business Development Chamber of India (SME Chamber of India) is urging the Indian SMEs to avail the multiple benefits that Six Sigma as an approach has on offer such that they become competitive and productive enough to not just face the recessionary times better but emerge as a winner.
According to Mr. Chandrakant Salunkhe, President, SME Chamber of India, “Every business - micro, small, medium or big - is now catering to discerning customers and therefore it is time that organizations review their processes and practices and adopt quality as their success mantra. Big businesses are embracing the quality revolution but SMEs are the worst hit because they are either taking time or finding it difficult to adopt best business and quality practices. Another stumbling block is the low importance that Indian SMEs attach to quality with a large percentage of them not being ISO (and in some case not even ISI) certified.”
“Lean Six Sigma, through its empirical methods, can enable Indian SMEs to reduce wastage, reduce cycle time, sustain improvements, become customer oriented, lower manufacturing costs, enhancing product or service quality and capture greater market share by improving their competitiveness. It not just identifies but also removes the cause of defects and variability in manufacturing and business processes. It brings about dramatic improvements in their bottom-line profitability,” adds Mr. A Ramesh Kumar, Chairman (Northern Region), SME Chamber of India.
SME Chamber of India is organizing an awareness session and power workshop, ‘Excellence through six sigma for small & medium enterprises’, on Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at New Delhi in association with Nishtha Institute of Training and Education, a reputed Chennai-based Institute, which specialises in Six Sigma and Project Management Training. This Workshop shall delve into how the new avatar of Six Sigma, the Lean Six Sigma, can make Indian SMEs self reliant and multiply their productivity. This workshop shall also shatter the myth that Six Sigma costs a lot and is therefore meant for multi-location, multi-crore turnover companies with hundreds of employees. Case studies on how some small, and even micro, enterprises have implemented Six Sigma and benefited from it shall also be presented to assure the participating SMEs that Six Sigma is indeed for anyone and everyone who wishes to accrue multiple benefits that the approach has on offer.
The workshop shall be visited and addressed by dignitaries like Prof. (Dr.) Suresh D Tendulkar, Chairman of the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council till recently; Mr. N. C. Vasudevan, Director General, National Productivity Council; and other senior officials of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.
“It has been observed that SME organizations either perish owing to the competitive business environment and difficult market conditions, or face the consolidation wherein they are bought over by large organizations in the domain. Some emerge as winners during the consolidation and enter the ‘big boy’ club by growing organically and inorganically and turning into large enterprises themselves. The key lies in achieving excellence through quality enhancing approach and processes such as Six Sigma which lead to repeat orders and reputation of the organization, as mere customer satisfaction, considered an achievement until the recent past, is not enough now,” explains Mr. Ramesh Kumar, who is also the MD & CEO of Zwirn Pragati Capfin Pvt Ltd, a successful Special Situations Financier for Mid Corporates and SMEs.
