Company's History and Growth

Company's History and Growth

3 M started its operations in 1902 in Minnesota as a mining company. The company found the industry to have slow profitability and growth chances, therefore moved towards sandpaper products. Since then the company has maintained a steady focus on the production of products that are based on innovative and creative ideas. For instance the manufacturing of first water proof sandpaper in 1920s was made possible due to research and experimentation with new ideas. Other eminent examples of the company's innovative mind set can be seen in the form of invention of masking tape in 1925, launch of electro mechanical products in 1950s and Post-it® Notes in 1980 (At a Glance, 2013).

The company has gained an eminent position in the industry as a firm providing innovative solutions to the customers. The management has fostered a culture which is conducive to the use of innovation and creativity for manufacturing products which are able to fulfill the demands of the consumers effectively. Closely connected to this notion is the focus on quality as a prime feature of the various products manufactured at 3 M. The company slogan "inspired innovation" depicts its focus on manufacturing products which are in alignment with the needs of the customers. It reflects management's emphasis on continued growth and sustainable development towards excellence (Annual Report, 2011).

The growth and success of 3 M can be attributed to the adoption of Six Sigma strategy which has allowed it to attain its goal of creating value for each customer. The application of lean six sigma strategy has helped 3 M in cost reduction and process optimization thus creating greater degree of value for the customers. Moreover it has also resulted in elimination of waste in terms of defects. This has further strengthened the company's ability to manufacture high quality products which meet the criterion of quality and value creation (3 M Lean Six Sigma, n.d). In 2001, the organization has launched a lean six sigma strategy on a company-wide scale to train all the personnel to become better adept at implementation of the lean methodology. The implementation of lean six sigma strategy was a challenging task as employees had to be trained to adopt the perspective and behaviors associated with lean manufacturing. Moreover, critics have argued that the application of six sigma strategy and its subsequent standardization has decreased creativity and innovation at 3M (Hitt, Ireland & Hoskisson, 2012).

Strengths and Weaknesses of 3M

The major strength of the company is the use of creativity for brining innovative products for the customers. 3M has been associated with the notions of innovation and novelty, as the company history depicts various products based on creative ideas of its personnel. Within the context of the problems at 3M, the management was focusing on reducing the number of defects and deviation in the quality standards. In order to reduce the waste resulting from production of defected items, the adoption of lean six sigma method was an effective course of action (3 M Lean Six Sigma, n.d).

Define the Problem

As mentioned earlier, the problem being faced by the management at 3M was related to the elimination of waste due to the manufacturing of defected products. It was also seen as an obstacle to the attainment of the company's vision to "Achieving Breakthrough Performance for our Customers, Employees and Shareholders" (EPA, 2011). In order to address the gap between the current and desired performance, the company needed to engage in cost reduction, process optimization and value creation. These objectives were achieved through the integration of lean methodology and six sigma strategy.

Lean Methodology at 3M

The implementation of lean six sigma strategy can be traced back to February 2001, with the intention to pursue the goal of sustainable quality improvement. In 2002, the company has added the element of commercialization in its six sigma strategy to include the feedback from the customers for modification and improvement of the products. 3 M has experimented with the idea of lean management in 2002 and 2003, introducing the framework to selected locations only. By 2006, the successful results have encouraged the management to integrate lean method as a part of the various production facilities operating at an international scale.

One of the key factors which have instigated the process of quality improvement at 3 M was the incorporation of standardization across the process and people. This was made possible by application of DMAIC process consisting of the phases of 'Define opportunity, Measure performance, Analyze opportunity, Improve performance and Control performance' within the manufacturing and production units (3 M Lean Six Sigma, n.d). The integration of principles of lean six sigma strategy has also helped the management in increasing the efficiency of quality production while simultaneously engaging in waste reduction. The employees engage in the phase of opportunity analysis,