|
WHEW! I am terribly exhausted, both physically and
emotionally. And I will tell you why. I cannot help but to read and
answer letters from readers of this space. This contributes to at
least one new wrinkle in my forehead because reactions come from
advertisers.
Coincidentally, that was also the
time when my second son, Rupert was asking me about the problems of
mass media—a topic he wants to develop in a thesis he is writing
as a third year journalism student.
“Well, for one,” I said.
“Media is sponsor-driven. Most of the time, it cannot operate
without the support of its advertisers, donors, and supporters.”
It was the remark from a person
who wants his kid to be tested enough for him to abandon journalism
and become a movie actor. He’s a good-looking, bronze-bodied
5’7” hunk, anyway.
Ha, ha, ha! I’m joking, of
course. Who would want his kid son to be mixed with those #%@*&?
That was when I cited to Rupert
the case of Motorola. A certain Pam Mariano sent me her July 24
e-mail reaction to my article “Six Sigma 3: The Death of Motorola
C651” (Manila Times, July 16, 2007). Ms. Mariano, a media officer
at Ogilvy, a public relations agency of Motorola writes:
“We forwarded a copy of your column to our client, Motorola,
who took no time in reaching out to the servicing unit concerned to
look into the matter.
“Motorola reported that the C651 unit was already beyond its
own life cycle and was thus not exempted from probable points of
failure. We also got word that the C651 spare parts are available at
the Motorola service centers and that the P2,340 cost quoted by Memo
Xpress at Glorietta 3 covers out of warranty repair.
“Anyway, all these may be water
under the bridge since you have already replaced your Motorola C651
with a Nokia 6070.
“But you can rest assured that
Motorola, being true to the Six Sigma spirit, is looking into how
Motorola clients could be spared of experiencing similar incidents
in the future.
“In this regard, we would
welcome suggestions coming from you, being a business management
consultant yourself. If it is alright with you, we can arrange for
Motorola to have an informal chat with you to listen to your
inputs.” End of e-mail.
Sometimes, people could get a
little inspired to write something about their client’s cause. But
the problem is that reactions like it raises more questions than one
could answer. It’s like a paper and pencil test that escalates to
more difficult questions as you appear to have progressed with it.
In my July 25 e-mail reply, I
told Ms. Mariano that “I bought Motorola because of my belief in
Six Sigma. That was in November 2004. Since then, whenever I have
the chance I keep on harping Six Sigma while brandishing my Motorola
unit in front of my class at the College of Saint Benilde, about 95
percent of whom owns a Nokia model.
“My Motorola C651 died after 2 and + years. Please tell me.
Is this the ordinary life cycle of C651? If not, what is the
ordinary life cycle of C651 and other Motorola units under normal
circumstances?
“I am still a student of Six
Sigma and would love to hear from Motorola and its Six Sigma
program. But do you think the local Motorola unit can do justice for
this given that it is only limited to sales and distribution? The
only Motorola factory I know is now under the operations of another
company called ON Semiconductor. Please correct me with this
impression.”
That was the last time I heard
from Ms. Mariano—or moments after 20 days, 5 hours, 6 minutes and
36 seconds. But I’m not sure if she received my e-mail, hence this
call.
I brought Rupert to Power Books
to scan some books on journalism. It’s always a pleasure to be
with my son. The great thing is that you get an instant family
driver. But no, the important thing is that I get to give him a
lecture on Lean Six Sigma—a combination of lean manufacturing with
Six Sigma quality assurance that creates a one-two punch approach
that can make magical results.
If there’s one question that
troubles every thinking person, it’s this: Are they serious with
Six Sigma?
Rey Elbo is a business management
consultant specializing in human resources and total quality
management as a fused specialty.
|
