This is part of the series The Role of the Six Sigma Black Belt. The concepts and ideas presented also apply to other improvement professionals and leaders implementing improvements in an organization.

The Change Agent Role

Once I was working with a plant manager in Latin America to facilitate an all day session to roll out a new operating plan from the plant. We had planned a very interactive day to ensure the start to this transition would be effective. When I got there I found out that the two ‘big guns’ from corporate who were architects of the plan were in town and prepared to take over the meeting to present the business case and laying out the plan, the new operating goals, the financials, and the new roles and responsibilities, all in good Six Sigma lingo. The HR manager was there with stacks of paper containing the new job descriptions. It was obviously too late for me to change course so I sat in the audience as an observer.