Recognizing and rewarding the successes of Lean Six Sigma projects is part of the Lean Six Sigma mantra. Many companies even include “celebrate” as a step in the Control phase of a project. And, now that many companies are turning to a combined Lean Six Sigma effort, the short-term results of Lean can create buy in early in the deployment of a project. Although people generally acknowledge it is important to celebrate a company’s Lean Six Sigma accomplishments, the question is, Why is this so important?

The answer should be obvious, right? But it isn’t. Companies have many hardworking people who do their jobs well every day and are making significant contributions to the business. Where is the celebration of their efforts? Why should Lean Six Sigma projects and the ones who lead them, such as Black Belts or Lean practitioners, be singled out?

The fact is that what is being celebrated is not the work of any one individual, or even any one team. What is being celebrated is Lean Six Sigma itself.

Successful Lean Six Sigma companies talk about Lean Six Sigma becoming, “the way we work,” and they talk about driving culture change. But in order for Lean Six Sigma to become truly engrained in the DNA of a company, the successes achieved by Lean Six Sigma projects must be shared. Companies need to recognize the efforts being made to change the way work is done – and spread the word across the entire organization. The best way to do that is by celebrating success. Often this comes in the form of rewards and recognition for individual Lean Six Sigma project team members.

There are many ways to reward success. The obvious, of course, is money, but there are drawbacks to monetary rewards. For one thing, there is a new expectation of a monetary reward every time there is a success. Employees are already paid to deliver results; it’s called “salary.” The other problem with monetary rewards is it’s never easy to decide exactly who deserves the reward. The Black Belt with the biggest, long-term results? The team that worked on the "quick hitting" Lean projects? What about those people who were not on the team, but whose support was needed one particular weekend? What about those who picked up some of the slack elsewhere so members of the team could focus on the project?

If monetary rewards are used, the amount should be relatively small – and spread wide. A good model is to give the Black Belt an allowance to be distributed as he or she deems fit. In one company, a Black Belt was given $3,000 and told he could keep the entire amount for himself, give it all to one person or spread it around. He gave $500 to each of the six members on the team and nothing to himself. He knew the big reward was not the money – it was the recognition he received and the good will he earned from the team.

Non-monetary rewards are often more meaningful. Some effective ways companies celebrate success are:

1. Social events. An annual rewards and recognition dinner is an effective method, with awards presented for such things as ‘most projects’ or ‘biggest project.’ Inviting the CEO or other executives provides the Lean Six Sigma team with visibility and an overall good feeling. 2. Good press. Spotlighting success stories in the company newsletter, intranet, etc., is a good way to spread the word. It gets others excited to be part of the Lean Six Sigma program, wins over skeptics and generally builds momentum for the initiative. 3. The personal touch. Three-minute phone calls from the CEO and CFO, to Belts and team members go a long way and are a minimal burden. 4. Science fairs. Ok, not really science fairs, but the same concept. Lean Six Sigma fairs, where their teams are available in, for example, the cafeteria with a display, ready to talk to people about their projects, answer questions and showcase Lean Six Sigma – what it is achieving for the company and what the participants can achieve for themselves. 5. Promotion opportunity. The operative word: opportunity. Being a Black Belt or being part of a Lean project is no guarantee of promotion. It is a reward for those who are most successful. Additionally, a high-visibility promotion tells others in the organization that Lean Six Sigma experience is a desired and sought-after attribute of employees.

The goal of celebrating success – and why it so important – is to reinforce the power of Lean Six Sigma. Such a celebration is not a way to end a Lean Six Sigma project. Instead, it is a means to an end – a means to more successes by driving recognition of the real results achieved by Lean Six Sigma and, ultimately, lasting change in the organization.

David Silverstein is the President and CEO of Breakthrough Management Group, a leading provider of performance excellence solutions including Lean, Lean Six Sigma, Design for Lean Six Sigma, innovation and strategic planning. He is a highly-regarded public speaker and author, as well as a certified Master Black Belt and a member of the International Society for Lean Six Sigma Professionals.