New City Manager Considers Six Sigma Training a Must-Have

There’s a lot of work to be done regarding the state of finances in the city of El Paso. According to a recent report from the El Paso Times, new city manager Tommy Gonzalez has proposed a $826 million budget that includes a tax increase of about $34 a year on the average valued home. The budget also includes an allocation of $50,000 for Lean Six Sigma training.

Gonzalez, a Lean Six Sigma black belt, touted the benefits of the program, stating that it worked for the city of Irving, where he was previously employed. Irving saved $44 million during his seven years there, he said, in part because of Lean Six Sigma. In fact, in 2013, the city of Irving was honored by the Obama Administration with the Malcolm A. Baldrige National Quality Award for strategic planning, lean thinking, process improvements and financial responsibility. U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess stated on C-SPAN at the time that the city of Irving had achieved high levels of citizen satisfaction along with cost savings, and that the federal government should learn from its example.

Now in El Paso, Gonzalez is looking for departments to provide a five percent cut to their budgets, though all cuts that would reduce service levels are off the board, the article stated. In addition, he is planning to consolidate some executive positions and to create cross-functional teams, with employees from different departments working together on projects aimed at improving efficiency.

Lean Six Sigma has a strong track record for reducing waste and increasing efficiency, which translates into considerable savings.