Six Sigma

Six Sigma Methodology Six Sigma relies heavily on advanced statistical methods that complement and reduce the process and product variations. It is a new way of doing business that would eliminate the existing defects efficiently and would prevent defects from occurring.

Coined by Motorola Engineer Bill Smith Now a major influence on production methods and quality assurance Data and statistical driven approach to eliminate defects in production Aims to improve processes and reduce variations in quality Necessitates organisational change, training and planning

"Zero Defect" "Defect" – any product or service that does not conform to the set standards or satisfaction of the customer. Now, Six Sigma is a concept that tries to achieve a near zero defect with 3.4 defects in a million events. Early adopters include Bank of America, Caterpillar, Honeywell International (previously known as Allied Signal), Raytheon, Merrill Lynch and General Electric. What Is Six Sigma?

What is Six Sigma? A methodology to improve a business process by constantly reviewing, updating and re-tuning the existing process. Six Sigma improves the process performance, decreases variation and maintains consistent quality of the process output. This leads to defect reduction and improvement in profits, employee morale, product quality and finally customer satisfaction. Six Sigma Strives for perfection. It allows for only 3.4 defects per million opportunities for each product or service transaction. Six Sigma relies heavily on statistical techniques to reduce defects and measure quality. What Is Six Sigma?

Evolution of Six Sigma Japan has been credited with the evolvement of Quality Systems like TQM, Kanban, Kaizen, etc. Pioneered in the U.S. by Bill Smith at Motorola in 1986; originally used as a metric for measuring defects for improving quality; a methodology to reduce defect levels <3.4 Defects Per Million Opportunities (DPMO). Motorola has reported >US$17b savings as of 2006. Early adopters include Bank of America, Caterpillar, Honeywell International (previously known as Allied Signal), Raytheon, Merrill Lynch and General Electric. Six Sigma was originally centered around manufacturing improvements. The reason for this was knowledge of the statistical tools in the manufacturing functions and the ease with which we can quantify the benefits. What Is Six Sigma?

Six Sigma levels and Process The Greek letter for Sigma,  , represents one standard deviation from the normal or average. The higher the sigma level the better the quality level. Levels of Sigma Performance What Is Six Sigma?

Three levels of Six Sigma: As a Metric As a Methodology As a Management system Essentially, Six Sigma is all three at the same time. is a registered service mark and trademark of Motorola, Inc. What Is Six Sigma?

As a Metric The term “Sigma” is often used as a scale for levels of "goodness" or quality. Equates to 3.4 defects per one million opportunities (DPMO). Six Sigma started as a defect reduction effort in manufacturing and was then applied to other business processes for the same purpose. What Is Six Sigma?

As a Methodology A business improvement methodology that focuses an organization on: Understanding and managing customer requirements Aligning key business processes to achieve those requirements Utilizing rigorous data analysis to minimize variation in those processes Driving rapid and sustainable improvement to business processes What Is Six Sigma?

The DMAIC model Motorola developed a five phase approach to the Six Sigma Process called DMAIC which is a continuous process as the diagram shows until the highest level in the Six Sigma is achieved, i.e., 3.4 defects per million. What Is Six Sigma?

At the heart of the methodology is the DMAIC model for process improvement Define opportunity Measure performance Analyze opportunity Improve performance Control performance What Is Six Sigma?

What Is Six Sigma?

As a Management system A top-down solution to help organizations: Align their business strategy to critical improvement efforts Mobilize teams to attack high impact projects Accelerate improved business results Govern efforts to ensure improvements are sustained Framework to prioritize resources for projects that will improve the metrics, and it leverages leaders who will manage the efforts for rapid, sustainable, and improved business results. What Is Six Sigma?

Levels of Six Sigma Implementation Six Sigma Champion: Champions undergo five days of training and are taught how to manage projects and act as advisors to various project teams. Green Belts: They undergo two weeks of training that includes project-oriented tasks. They act as team members to the Six Sigma project team. Their cooperation and involvement is necessary for projects success. Black belts: They receive four weeks of trainings and are directly involved in the implementation of Six Sigma Projects. They are the project leaders and go through in-depth training on Six Sigma approach and tools and work full time on the project. Master Black Belts: These are the people who conduct Six Sigma Training and also have on the job training and experience What Is Six Sigma?

Some Six Sigma Tools 

Quality Function Deployment QFD helps Six Sigma Black Belts drive customer-focused development across the design process. QFD is a system and set of procedures to identify, communicate, and prioritize customer requirements. Did you know? With QFD, Six Sigma teams can more effectively focus on the activities that mean the most to the customer, beat the competition, and align with the mission of the organization. What Is Six Sigma?

Cause and Effect Matrix The C&E Matrix helps Six Sigma project leaders facilitate team decision-making. The C&E Matrix is a tool that helps Six Sigma teams select, prioritize, and analyze the data they collect over the course of a project to identify problems in that process. Six Sigma teams typically use the C&E Matrix in the Measure phase of the DMAIC methodology. The C&E Matrix is particularly great for obtaining team consensus on the potential relationships between factors that affect a process and the output of that process. What Is Six Sigma?

Failure Modes Effects Analysis FMEA helps Six Sigma teams to identify and address weaknesses in a product or process, before they occur. Before implementing new products, processes, or services, Six Sigma teams use FMEA to identify ways their new introductions might fail, and then to develop preventative measures targeted at the failure scenarios. Did you know? An effective FMEA identifies corrective actions required to prevent failures from reaching the customer and will improve performance, quality, and reliability. What Is Six Sigma?

t-test The t-test helps Six Sigma teams validate test results using small sample sizes. The t-test is used to determine the statistical difference between two groups, not just a difference due to random chance. Six Sigma teams might use it to determine if a plan for a comparative analysis of patient blood pressures, before and after they receive a drug, is likely to provide reliable results. Did you know? Guinness Brewery is the work environment that led to W.S. Gossett's creation of the t-test. While an executive at the brewery in Dublin, Gossett created the t-test to help select the best barley for Guinness beer. What Is Six Sigma?

Control Charts Six Sigma teams use Control Charts to assess process stability. Control Charts are a simple but highly effective tool for monitoring and improving process performance over time because they help Six Sigma teams to observe and analyze variation. The three basic components of any control chart are a centerline, upper and lower statistically determined control limits, and performance data plotted over time. What Is Six Sigma?

Design of Experiments DOE helps Six Sigma Black Belts make the most of valuable resources. DOE is a statistical technique that encompasses the planning, design, data collection, analysis and interpretation strategy used by Six Sigma professionals. Did you know? Six Sigma teams use DOE to determine the relationship between factors (Xs) affecting a process and the output of that process (Y). What Is Six Sigma?

Six Sigma Six Sigma at many organizations simply means a measure of quality that strives for near perfection. Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving towards six standard deviations between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process -- from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service. The statistical representation of Six Sigma describes quantitatively how a process is performing. To achieve Six Sigma, a process must not produce more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities. A Six Sigma defect is defined as anything outside of customer specifications. A Six Sigma opportunity is then the total quantity of chances for a defect.

Six Sigma Sub-Methodologies The Six Sigma DMAIC process (define, measure, analyze, improve, control) is an improvement system for existing processes falling below specification and looking for incremental improvement. The Six Sigma DMADV process (define, measure, analyze, design, verify) is an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at Six Sigma quality levels. It can also be employed if a current process requires more than just incremental improvement.

Six Sigma Implementation Roles Six Sigma borrows martial arts ranking terminology to define a hierarchy (and career path) that cuts across all business functions and a promotion path straight into the executive suite. Executive Leadership includes the CEO and other members of top management. They are responsible for setting up a vision for Six Sigma implementation. They also empower the other role holders with the freedom and resources to explore new ideas for breakthrough improvements. Champions are responsible for Six Sigma implementation across the organization in an integrated manner. The Executive Leadership draws them from upper management. Champions also act as mentors to Black Belts.

Master Black Belts, identified by champions, act as in-house coaches on Six Sigma. They devote 100% of their time to Six Sigma. They assist champions and guide Black Belts and Green Belts. Apart from statistical tasks, their time is spent on ensuring consistent application of Six Sigma across various functions and departments. Black Belts operate under Master Black Belts to apply Six Sigma methodology to specific projects. They devote 100% of their time to Six Sigma. They primarily focus on Six Sigma project execution, whereas Champions and Master Black Belts focus on identifying projects/functions for Six Sigma. Green Belts are the employees who take up Six Sigma implementation along with their other job responsibilities. They operate under the guidance of Black Belts.

Companies that claim to have successfully implemented Six Sigma Air Canada Amazon.Com Bank of America Boeing Caterpillar, Inc. Corning Dell DHL Eastman Kodak Company Ford General Electric GlaxoSmithKline HSBC Group LG Group Motorola Samsung Group Siemens AG McGraw-Hill Companies US Air Force, US Navy, US Marine Corps, US Army Vodafone Whirlpool Xerox