Facts about Six Sigma
The Six Sigma belt comprises of Master Black belts, who are as the name suggests the masters of Six Sigma and have concluded the maximum amount of trainings and projects, Black Belts that have lesser experience as compared to MBBs but still lead projects and Green Belts that support the black belts. The higher the level an individual wants to attain, the more the projects and trainings is he required to complete. Every level is accompanied with a Six Sigma exam that an individual is required to clear.
Six Sigma certification has become an industry standard in quality improvement across all fields of operation. Certified resources add value to their department and make themselves much more marketable. Six Sigma is a transferable skill set and once acquired, it can be applied to any field as the basic concepts remain the same.
Early adopters of Six Sigma like Allied Signal (now known as Honeywell) and General Electric achieved well-publicized success. However, by the late 1990s, about 66% of the Fortune 500 companies started using Six Sigma methodology with the objective of cutting down costs, generate savings and improve overall efficiency and quality.
There may be an incredible amount of difference in the management styles and priorities of one company as compared to the other but one thing is certain. Organizations that focus on constantly computing and driving management behaviours, prioritizing, submit a much superior return on their programs than those who de prioritize it or leave it to luck.
Motorola accounted for a saving of $11 billion from 1985-1995 in one of their Six Sigma briefings. In 1999, GE announced a saving of $2 billion courtesy Six Sigma. However, other organizations that have espoused Six Sigma have made far lesser gains and organizational acceptance. There Six Sigma savings have been in the range of 0.5% to 1.0% of sales. Moreover, there have even been instances where the Six Sigma programs have been wisped after considerable investment due to squat returns. Lack of attention to the critical succeed factors has been identified as the reason for these failures.
Some of these critical success factors are as follows:
Executive engagement – Creating prioritization, engagement at all levels, accountability accompanied with authority, clear line of responsibilities and deliverables and conducting regular checks to ensure that the progress is per the plan.
Communication – Regular communication about the Six Sigma news and facts in every meeting.
Projects – Document a year’s project inventory that needs to be refreshed regularly, have clear linkages of the projects to the business goals.
