Six Sigma13

SIX SIGMA
Sub Code - 646
Developed by
Prof. Ramchandra Nadkarni and P. M. Bendre
On behalf of
Prin. L.N. Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research
!  
Advisory Board
Chairman
Prof. Dr. V.S. Prasad
Former Director (NAAC)
Former Vice-Chancellor
(Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Open University)
Board Members
1. Prof. Dr. Uday Salunkhe  2. Dr. B.P. Sabale  3. Prof. Dr. Vijay Khole  4. Prof. Anuradha Deshmukh 
Group Director  Chancellor, D.Y. Patil University, Former Vice-Chancellor  Former Director 
Welingkar Institute of Navi Mumbai  (Mumbai University) (YCMOU)
Management Ex Vice-Chancellor (YCMOU)
Program Design and Advisory Team
Prof. B.N. Chatterjee Mr. Manish Pitke

Dean – Marketing Faculty – Travel and Tourism
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Management Consultant
Prof. Kanu Doshi Prof. B.N. Chatterjee

Dean – Finance Dean – Marketing
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai
Prof. Dr. V.H. Iyer Mr. Smitesh Bhosale

Dean – Management Development Programs Faculty – Media and Advertising
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Founder of EVALUENZ
Prof. B.N. Chatterjee Prof. Vineel Bhurke

Dean – Marketing Faculty – Rural Management
Prof. Venkat lyer Dr. Pravin Kumar Agrawal

Director – Intraspect Development Faculty – Healthcare Management
Manager Medical – Air India Ltd.
Prof. Dr. Pradeep Pendse Mrs. Margaret Vas

Dean – IT/Business Design Faculty – Hospitality
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Former Manager-Catering Services – Air India Ltd.
Prof. Sandeep Kelkar Mr. Anuj Pandey

Faculty – IT Publisher
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Management Books Publishing, Mumbai
Prof. Dr. Swapna Pradhan Course Editor

Faculty – Retail Prof. Dr. P.S. Rao
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai Dean – Quality Systems
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai
Prof. Bijoy B. Bhattacharyya Prof. B.N. Chatterjee

Dean – Banking Dean – Marketing
Mr. P.M. Bendre Course Coordinators

Faculty – Operations Prof. Dr. Rajesh Aparnath
Former Quality Chief – Bosch Ltd. Head – PGDM (HB)
Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai
Mr. Ajay Prabhu Ms. Kirti Sampat

Faculty – International Business Assistant Manager – PGDM (HB)
Corporate Consultant Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai
Mr. A.S. Pillai Mr. Kishor Tamhankar

Faculty – Services Excellence Manager (Diploma Division)
Ex Senior V.P. (Sify) Welingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai
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1st Edition, August 2018

ABOUT THE BOOK
About the Book

Six Sigma is the single most effective problem solving methodology for
improving business and organisational performance. There is not a
business that can not be improved with Six Sigma. The world’s top
corporations have used it to increase their profits collectively by more than
$ 100 billion over the past 10 years. In certain corporations, Six Sigma
proficiency on ones’ resume is a prerequisite to moving into a position in
management.
Simply stated, Six Sigma is about applying a structured, scientific method

to improve any aspect of a business, organisation, process or person. It is
about engaging in disciplined data collection and analysis to determine the
best possible ways of meeting one’s customer needs while satisfying his/
her own and minimising wasted resources and maximising profit in the
process.
Studies show that the vast majority of employees possess far more talent,
capability and creativity than their jobs require or even allow. Their deep
potential remains untapped and unused. Today, the Industrial Age has
ended and the Information Age or Knowledge Worker Age has opened. In
the new paradigm, the greatest asset in any organisation is its people –
with their bodies, minds, hearts and consciences all engaged and
contributing, and all receiving benefit in the progress of the organisation.
The leaders of the Information Age initiate relatively small actions at the
bottom or middle that can effect a much greater change throughout the
entire organisation.
! !3
ABOUT THE BOOK
Six Sigma has become a key enabling skill of the new Knowledge Workers
of the next generation. One of the great values of Six Sigma is the science,
the database and the careful analytical thought process of problem solving
using that data. Six Sigma empowers and enables all to effect remarkable
change, no matter one’s position in his/her organisation. The maturing
world has transformed the previously exclusive, academic knowledge of Six
Sigma into must-have best practices for everyone wishing to advance and
contribute. In a knowledge economy, where 70 to 80 per cent of the value
added to goods and services comes from knowledge work, one can imagine
the results flowing from having the entire workforce Six Sigma literate.
The book provides the students how Six Sigma initiative can help their
organisations in their aspirations of improving consistently and how it can
be best implemented.
! !4
CONTENTS
Contents
Chapter
Chapter Name Page No.
No.
1 Six Sigma – Strategy for Sustained Growth 6-16

2 What is New about Six Sigma? 17-23
3 Key Concepts of the Six Sigma System 24-37
4 Key Ingredients of Six Sigma Management 38-47
5 Define Phase 48-80
6 Measure Phase 81-102
7 Analyze Phase 103-127
8 Improve Phase 128-152
9 Control Phase 153-168
10 Objectives and Benefits of Six Sigma 169-177
11 Six Sigma for Manufacturing and Service Industries 178-185
12 Roles and Responsibilities in Six Sigma Management 186-203
13 Six Sigma Certification 204-217
14 Building a Stronger Six Sigma Culture 218-232
15 Six Sigma Project Selection Process 233-253
16 Road Map for Six Sigma 254-267
17 Getting Started with Six Sigma 268-279
Do’s and Don’ts of Successful Six Sigma
18 280-289
Implementation
19 Best Practices 290-301

Annexure 302-304
! !5
SIX SIGMA – STRATEGY FOR SUSTAINED GROWTH
Chapter 1
Six Sigma – Strategy For Sustained Growth
Objectives
After completing this chapter, you will be able to understand:
• Six Sigma – Approach and benefits
• What are the critical elements that make Six Sigma a leadership system.
Structure
1.1 Introduction
1.2 The Six Sigma Approach
1.3 The Critical Elements of Six Sigma
1.4 Activities for the Students
1.5 Summary
1.6 Self Assessment Questions
1.7 Multiple choice Questions
! !6
1.1 Introduction
Six Sigma (6σ) is a set of techniques and tools for process improvement.
It was introduced by engineer Bill Smith while working at Motorola in 1986.
Jack Welch made it central to his business strategy at General Electric in
1995.
Six Sigma strategies seek to improve the quality of the output of a process
by identifying and removing the causes of defects and
minimizing variability in manufacturing and business processes. It uses a
set of quality management methods, mainly empirical, statistical methods,
and creates a special infrastructure of people within the organization who
are experts in these methods. Each Six Sigma project carried out within an
organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has specific value
targets, for example., reduce process cycle time, reduce pollution, reduce
costs, increase customer satisfaction, and increase profits.
The term Six Sigma originated from terminology associated with statistical
modeling of manufacturing processes. The maturity of a manufacturing
process can be described by a sigma rating indicating its yield or the
percentage of defect-free products it creates. A six sigma process is one in
which 99.99966% of all opportunities to produce some feature of a part
are statistically expected to be free of defects (3.4 defective features per
million opportunities). Motorola set a goal of "six sigma" for all of its
manufacturing.
Features that set Six Sigma apart from previous quality-improvement

initiatives include:
• A clear focus on achieving measurable and quantifiable financial returns

from any Six Sigma project.
• An increased emphasis on strong and passionate management leadership

and support.
• A clear commitment to making decisions on the basis of verifiable data

and statistical methods, rather than assumptions and guesswork.
! !7
The term "six sigma" comes from statistics and is used in statistical
quality control, which evaluates process capability. Originally, it referred to
the ability of manufacturing processes to produce a very high proportion of
output within specification. Processes that operate with "six sigma quality"
over the short term are assumed to produce long-term defect levels below
3.4 defects per million opportunities (DPMO). The 3.4 DPMO is based
on a "shift" of +/- 1.5 sigma created by the psychologist Dr Mikel Harry. He
created this figure based on the tolerance in the height of a stack of
discs. Six Sigma's implicit goal is to improve all processes, but not to the
3.4 DPMO level necessarily. Organizations need to determine an
appropriate sigma level for each of their most important processes and
strive to achieve these. As a result of this goal, it is incumbent on
management of the organization to prioritize areas of improvement.
"Six Sigma" was registered June 11, 1991 as U.S. Service Mark 1,647,704.
In 2005 Motorola attributed over US$17 billion in savings to Six Sigma.
Other early adopters of Six Sigma include Honeywell and General Electric,
where Jack Welch introduced the method. By the late 1990s, about two-
thirds of the Fortune 500 organizations had begun Six Sigma initiatives
with the aim of reducing costs and improving quality.
In recent years, some practitioners have combined Six Sigma ideas

with lean manufacturing to create a methodology named Lean Six
Sigma. The Lean Six Sigma methodology views lean manufacturing, which
addresses process flow and waste issues, and Six Sigma, with its focus on
variation and design, as complementary disciplines aimed at promoting
"business and operational excellence". Companies such as GE, Accenture,
Verizon, GENPACT, and IBM use Lean Six Sigma to focus transformation
efforts not just on efficiency but also on growth. It serves as a foundation
for innovation throughout the organization, from manufacturing and
software development to sales and service delivery functions.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published in

2011 the first standard "ISO 13053:2011" defining a Six Sigma
process. Other "standards" are created mostly by universities or companies
that have so-called first-party certification programs for Six Sigma.
! !8
1.2 The Six Sigma Approach
Six Sigma can seem like another management initiative. But looking closer,
we will find it is not a business fad tied to a single method or strategy, but
rather a flexible system for improved business leadership and performance.
It builds on many of the most important management ideas and best
practices, creating a new formula for 21st century business success. It is
not about theory, it is about action. The goal of the Six Sigma Way is to
understand what Six Sigma is? Why it is probably the best answer to
improved business performance in years? And how to put it to work in the
unique environment of one’s organization? Six Sigma is as much about a
passion for serving customers and a drive for great new ideas as it is about
statistics and number crunching. Six Sigma applies just as much to
Marketing, Services, Human Resources, Finance and Sales as it does to
Manufacturing and Engineering.
Six Sigma is a methodology for minimizing mistakes and maximizing value.

Every mistake, an organization or person makes ultimately has cost – a
lost customer, the need to do a certain task over again, a part that has to
be replaced, time or material wasted, efficiency lost or productivity
squandered. In fact, waste and mistakes cost many organizations as much
as 20 to 30 per cent of their revenue.
The emphasis on customers is probably the most remarkable element of

Six Sigma. As Jack Welch of GE explains it “The best Six Sigma projects
begin not inside the business but outside it. It focused on answering the
question – how can we make the customer more competitive? What is
critical to the customer’s success? One thing we have discovered with
certainty is that anything we do that makes the customer more successful,
inevitably results in a financial return for us.”
The Six Sigma approach is not for an unprepared organization. It is intense

and rigorous, and it entails a thorough inspection of the way everything is
done. Six Sigma sets ambitious business objectives and measures
performance in a way that forces accountability. It doesn’t allow a
management team to become complacent, but, rather, it exposes waste
that otherwise would remain largely invisible.
! !9
Six Sigma takes a business out of its comfort zone – but for a relatively
short time. After the first project gains are made and the money starts
flowing to the profit margin, a cultural change takes hold. The early
discomfort of changing business processes gives way to success, problem
become opportunities for improvement and the organization begins to
enthusiastically leverage the methods and tools of Six Sigma – more
pervasively and with a keen eye on value.
All businesses, organizations and individuals have room to improve. No

operation is run so tightly that another ounce of inefficiency and waste
can’t be squeezed out. By their nature, organizations tend to become
messy as they grow. Processes, technology, systems and procedures – the
ways of doing business – become cluttered with bottlenecks, resulting into
work piling up in one part of the organization while other parts sit idle with
nothing to do.
Work is often performed incorrectly, or the outcome is flawed in some way.

When this happens, one scraps products and services and have to do the
work over again. One has to consume additional resources to correct a
problem before it is delivered to the customer, or the customer asks later
for a “redo” – a new product or a more satisfactory service.
Sometimes, flaws and defects are not the problem, but a product or
service simply takes too long to produce and deliver. Imagine a problem for
a mortgage company, if it processed home loans perfectly, but did so 5
times slower than the competition. That would be a disaster.
Six Sigma was once a quality-improvement methodology, but now it is a

general-purpose approach to minimizing mistakes and maximizing value :
How many products can be produced, how many services can be delivered,
how many transactions can be completed to an expected level of quality in
the least possible amount of time at the lowest possible cost ?
! !10
1.3 The Critical Elements of Six Sigma
The critical elements that make Six Sigma a leadership system are:
1. Genuine focus on the customer
There is a very close correlation between customer loyalty and profitability.

A 5% reduction in customer defection can result in profit increasing from
30-85%. It is also seen that if customers increase their customer retention
by 2%, it is equivalent of cutting operating costs by 10%. Loyal customers
provide higher profits, more repeat business, higher market share and
more referrals than do just satisfied customers.
In Six Sigma, customer focus becomes the top priority. In fact, the
measures of Six Sigma performance begin with the customer. Six Sigma
improvements are defined by their impact on customer satisfaction, loyalty
and value.
In the 1970s, customer satisfaction began to replace profit as purpose of

business.
In the 1980s, customer delight – or customer “wow” – became business

mantra.
In the 1990s, customer loyalty – or customer long-term retention –

became the rallying cry for progressive companies.
In the first decade of the 21st century, customer loyalty is metamorphosing

into the loyalty of all stakeholders, i.e., customers, employees, suppliers,
distributors, dealers and investors.
By the end of first half of the 21st century, businesses will go beyond their
self-imposed boundaries to address many dimensions of a society yearning
for the betterment of humankind. That is the future direction of Six Sigma.
2. Data and Fact-driven Management

Six Sigma takes the concept of “management by fact” to a new, powerful
level. Six Sigma discipline begins by clarifying what measures are key to
gauging business performance; then it applies data and analysis so as to
build an understanding of key variables and optimize results.
! !11
3. Process Focus, Management and Improvement

In Six Sigma, processes are where, the action is. Whether designing the
products and services, measuring performance, improving efficiency and
customer satisfaction – or even running the business – Six Sigma positions
the process as the key vehicle of the success.
One of the most remarkable breakthroughs in Six Sigma efforts to date has
been convincing leaders and managers, that mastering processes is not
just a necessary evil, but actually a way to build competitive advantage in
delivering value to the customers.
4. Proactive Management
Proactive management is defining ambitious goals and reviewing them
frequently; setting clear priorities, focusing on problem prevention and
questioning “why we do things” instead of blindly defining them as “how
we do things”.
Six Sigma encompasses tools and practices that replace reactive habits
with a dynamic, responsive, proactive style of management. Considering,
today’s slim margin for error, competitive environment, being proactive is
the “only way to fly”.
5. Boundary-less Collaboration
Six Sigma expands opportunities for collaboration as people learn how their
roles fit into the “big picture” and can recognize and measure the
interdependence of activities in all parts of a process. Boundary-less
collaboration in Six Sigma does not mean selfless sacrifice, but it does
require an understanding of both the real needs of end-users and of the
flow of work through a process or a supply chain. Moreover, it demands an
attitude that is committed to using customer and process knowledge to
benefit all parties. Thus, the Six Sigma system can create an environment
and management structures that support true teamwork.
6. Drive for Perfection, Tolerance for Failure

Any company that makes Six Sigma its goal will have to constantly push to
be ever more perfect while being willing to accept and manage occasional
setbacks.
! !12
Make a write up of your own explaining how confident you feel about the
subject and how you will go about implementing Six Sigma in your
organization .
1.5 Summary
The chapter talks about how Six Sigma can provide breakthrough
improvements to organizations and how so many organizations have been
benefitted with the implementation of Six Sigma projects. The chapter has
also listed down the critical elements that make Six Sigma a leadership
system.
1. “Six Sigma is yet another management initiative” – evaluate this

statement
2. What are the critical elements that make Six Sigma a leadership
system?
! !13
1.7 Multiple Choice Questions
1. Six Sigma (6σ) is a set of techniques and tools for process

improvement. It was introduced by engineer ----------------- while
working at Motorola in 1986.
a. Jack Welch
b. Deming
c. Juran
d. Bill Smith
2. A Six Sigma process is one in which 99.99966% of all opportunities to

produce some feature of a part are statistically expected to be free of
defects i.e. --------- defective features per million opportunities.
a. 10.1
b. 3.4
c. 0.67
d. Zero
3. Other early adopters of Six Sigma include Honeywell and General

Electric, where ------------------------- introduced the method.
a. Jack Welch
b. Bill Smith
c. Fredrick Mueller
d. Marie Abraham
4. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published

in 2011 the first standard "ISO -----------------" defining a Six Sigma
process.
a. 9001:2015
b. 13065:2008
c. 13053:2011
d. 9001:2000
5. Waste and mistakes cost many organizations as much as --------------

per cent of their revenue.
a. 2 to 3
b. 10 to 15
c. 20 to 30
d. 0.5 to 0.75
! !14
Answers: 1 -d, 2-b, 3-a, 4-c, 5-c
! !15
REFERENCE MATERIAL
Click on the links below to view additional reference material for this
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture - Part 1
! !16
WHAT IS NEW ABOUT SIX SIGMA?
Chapter 2
What Is New About Six Sigma?
Objectives
• Evolution of quality over time
• What Six Sigma is and what it is not.
Structure
2.1 Evolution of Quality Improvement Plans
2.2 Is Six Sigma an “Old Wine in New Bottle?”
2.3 Why Six Sigma is Succeeding Where TQM Failed?
2.5 Summary
! !17
2.1 Evolution of Quality Improvement Plans
The disillusionment with quality is by no means new. The history of the

quality movement in the past fifty years has had a program-of-the-decade
flavour as organizations seek quality salvation with each new initiative
replacing the earlier one. For example:
• 1950s Sampling Plans – A whole host of sampling plans were

developed, each claiming to be the ultimate for the quality control.
• 1960s Zero Defects – Launched by the U.S. Department of Defense,

this stated that if workers could only dedicate themselves to zero
defects, the quality would rise.
• 1970s Quality Circles – Based on teams tackling daily line problems,

quality circles achieved some success in Japan.
• 1980s Statistical Process Control (SPC) – In the mistaken notion

that Japan’s quality success was because of statistical process control
and control charts, American companies started papering their factory
walls with control charts. Automotive companies such as Ford Motors
spent billions of dollars on control charts.
From 1980s to 1990s, a whole plethora of quality standards spawned all

over the world. They included:
• ISO 9000: This quality standard was launched in 1987, as a worldwide

standard by a consortium of forty-five countries within the International
Standards Organization (ISO).
• QS 9000: This quality standard was developed in 1990s, by the big

three Automotive companies – General Motors, Ford Motor Company and
Chrysler Corp. – for their first tier suppliers. It is an improvement over
ISO 9000, with a minimum C of 1.33 required of these suppliers.
• ISO 14000: This international standard patterned after ISO 9000 to

improve industry’s contribution to the environment.
! !18
2.2 Is Six Sigma an “old wine in new bottle?”
Many people think that Six Sigma management is an “old wine in new
bottle. “This notion is both false and true. It is false for several reasons:
First, it is false because Six Sigma projects are far more structured and
formatted than projects in most previous Quality Management processes.
Second, it is false because Six Sigma management provides metrics for

discussing the quality of processes that can transcend ownership of
processes (i.e., finance, human resources, engineering and service
processes can be compared). It creates “apples to apples” metrics for
understanding process improvements. Other Quality Management
approaches do not have such metrics.
Third, it is false because Six Sigma is very focused on impacting the

bottom line and top line of an organization and it has a specific method for
accomplishing this objective. Most other Quality Management approaches
do not have such a clear financial focus. The cost of poor quality and other
similar concepts have been investigated by the quality profession, but they
had not been well utilized outside the quality profession until Six Sigma
management.
Fourth, it is false because Six Sigma is focused on ongoing rapid

improvement of the enterprise. Most other Quality Management processes
are focused on incremental continuous improvement, whereas Six Sigma
demands breakthrough improvement.
Fifth, it is false because past Quality Management efforts were initially

spurred on by quality professionals, consultants or academics, while Six
Sigma is being promoted by executive managers such as George Fisher
(Motorola) and Jack Welch and Jeffrey Immelt (General Electric).
Finally, it is false because Six Sigma is facilitated by an infrastructure of Six

Sigma experts overlaying the current organizational structure. Other
Quality Management approaches use supervisors, managers or workers to
facilitate teams. Expert facilitation of teams is a big leap forward in rapid
process improvement that impacts the bottom line of an organization.
! !19
On the other hand, it is true because most of the tools, methods and
theories were borrowed from the Quality Management predecessors of Six
Sigma. Six Sigma is more an example of evolutionary management than
revolutionary management. The founders of Six Sigma management stood
on the shoulders of the giants who preceded them in the quality
movement, such as W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran and Kaoru Ishikawa.
2.3 Why Six Sigma is succeeding where TQM failed?
Six Sigma is a relatively new concept as compared to TQM. However, when

it was conceptualised, it was not intended to be a replacement for TQM.
Both Six Sigma and TQM have many similarities and are compatible in
varied business environment including manufacturing and service
industries. While TQM has helped many companies in improving the quality
of manufactured goods and services rendered, Six Sigma could deliver
even sharper results.
Six Sigma succeeded over TQM for following reasons:
• Six Sigma organizations are putting process management, improvements

and measurements into action as part of the daily responsibilities,
reinforcing the message that Six Sigma is “part of the job”.
• Passion for and belief in Six Sigma at the very top of the business is
unquestioned in successful Six Sigma companies. Leaders of such
companies believe that Six Sigma is synonymous with constant
reinvention of the business.
• A clear goal is the center piece of Six Sigma. It is an extremely

challenging goal, but still believable, unlike past campaigns for “zero
defects”. People involved in Six Sigma initiatives can see their results
grow and they can equate them to company earnings as well. Just as
importantly, by focusing on ways to track changes in customer needs and
requirements, Six Sigma companies are building a dynamic system for
measuring performance based on the latest and most stringent demands
of the customer. While the goal may change over time, the closed loop
Six Sigma system will help the organization to adjust.
• Successful Six Sigma companies see Six Sigma as a tool to bust silos and
eliminate rework created by disconnects and miscommunication.
! !20
• One of the great opportunities of Six Sigma is to begin afresh, with the
recognition that both small improvements and major changes are an
essential part of the survival and success of 21st century businesses.
• Six Sigma companies are setting very demanding standards for learning
and are backing them up with the necessary investments in time and
money to help people meets those standards.
• Six Sigma not only works in service and in transactional processes, but
probably offers more opportunities there than in manufacturing. Thus,
Six Sigma has the potential to be more “total” than Total Quality.
2.4 ACTIVITIES FOR THE STUDENTS
Make a write up of your own explaining how Six Sigma is not “old wine in
new bottle”. Also say if you agree that “Six Sigma is succeeding where TQM
has failed”.
2.5 Summary
The chapter provides a history trail of quality movement and tries to

explain why Six Sigma is not just another quality improvement initiative.
Six Sigma is a disciplined approach to problem solving and sustaining
improvements and its in-built actions make it a much superior mean for
organization-wide success compared to other quality management
initiatives like TQM.
1. “Six Sigma is an old wine in new bottle” – evaluate this statement.
2. What are the success factors of Six Sigma over TQM?
! !21
2.7 MULTIPLE CHOICE Questions
1. A whole host of sampling plans were developed, each claiming to be the

ultimate for the quality control.
a. 1950
b. 1955
c. 1965
d. 1980
2. This quality standard was launched in 1987, as a worldwide standard by

a consortium of forty-five countries within the International Standards
Organization (ISO).
a. ISO 14000
b. ISO 9000
c. ISO OHSAS
d. ISO NIBOSH
3. Many people think that Six Sigma management is an “old wine in new
bottle. It is:
a. A half truth
b. False
c. Not yet proved
d. Proved as true in 1980
4. The founders of Six Sigma management stood on the shoulders of the

giants who preceded them in the quality movement, such as:
a. W. Edwards Deming
b. Joseph Juran
c. Kaoru Ishikawa.
d. All a, b and c
5. Six Sigma is a relatively -------------------- as compared to TQM.

a. Old concept
b. New concept
c. Weaker concept
d. Theoretical concept
Answers: 1-a, 2-b, 3-b, 4-d, 5-b
! !22
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !23
KEY CONCEPTS OF THE SIX SIGMA SYSTEM
Chapter 3
Key Concepts Of The Six Sigma System
Objectives
• Why Processes are at the heart of Six Sigma?
• Different terminologies used in Six Sigma implementation
Structure
3.1 It is a “process” that Six Sigma Works on
3.2 Different terms used in Six Sigma
3.3 Six Sigma Management
3.5 Summary
! !24
3.1 It is a “process” that Six Sigma works on
A Process
An organization is a multiplicity of micro sub-processes, all synergistically

building to the macro process of that organization. A process is a collection
of interacting components that transform inputs into outputs toward a
common aim. The job of management is to optimise the entire process.
All processes have customers and suppliers; these customers and suppliers
can be internal or external to the organization. A customer can be an end-
user or the next operation downstream. A supplier could be another
organization or the prior operation upstream.
Processes exist in all facets of an organization. Administration, Sales,

Services, Human Resources, Training, Maintenance, Document flows,
Interdepartmental communication and Vendor relations are all processes.
Most processes can be studied, documented, defined, improved and
innovated.
Process is at the Heart of Six Sigma
"
! !25
3.2 Different terms used in Six Sigma
Variation
The lower case letter “sigma” in the Greek alphabet is a symbol to

represent the standard deviation of a population. It is an indicator of the
amount of variation or inconsistency in any group of items or process.
Variation is a part of life.
Common and Special Causes of Variation
The design and execution of a process creates common causes of variation.

Process capability is determined by inherent common causes of variation,
such as hiring, training or supervisory practices, stress, management style
or policies and procedures. Employees working within the process cannot
control a common cause of variation and unless a change is made in the
process, the capability of the process will remain the same. Special causes
of variation are due to events external to the usual functioning of the
process. New raw materials, a drunken employee or a new operator can be
examples of special causes of variation.
With Six Sigma, one spends particular effort to identify the difference
between common and special cause variations, because they are so
different. In general, it is best to work on reducing special cause variation
before trying to reduce common cause variation. The reason is because
when one has special cause variation, the process is not stable or
predictable and one can not be sure of what is happening. But after the
special cause variation is taken care of, one can then improve its common
cause variability.
Because unit-to-unit variation decreases the customer’s faith in the

uniformity of the outputs of a process, managers must understand how to
reduce and control variation. Employees use statistical methods so that
common and special causes of variation can be differentiated; special
variation can be resolved and common variation can be reduced by
management action, resulting in improvement and innovation of the
outputs of a process.
! !26
The objective in driving for Six Sigma performance is to reduce or narrow

variation to such a degree that six Sigma – or standard deviation of
variation - can be squeezed within the limits defined by the customer’s
specifications. For many products, services and processes that means a
huge and tremendously valuable degree of improvement.
Quality
Quality is a concept whose definition has changed over time. In the past,
quality meant “conformance to valid customer requirements” That is, as
long as an output fell within acceptable limits, called specification limits,
around a target value, also called nominal value, it was deemed
conforming. A more modern definition of quality states that quality is a
predictable degree of uniformity and dependability at low cost and suited to
the market.
CTQ
The first step, fundamental to Six Sigma, is to clearly define what the
customer wants as an explicit requirement. In Six Sigma language, these
requirements are often called “CTQs”.
CTQ is an acronym for Critical-to-Quality characteristic for a product,

service or process. A CTQ is a measure or proxy of what is important to a
customer. Examples of CTQ can be the percentage of errors in ATM
transactions for a bank per month or the number of car accidents per
month on a particular stretch of highway. Six Sigma projects are designed
to improve CTQs.
Unit
A unit is the item (e.g., product or component, service or service step or

time period) to be studied with a Six Sigma project. A non-conforming unit
is a defective unit.
Defect
A defect is a non-conformance on one of many quality characteristics of a

unit that causes customer dissatisfaction. Each defect for a unit needs to
be operationally defined. E.g., if a word in a document is misspelled, the
! !27
word may be considered a defect. A defect does not necessarily make a

unit defective. For example, a water bottle can have a scratch on the
outside and still can be used to hold water. However, if a customer wants a
scratch-free water bottle, then it could be considered defective. Examples
of defect are:
• Typos in a document
• Long hold times in a call centre
• Late deliveries
• Incomplete shipments
• Medication errors
• Power outages
• Systems crashes
• Parts shortages
• Post-sales repairs
• Expense check discrepancies
Defect Opportunity
A defect opportunity is each circumstance in which a CTQ can fail to be

met. There may be many opportunities for defects within a defined unit.
For example, if a service has four components and each component has
three opportunities for a defect, then the service has 12 defect
opportunities. The number of defect opportunities is generally related to
the complexity of the unit.
Defects per Unit (DPU)
It refers to the average of all defects for a given number of units. If we are
producing a 50-page document and if there are 150 errors, the DPU is 3.0.
Defects per Opportunity (DPO)
DPO refers to the number of defects divided by the number of defect

opportunities. In the previous service example, there are 12 opportunities
per service. If there are 20 errors in 100 such services, the DPU is 0.20
(12/100) and the DPO is 0.0167 (20/1200).
! !28
Defects per Million Opportunities (DPMO)
DPMO equals DPO multiplied by one million. In the previous example,

DPMO would be 16,700 (0.0167x1,000,000). DPMO simply indicates how
many errors would show up if an activity were to be repeated a million
times.
Yield
Yield is the proportion of units within specification divided by the total

number of units. If 25 units are served to customers and 20 are good, then
the yield is 0.80 or 80%.
Normal Distribution
The term Six Sigma is derived from the normal distribution used in
statistics. Many observable phenomena can be graphically represented as a
bell-shaped curve or a normal distribution.
When measuring any process, its outputs vary in size, shape, look, feel or
any other measurable characteristic. The typical value of the output is
measured by a statistic called the mean or average. The variability of the
output is measured by a statistic called the standard deviation. In a normal
distribution, the interval created by the mean +/- 3 standard deviations
contains 99.73 % of the data, leaving 2700 defects per million
opportunities outside of the area. In a normal distribution, the interval
created by the mean +/- 6 standard deviations contains 99.9999998% of
the data, 2 data values per billion data values outside the area.
Six Sigma promotes the idea that the distribution of output for a stable,
normally distributed process (Voice of the Process – VoP) should be
designed to take up no more than half of the tolerance allowed by the
specification limits (Voice of the Customer – VoC).
‘C’ measures the ratio of a specification width (highest allowable – lowest

allowable value) to the process width (highest observed – lowest observed
value). If the process limits and the specification limits are both X +/- 3
sigma, then (i.e., C of 1.0), the defect level would be 0.27 per cent or 2700
ppm. This was considered a reach out target level of quality up to the mid-
eighties.
! !29
The ultimate objective is for process limits at X +/- 3 sigma to be no more

than half the specification limits at X +/- 6 sigma – a defect level of 2 ppb
(parts per billion) or C of 2.0. For all practical purposes, this is zero
defects, which is the statistical meaning of Six Sigma.
Although, processes may be designed to be at their best, variation may

increase over time due to process inputs, the way process is monitored,
changing conditions, etc. The increase in process variation is often
assumed to be similar to the temporary shifts in the process mean. In
practice, the increase in process variation has been shown to be equivalent
to an average shift of 1.5 standard deviation in the originally designed and
monitored process. If a process is originally designed to be twice as good
as a customer demands (i.e., the specifications representing the customer
requirements are 6 standard deviations from the process target), then
even with shift in VoP, the customer demands are likely to be met. Even if
the process mean shifted off target by 1.5 standard deviations, there are
4.5 standard deviations between the shifted mean and closest specification
limit, resulting in no more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities
(3.4 DPMO).
Yield and DPMO at Different Sigma levels
If the Yield is DPMO would be Sigma would be
30.9% 6,90,000 1.0
69.2% 3,08,000 2.0

93.3% 66,800 3.0
99.4% 6,210 4.0
99.98% 320 5.0
99.9997% 3.4 6.0
The difference between a 3-sigma process (66,807 DPMO at the nearest

specification limit) and a 6-sigma process (3.4 DPMO at the nearest
specification limit) can be glaring in a service with 20 component steps. If
each of the 20 component steps has a quality level of 66,807 DPMO, then
the likelihood of a defect at each step is 6.68% or the likelihood of defect-
free step is 93.3%. Consequently, likelihood of delivering a defect-free final
service is 25.08% (at the end of 20 component steps). However, if each of
! !30
the 20 component parts has a quality level of 3.4 DPMO, then the
likelihood of delivering a defect-free final service is 99.99932%. The
difference is dramatic enough to certainly believe that 6-sigma level
performance matters, especially with more complex processes with a
greater number of steps or components.
Dramatic Success of Six Sigma Process
99% Good (3.8 Sigma) 99.9997% Good (Six Sigma)
1 20,000 lost articles of mail per hour 7 articles of lost mail per hour
2 Unsafe drinking water for almost 15 One unsafe minute of drinking

minutes per day. water every seven months
3 5000 incorrect surgical operations 1.7 incorrect surgical operations
per week per week
4 2 short or long landings at major 1 short or long landing at major

airports everyday airports every five years
5 200,000 incorrect drug prescriptions 68 incorrect drug prescriptions
each year each year
6 No electricity for almost 7 hours One hour without electricity every

each month 34 years
7 11.8 million shares incorrectly 4021 shares incorrectly traded on
traded on the NYSE everyday the NYSE everyday
8 3 warranty claims for every new 1 warranty claim for every 980
automobile new automobiles
9 48,000 to 96,000 deaths attributed 17 to 34 deaths attributed to
to hospital errors each year hospital errors each year
! !31
Normal Distribution of Process Capability at 3-Sigma and 6-Sigma

Levels
! !32
! !33
3.3 Six Sigma management
Six Sigma
Six Sigma is a comprehensive and flexible system for achieving, sustaining

and maximising business success. Six Sigma is uniquely driven by close
understanding of customer needs, disciplined use of facts, data and
statistical analysis and diligent attention to managing, improving and
reinventing business processes.
It is a measure of the process performance determined by using DPMO and

a stable normal distribution. It allows process performance comparisons
across processes, departments, divisions and companies.
Six Sigma management is the relentless and rigorous pursuit of the

reduction of variation in all critical processes to achieve continuous and
breakthrough improvements that impact the bottom line and/or top line of
the organization and increase customer satisfaction.
Another common definition is that Six Sigma management is an

organization initiative designed to create manufacturing, service and
administrative processes that produce a high rate of sustained
improvement in both defect reduction and cycle time.
Six Sigma organization is an organization that is actively working to build

the themes and practices of Six Sigma into its daily management activities
and is showing significant improvements in process performance and
customer satisfaction.
3.4 ACTIVITIES FOR THE STUDENTS
Study a critical process in your organization, which is related to your

customer satisfaction. Find out the common and special causes of variation
in the process.
! !34
3.5 Summary
Process and data are at the heart of Six Sigma initiative and it deploys lot
of statistical tools to analyze it for meaningful information and lead to a
targeted improvement. It is, therefore, necessary to understand various
concepts and terminologies used in Six Sigma before proceeding further.
1. Why processes are said to be at the heart at Six Sigma?
2. What are the common & special causes of variation?
3. Explain Normal Distribution.
! !35
3.7 MULTIPLE CHOICE Questions
1. The lower case letter ----------- in the Greek alphabet is a symbol to

represent the standard deviation of a population.
a. β
b. θ
c. ŋ
d. σ
2. Administration, Sales, Services, Human Resources, Training,

Maintenance, are all __________
a. Functions
b. Routine activities
c. Processes
d. Six Sigmas
3. A more modern definition of quality states that quality is a

----------------- degree of uniformity and dependability at low cost and
suited to the market.
a. Predictable
b. Preventable
c. Correctable
d. Post graduate
4. DPMO equals DPO multiplied by

a. 1,000
b. 10,000
c. 100,000
d. 1,000,000
5. If the yield is 30.9%, Sigma level will be:

a. 4
b. 3
c. 2
d. 1
Answers: 1-d, 2-c, 3-a, 4-d, 5-d
! !36
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture - Part 2 
! !37
KEY INGREDIENTS OF SIX SIGMA MANAGEMENT
Chapter 4
Key Ingredients Of Six Sigma Management
Objectives
• Information about various important phases of Six Sigma Process viz.

Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control.
• Information about DFSS model of Six Sigma that is used to design new
processes, products and services with the goal of delivering the final
product to the client correctly.
Structure
4.1 DMAIC Methodology
4.2 DMADV / DFSS Model
4.4 Summary
! !38
4.1 DMAIC Methodology
Every Six Sigma project follows a standardised and systematic method

known as DMAIC, a formalised problem solving process. DMAIC is an
acronym for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. The DMAIC
process can improve any type of process in any organization to improve its
efficiency and effectiveness.
Define phase of DMAIC process involves identifying the quality

characteristics that are critical to customers (called CTQs), using SIPOC
(acronym for Supplier, Input, Process, Output and Customer) analysis and
a voice of the customer analysis for preparing a business case for the
project with a project objective. The steps involved in Define phase are:
• Identify the problem

• Define requirements
• Set goal
Measure phase involves operationally defining the CTQs, conducting

studies of the validity of the measurement system of the CTQs, collecting
baseline data for the CTQs and establishing baseline capabilities for the
CTQs. The steps involved in Measure phase are:
• Validate problem/process
• Refine problem/goal
• Measure key steps/inputs
Analyze phase involves identifying input and process variables (called Xs)
that affect each CTQ using process maps or flowcharts, creating a cause-
and-effect matrix to understand the relationships between the Xs and the
CTQs, conducting an FMEA (Failure Mode and Effects Analysis) to identify
the critical Xs for each CTQ, operationally defining the Xs, collecting the
baseline data for the Xs, establishing the baseline capabilities for the Xs,
conducting studies of the validity of the measurement system of the Xs and
generating hypotheses about which Xs affect which CTQs. The steps
involved in Analyze phase are:
• Develop causal hypothesis

• Identify “vital few” root causes
• Validate hypothesis
! !39
Improve phase involves designing appropriate experiments to understand

the relationships between the Xs that impact CTQs, generating the actions
needed to implement optimum levels of critical Xs that minimise spread in
CTQs and conducting pilot tests of processes with Xs set at their optimum
levels. The steps involved in Improve phase are:
• Develop ideas to remove root causes

• Test solutions
• Standardise solution/measure results
Control phase involves avoiding potential problems in Xs with risk

management and mistake proofing, standardising successful process
changes, controlling the critical Xs, developing process control plans for the
critical Xs, documenting the control plans and turning over the control plan
to the process owner. The steps involved in Control phase are:
• Establish standard measures to maintain performance

• Correct problems as needed
Table 4.1
DEFINE Define the goals of the improvement activity and incorporate into
a Project Charter. Obtain sponsorship and assemble a team.
MEASURE Measure the existing system. Establish valid and reliable metrics
to help monitor progress toward the goals defined at the previous
step.
Establish current process baseline performance using metric.
ANALYZE Analyze the system to identify ways to eliminate the gap between
current performance of the system or process and the desired
goal. Understand the data. Use statistical tools to guide the
analysis.
IMPROVE Improve the system. Be creative in finding new ways to do things
better, cheaper or faster. Use project management tools to
implement the new approach. Use statistical methods to validate
the improvement.
CONTROL Control the new system. Institutionalize the new system by

modifying compensation and incentive systems, policies,
procedures, budgets, operating instructions and other
management systems. Use statistical tools to monitor stability of
the new systems.
! !40
The following table shows criteria for completing particular phases:
Define Define project scope, objective and schedule
Define top level (Level 1) process and stakeholders and create

CTQ tree
Select projects and create project charter
Select team members
Obtain authorization from sponsors
Assemble and train team

Measure Define process metrics
Establish process baseline
Evaluate measurement system

Analyze Analyze value stream
Analyze sources of variation

Determine process drivers
Benchmark against best in class
Improve Prioritize improvement opportunities

Define / create new process or product design
Optimize process/product settings
Evaluate the risks and failure modes

Control Validate new product/process
Develop and implement control plan
Document lessons learned

Approve deliverables
! !41
Six Sigma Tools commonly used in each phase of the product:
Project phase Six Sigma Tools
Define • Project charter

• Voice of Customer: Surveys, focus groups,
• letters, comment cards, complaints
• Process map
• Quality Function Deployment
• SIPOC
• Benchmarking
• Project planning and management tools
• Pareto Analysis
Measure • Measurement systems analysis
• Statistical Process Control Charts
• Run charts
• Pareto analysis
Analyze • Cause and Effect Diagrams

• Fault Tree analysis
• Problem Analysis
• Five “Whys”s
• Brainstorming
• SPC charts
• Process maps
• Design of experiments
Improve • FMEA
• 7 M tools
• Project planning and management tools
• Prototype and pilot studies
• Simulations
• Force field diagrams
Control • SPC
• FMEA
• Reporting system
• ISO 9001
! !42
4.2 DMADV / DFSS Model
DMADV is a Six Sigma quality method that is used to design new

product to the client correctly. The goal of the DMADV process is the
creation of a high-quality product, keeping the customer and the
customer’s need in mind during every phase of the project. Each letter of
the acronym DMADV is one of the five main phases of the project
improvement initiative: Define, Measure, Analyze, Design and Verify.
The DMADV (Define – Measure – Analyze – Design – Verify) methodology is

geared towards creating new products and business practices. It consists of
following steps:
Define: Define the project goals and customer (internal and external)
deliverables
Measure: Measure and determine customer needs and specifications
Analyze: Analyze the process options to meet the customer needs
Design: Design the product / process to meet the customer needs
Verify: Verify the design performance and ability to meet customer needs
The entire process of DMADV will rely on the company’s ability to

understand the customers’ needs and to determine which needs are not
met. Management will begin the process by drawing up a business strategy
that will include the improvement of products and systems which will
ultimately result in overall customer satisfaction.
The DMADV methodology is used instead of DMAIC in following cases:
• When a product or process is not in existence in the organization and one

needs to be developed.
• The existing product or process has been optimised (using DMAIC or

otherwise) but still does not meet the level of customer specification or
Six Sigma level.
! !43
DMAIC and DMADV are two different methodologies of the Six Sigma
approach. Both methods are used to drive defects to less than 3.4 DPMO.
Both methodologies are data intensive and are implemented by the
organization structure consisting of Master Black Belts, Black Belts and
Green Belts. Similar to DMAIC process, the process owner or champion is
in charge of implementing the DMADV process.
While, first three phases of DMADV process will follow similar steps and
techniques of DMAIC methodology, it will take different route in last two,
since it deals with design and development of new products and new
processes. During the Design phase, there will be lot of demand on
creativity from the team members and support from the design team. The
phase will include several executives from Development, Testing, Prototype
building and Budgeting functions. Lot of efforts will have to be put in
reviewing simulations, process modelling, risk analysis and developing
process charts.
The last phase of “Verify” will ascertain the design performance and
transition the product, process or service to the customer.
DMADV and DFSS are essentially the same process. DFSS stands for
“Design For Six Sigma,” and is just another name for DMADV.
Table 4.2
DEFINE Define the goals of the design activity
Measure customer input to determine what is critical to quality

from the customer’s perspective. Use special methods when a
MEASURE
completely new product or service is being designed. Translate
customer requirements into project goals.
Analyze innovative concepts for products and services to
ANALYZE create value for the customer. Determine performnce of
similar best-in-class designs.
Design new processes, products and services to deliver

customer value. Use predictive methods, simulation,
DESIGN
prototypes, pilot runs etc., to validate effectiveness of the
design concept in meeting goals.
Verify that new systems perform as expected. Create
VERIFY
mechanisms to ensure continued optimal performance.
! !44
In your organization, you must be having problems/issues connected with

your customer. Define the problem and explain how you think you will go
ahead to solve the problem.
4.4 Summary
Six Sigma project involves five basic steps-Define, Measure, Analyze,

Improve and Control. Each step is an involved activity and has clear
deliverables. Time duration of each step and management structure
required to handle it depends upon magnitude and complexity of the
project.
DMADV is a Six Sigma quality method that is used to design new

product to the client correctly. The goal of the DMADV Process is the
creation of a high-quality product, keeping the customer and the
customer’s need in mind during every phase of the project. Each letter of
the acronym DMADV is one of the five main phases of the project
improvement initiative: Define, Measure, Analyze, Design and Verify.
1. What are the different stages of DMAIC methodology?

2. What are the different steps in defining a project?
3. What are the important steps in a measurement process?
4. Explain Cause-and-Effect analysis.
5. What is DMADV methodology? How it is different to DMAIC process?
! !45
1. DMAIC is an acronym for -------, measure, analyze, improve and

control:
a. Design
b. Develop
c. Define
d. Drive
2. DMADV is an acronym for define, measure, analyze, design and :

a. Verify
b. Vary
c. Vision
d. Value
3. FMEA is an acronym for failure mode effects -----------------:

a. Adjustment
b. Assurance
c. Analysis
d. Amplitude
4. DFSS is an acronym for:

a. Define failures in systems
b. Development factors of systems
c. Design for Six Sigma
d. Define failure in Six Sigma
5. Seven M tools are:

a. Seven materials tools
b. Seven methods tools
c. Seven measurement tools
d. Seven management tools
Answers: 1-c, 2-a, 3-c, 4-c, 5-d
! !46
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !47
DEFINE PHASE
Chapter 5
Define Phase
Objectives
• Features of the Define phase
• Defining customer requirements
• How to define the problem by situation appraisal
• What is “SIPOC”
• Various techniques used in Define phase
• Six Sigma tools for Define phase
Structure
5.1 First Important Phase of Six Sigma
5.2 Techniques used in Define Phase
5.3 Six Sigma Tools for Define Phase
5.5 Summary
! !48
DEFINE PHASE
5.1 First Important Phase of Six Sigma
The Define phase of a Six Sigma DMAIC project assumes that one has
identified a certain number of problems to be solved, and these problems
are then converted into six sigma projects. A key challenge for all Six
Sigma practitioners and management alike is to find these problems in a
strategic way that assures maximum benefit from the application of the Six
Sigma methodology.
Defining projects is about recognising problematic areas of the business

and subsequently creating a clear direction for resolving these problematic
areas. Problematic areas of the business (like warranty returns, accounts
receivable, product yield and customer satisfaction issues) are elephant
sized issues of the business. More likely than not, each of these
problematic areas requires more than one Six Sigma project to resolve and
improve.
The best Six Sigma projects begin not inside the business but outside it. It
focused on answering the question - now can we make the customer more
competitive? What is critical to the customer success? Anything we do that
makes the customer more successful inevitably result in financial return for
the company.
• Poor product quality: Poor design, poor manufacturing, poor material
• Poor product reliability: Designs not robust with time and field
stresses
• Product liability potential: Poor design for human and product safety
• Poor field service: Unmotivated staff, non-availability of parts, poor

training and tools
• Customer non-comprehension: Non user-friendly features
• Late delivery: Poor forecasts, equipment breakdowns, supplier

delinquency
• Disconnected distributors/dealers: Limited loyalty to company
! !49
DEFINE PHASE
• Order processing, billing, accounts receivable errors: Order

inaccuracies, poor order tracing, routing errors
• Customer contact employees not empowered: Untrained,

unmotivated and underpaid employees
• Dictatorial management: Management by fear, micromanagement
The first step - to define - is to clearly describe the problem and the impact
on customer satisfaction, stakeholder, employees and profitability. During
this phase, the following are defined:
• Customer critical requirement

• Project goals and objectives
• Team roles and responsibilities
• Project scope and resources
• Process map and SIPOC (Supplier, Input, Process,Output and customer)
• Process performance baseline
Noritaki Kano’s approach sorts the customer requirements into three

categories; assumed, specified and expected requirements.
An assumed requirements is one that is taken as a given. Someone who is

buying a car, for example, never checks to be sure that the car will include
four wheels or a steering wheel. When an implicit requirement is not met.
Customers are extremely dissatisfied.
The specified requirements are a customer’s explicitly communicated

requirements. To meet the requirements is to satisfy the customer. But if
an organization has not done anything beyond what customers have
specifically asked for, customers will be very open to try competitive
products or services.
The expected requirements include requirements beyond what the

customer explicitly communicates. These are the customers’ real unstated
expectations of what they would love to receive from the suppliers. For a
supplier to fulfill these expectations, the supplier must be able to anticipate
the customers’ future needs for products or services, thus demonstrating a
desire for ongoing relationships with customers.
! !50
DEFINE PHASE
Once the requirements are understood, they flow down to the operation
level, where project goals and objectives are set.
What problem would you like to fix? The Define Phase is the first phase of
the Six Sigma. In this phase the project team creates a Project Charter, a
high-level map of the process and begins to understand the needs of the
customers of the process. This is a critical phase in which the team outlines
the project focus for themselves and the leadership of the organization.
5.1.1 Define the Problem by Developing a “Problem Statement”.

Focus on a problem that impacts the customer
Sometimes the hardest part about being a problem-solver is choosing

which problem to fix without jumping to a solution. Teams usually begin by
“fixing what bugs them” but ultimately the best projects focus on
improving customer satisfaction.Confirm the problem is a priority and will
have a high impact.
On - the - job concerns
What current concerns involve something going wrong (in any area-people,
machinery, sales, distribution, costs etc.) for which you do not know the
cause?
• What current concerns involve something going wrong (in any area-
people, machinery, sales, distribution, costs etc.) for which you do know
the cause, but you need to correct the situation?
• What current concerns involve something that is going right, but you
think could be improved?
• What current concerns require you to make a final decision on the best of
two or more alternatives?
• What current actions or plans are you responsible for implementing?
• What changes are about to occur?
• What are the threats and opportunities face your operation?
! !51
DEFINE PHASE
• Describe a current problem.
Situation Appraisal
• Separate the concerns into:
❖ Single, manageable items
❖ Which can be resolved by one action
❖ Any additional actions necessary to ensure success of the resolution?
• Set priority or sequence as follows:
❖ Seriousness: How severe is the impact? What/who is getting affected

and how seriously?
❖ Urgency: Is there a deadline? Will opportunities be lost? How pressing

is the need for action?
❖ Growth: Will it get worse? What will happen if ignored? Will the
problem grow if action is not taken?
• Locate action sequence:
Is this a deviation for which cause is unknown?
Then do:-
❖ Problem analysis, fault tree analysis, process mapping,

brainstorming by cause and effect diagram
❖ Does this concern require us to identify the best course of action?

Then do Decision Analysis
❖ Does this concern involve a decision which has been made but not
implemented? Then do Potential problem Analysis
• Can this concern be addressed by using just a few process steps?
! !52
DEFINE PHASE
Consider that we have totally 7 concerns.
Rating of seriousness and urgency done on the scale of 1-10 where 10 is

the maximum value of seriousness and urgency.
Concern Seriousness Urgency
1 3 4
2 5 6
3 4 8
4 7 9
5 4 1
6 7 5
7 2 6
We have plotted a graph of these concerns as follows. Seriousness value is

plotted on x axis and urgency values are plotted on y axis. The arrows
denote that there is going to be growth i.e. it will get worse if not acted
upon immediately.
! !53
DEFINE PHASE
In the above graph, two concerns (5, 6 and 7, 9 ) have growth potential,
with high seriousness and urgency. These concerns must be taken for
analysis immediately.
Having established a problem, the team creates a Problem Statement

which includes:
• An identified Measure that impacts the customer. Customers have two

process-related “buckets” of concern: Lead Time and Quality. Lead
time reflects the length of time from request to delivery of a product or
service. Quality can be many things; accuracy, completeness, defect-
free, etc. Simply ask: Are you trying to make the process go faster? or
are you trying to make the product or service better?
• Severity. This answers the question, “How big is the problem?” This could
reflect things like the percentage of units with errors or the number of
late orders per month. It’s important to be specific in order to keep data
in perspective. Severity data may not be available right away which
means the team fills in the blanks later during the Measure Phase.
5.1.2 Confirm resources are available
An important first step is to assign a project team leader, also known as a

Black Belt or Green Belt, as well as someone in a leadership position, who
is called a Sponsor or Project Champion. Team members can come from
different areas of the organization but should all have some connection to
the project area.
• Are there people close to the issue who can spend time working on the
issue?
• Is there someone in a leadership position who would like to see the issue
resolved? It is critical to involve people that work in the process.
5.1.3 Define the Goal by Developing a “Goal Statement”
The Goal Statement should be a direct reflection of the Problem Statement.

For example, if orders are 10% late, then the goal might be to cut that
down to only 5%. This statement defines, in measurable, time-bound
terms, exactly when the team and project will be considered successful. Of
! !54
DEFINE PHASE
course, this can be adjusted once the root causes are determined during
the Analyze Phase.
5.1.4 Define the Process by Developing Process Maps
"
The team begins with the a bird’s eye view of the process, also known as a
high-level process map. One high-level map is called a SIPOC which stands
for Suppliers, Inputs, Process, Outputs and Customers. Another high-level
map, more closely aligned with cycle time reduction projects, is a Value
Stream Map. Either of these maps is used throughout the life of the
project.
! !55
DEFINE PHASE
Once the high-level map is completed, a great way to understand the

process in more detail is to conduct a Process Walk. The project team
conducts a series of interviews with process participants to get a full
picture of the actual work done at each step. This information helps the
team to create a detailed map. Detailed mapping can be make use of
Swimlane Maps which uses lanes representing departments or it can be
done as a simple flow-chart.
5.1.5 Define the Customer and Their Requirements
The focus of each project is the customer of the process. The customer is
defined as the individuals or groups who receive the goods or services of
the process. Customers can be external to the organization or an internal
component of the organization. (For example, Human Resources has
internal customers, the employees of the organization.)
During the Define Phase, the team seeks to better understand customers
and their requirements. After interviewing or surveying customers, the
team translates that information into measurable requirements that
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DEFINE PHASE
provide the team with insight on how to improve the process or solve the
problem.
5.2 Techniques used in Define phase
• Project charter
• Stakeholder’s commitment analysis
• Affinity diagrams
• Voice of the customer
• Kano’s quality analysis
• Force field analysis
• Pareto analysis
• Process mapping
• SIPOC (Suppliers, Input, Process,Output, Customers)
Project state performance problems in quantifiable terms that define

expectations related to desired levels of performance and timing.
A project
• Has a financial impact to EBIT or a significant strategic value
• Produces results that significantly exceed the amount of effort required

to obtain the improvement
• Solves a problem that is not easily or quickly solvable using traditional

methods and
• Improves performance by greater than 70 per cent over existing

performance levels
The responsibilities, accountabilities and deliverables of a project are

divided between management and various “Belt” who perform problem
solving activities. Management, including the process owner, is responsible
for determining priorities and focus, while non-management personnel are
responsible for implementing the solution and realising the benefits. These
project life cycle relationships prevent Six Sigma deliverables from falling
into the cracks.
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DEFINE PHASE
Six Sigma is a term effort. Even in the Define stage, where management is
responsible for project identification and launch, the Belts assist. Generally
speaking, Belt have 20 per cent responsibility for defining and managing
improvement, while management has 80 per cent. When it comes to
implementation - the MAIC portion of the breakthrough strategy – these
percentages are reversed.
When defining a project, one gets into the nuts and bolts of Six Sigma. It is
well worth one’s time to do this step right, because 50 per cent of project’s
success depends on how well it is defined.
The most common mistakes in defining a potential project are as follows:
• The scope is too broad. Symptoms include considering too many Ys

(outputs) for improvement, multiple goals, mumerous process owners
and multiple departments.
• The problem is too easy
• The problem solution is know
• It is a “just do it” solution; no problem analysis is required
• The problem is a management issue, not a good Belt project
It’s best to go through a specified sequence of events or a process to

ensure that a project is well defined. Generally, one can expect to perform
eight specific steps in this process:
1. Determine the Y: What specifically needs to be improved
The Ys in need of improvement must be easily identifiable and quantifiable.

If there are more than two Ys, there is a good chance that the project is
too large in scope and may have to be broken into two or more projects to
be successful.
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DEFINE PHASE
2. Identify the associated processes and their physical locations
One needs to get a better sense of the process steps that are involved in
the performance of identified Y. At this point, one needs a macro process
map, which is concerned with the high-level flow that generates the output
of interest. Such a map shows the full scope of the process and includes all
major areas being affected.
3. Determine the baseline performance for each Y chosen
One normally has a sense of the magnitude of the problem one wants to
solve. Under Six Sigma methodology, one must have more than just a
sense of the magnitude; one should be able to express the magnitude of
the problem (defect level) in some unit of measure (e.g., hours, inches, per
cent, late, etc.).
At this phase of improvement effort, one may not have abundant and
accurate data. The amount and integrity of data will significantly improve
in the Measure phase. The data should be long-term, not short-term, when
estimating the baseline performance. Short-term data is a snapshot of
what is happening and could mislead. It also doesn’t represent all the
potential sources of variation that are contributing to the problem over the
long-term, such as seasonal effects.
4. Identify the cost and Impact of the problem
The Six Sigma effort is primarily aimed at cost reductions by eliminating

waste (scrap, inefficiencies, excess materials, rework, etc.) that increases
cost but adds no value. As a general rule, Six Sigma projects should
produce a financial benefit, either directly or indirectly, through cost
reductions, revenue growth, balance sheet improvements or accomplishing
strategic goals.
Cost avoidance is not an appropriate metric for determining Six Sigma

saving. If a process has been improved, one can not make a projection into
the future about what may have happened if the project had not been
done. A good way to estimate the potential vale of a project is to imagine
how much one could save if the problem was completely eliminated.
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DEFINE PHASE
5. Write the problem statement
The problem statement serves several purposes. First, it significantly

clarifies the current situation by specifically identifying what needs to
improve, the level of the problem, where it is occurring, and the financial
impact of the problem. It also serves as a great communication tool.
Helping to get buy-in and support from others.
When problem statements are well written, people readily grasp and
understand what it is that one is trying to accomplish.
A problem statement needs to be concise and include the following:
• A description of the problem and the metric used to describe the problem
• Where the problem is occurring by process name and location
• The time frame over which the problem had been occurring
• The size or magnitude of the problem
6. The objective statement
The objective statement directly addresses the information in the problem

statement. Just like the problem statement, the objective statement must
contain certain information in order for it to be effective. A good objective
statement contains all of the following elements, improve some metric
from some baseline to some goal in some amount of time with some
impact against some corporate goal or objective. This timeline must be
aggressive, yet realistic.
Simply stated, one needs to indicate what level of improvement is

expected form this project. This is specific, quantifiable amount of
improvement planned above the baseline performance that was indicated
in the problem statement. One also needs to determine how long it will
take to complete this project and to achieve the goal.
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DEFINE PHASE
7. Identify and recruit candidates for the project team
Very few people have all the skills necessary to take on process
improvement projects by themselves. Usually, three to six team members,
all of whom have expertise from the areas associated with the project, are
sufficient. If one had enlisted the process owners into the project,
identifying these individuals becomes easy.
8. Obtain approvals and launch
The last step involved is to identify who has to approve the project. The
key individual to identify is the process owner. This is the person who has
the primary responsibility for the results of the process associated with the
problem one is going to solve. If additional approvals are required, it will
become obvious when the process owners are known. It is also important
to seek approval from the person who will be leading the project.
9. Inform Others of Project Progress
The team regularly updates the Project Sponsor or Champion of their

progress and confirms they are still pursuing a worthwhile process issue.
One of the best ways to update sponsors and stakeholders is the A3
document, which is a customizable, one-page document used to
communicate project status to others in a quick and simple way.
Stakeholder Analysis begins in the Define Phase as well and the team
revisits this key group throughout the project to ensure that others are
engaged in improving the process.
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DEFINE PHASE
A3
Title: Name(s) Date
Background: Proposed Countermeasure(s):

Your proposal to reach the future state, the
Why you are talking about it.
target condition.
What is the business reason for choosing - What alternatives could be considered?
this issue? - How will you choose among the options?
What decision criteria?

How your recommended countermeasures
will impact the root cause to change the
!
current situation and achieve the target.
Current Conditions:
Where things stand today.

!
- What’s the problem with that, with where
Implementation Plan:
we stand?
- What is the actual symptom that the A chart or table that shows actions/
business feels that requires action? outcomes, timeline and responsibilities.
Show visually – pareto charts, graphs, May include details on the specific means of
drawings, maps, etc. implementation.
- Who will do what, when and how?
Indicators of performance, of progress.

!
- How will we know if the actions have the
Target(s)/Goal(s)
impact needed?
The specific outcome required for the - What are the critical few, visual, most
business. natural measures?
- What is the specific change you want to
accomplish now.?
- How will you measure success?
Analysis
The root cause(s) of the problem.

!
- Why are we experiencing the symptom? Follow Up:
- What constraints prevent us from the goal? Remaining issues that can be anticipated.
Choose the simplest problem-solving tool for - Any failure modes to watch out for? Any
this issue: unintended consequences?
- 5 “Why”s Ensure ongoing P-D-C-A.
- Fishbone
- QC Tools
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DEFINE PHASE
- LSS Tools
5.3 Six Sigma Tools for Define Phase
Critical to Quality (CTQs) Metrics
CTQs are the key measurable characteristics of a product or process whose

performance standards or specification limits must be met in order to
satisfy the customer. These outputs represent the product or service
characteristics defined by the customer (internal or external).
Critical to Quality CTQ Tree
When you're developing new products and services, quality is important –

not only to satisfy your clients, but also to help you stand out from your
competitors.
However, defining quality can be a challenge, and it's possible that we

overlook factors that customers care about.
This is when Critical to Quality (CTQ) Trees are useful. They help you
understand what drives quality in the eyes of your customers, so that you
can deliver a product or service that they are genuinely pleased with.
Critical to Quality (CTQ) Trees are diagram-based tools that help you
develop and deliver high quality products and services. You use them to
translate broad customer needs into specific, actionable, measurable
performance requirements.
For example, an instruction such as "improve customer service" is too

broad to do much with. However, by using a CTQ Tree, you can drill-down
from this broad goal to identify specific, measurable requirements that you
can use to improve performance.
CTQ Trees were originally developed as part of Six Sigma. You can use
them in a variety of situations, including when you're developing products
and services for your "internal customers."
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DEFINE PHASE
You use CTQ Trees by first identifying the critical needs of your customers.
This is what your product or service must deliver for customers to be
happy. For example, if you're launching a new website, a need might be:
"Must be accessible on a smartphone.”
Then, for each need, you identify its quality drivers. These are the factors
that customers will use to evaluate the quality of your product. For
example, for the need "Must be accessible on a smartphone," a quality
driver might be "Must display properly on smartphone web browsers.”
Finally, you identify measurable performance requirements that each driver

must satisfy if you're to actually provide a high quality product to your
customers. Without these requirements, you have no way to actually
measure the performance and quality of your product. For example, the
measurable requirement for the driver, "Must display properly on
smartphone web browsers," might be for the website to "display as
required on the five most popular smartphone web browsers.”
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DEFINE PHASE
It is best to do a CTQ Tree for each individual critical need that you identify.
You'll then have a comprehensive list of requirements that you can use to
deliver a product that delights your customers.
Step 1: Identify Critical Needs
You first need to identify the critical needs that your product has to meet.
Do a CTQ Tree for every need that you identify.
During this first step, you're essentially asking, "What is critical for this
product or service?”
It's best to define these needs in broad terms; this will help ensure that
you don't miss anything important in the next steps.
If you can't ask customers directly about their needs, brainstorm their
needs with people who deal with customers directly – sales people and
customer service representatives – as well as with your team.
Step 2: Identify Quality Drivers
Next, you need to identify the specific quality drivers that have to be in
place to meet the needs that you identified in the previous step.
Remember, these are the factors that must be present for customers to
think that you are delivering a high quality product.
Don't rush this – it's important that you identify all of the drivers that are
important to your customers.
Again, speak to people with customer contact, and ask your customers
what factors are important to them.
Step 3: Identify Performance Requirements
Finally, you need to identify the minimum performance requirements that

you must satisfy for each quality driver, in order to actually provide a
quality product.
Here it's important to remember that there are many things that will affect
your ability to deliver these. For example, do you have enough resources
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DEFINE PHASE
or the right technology in place? And, what will you need to do in other
parts of your organization to meet these requirements?
Once you've completed a CTQ Tree for each critical need, you'll have a list
of measurable requirements that you must meet to deliver a high quality
product.
CTQ Tree Example
Ajay is launching a store that sells baby clothing. After speaking with
potential customers, one of the critical needs he identifies is "Good
Customer Service." So he uses a CTQ Tree to create a list of measurable
performance requirements that will help him achieve this.
Ajay's Example CTQ Tree
"
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DEFINE PHASE
Let us discuss another example of a CTQ tree.
The project is say a new standard of netbook, perhaps a customer's

requirement is that the netbook be light and small. This first step has a lot
of sub-steps, all of which are directly related to what a customer is looking
for. Try to identify at least three to five requirements that a customer is
looking for. Some more customer’s requirements are:
• the netbook should be able to run high quality graphics (for media
playback or video games)
• it should have a fast processor
• it should have a high level of customization (such as laptop color or

design), and last but not the least
• affordable price.
These goals are of course achieved with open dialogue between both the
team working on the CTQ as well as the customer. Then it is time to set
measurements for the requirements; that is, that discussion begins on how
realistic the requirements are.
• Can the netbook still be light and small if it has the ability to run quality
graphics?
• Can an affordable price be had ?
The last step is to confirm the requirements that the customers have set
for the product and that those requirements can be met by the company or
manufacturer. Again, open discussion is advised in order to get to a point
where both the customer and the company are happy with the projected
ideas and expectations.
The main points a CTQ tree are to make sure that the needs of the
customer are met and then converted into a reasonable and detailed
project plan for continuation. It also helps the team working on the project
get from the idea stage - that of the needs and requirements of the
customer - to the planning stage, that is the stage in which the design is
put into a more specialization context for the company itself. The time it
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DEFINE PHASE
takes for the completion of a CTQ tree is dependent on when the needs are
met and if any more ideas come to the table.
Project Charter
Every project that an organization empowers should have a project charter.

For Six Sigma projects where the team functions for months and needs
clear direction, the project charter is critical. This document must contain
all of the essential information to focus and guide the project team
activities through the DMAIC methodology. The project charter is a
summary document, ideally one page in length containing the following
information
• Business case and project rationale/ key drivers. A summary of the

strategic business situation that is the motivation for this project. This
summary is linked to the strategic goals indicated in the section on
project selection.
• Project statement. A simple, concise statement that explains what the

team will work on and what is not the focus of the project, what the
team is expected to accomplish and a target date for achieving the
primary goal.
• Project goals. The primary goal is the specific improvement goal

associated with the project statement, which is linked to the financial
gains and customer satisfaction expectations. The secondary goals are
additional goals that will be achieved as a result of the primary goal,
such as increased production capacity and reduced materials costs that
are realized from improved quality of a product or service.
• Process and process boundaries. Specify the process that is the focus
of the improvement effort-for example, printer assembly line 6 at the
West Plant. Identify the specific starting and ending boundaries for the
project teamwork.
• Project timeline and milestones. Identify a timetable for the project,

including the start and end dates. Propose start and end dates for each
step of the DMAIC methodology. Projects should be doable in four to
eight months.
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DEFINE PHASE
• Team members. Each Six Sigma project will have from five to seven
team members. If expertise from additional persons is required, consider
them as support resources rather than full-time team members. Team
members should include people selected to represent the employees who
work on the process associated with the project, engineering and
maintenance functions, and the outside customer of the process, as well
as the preceding and following processes.
How does the Project Charter look like?
SIX SIGMA PROJECT PROJECT

NO.
DIVISION DEPARTMENT DATE:
PROJECT STATEMENT:
Aim of the Project:
Business case and project rationale/ key drivers (Voice of the customer/process/
CTQ and CTQ tree):
Defect definition:
Process metrics / defect metrics:
Project Goals:
Process that is the focus of improvement:

Project timeline and milestones
Names of the team members and their status:
Meeting frequency:
Project Approved by:
Sponsor
Project Excellence Leader
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DEFINE PHASE
Process Map
A process map is a planning and management tool that visually describes

the flow of work. Process maps show a series of events that produce an
end result. A process map is also called a flowchart, process flowchart,
process chart, functional process chart, functional flowchart, process
model, workflow diagram, business flow diagram or process flow diagram.
It shows who and what is involved in a process and can be used in any
business or organization and can reveal areas where a process should be
improved.
SIPOC:
A SIPOC is a high-level view of a process which stands for Suppliers,
Inputs, Process, Outputs, and Customers. Every Process starts with
Suppliers who provide Inputs to the Process which results in an Output that
is delivered to Customers.
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DEFINE PHASE
Benchmarking
Benchmarking is comparing one's business processes and performance
metrics to industry bests and best practices from other companies.
In project management benchmarking can also support the selection,
planning and delivery of projects. Dimensions typically measured are
quality, time and cost.
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DEFINE PHASE
"
In the process of best practice benchmarking, management identifies the

best firms in their industry, or in another industry where similar processes
exist, and compares the results and processes of those studied (the
"targets") to one's own results and processes. In this way, they learn how
well the targets perform and, more importantly, the business processes
that explain why these firms are successful.
Benchmarking is used to measure performance using a

specific indicator (cost per unit of measure, productivity per unit of
measure, cycle time of x per unit of measure or defects per unit of
measure) resulting in a metric of performance that is then compared to
others.
Project Management Tools
SWOT stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. And

you need to identify all of them before you start planning your projects.
This is also a perfect opportunity for other stakeholders of the projects to
provide their input.
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DEFINE PHASE
SWOT Analysis in Project Management
Gantt charts are one of the easiest ways to quickly visualize a project and
all its subtasks. Although they become less useful in complex projects with
lots of tasks, for less complex projects, they provide a great way to
measure progress and define outcomes.
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DEFINE PHASE
!
A Work breakdown structure is a simple diagram type that is used to break
large tasks into manageable sub tasks. Here, you don’t have to worry
about dependencies, time allocation or the resources. This is mostly done
by smaller teams who are part of a larger project.
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DEFINE PHASE
Activity-on-node is a project management term that refers to a precedence

diagramming method which uses boxes to denote schedule activities.
These various boxes or “nodes” are connected from beginning to end with
arrows to depict a logical progression of the dependencies between the
schedule activities. Each node is coded with a letter or number that
correlates to an activity on the project schedule.
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DEFINE PHASE
Pareto Analysis
The following example shows how many customer complaints were

received in each of five categories:
Another example takes the largest category, “documents,” from the first
example, breaks it down into six categories of document-related
complaints, and shows cumulative values.
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DEFINE PHASE
If all complaints cause equal distress to the customer, working on

eliminating document-related complaints would have the most impact, and
of those, working on quality certificates should be most fruitful.
In your organization, select problems which affect your customer and make
situation appraisal to select and define the problem. Use the techniques
given in this chapter.
5.5 Summary
Defining projects is about recognizing problematic areas of the business

and subsequently creating a clear direction for resolving these problematic
areas.
The best Six Sigma projects begin not inside the business but outside it. It
is focused on answering the question: how can we make the customer
more competitive? What is critical to the customer success?
The Define Phase is the first phase of the Six Sigma. In this phase the
project team creates a Project Charter, a high-level map of the process and
begins to understand the needs of the customers of the process. This is a
critical phase in which the team outlines the project focus for themselves
and the leadership of the organization.
• Define the Problem by Developing a “Problem Statement”. Focus on a

problem that impacts the customer.
• Confirm resources are available
• Define the Goal by Developing a “Goal Statement”
• Define the Process by Developing Process Maps
• Define the Customer and their requirements
Techniques used in Define phase are:

• Project charter
• Stakeholder’s commitment analysis
• Voice of the customer
• Kano’s quality analysis
• Force field analysis
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DEFINE PHASE
• Pareto analysis
• Process mapping
• SIPOC
Six Sigma tools for Define phase like CTQ tree etc. are explained in this
chapter.
5.6 Self assessment Questions
1. Explain the concept of SIPOC.

2. What is the meaning of benchmarking?
3. Write a brief note on CTQ tree.
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DEFINE PHASE
1. Kano’s approach sorts the customer requirements into three categories:

assumed, specified and:
a. Suspected
b. Accepted
c. Expected
d. Escaped
2. In the Define phase, the project team creates a Project -------------, a

high-level map of the process and begins to understand the needs of
the customers of the process.
a. Chart
b. Map
c. Charter
d. Schedule
3. Which are the key measurable characteristics of a product or process

whose performance standards or specification limits must be met in
order to satisfy the customer?
a. Weight
b. Length
c. Speed
d. CTQs
4. Which is a high-level view of a process which stands for Suppliers,

Inputs, Process, Outputs, and Customers?
a. Project charter
b. FMEA
c. Process map
d. SIPOC
5. What stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats?

a. Sweet
b. Sweat
c. Squat
d. SWOT
Answers: 1-c, 2-c, 3-d, 4-d, 5-d
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DEFINE PHASE
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
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MEASURE PHASE
Chapter 6
Measure Phase
Objectives
• Features of the Measure phase

• Random and assignable causes of variation
• Repeatability and reproducibility
• Why measurement is critical and necessity to focus on it
• Machine capability studies
• Run chart and Pareto analysis
Structure
6.1 Second Important Phase of Six Sigma
6.2 Measurement is Critical :Focus on it
6.3 Measurement Systems
6.4 Statistical Process Control
6.5 Run Chart and Pareto Analysis
6.7 Summary
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MEASURE PHASE
6.1 Second Important Phase of Six Sigma
The purpose of the next phase — to measure — is to describe the

opportunity for improvement and quantify the baseline performance. When
changes are made for improvement, then the business can verify the
effectiveness of the changes. To analyze data, basic statistical techniques
such as averages, standard deviation and probability distributions (i.e., the
Normal distribution and the Poisson distribution) are critical for
understanding the nature of excessive variation in the process.
W. Edwards Deming said that "variation is evil." This premise underlies the
method for achieving dramatic improvement in any process. Walter
Stewart classified variation as random or assignable. Deming called it
common or special variation. The nature of variation depends upon its
causes, which could be random or assignable.
Random causes of variation such as ambient temperature, supplier-to-

supplier variation in parts or operator-to-operation variation, are inherent
in process. Assignable causes are those that change for specific reason,
such as machine breakdown, untrained operator, use of the wrong
material, an incorrect set-up or some design related issue. The random
causes are difficult to diagnose and many of those act concurrently, while
the assignable causes are known, specific and introduced in the process. in
statistical terms, random causes are the ones that are more likely to
happen as a routine (about 95% of time), while assignable causes occur
less often (about 5% of time) and are exceptions.
Another measure of performance is the cost of quality. The traditional cost

of quality consists of four categories: internal failures, external failures,
appraisal and prevention. The goal is to increase the preventive cost of
quality and to reduce the internal failures, external failures and appraisal
components. Typically, not all the costs of poor quality are measured in a
company’s accounting system; therefore, it takes both effort to understand
and courage to measure accurately the cost of poor quality.
Measure is generally the most difficult and time consuming phase in the
DMAIC methodology. But if it is done well and right at the first time, it
saves a lot of trouble later and maximises one’s chance of improvement.
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MEASURE PHASE
Accuracy and precision are two distinct properties of a measurement

system. Accuracy describes how centred the measurement system is
compared to the actual variation. Precision describes how widely spread
the variation of the measurement system is compared to the actual
variation of the process or characteristic being measured.
In measurement system, precision is made up of two components:

repeatability and reproducibility.
Repeatability is the part of measurement variation that occurs when one

repeats measurements with the same item, the same measurement set-
up and the same equipment, under the identical conditions.
Reproducibility is the part of measurement variation that occurs when one

repeats measurements with different items and different measurement set-
ups, under different environmental conditions.
Several important principles constitute the foundation of a robust Six

Sigma measurement system:
• Any department or team can and must be measured for effectiveness
• The measurements must be simple, meaningful, fair and easy to apply

with little calibration error
• Employees must be involved in the formulation of the measurements.
• When employees have operational “ownership”, they set higher goals

than measurement
• Team measurements must be transparent and prominently visible to all

— employees, managers and customers
• Each team should be measured against itself, using time for comparison
• The benefit-to-cost ratio of any measurement must be at least 5:1 and

preferably 10:1
• Leading indicators should be given much greater attention than lagging

indicators
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MEASURE PHASE
Measures need to be continuously improved. Following are the important

steps in any measurement process:
1. Select what to measure

Selecting the optimal performance measures suggests balancing two major
elements 1) what is feasible and 2) what is most useful or valuable. If the
customer requirements could be prioritized, it is a good starting point for
determining value. Areas, in which one suspects, there are performance
gaps, can also be good places to begin measures.
2. Develop operational definitions

One of the biggest pitfalls associated with the quest for effective business
process measurement is the failure to create good "Operational Definitions"
and the data collection procedures to go with them. Operational definition
is a clear, understandable and unambiguous description of what is to be
measured or observed, so that everyone can operate or measure
consistently on the basis of definition.
3. Identify data source

There are many possible sources of data in an organization. The important
consideration in this step is to choose the source which has accurate Bata
and represents the process, product or service one wants to measure.
4. Prepare a collection and sampling plan

Well designed spreadsheets and check sheets are the workhorses of data
gathering and although, there are some standard types of forms, one
should rather tailor each form to fit the actual data collection one is going
to do.
Some common types of check sheets include the following:
• Defect or Cause Check sheet

• Data sheet
• Frequency Plot Check sheet '
• Concentration Diagram Check sheet
• Traveller Check sheet
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MEASURE PHASE
5. Implement and refine measurement

It is always prudent to run a test on data collection so as to ensure that
forms, sampling plans and definitions work as planned. If a trial is not
possible, one should pay careful attention to how it works when one begins
to gather the data. If many people are involved in gathering and compiling
data, some kind of training is essential.
6.2 Measurement is Critical: Focus on it
• How does the process currently perform?

• What is the magnitude of the problem?
Measurement is critical throughout the life of the project.
The team starts collecting data they focus on both the process as well as
measuring what customers care about.
That means initially there are two focuses:
• reducing lead time or

• improving quality
In the Measure Phase, the team refines the measurement definitions and
determines the current performance or the baseline of the process.
6.2.1 Determine How the Process Currently Performs
• First, teams establish the current state or the “baseline” of the process
before making any changes. The baseline becomes the standard against
which the team measures their improvement.
• This is a key step as the data collected during the Measure Phase is
compared against the data collected in the Improve Phase to confirm the
improvement.
6.2.2 Create a Plan to Collect the Data

Once the team determines what to measure as the process baseline, they
must consider where to get the data, how much to collect, who will get it
and how. A well-thought-out Data Collection Plan is critical since accurate
and reliable data are the key to good decision making.
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MEASURE PHASE
6.2.3 Ensure the Data is Reliable

Defining and refining the process measurements leads to collecting sound
information. This enables the team to make good project decisions. This
ensures future corrective action is based on facts and data rather than
assumptions and opinions.
6.2.4 Gather the Baseline Data

Data collection is usually a mix of gathering system information, creating
reports and manually collecting information that is not readily available.
The team creates Check Sheets for the manual data and continue until
they have a reliable measure of the project baseline.
6.2.5 Update Your Project Charter

Once the team has conducted their initial data collection they will have
more details around process performance and potential goals. The team
updates their Project Charter as collected data more accurately describes
the problem and the goal.
6.3 Measurement Systems
• Quality is based on product’s compliance to expectations and

requirements
• Quality is a measurable characteristic
• Quality measurement should be based on the quantity and costs of non-

conformances
• Poor quality raises costs unnecessarily, as poor quality increases the size
and cost of the hidden factory where wastes, scrap and repair are
manufactured
• Value and quality can be most effectively improved by measuring non-

conformances in terms of quantity and cost and systematically attacking
the dominant non-conformances.
• One of the Quality Management Principles (Ref: ISO 9000:2005) is

factual approach to decision making. Effective decisions are based on the
analysis of data and information.
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• The first challenge: Developing and implementing a quality measurement

system.
Measurement data are used more often and in more ways than ever
before. For instance, the decision to adjust a manufacturing process or not
is now commonly based on measurement data or some statistic calculated
from them.They are compared with statistical control limits for the process,
and if the comparison indicates that the process is out of statistical control,
then an adjustment of some kind is made. Otherwise, the process is
allowed to run without adjustment.
Another use of measurement data is to determine if a significant

relationship exists between two or more variables, E.g. a critical dimension
on a molded plastic part is related to the temperature of the feed material.
Such a relationship could be studied by using a statistical procedure called
regression analysis.
The benefit of using a data based procedure is largely determined by the

quality of the measurement data used. If quality of this data is not
acceptable, then it is improved by improving the measurement system.
Gauge: Any device used to obtain measurements, frequently used to refer

specifically to the devices used on the shop floor including go/no-go
devices.
Measurement system: The collection of operations, procedures, gauges

and other equipments, software, and personnel used to assign a number to
the characteristic being measured; the complete process used to obtain
measurements.
The quality of a measurement system is usually determined solely by the

statistical properties of the data it produces. Other properties such as cost,
ease of use are also important.
• The measurement system must be in statistical control.
• Variability in the measurement system must be small compared to the

variability of the manufacturing process.
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• Variability in the measurement system must be small compared to the

specification limits.
• The increments of the measure must be small relative to the smaller of

the process variability or the specification limits.
• The statistical properties of the measurement system may change as the

items being measured vary.
Calibration: In general use, calibration is often regarded as the process

of adjusting the indication on a measurement instrument to agree with
value of the applied standard, within a specified accuracy.
For example, a thermometer could be calibrated so the error of indication

or the correction is determined, and adjusted (e.g.
via calibration constants) so that it shows the true temperature
in Celsius at specific points on the scale. This is the perception of the
instrument's end-user. However, very few instruments can be adjusted to
exactly match the standards they are compared to. For the vast majority of
calibrations, the calibration process is actually the comparison of an
unknown to a known and recording the results.
Errors and Variation in measurement System
The following definitions help describe the types of errors or variation

associated with a measurement system.  
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1. Bias
"
A reference value can be determined by averaging several measurements

with a higher level (e.g. metrology lab equipment) of measuring
equipment.
Bias is the difference between observed average of measurements and the

reference value.
2. Repeatability
"
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Repeatability is the variation in measurements obtained with one

measurement instrument when used several times by one appraiser while
measuring the identical characteristic on the same part.
3. Reproducibility
Reproducibility is the variation in the average of measurements made by
different appraisers using the same measuring instrument when measuring
the identical characteristic on the same part.
4. Stability
Stability or drift is the total variation in the measurements observed with a
measurement system on the same master or parts when measuring a
single characteristic over an extended time period.
5. Linearity
Linearity is the difference in BIAS values through the expected operating
range of the gauge. Lower part of range can have lower bias and higher
part of range can have larger bias.
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6.4 Statistical Process Control
Statistical Process Control is a process used to control a manufacturing

process on the basis of statistical methods. Samples of parts are taken and
their characteristic values are measured and entered in a form, the so
called control chart. Statistical quantities are calculated from the
characteristic values for evaluation of the current state of the process. If
necessary, the state of the process can be corrected by suitable measures.
The control chart method was developed by Walter Andrew Shewhart in the
1920’s.
SPC is an application from the area of inductive statistics. Not all the
measured values are available, as would be in the case with 100%
inspection. Conclusions are made concerning the population on the basis of
small data set, the sample values.
6.4.1 The basic concepts behind SPC are the controllability and the
capability of the Manufacturing process
A process in control is characterized by stability. All the parameters of

process spread must be taken into consideration and be capable of
correction in the event of unwanted changes in the process state.
Fundamentally, Statistical Process Control is linked with maintaining a

Control Chart. Determination of the process capability is done through the
measured values that are entered in the control chart. The control charts
must show that the process is in control before the process capability is
calculated.
Control Charts are maintained for significant quality characteristics with the
aim of indicating and improving the controllability and capability of the
process.
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6.4.2 Planning
• Selection of the product characteristics.
• Direct or indirect inspection characteristics.
• The process must be capable of being controlled with reference to the

inspection characteristic. It must be possible to manipulate the
manufacturing devices such that the parameter in question can be
changed in a desired way.
• The materials entering the process must meet the set quality
requirements.
• Procurement of measurement system for the inspection characteristic.
• Selection of the Control Chart e.g. X - s Charts
• Sample Size; normally n=5 is chosen
• Determining the sampling interval. After correcting errors or after tool

changes and re-adjustments, 100% measuring must be done until the
correct process average is achieved. The last five measured values are
considered as the first sample for the continuing process observation.
• Determination of the sampling interval as per the expected mean fault

occurrence frequency e.g. 10 samples within this period; or with respect
to the tool change and re-adjustment intervals. E.g. 5 samples within the
mean tool life and adjustment interval.
• The inspection interval is to be set on a parts related or time related

basis.
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6.4.3 Machine capability Study
It represents a short term study that is intended to discover purely

machine related influences on the manufacturing process. It is necessary
to check whether processing equipment can meet the set requirements
with an adequate degree of certainty before it is introduced for mass
production.
The characteristic values of at least 50 units manufactured one after

another are determined and entered in columns as groups of 5 in the
evaluation sheet.
Case Example of Machine capability Study
In a bearings manufacturing company, the following set of values were

obtained for diameter:
X1 63 63 63 61 62 63 63 63 63 61
X2 63 63 63 60 62 63 63 63 63 60
X3 62 62 61 60 63 62 62 62 61 60
X4 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63 63
X5 62 63 62 62 62 62 62 63 62 62
63 62.8 62.4 61.2 62.4 62.6 62.6 62.8 62.4 61.2

!
s 0.55 0.45 0.89 1.30 0.55 0.55 0.55 0.45 0.89 1.30
Average ! = 62.3
Average s = 0.748
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6.4.4 Stability Test
UCL = Average ! + (1.3 x average s) = 63.27
LCL = Average ! + (1.3xaverage s) = 61.33
It is found that all the ! values are within the control limits. This means
that the ! is stable.
Control limit for s=2.1*average s=1.57
It is found that all the average s values are within the control limits. This
means that the average s is also stable.
The Machine Capability Index CmK=formula same as for CpK as follows:
Cp = !
CpU = !
CpL = !
Cpk = Min (CpU, CpL)
Upper Specification Limit=67
Lower Specification Limit=57
CmK1=2.09
CmK2=2.36
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So, the Machine capability Index CmK=2.09 (Minimum of the two)
Production equipment (machine) is capable of ensuring that the tolerances

are met if CmK is more than or equal to 2.
6.4.5 Pre-Production Run
Determination of control limits requires a knowledge or estimation of the

process parameters. This is done by a pre-production run. So, 25 samples
of 5 parts each are necessary for reliable results.
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So, as a result of such pre production run,
Average ! = 62.2
Average s=0.845
The control Limits for the SPC Chart will be as follows: (1.23 is a constant)
UCL=mid tol+1.23xaverage s = 62+1.23x0.845=63.03
LCL= mid tol-1.23xaverage s = 62-1.23x0.845=60.96
CpK as per the pre production run=
Cpk1=1.89
Cpk2=2.05
So, CpK=1.89 (Minimum of the two) which is acceptable.

Accordingly, the ! - s control charts using the above control limits are to be
maintained every shift for the parameters as above.
6.4.6 Patients waiting time for doctor in a clinic
Chart of patients' waiting time in clinic in minutes
x1 20 30 26 17 24
x2 23 35 40 19 34
x3 25 40 34 23 45
x4 19 23 45 34 35
x5 15 25 20 40 26
X bar 20.4 30.6 33 26.6 32.8

X max 25 40 45 40 45
X min 15 23 20 17 24
Range 10 17 25 23 21
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USL 55 55 55 55 55
LSL 10 10 10 10 10
TOL MID 30 30 30 30 30
UCL 41.5 41.5 41.5 41.5 41.5
LCL 18.5 18.5 18.5 18.5 18.5
In a clinic, the doctors keep the patients waiting for sometimes 10

minutes, 15 minutes, sometimes 20, 30, 45 minutes also without bothering
about the fact that there might be senior citizens, weak patients etc.
If the process of attending the patients could be made such that every
patient will be kept waiting only for 10 minutes or less (10 minutes can be
called as CTQ) but a constant amount of time, how wonderful would it be!
The patients can then plan their other activities. The doctors can employ
additional assistant doctors and some of the earlier patients requiring more
time can be attended by these doctors if necessary.
6.5 Run Chart and Pareto Analysis
A run chart is a line graph of data plotted over time. By collecting and
charting data over time, you can find trends or patterns in the process.
Because they do not use control limits, run charts cannot tell you if a
process is stable. However, they can show you how the process is running.
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Pareto Analysis
The following example shows how many customer complaints were

received in each of five categories:
!
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Take a problem in your organization, which affects customer. Measure the

parameters of this problem by using suitable measurement system. Find
out the standard deviation of the process and calculate the sigma level.
6.7 Summary
The purpose of this phase is to describe the opportunity for improvement

and quantify the baseline performance. When changes are made for
improvement, then the business can verify the effectiveness of the
changes. To analyze data, basic statistical techniques such as averages,
standard deviation and probability distributions are critical for
understanding the nature of excessive variation in the process.
Measurement is critical throughout the life of the project. The team starts
collecting data they focus on both the process as well as measuring what
customers care about. That means initially there are two focuses:
• reducing lead time

• improving quality.
In the Measure Phase, the “Team” refines the measurement definitions and
determines the current performance or the baseline of the process.
• Quality is based on product’s compliance to expectations and

requirements
• Quality is a measurable characteristic
• Quality measurement should be based on the quantity and costs of non-

conformances
• Poor quality raises costs unnecessarily, as poor quality increases the size
and cost of the hidden factory where wastes, scrap and repair are
manufactured
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• Value and quality can be most effectively improved by measuring non-

conformances in terms of quantity and cost and systematically attacking
the dominant non-conformances.
• One of the Quality Management Principles (Ref: ISO 9000:2005) is

Factual approach to decision making. Effective decisions are based on the
analysis of data and information.
• The first challenge: Developing and implementing a quality measurement

system.
1. What is the difference between repeatability and reproducibility of a

gauge?
2. Explain the importance of statistical process control.
3. Write a brief note on machine capability study.
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1. “Variation is evil”. Who said it?

a. Juran
b. Deming
c. Peter Drucker
d. Einstein
2. A critical dimension on a molded plastic part is related to the

temperature of the feed material. Such a relationship could be studied
by using a statistical procedure called:
a. FMEA
b. SPC
c. Regression analysis
d. DOE
3. Any device used to obtain measurements, frequently used to refer

specifically to the devices used on the shop floor including go/no-go
devices:
a. Gauze
b. Optical flat
c. Vernier caliper
d. Gauge
4. The process of adjusting the indication on a measurement instrument

to agree with value of the applied standard, within a specified accuracy:
a. Calibration
b. Gauging
c. Measuring
d. Balancing
5. If Cpk1=1.89 and Cpk2=2.05, the CpK is equal to:

a. 2.05
b. 1.89
c. 1.89+2.05
d. None of the above
Answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-d, 4-a, 5-b
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REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
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ANALYZE PHASE
Chapter 7
Analyze Phase
Objectives
• Important features of the Analyze phase
• Root cause hypothesis/analysis cycle
• Concepts in analyze phase
• Tools for identifying opportunities for improvement
Structure
7.1 Third Important Phase of Six Sigma
7.2 Important Concepts in Analyze Phase
7.3 Various Tools that help in identifying opportunities for improvement
7.5 Summary
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ANALYZE PHASE
7.1 Third Important Phase of Six Sigma
During the analyze phase, the focus is on searching or the root cause.
Based on the data analysis, opportunities are prioritised according to their
contribution to customer satisfaction and impact on profitability.
Analyze is the most "unpredictable" of the DMAIC phases. The tools used
and the order in which these are applied depend a lot on the problem and
how the problem is approached. One of the most valuable lessons of the
Six Sigma approach is that the "usual suspects" often turn out to be "not
guilty" or just the accomplices to the real culprit.
The Root Cause analysis can be represented as a cycle driven by

generating and evaluating hypothesis as to the cause of the problem.
The root cause hypothesis/analysis cycle
One can enter the cycle either at point (a) — by looking at the process and
the data to identify possible causes — or point (b) — where one can start
with a suspected cause and seek to validate or refute it through analysis.
Even "incorrect" causes are actually opportunities to refine and narrow the
explanation of the problem.
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As the analysis cycle indicates, there are two key sources of input to
determine the true cause of the targeted problem:
• Data Analysis: It is the use of measures and data to discern patterns,

tendencies or other factors about the problem that either suggest or
prove/disprove possible causes
• Process Analysis: It is a deeper investigation into and understanding of

how work is being done to identify inconsistencies, disconnects or
problem areas that might cause or contribute to the problem.
7.2 Important Concepts in Analyze Phase
7.2.1 What is causing the problem?
• The Analyze Phase is often not given enough attention and, without
analysis, teams jump to solutions before knowing the true root causes of
the issues.
• The result is teams who implement solutions but don’t resolve the
problem.
• These efforts waste time, consume resources, create more variation and,
often cause new problems.
• The ideal is for teams to brain storm potential root causes, develop
hypotheses as to why problems exist and then work to prove or disprove
their hypotheses.
• Verification includes both process analysis and data analysis and has to
be completed before implementing solutions.
• This is the crux of the Analyze Phase.
7.2.2 Closely Examine the Process
After conducting a Process Walk, creating high level and detailed process
maps and collecting process performance data, the team is able to analyze
the process and list their concerns or pain points. These activities allow the
team to take advantage of the collective wisdom of the process
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participants. The team can proceed with further process analysis by

conducting any of the following:
Time Analysis: focuses on the actual time work is being done in the
process in versus the time spent waiting. What teams discover is that
whereas people are 99% busy, “things” are 99% idle.
Value Added Analysis: adds another dimension of discovery by looking at

the process through the eyes of the customer to uncover the cost of doing
business.
Value Stream Mapping: combines process data with a map of the value-
adding steps to help determine where waste can be removed.
7.2.3 Graphically Display the Data

After collecting data, the team is able to display it using charts and graphs
providing visual indications of process problems. The transformation of
numbers into visuals allows the team to easily communicate their findings
to leadership and other process participants. Selecting the right charts and
graphs provides the team with valuable insights about the causes of
process issues.
7.2.4 Look for What Might be Causing the Problem

The team combines both “Process Analysis” and “Data Analysis” in an effort
to uncover “root causes” of waste or defects in the process. The classic
structured brainstorming tool known as the Cause & Effect or “Fishbone”
Diagram is the best way to gather the wisdom of process participants.
The 5 Whys is the best companion tool since it guides team members past
symptoms to root causes. This helps the team narrow down to the vital few
causes of lost time, defects and waste in the process.
7.2.5 Verify the Cause(s) of the Problem

Before moving on to the Improve Phase the team confirms the proposed
root causes are true by using data, process analysis, process observation
and comparative analysis.
7.2.6 Update Your Project Charter

After further investigating the data, the team finds additional detail around
process performance and the potential for improvement. The team updates
the Project Charter with the new information. At the conclusion of the
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Analyze Phase teams often change their team members. This results when
root causes exist in areas or departments with no representation on the
current project team. Getting the right people on the team before moving
to the Improve Phase is critical. Don’t make the mistake of fixing
someone’s process without involving them.
7.3 Various Tools that help in identifying opportunities for

improvement
7.3.1 Cause and Effect Diagrams

This diagram is also called as a fish bone diagram. You will be able to see
in one go all the potential causes for an effect. There are many opinions as
to what could be the root cause for a problem. One way to systematically
present all the ideas and stimulate the brainstorming of the team members
is this diagram.
To start with, make a problem statement.
E.g. “The repair cost in case of one particular type of DLL Nozzles has
increased by 19% during last three months.”
The bones of the diagram will have following categories:
• Man, machine, methods, material, environment, measurements
• Policies, procedures, people, plant/technology
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In a brainstorming session, with the available data and evidences, following

questions will be asked to the team members. They will be supplied with
small cards (Post card size) and will be asked to write their answers on the
cards. The cards will be collected and arranged on a soft board by pinning
on the concerned category:
• Who has produced this unit? Has the worker/setter/supervisor failed to

perform his duties? Has the designer made a mistake in drawings? Was
the regular worker absent and so another substitute worker did this job?
• Which machine was used? Was the preventive /predictive maintenance

schedule followed in case of this machine? Is the machine capable? If
not, what is the capability index? Was the SPC skipped?
• Were a new method / different method applied? What is the change in

recent period?
• Was the material received from a different supplier? Was it not

inspected?
• Was it stored in a corrosive environment? Was it raining during last

week?
• Is the gauge R & R Ok? Was the measurement method changed?
• What is the change, if at all, in any category?
• Where is the problem and where there is no problem?
• Various causes of the effect are discussed and the probability of the
detailed causes is decided. The most probable cause is then found out.
• Fast changing technology can push the industry out of race
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7.3.2 Fault Tree Analysis
It is the method to represent the logical combinations of various systems

which lead to a particular outcome i.e. top event.
It is a graphic model that determines various combinations of equipment

faults and failures that result in a defect.
7.3.3 Problem Analysis
Is there a deviation for which cause is unknown?
Deviation statement:
Specifically, what is wrong (defect) with object, person or unit? 
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Specify details of the deviation
Is Is not
What What is the object, person, or unit with What object, person, unit
the defect? is similar to the one
involved but does not
What is wrong? What undesired
have defect or undesired
behaviour is observed?
behavior?
Where Where is the defect on object, person, What similar places the
or unit? deviation is expected to
be but is not?
Where is the object, person, or unit Where at similar places

observed to have the defect? the deviation is expected
to be but is not?
When When was the defect observed on is the When we might have
object, person, or unit? expected to see the
defect on the object,
person, or unit but did
not?
When since then? Prior?

Extent How many affected? How many might be
How much of the object? involved but are not?
How many defects per object? How
large? Is there a trend?
Develop hypothesis for the probable cause
• What is odd or unique with “IS” compared with “IS NOT”?

• What are we doing to the “IS” that we are not doing with “IS NOT”?
• What is true about “IS” and not about IS NOT?
• What if anything has changed in each area of distinction? When did the
change take place? What event took place around or preceding the
timing of the problem?
• What is there about this change that could cause this deviation?
• How could this change combined with the distinction, has caused this
deviation?
• Develop full cause and effect hypothesis.
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Test the hypothesis
• If the hypothesis is the true cause, how does it explain both IS and IS
NOT?
• Select most probable cause on the basis of current evidence.
• Verify the true cause by some experiments.
Case Example of Problem Analysis:
Deviation statement:
Fogging of high grade sheet film Ref: A customer complaint
Specify details of the deviation
Is Is not Distinctions Change
What Sheet film Roll film, film Package Zip top box
pack was
introduced 5
weeks back
fogging Black spotting, Handled in No change
streaking total darkness
Where Entire surface Only on edges, Light tight No change

part of surface holder
All districts Localized, Interleaf paper New supplier
small outlets Large outlets since 6
months
When 10+days earlier Slow turnover No change

Daily, Sporadic, New
continuously periodic employees
Immediately Before, later New

after containers
developing
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Extent 10% of All dealers, Strontium 90

dealers only some
complaining
Stray
All units are
affected constant
Upward trend
By looking at the IS and IS NOT, the team develops possible causes and
every possible cause is checked against each IS as well as IS NOT as
follows:
Develop possible causes Test for most probable causes
“IS” and “IS NOT” Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
Radioactivity causing fogging ! +
Zip top box leaks light ok ok ok Џ Џ Џ +
Fire in the factory causing contamination +
Interleaf paper is contaminated ok ok ok Џ ok Џ ok ok ok ok
Improper mixing
+ means = no it doesn’t explain the cause
Џ means= explains only if….
Ok means=yes it explains the cause
True cause which explains most of the IS-IS NOTs= Interleaf paper is
contaminated
Verify the true cause as follows:
• Logical: Check Production dates

• Reality: check interleaf paper
• Check old interleaf paper
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7.3.4 Affinity Diagram
It is an activity of organising large amounts of data in groups according to

some form of natural affinity.
The affinity diagram is a business tool used to organise ideas and data.
The tool is commonly used within project management and allows large
numbers of ideas stemming from brainstorming to be sorted into groups,
based on their natural relationships, for review and analysis. People have
been grouping data into groups based on natural relationships for
thousands of years; however the term affinity diagram was devised by Jiro
Kawakita in the 1960s and is sometimes referred to as the KJ Method.
Process
1. Record each idea on cards or notes.

2. Look for ideas that seem to be related.
3. Sort cards into groups until all cards have been used.
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Once the cards have been sorted into groups the team may sort large
clusters into subgroups for easier management and analysis. Once
completed, the affinity diagram may be used to create a cause and
effect diagram.
In many cases, the best results tend to be achieved when the activity is
completed by a cross-functional team. The process requires becoming
deeply immersed in the data, which has benefits beyond the tangible
deliverables.
7.3.5 Finding the Root Cause
After the project team has identified a possible cause they must test to
determine if it is the true cause of the problem. Six Sigma methodology
uses several tools to help test the theory that a hitch in the production
process is the root cause of a product defect.
Regression Analysis – This tool helps estimate the impact variables in a

process have on each other and on the final product. Regression analysis
helps one understand how the typical value of the dependent variable (or
'criterion variable') changes when any one of the independent variables is
varied, while the other independent variables are held fixed.
"
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Example:
A random sample of eight drivers insured with a company and having

similar auto insurance policies was selected. The following table lists their
driving experiences (in years) and monthly auto insurance premiums.
Driving experience in years Auto insurance premium

5 4480
2 6090
12 3500
9 4970
15 3080
6 3920
25 2940
16 4200
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Five WHYs
7.3.6 Design of Experiments (DOE)
The term experiment is defined as the systematic procedure carried out

under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect, to test
or establish a hypothesis, or to illustrate a known effect.
When analyzing a process, experiments are often used to evaluate which

process inputs have a significant impact on the process output, and what
the target level of those inputs should be to achieve a desired result
(output). Experiments can be designed in many different ways to collect
this information.
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Experimental design can be used at the point of greatest leverage to

reduce design costs by speeding up the design process, reducing late
engineering design changes, and reducing product material and labor
complexity. Designed Experiments are also powerful tools to achieve
manufacturing cost savings by minimizing process variation and reducing
rework, scrap, and the need for inspection.
Preparation
Review the Histogram, Statistical Process Control, and Regression and

Correlation Analysis modules of the Toolbox prior to working with this
module.
Components of Experimental Design
Consider the following diagram of a cake-baking process. There are three

aspects of the process that are analyzed by a designed experiment:
• Factors, or inputs to the process: Factors can be classified as either

controllable or uncontrollable variables. In this case, the controllable
factors are the ingredients for the cake and the oven that the cake is
baked in. The controllable variables will be referred to throughout the
material as factors.
• Levels, or settings of each factor in the study: Examples include the

oven temperature setting and the particular amounts of sugar, flour, and
eggs chosen for evaluation.
• Response, or output of the experiment: In the case of cake baking,

the taste, consistency, and appearance of the cake are measurable
outcomes potentially influenced by the factors and their respective levels.
Experimenters often desire to avoid optimizing the process for one
response at the expense of another. For this reason, important outcomes
are measured and analyzed to determine the factors and their settings
that will provide the best overall outcome for the critical-to-quality
characteristics - both measurable variables and assessable attributes.
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Purpose of Experimentation
Designed experiments have many potential uses in improving processes

and products, including:
• Comparing Alternatives: In the case of our cake-baking example, we

might want to compare the results from two different types of flour. If it
turned out that the flour from different vendors was not significant, we
could select the lowest-cost vendor. If flour were significant, then we
would select the best flour. The experiment(s) should allow us to make
an informed decision that evaluates both quality and cost.
• Identifying the Significant Inputs (Factors) Affecting an Output

(Response): separating the vital few from the trivial many. We might
ask a question: "What are the significant factors beyond flour, eggs,
sugar and baking?”
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• Achieving an Optimal Process Output (Response): "What are the

necessary factors, and what are the levels of those factors, to achieve
the exact taste and consistency of Mom's chocolate cake?
• Reducing Variability: "Can the recipe be changed so it is more likely to

always come out the same?"
• Minimizing, Maximizing, or Targeting an Output (Response): "How

can the cake be made as moist as possible without disintegrating?"
• Improving process or product "Robustness": fitness for use under

varying conditions. "Can the factors and their levels (recipe) be modified
so the cake will come out nearly the same no matter what type of oven is
used?"
Balancing Tradeoffs when there are multiple Critical to Quality

Characteristics (CTQ's) that require optimization. "How do you produce the
best tasting cake with the simplest recipe (least number of ingredients)
and shortest baking time?”
7.3.7 Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
In order to continually improve products and processes wherever possible,

using the FMEA as a disciplined technique to identify and help minimize
potential concerns is the most important matter ever. Studies have shown
that fully implemented FMEA programs have prevented many customer
complaints. One of the most important factors for the successful
implementation of an FMEA Program is timeliness. It is meant to be a
“before-the-event” action not an “after-the-fact” exercise. Up-front time
spent properly completing an FMEA, when product / process changes can
be most easily and inexpensively implemented, will minimize late change
crises.
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There are three basic cases for which FMEAs are generated.
Case 1: New designs, new technology, new process
Case 2: Modifications to existing design, existing process.
Case 3: Using an existing design or process in a new

environment, location, or application.
FMEA input should be a team effort. A team of knowledgeable individuals

should be assembled.
Figure depicts the sequence in which FMEA should be performed.
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• Severity (S): It is the rank associated with most severe effect for a
given failure mode (on the scale of 1-10).
• Occurrence (O): Occurrence is the likelihood that a specific cause or

mechanism will occur during the design life. The likelihood of occurrence
ranking number has a relative meaning.(on the scale of 1-10)
• Detectability: (D): How best the defect be detected inside the

manufacturing facility with all the design controls-prevention-detection
equipment?(on the scale of 1-10)
• Risk Priority Number: RPN: It is the most important indicator of the

FMEA activity.
It is the product of S, O and D. The value will lie between 1 and 1000.
For example, if S=9, O=7 and D=5, the RPN will be 315.
What we have to do: We have to reduce this RPN number to be as low as

possible.
To begin with, as a first target, we have to see that S is not more than 5,
and RPN is not more than 125.
7.3.8 Pareto Analysis:
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7.3.9 Multivary Analysis
Multivary Analysis: Multivary analysis is an excellent tool to apportion

variance in the area where opportunities for improvement exist. It dissects
the variance into positional, cyclical and temporal categories. The positional
variation is caused by the variables that affect the process performance at
certain locations within the process of the product. The temporal variation
is attributed to the changes between cycles of a process and represents
trends over time, i.e. shift to shift, day to day or week to week.
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Apportioning the variation in a process puts focus on the variables related

to a particular type of variation. For example, the positional variation is
normally attributed to product or process design, as the defects recur at
certain locations. The cyclical variation is attributed to the variables related
to the process setup that cause variation in performance from one process
cycle to the next. The temporal variation can be related to the maintenance
activities, as well as degradation in consumable items in the process.
You have selected a problem which is affecting the customer. You have also
measured the present status of the problem. Analyze the problem by using
concepts given in this chapter.
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7.5 Summary
During the analyze phase, focus is on searching for the root cause. Based
on the data analysis, opportunities are prioritized according to their
contribution to customer satisfaction and impact on profitability.
The root cause analysis can be represented as a cycle driven by generating

and evaluating hypothesis as to the cause of the problem. As the analysis
cycle indicates, there are two key sources of input to determine the true
cause of the targeted problem, Data analysis and process analysis.
Important Concepts in Analyze Phase
• What is causing the problem?
• Closely Examine the Process
• Graphically Display the Data
• Look for What Might be Causing the Problem
• Verify the Cause(s) of the Problem
• Update Your Project Charter
Various Tools that help in identifying opportunities for

improvement;
• Cause and Effect Diagrams

• Fault Tree Analysis
• Problem Analysis
• Affinity Diagram
• How to find the Root Cause: Regression analysis, five WHYs
• Design of Experiments
• Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
• Pareto Analysis
• Multivary Analysis
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1. Explain the root cause hypothesis cycle.
2. Explain the concept of Fish Bone Diagram.
3. Explain the concept of brainstorming.
1. It is a deeper investigation into and understanding of how work is being

done to identify inconsistencies, disconnects or problem areas that
might cause or contribute to the problem:
a. Data analysis
b. FMEA
c. Process analysis
d. Function analysis
2. You will be able to see in one go all the potential causes for an effect.
There are many opinions as to what could be the root cause for a
problem. One way to systematically present all the ideas and stimulate
the brainstorming of the team members is this diagram:
a. Root cause analysis cycle
b. Fault tree analysis
c. Fish Bone diagram
d. Pareto analysis
3. It is the method to represent the logical combinations of various

systems which lead to a particular outcome i.e. top event. It is a graphic
model that determines various combinations of equipment failures that
result in a defect:
a. Root cause analysis cycle
b. Fault tree analysis
c. Fish Bone diagram
d. Pareto analysis
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4. In FMEA, to begin with, as a first target, we have to see that ------------

is not more than 5, and RPN is not more than 125:
a. Severity
b. Risk
c. Occurrence
d. Detectability
5. The term -------------- is defined as the systematic procedure carried

out under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect,
to test or establish a hypothesis, or to illustrate a known effect:
a. Acceptance
b. Experiment
c. Examination
d. Dexterity
Answers: 1-c, 2-c, 3-b, 4-a, 5-b
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ANALYZE PHASE
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
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IMPROVE PHASE
Chapter 8
Improve Phase
Objectives
• Features of the Improve phase of Six Sigma initiative
• Concepts of design of experiments
• How to improve a process
• Improvement by using concept of PDCA cycle
• Seven management tools
Structure
8.1 Improve Phase: Fourth Important Phase of Six Sigma
8.2 Design of Experiments
8.3 Improvement of a Process
8.4 Seven Management Tools
8.6 Summary
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8.1 Improve Phase: Fourth Important Phase of Six Sigma
All the efforts of defining, measuring and analyzing process problems pay-
off in the Improve phase. At this stage, most teams find new energy when
they begin to ask questions that drive improvement:
• What possible actions or ideas will help in addressing the root cause of
the problem and achieving our goal?
• Which of these ideas form workable potential solutions?
• Which solution will most likely achieve the goal with the least cost and
disruption?
• How can the chosen solution be tested to ensure its effectiveness and
then be implemented permanently?
It is important in the Improve phase to look for ways to maximize the

benefits of efforts put in. Too often, teams apply narrow solutions when
they might have achieved more with just somewhat greater creativity and
a broader perspective.
A Six Sigma organization can be a great place for creative thinking.

Following are some of the basics of effective idea generation used during
the Improve phase:
• Clarifying the objective of brainstorming

• Listening to and building on the ideas of others
• Not to judge, criticize or comment on ideas
• Avoiding self-censorship
• Abandoning assumptions and being wild in thinking
Once the team is loaded with ideas, great or not-so-great, the next
challenge to the team is to turn them into real solutions. Ideas generated
in the Improve phase are like raw material, they need to be refined to have
real value to the organization. Usually Six Sigma solutions will be
combination of ideas that together make up a plan for results, whether its
reduced defects, faster cycle times, enhanced value for customers etc. it is
important to recognize that solution selection may not be an either/or
choice. Combining several actions into one plan, suits. On the other hand,
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IMPROVE PHASE
a "shotgun" solution that sprays many different mini-fixes at the problem

can be a big waste of resources.
Two key aspects of the Improve phase include the use of Design of
Experiments (DOE) and change management.
The traditional approach to finding a solution to a problem focuses on one

variable at a time, holding the other factors constant. Shortcomings of this
approach include the following:
• It is usually not possible to hold all other variables constant

• Too many experiments are required to study the impact of all the input
variables
• The interaction between variables cannot be determined
• The optimum combination between variables may never be revealed
• Resources might be wasted in studying the wrong variables
Statistically designed experiments involve varying two or more variables

simultaneously and obtaining multiple measurements under the same
experimental conditions. The objective of DOE is to assess the effects of
the critical variables and the interaction among them and then to
determine the significance of those effects compared to the experimental
error. If the effects of the process changes happen to be significantly
better, a new process can be implemented. The advantages of this
approach are the following:
• Many variables can be measured simultaneously, making the DOE

approach more economical
• Interactions between variables can be detected and measured
• Experimental error is quantified and used to determine the confidence

level in the experiment results
• The results will indicate if any important variables were missed in the
experiments
More information on design of experiments is as follows:
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8.2 Design of Experiments (DOE)
The term experiment is defined as the systematic procedure carried out

under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect, to test
or establish a hypothesis, or to illustrate a known effect.
When analyzing a process, experiments are often used to evaluate which

process inputs have a significant impact on the process output, and what
the target level of those inputs should be to achieve a desired result
(output). Experiments can be designed in many different ways to collect
this information.
Experimental design can be used at the point of greatest leverage to

reduce design costs by speeding up the design process, reducing late
engineering design changes, and reducing product material and labor
complexity. Designed Experiments are also powerful tools to achieve
manufacturing cost savings by minimizing process variation and reducing
rework, scrap, and the need for inspection.
Preparation
Review the Histogram, Statistical Process Control, and Regression and

Correlation Analysis modules of the Toolbox prior to working with this
module.
Components of Experimental Design
Consider the following diagram of a cake-baking process. There are three

aspects of the process that are analyzed by a designed experiment:
• Factors, or inputs to the process: Factors can be classified as either

controllable or uncontrollable variables. In this case, the controllable
factors are the ingredients for the cake and the oven that the cake is
baked in. The controllable variables will be referred to throughout the
material as factors.
• Levels, or settings of each factor in the study: Examples include the

oven temperature setting and the particular amounts of sugar, flour, and
eggs chosen for evaluation.
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!  
• Response, or output of the experiment: In the case of cake baking,

the taste, consistency, and appearance of the cake are measurable
outcomes potentially influenced by the factors and their respective levels.
Experimenters often desire to avoid optimizing the process for one
response at the expense of another. For this reason, important outcomes
are measured and analyzed to determine the factors and their settings
that will provide the best overall outcome for the critical-to-quality
characteristics - both measurable variables and assessable attributes.
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Purpose of Experimentation
Designed experiments have many potential uses in improving processes

and products, including:
• Comparing Alternatives. In the case of our cake-baking example, we

might want to compare the results from two different types of flour. If it
turned out that the flour from different vendors was not significant, we
could select the lowest-cost vendor. If flour were significant, then we
would select the best flour. The experiment(s) should allow us to make
an informed decision that evaluates both quality and cost.
• Identifying the Significant Inputs (Factors) Affecting an Output

(Response): separating the vital few from the trivial many. We might
ask a question: "What are the significant factors beyond flour, eggs,
sugar and baking?"
• Achieving an Optimal Process Output (Response). "What are the

necessary factors, and what are the levels of those factors, to achieve
the exact taste and consistency of Mom's chocolate cake?
• Reducing Variability: "Can the recipe be changed so it is more likely to

always come out the same?"
• Minimizing, Maximizing, or Targeting an Output (Response): "How

can the cake be made as moist as possible without disintegrating?"
• Improving process or product "Robustness": fitness for use under

varying conditions. "Can the factors and their levels (recipe) be modified
so the cake will come out nearly the same no matter what type of oven is
used?"
Balancing Tradeoffs when there are multiple Critical to Quality

Characteristics (CTQ's) that require optimization. "How do you produce the
best tasting cake with the simplest recipe (least number of ingredients)
and shortest baking time?"
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8.3 Improvement of a Process
To improve a process, one must gain knowledge of the process, its

environment, its components and its responses. The following steps outline
the various steps for process improvement:
• Describe the process and break it into sub-processes

• Determine measurement instrument variability
• Collect and analyze data
• Identify major components of variation, using statistical tools
• List input variables associated with the major component of the variation.
Screen out trivial variables by using brainstorming, screening
experiments or similar techniques
• Conduct statistically designed experiments to identify critical input
variables
• Optimize the process with attention to critical variables and determine
realistic tolerances of input variables.
The "Solution Statement" is a clear description of a proposed improvement.

The value of the Solution Statement is that it ensures a through definition
and understanding of the idea under consideration. The solution statement
becomes the project objective once a solution is chosen for
implementation. It also becomes the last of the four key statements, a
CMAIC team creates in the course of a process improvement project –
problem statement, goal statement, hypothesis statement and solution
statement.
Following solutions can be aimed at in the Improve stage:
• Reduce the number of product options, using and ABC cost analysis
• Postpone product differentiation until the latest possible stage in supply

chain. The best such change is product differentiation by the customer,
the second is at the distributor/dealer level, the third is in the final
assembly and the worst is at the start of production
• Limit the number of customers based on customer differentiation
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• Modularise the design for easy, rapid and reliable assembly Maximize
standardization up to the point of differentiation produce modules in
parallel instead of in a series
• Carry JIT/lean production to suppliers to reduce inventories and prevent

stock-outs at the same time
• Automate order entry and programs for instant changes in options
• Reduce cycle time customers
• Increase inventory turns with pull systems and kanban
Implementing process improvements
This midpoint in the improve phase is a major threshold for the team.
Depending on the nature of the solution, a team may need other
knowledge and resources. To launch solutions successfully, the team should
focus on the “three Ps”; planning, piloting and problem prevention.
• Planning: Changing or fixing a process demands strong project

management skills, having a solid implementation plan that covers
actions, resources and communication is key and more critical as the
complexity of the solution increases.
• Piloting: Trying solutions on a limited scale is a must. The chances of

unforeseen problems are high and the learning curve can be steep when
changing to a new way of doing things.
• Problem Prevention: Asking tough questions like "How could this thing
crash?" can seem like negative thinking, but it is key to ensuring that the
team has thought through as many possible difficulties as it can and is
prepared to deal with them proactively.
It can take a while to test solutions, measure results and ensure the
success of a DMAIC project. A final, critical element of the
implementation is to capture data to track the impact of the changes as
they take effect — both to tally the results and to look for, and respond
to, any possible glitches.
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IMPROVE PHASE
Once the project teams have determined the root causes, it is time to
develop solutions. The Improve Phase is where the team brainstorms
solutions, pilots process changes, implements solutions and lastly, collects
data to confirm there is measurable improvement. A structured
improvement effort can lead to innovative and elegant solutions that
improve the baseline measure and, ultimately, the customer experience.
Brainstorm Solutions That Might Fix the Problem
The team's effort at this stage are to produce as many ideas as possible to
address the root cause of the problem listed in the Project Charter. These
ideas can come from process participants, colleagues, benchmarking or
from the many classic solutions developed in the Quality world. There may
be innovative ways to solve the problem but there's no reason to reinvent
the wheel so teams draw from techniques like Cross-Training, Setup
Reduction, Kanbans and many other well-defined methods.
Select the Practical Solutions
In many cases, a project team can employ a robust list of improvements to

their processes.
Develop Maps of Processes Based on Different Solutions
With solutions in mind to reduce issues like rework loops, waste and wait
times, the team creates a new, improved map of the process, also known
as a To-Be Map. These new maps help guide the team’s efforts toward the
new process and provide a reference tool for new employees as they learn
the new process.
Select the Best Solution(s)
In order to ensure they make the right decisions, the team may employ
mini-testing cycles known as PDCA or Plan Do Check Act to refine the
solutions while collecting valuable stakeholder feedback. These cycles are a
great way to find out if small improvements are viable in a fast and low
impact way.
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"
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IMPROVE PHASE
Implement the Solution(s)
Accomplishing successful implementation requires careful planning. The

team must consider logistics, training, documentation and communication
plans. The more time the team spends on planning, the faster they achieve
total adaptation to the improvements by their process participants. For
large scale implementation, the team can run a pilot to ensure the changes
work prior to implementation and it’s always a good practice to create an
Implementation Plan.
Measure to Ensure Improvement
Once the team has implemented the solutions they collect data to check
whether or not the process changes have improved the baseline. This can
take anywhere from 1 week to 4 months depending on the length of the
process cycle. Once the team demonstrates the solution resulted in
measurable improvement, it’s time to celebrate success! Then the team
can move on to the Control Phase.
8.4 SEVEN M Tools (7 Management Tools)
8.4.1 Affinity Diagrams:
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It is an activity of organizing large amounts of data in groups according to

some form of natural affinity.
The affinity diagram is a business tool used to organize ideas and data.
The tool is commonly used within project management and allows large
numbers of ideas stemming from brainstorming to be sorted into groups,
based on their natural relationships, for review and analysis. People have
been grouping data into groups based on natural relationships for
thousands of years; however the term affinity diagram was devised by Jiro
Kawakita in the 1960s and is sometimes referred to as the KJ Method.
Process
1. Record each idea on cards or notes.

2. Look for ideas that seem to be related.
3. Sort cards into groups until all cards have been used.
Once the cards have been sorted into groups the team may sort large
clusters into subgroups for easier management and analysis. Once
completed, the affinity diagram may be used to create a cause and effect
diagram.
In many cases, the best results tend to be achieved when the activity is
completed by a cross-functional team. The process requires becoming
deeply immersed in the data, which has benefits beyond the tangible
deliverables.
8.4.2 Tree Diagrams

competitors.

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IMPROVE PHASE

and services for your "internal customers."
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IMPROVE PHASE
that customers will use to evaluate the quality of your product, for

8.4.3 Interrelationship Diagraph

An interrelationship digraph (aka network diagram) helps you see relations
and influences between several concepts – even if those concepts are very
different. You can also use it to identify critical issues and key drivers of a
problem.
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8.4.4 Process Decision Program charts (PDPC)
Step 1: First you start with a tree diagram of your process.
Put your objectives on the first level, main activities on the second level,
and the tasks at the 3rd level.
Process Decision Program Charts (PDPC) start with a tree diagram
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Step 2: Then you brainstorm issues that could occur while

performing those tasks.
Process Decision Program charts( PDPC) uses brainstorming to identify

issues.
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Step 3: Cross off issues that are unlikely to happen.
Cross off the unlikely issues.
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IMPROVE PHASE
Step 4: Identify countermeasures for the likeliest issues
Identify countermeasures for the most likely issues.
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IMPROVE PHASE
8.4.5 Matrix diagrams
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IMPROVE PHASE
8.4.6 Prioritization matrices
Goal:
To do
Option compared to Scores
this
thing.
Option Consider>>>
Percen
consid Opt 1 Opt 2 Opt 3 Opt 4 Opt 5 Total 10 (really!)
tage
ered compare
Consider >
Opt 1 5 0 10 10 25 5
Compare
Opt 2 0.2 5 0 0.1 5.3 8.66% 0 Equal
Consider <
Opt 3 0 0.2 0.1 0.2 0.5 0.82% 0.2
Compare
Consider
Opt 4 0.1 0 10 0.2 10.3 16.83% 0.1 <<<(really!)
Compare
Opt 5 0.1 10 5 5 20.1 32.84%
Sub
61.2
total
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IMPROVE PHASE
8.4.7 Activity Network diagram
Establish email
Communication
Send Receive
Email Response
Wait 2 hours
after send
Regular
Email
no reply || (error)
Valid reply
Communication
Established
"
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IMPROVE PHASE
You have selected a problem which is affecting the customer. You have also
measured the present status of the problem. You have analyzed the
problem by using concepts given in the earlier chapter. Now brainstorm the
improvements by practicing the affinity diagram. Make a good team effort
by calling a brainstorming session.
8.6 Summary
All the efforts of defining, measuring and analyzing process problems pay
off in the Improve phase. At this stage, most teams find new energy when
they begin to ask questions that drive improvement.
A Six Sigma organization can be great place for creative thinking. Once the
team is loaded with ideas, the next challenge is to turn them into real
solutions.
Two key aspects of the Improve phase include the use of Design of
Experiments and change management.
To improve a process, one must gain knowledge of the process, its

environment, its components and its responses.
Once the project teams have determined the root causes, it is time to
develop solutions. The Improve Phase is where the team brainstorms
solutions, pilots process changes, implements solutions and lastly, collects
data to confirm there is measurable improvement. A structured
improvement effort can lead to innovative and elegant solutions that
improve the baseline measure and, ultimately, the customer experience.
• Brainstorm Solutions That Might Fix the Problem

• Select the Practical Solutions
• Develop Maps of Processes Based on Different Solutions
• Select the Best Solution(s)
• Implement the Solution(s)
• Measure to Ensure Improvement
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The seven M tools are:
• Tree diagram
• Interrelationship diagraph
• Process Decision Program charts (PDPC)
• Matrix diagrams
• Prioritization matrices
• Activity network diagram
1. Explain PDPC.
2. Explain Activity network diagram.
3. Explain DOE.
1. Trying solution on a limited scale is:

a. Experimenting
b. Laboratory trial
c. Piloting
d. Innovation
2. The tool is commonly used within project management and allows large
numbers of ideas stemming from brainstorming to be sorted into
groups, based on their natural relationships, for review and analysis:
a. PDPC
b. FMEA
c. Matrix Diagram
d. Affinity diagram
3. These are diagram-based tools that help you develop and deliver high
quality products and services. You use them to translate broad customer
needs into specific, actionable, measurable performance requirements:
a. CTQ trees
b. PDPC
c. Pareto analysis
d. Matrix Diagram
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4. It helps you see relations and influences between several concepts –

even if those concepts are very different. You can also use it to identify
critical issues and key drivers of a problem:
a. Interrelationship diagraph
b. Matrix diagram
c. PDPC
d. Poka Yoke
5. Following diagram is:

a. Matrix diagram
b. Interrelationship diagraph
c. Poka yoke
d. PDPC
Answers: 1-c, 2-d, 3-a, 4-a, 5-a
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IMPROVE PHASE
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !152
CONTROL PHASE
Chapter 9
Control Phase
Objectives
• Features of the Control phase
• Control plans
• Control charts
• Project follow up system
Structure
9.1 Fifth Important Phase of Six Sigma
9.2 Project Follow up and Results : Some Examples
9.4 Summary
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CONTROL PHASE
9.1 Fifth Important Phase of Six Sigma
Six Sigma emphasizes the control phase. This is because previous attempts
at improving quality and business performance have repeatedly
demonstrated that process behaviour is complex and fragile and that hard-
earned gains slip away if the process is left to itself.
What gets measured gets managed. Deciding what to measure and

manage in Six Sigma.-is determined by define, measure, analyze and
improve project activity, before one gets to the control phase. Simply
stated, they are the critical input Xs and the output CTQs (the Ys)
discovered in the project. In the Control phase, one monitors the outputs
— the CTQs — and one controls the inputs, the critical Xs. When /done
properly, this monitoring allows to consistently reap the fruits of efforts put
in.
Once the improvement is realised, the goal is to control the improved

processes and sustain the Six Sigma initiative. Tools such as control charts,
pre-control charts and run charts are used to maintain the processes. The
challenge, however, lies in keeping the Six Sigma initiative alive on a
continual basis.
There are two aspects to a control plan. Y=f(X) shows the inputs that must
be controlled. The outputs can be monitored only to see whether control
has or has not been achieved. Accordingly, there are two aspects of a Six
Sigma control plan.
Process monitoring of outputs uses a tool called process management

summary. The objective of the process management summary is to enable
the visibility, review and action for all critical process outputs in an
organization.
Process control of inputs uses a tool called a process control plan. The
objective of a process control plan is to create systematic feedback loops
and actions to assure the process has inherent, automatic control. With a
good process control plan, one can change people, equipment, materials
and production rates without significantly altering the performance quality
of the process.
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CONTROL PHASE
Statistical Process Control (SPC) involves the use of statistical techniques

to monitor and control the variation in process. SPC is used first to stabilise
out-of-control processes. But it is also used as a follow-on, to monitor the
consistency of product and service processes.
The primary SPC tool is the control chart — a graphical tracking of a

process input or an output over time. In the control chart, these tracked
measurements are visually compared to decision limits calculated from
probabilities of the actual process performance.
The visual comparison between the decision limits and the performance
data allows detection of any extraordinary variation in the process —
variation that may indicate a problem or fundamental change in the
process. There are several different types of control charts, depending on
what type of process measurement one is tracking.
These different types of control charts are separated into two major
categories: Continuous data control charts and attribute data control
charts.
Continuous data control charts;
• Averages and ranges

• Averages and statistical deviations
• Individual values and moving ranges
Attribute data control charts;
• p chart
• u chart
Control charts provide information about the process measure in two ways:
the distribution of the process and the trending or change of the process
over time. Control charts are used to
• Provide a simple, common language for discussing the behaviour and

performance of a process input or output measure
• Control the performance of a process by knowing when and when not to

take action
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CONTROL PHASE
• Reduce the need for inspection
• Understand and predict process capability based on trends and other

performance insights
• Determine whether change made to the process are having the desired
result
• Provide an ongoing, continual view of the performance of the process
• Create a repository of data for follow-on improvement activities
When process improvement or design projects achieve their goal of

reducing defects, discipline is essential to sustain the results. Without a
sustained, focused effort, the beginning drive for improvment will lose
energy and the company will become a former Six Sigma organization.
Being smart about getting others to understand and buy into team's
solutions is a recurring theme in Six Sigma, and the need to "sell" the
solution doesn't stop. Some of the most important considerations include
the following:
• Working with those who manage the process

• Using a "storyboard" with facts and data
• Treat the people managing and using the new process as customers
• Creating a sense of purpose and enthusiasm
One way to keep the Six Sigma initiative alive is to have the organization
divide itself into functional territories, with managers in each territory
working on improving their own functions. This solution, however, is
sometimes detrimental to the organization as a whole. Such an
organizational hierarchy can give managers a monopoly for controlling any
changes to their departments or functions. This authority can lead to
resistance to any "outside" interference and change, such as quality
improvement projects. On the other hand, some organizations have too
many rules (or written procedures) and any change in those rules must go
through a bureaucratic process, which may take weeks or months. To lower
such barriers, incentives to drive dramatic improvement or consequences
for resistance must be clearly defined and communicated.
! !156
CONTROL PHASE
Leadership must transform the organization's culture into one that

embraces change rather than fights it. A mentor can help project managers
find the right resources or address critical roadblocks. The mentor may
direct the project manager to an informal leader whose support is critical
for the project's success as well as find legitimate ways around constraints
and roadblocks. For example, a minor change in the project plan might
help bypass a daunting approval requirement.
Documenting dip changes and new methods
Documentation is a necessary evil, and can even be a creative undertaking

in itself. A successful Six Sigma organization will have to look for new and
better ways to make documentation usable and accessible and get away
from all those huge procedure manuals and process descriptions. Following
are some general guidelines that will help people to actually follow the
team's directions and/or documentation:
• Keeping the documentation simple

• Keeping the documentation clear and inviting
• Including options and instructions for "emergencies"
• Keeping the documentation brief
• Keeping the documentation handy and.,
• Having a process for updates and revisions
Now that the process problem is fixed and improvements are in place, the
team must ensure that the process maintains the gains. In the Control
Phase the team is focused on creating a Monitoring Plan to continue
measuring the success of the updated process and developing a Response
Plan in case there is a dip in performance. Once in place, the team hands
these plans off to the Process Owner for ongoing maintenance.
9.1.1 Ensure the Process Is Properly Managed and Monitored
In order to maintain focus, the team must narrow down the vital few
measurements they need for ongoing monitoring of the process
performance. This Monitoring Plan is accompanied by a Response Plan
indicating the levels at which the process should operate and what to do in
the case that the process performance starts to decline. This often leads to
continued process refinement.
! !157
CONTROL PHASE
The Control Plan is a guide to continued monitoring of the process, and the
response plan for each of the measures being monitored. These three
elements have been initiated earlier in the process, but in the Control
phase, the monitoring is reduced to key input, process and output
measures that will provide critical leading and lagging indicators during the
project tracking period after implementation.
An example of a process control plan is as follows:
In this example, you can see what to check regularly on a die casting
machine. (Note that the mould and the materials also need to be checked
regularly — it’s not only about the machine.)
It is very useful for any production. The more immature and/or complex
the process, the more useful.
! !158
CONTROL PHASE
Ideally, this is prepared by the manufacturer. But sometimes the buyer has
to send their own engineers or bring in external resources. Note that the
control plan often includes a mix of process controls and product controls.
An example of a product control plan is as follows:
An example of a control chart:
! !159
CONTROL PHASE
9.1.2 Document the Improved Process
At this point, the team updates their documentation: process maps, new
procedures checklists, etc. The better their final documentation, the easier
it is for process participants to adopt the new way of doing things. One of
the most powerful methods of ensuring others follow the new process is to
create a visual workspace. This means that anyone can see at a glance
exactly how a process flows and where to find what they need.
9.1.3 Apply Improvements to Other Areas
One of the best ways to increase the power and “bang for the buck” of
Lean Six Sigma efforts is to apply the gains from one project into other
areas within the organization. Even if the project cannot be transferred to
other areas, there may be parts of it that could be adapted and shared.
This transfer of improvement ideas can come from large and small efforts
but quickly multiplies the impact for each business.
9.1.4 Share and Celebrate Your Success
Sharing project success leads to greater change momentum within the

organization. The marketing and publicizing of each success increases the
speed of realizing future gains.
Teams often share their projects in formal “Gallery Walks” to educate

others in the organization and help to build a problem-solving culture. The
cycle of improvement is ongoing.
9.1.5 Continuously Improve the Process
The four principles of Value, Flow, Pull and Perfection should remain a
constant focus for every organization. As Continuous Improvement teams
hand over the results of each project, they must make efforts to relay this
focus to the employees using the newly improved process. The process can
always be improved. 
! !160
CONTROL PHASE
• Value: Determine what steps are required (are of “Value”) to the

customer
• Flow: Remove Waste in the system to optimize the process to achieve a

smoother pace
• Pull: Ensure the process responds to customer demand (“Pull” = want)
• Perfection: Continuously pursue “Perfection” within the process
9.2 Project Follow up and Results : Some Examples
Example 1: List of Six Sigma Projects
(To be filled up by the team)
Sr.No Project Title Unit Champion Black Belt

1
5
6
8
9
10
11
12
! !161
CONTROL PHASE
Example 2: Implementation Plan
Example 3: Defect definition
Defect
Sl No. Situation Unit Opportunity Measure
definition
After wave
soldering,
card is
Presence of
tested for
icicles,
the following
bridging,
defects:
blow holes, Each defect Defects per
1 icicles, Each card
pin holes, no classification opportunity
bridging,
flow to the
blow holes,
component
pin holes, no
side
flow to the
component
side
Within
Project
±3%=0
execution
defects
cost should
±3% to Max. No. of Defects per
2 be within ± Each project
±5%=1 defects opportunity
3% of
defect
projected
±5 to ±7=2
cost
defects
! !162
CONTROL PHASE
No. of non-
conformities
observed/
Final
No. of non- All points (No. of
3 inspection of Each motor
conformities checked motors
motor
checked*No
. of checks
conducted)
Example 4: Calculation of DPU, DPO, DPMO, Yield and sigma rating
Defects
No. of
Defects per
No. of No. of opportu DPMO= Sigma Process
per unit opportu
defects units nities e*106 level yield
=a/b nity
per unit
=a/bc
(a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f) (g) (h)
10 200 5 0.05 0.01 10000 3.83 99
15 50 10 0.3 0.03 30000 3.38 97
80 50 10 1.6 0.16 160000 2.49 84
The process yield is calculated by subtracting the total number of defects

from the total number of opportunities, dividing by the total number of
opportunities, and finally multiplying the result by 100.
For calculating sigma level and process yield, refer Process Sigma
calculator on:
https://www.isixsigma.com/process-sigma-calculator/
! !163
CONTROL PHASE
Example 5: Action Plan
Description
of action as
decided in Review Expected
Completed
Sr. No. six sigma meeting completion Responsibility
by date
project date date
review
meeting
Example 6: Dash Board

 
Project Title: Cycle time reduction
Sigma level at the end of the month
Char
Base
acter
sigm
istic basis Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct
a
(Out
level
put)
Cycle
time 1.2 1.2 1.1 1.2 1.2 1.5 1.9 2.5 4.8
Y1
! !164
CONTROL PHASE
Characteristic Input process : Monthly sigma level
Month ---> A M J JL A S
Incomplete info in order

X1 1.9 2.3 2.8 2.5 5
transfer
Sequencing of activities
X2 2.8 6 6 6 6
changed
Drawings availability X3 2.5 2.8 2.9 2.4 2.6
Example 7: Progress Chart
Example 8: Project Results
Baseline Goal Actual achieved
COPQ 8,23,90,000 4,11,95,000 3,61,20,000
DPMO 5,72,840 2,86,420 2,50,000
SIGMA LEVEL 1.29 2.05 2.15
! !165
CONTROL PHASE
You had selected a problem which was affecting the customer. You had also
measured the present status of the problem. You had analyzed the problem
by using concepts given in the earlier chapter. You had brainstormed the
improvements by practicing the affinity diagram. Now using control plans
and control charts, maintain the improvements done and control the
process.
9.4 Summary
Once the improvement is realized, the goal is to control the improved

process and sustain the Six Sigma initiative. Tools such as control charts,
pre-control charts and run charts are used to maintain the process. The
challenge lies in keeping the Six Sigma initiative alive on a continual basis.
There are two aspects of a control plan. Y=f(X) shows the inputs that must
be controlled. The outputs can be monitored only to see whether control
has or has not been achieved.
• Ensure the Process is Properly Managed and Monitored

• Document the Improved Process
• Apply Improvements to Other Areas
• Share and Celebrate Your Success
• Continuously Improve the Process
1. Explain the concept of control plan.
2. Explain SPC.
3. What is meant by COPQ?
! !166
CONTROL PHASE
1. In the control phase, one monitors the outputs which means the
____________ and one controls the inputs which means the critical
____________.
a. CTQs, Xs
b. Xs, CTQs
c. X,Y and Z
d. Customer inputs
2. ___________ involves the use of statistical techniques to monitor and

control the variation in process.
a. FMEA
b. Poka yoke
c. SPC
d. Control plan
3. ___________ is an attribute data control chart.

a. p chart
b. SPC
c. DMADV
d. FMEA
4. DMAIC and DMADV methods are used to drive defects to less than:
a. 10% DPMO
b. 3.4 DPMO
c. 2% DPMO
d. 1% DPMO
5. In DMADV, V indicates:
a. Verify
b. Validate
c. Valuation
d. Variance
Answers: 1-a, 2-c, 3-a, 4-b, 5-a

 
! !167
CONTROL PHASE
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !168
OBJECTIVES AND BENEFITS OF SIX SIGMA
Chapter 10
Objectives And Benefits Of Six Sigma
Objectives
• Why Six Sigma is important to an Organization?
• Benefits of Six Sigma
Structure
10.1 Objectives of Six Sigma
10.2 Benefits of Six Sigma
10.4 Summary
! !169
10.1 Objectives of Six Sigma
Perception and performance of an enterprise determines its value. Six

Sigma management focuses on driving effective and efficient performance
across the total enterprise to increase the perception of the marketplace of
its ability to deliver value added processes, products and services.
Six Sigma process has several reach out objectives in industry:
• Develop a comprehensive infrastructure that goes well beyond the

narrow confines of quality to encompass all areas of business excellence.
• Maximize all stakeholder loyalty – customer, employee, supplier,

distributor/dealer and investor.
• Maximize business results – profits, return on investment, asset turns,

inventory turns, sales/value added per employee, etc.
• Minimize employee turnover and bring joy to workplace, especially to the

line worker.
• Go beyond modest and mediocre quality standards / systems to devise

an ideal yet practical quality system.
• Introduce powerful problem solving tools.
• Implement solutions that are low in implementation costs and high in

business results.
• Conduct periodic audits and self-assessments to achieve continuous,

never-ending improvement.
The perception of the marketplace of the value of an enterprise is indirectly

measured by market share, shareholder value and the willingness of
customers to recommend these processes, products and services to other
potential customers. 
! !170
Following are the critical success factors of Six Sigma:
• Customer loyalty and long-term retention
• Quality of leadership to provide vision and inspiration for employees to

reach their full potential
• Quality of organization to revolutionize the ways people are hired,

trained, evaluated, compensated and promoted
• Quality of employees to provide empowerment on the road to industrial

democracy
• Quality of metrics to assess business excellence
• Quality of tools to achieve quality, cost and cycle time break-throughs
• Quality of design to maximize customer value and “ wow”
• Quality of supplier partnerships to improve customer quality, cost and

cycle time while enhancing supplier profits
• Quality of manufacturing to improve overall effectiveness
• Quality of field reliability towards zero field failures
• Quality of support service and
• Quality of results
! !171
10.2 Benefits of Six Sigma
There are two types of benefits from Six Sigma management, benefits to
the organization and benefits to stakeholders. Benefits to an organization
are gained through the continuous reduction of variation and where
applicable, by centring of processes on their desired (nominal) levels.
1. Six Sigma generates sustained success: Six Sigma is the only way
to continue double-digit growth and retain a hold on shifting markets by
constantly innovating and remaking the organization. Six Sigma creates
the skills and culture for constant revival through a closed loop system.
2. Six Sigma sets a performance goal for everyone: In a company of

any size, getting everyone working in the same direction and focussing
on a common goal is pretty tough. Each function, business unit and
individual has different objectives and targets. What everyone has in
common, though, is the delivery of the products, services or information
to customers. Six Sigma uses that common business framework – the
process and the customer – to create a consistent goal. Anyone who
understands their customers’ requirements can assess their
performance against the Six Sigma goal of 99.9997 per cent perfect – a
standard so high that it makes most businesses’ previous views of
“excellent” performance look pretty weak.
3. Six Sigma enhances value to customers: With tighter competition in

every industry, delivering just “good” or “defect-free”products and
service won’t guarantee success. The focus on customers at the heart of
Six Sigma means learning what value meansto customers and planning
how to deliver it to them profitably. When GE began its Six Sigma
efforts, Jack Welch stated that “we want to make our quality so special,
so valuable to our customers, so important to their success that our
products become their only realvalue choice.”
4. Six Sigma accelerates the rate of improvement: Motorola’s goal of

“100X improvement in four years” set an example for ambition driven
organizations. By borrowing tools and ideas from many disciplines, Six
Sigma helps a company not only improve performance, but improve
improvement.
! !172
5. Six Sigma promotes learning and “cross-pollination”: Six Sigma is

an approach that can increase and accelerate the development and
sharing of new ideas throughout an organization. Even in a company as
diverse as GE, the value of Six Sigma as a learning tool is seen as
critical.
6. Six Sigma executes strategic change: Introducing new products,

launching new ventures, entering new markets, acquiring new
organizations have become daily events in many companies. Better
understanding of company’s processes and procedures through Six
Sigma gives a greater ability to carry out both the minor adjustments
and the major shifts that 21st century business success will demand.
Other Six Sigma benefits include
• Improved process flows
• Reduced total defects. Outgoing defect rates have drastically come down
from 1-10% to 10 ppm (parts per million)
• Improved communication
• Reduced cycle times. It has exhibited a reduction in set-up times from

1.5 days to 1.5 hours.
• Enhanced knowledge and enhanced ability to manage that knowledge
• Higher levels of customer satisfaction.
• Increased productivity and employee satisfaction. Value added per

employee has shown to increase by 30%.
• Decreased inventory. Inventory turns in organizations have increased

from a single digit number to more than 100.
• Increased capacity and output. Asset turns have shown to go up from

four to over fifteen.
• Increased quality and reliability. Field failures have come down from
2-20% range per year to 100 ppm per year. The cost of poor quality (as
! !173
a % of sales) has come down from 8-20% range to less than one per
cent.
• Decreased unit costs
• Increased price flexibility
• Better designs by releasing the natural but currently bottled-up creativity

of the engineer.
• Decreased time to market
• Faster delivery time
• Increased ability to convert improvements and innovations into hard

currency. It can take the organization to number one or two in market
share in each business line
Benefits to the Stakeholders
• Shareholders receive more profit due to decreased costs and increased

revenues. Business’s long-term profits have shown to grow by factors of
2:1 to 5:1. The return on investments has gone up by 3:1 to 8:1.
• Customers are delighted with products and services. Customer loyalty

and retention levels have shown to increase from below 75% to 99%.
• Employees experience higher morale and more satisfaction from joy in

work. Employee turnover has shown to decrease from 20% to 10% and
eventually down to less than 0.5% per year.
• Suppliers enjoy a secure source of business
! !174
According to you, what other advantages will a company get by going for
Six Sigma initiative? Make a presentation.
10.4 Summary
This chapter provides us an insight to the objectives of Six Sigma initiative

and the benefits it brings to an organization. It also enumerates the factors
of a successful Six Sigma project.
1. What are the objectives of the Six Sigma process?

2. What are the critical success factors of Six Sigma?
3. List down various benefits Six Sigma process brings to an organization..
1. Perception and performance of an enterprise determines its:

a. Profit
b. Benefit
c. Value
d. Price
2. One of the critical success factors of Six Sigma is Customer loyalty and:
a. Long-term retention
b. Long-term profits
c. Just in time
d. Poka yoke
3. One of the Six Sigma benefits is reduced total defects. Outgoing defect
rates drastically come down from 1-10% to ____________.
a. 0.5 ppm
b. 0.05 ppm
c. 50 ppm
d. 10 ppm
! !175
4. One of the Six Sigma benefits is reduced cycle times. It has exhibited a
reduction in set-up times from:
a. 15 days to 3 days
b. 1.5 days to 1.5 hours
c. 5 hours to 3 hours
d. 5 minutes to 1 minute
5. One of the benefits to stakeholders is that employees experience higher

morale and more satisfaction from joy in work. Employee turnover has
shown to decrease from 20% to 10% and eventually down to less than
____________ per year.
a. 5%
b. 3%
c. 1%
d. 0.5%
Answers: 1-c, 2-a, 3-d, 4-b, 5-d
! !176
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
! !177
SIX SIGMA FOR MANUFACTURING AND SERVICE INDUSTRIES
Chapter 11
Six Sigma For Manufacturing And Service
Industries
Objectives
• Six Sigma Opportunities in Service Industry
• Six Sigma Opportunities in Manufacturing set-ups
Structure
11.1 Service process opportunities
11.2 Manufacturing process opportunities
11.4 Summary
! !178
The purpose of this chapter is to look at the compelling reasons why both
service and manufacturing operations can benefit from a Six Sigma
discipline and how Six Sigma can be approached to meet unique challenges
in either of them.
“Service” processes are those processes which are not directly involved in
designing or producing tangible products. These can include sales, finance,
marketing, procurement, customer support, logistic or human resources –
and more – in any organization.
“Manufacturing” processes relate to the development and production of

tangible products.
Although, these categories are quite broad, all of the issues pertaining to
making Six Sigma effective tend to be most similar.
11.1 Service Process Opportunities
As the role played by services in boosting business competitiveness grows,

so does the evidence of there being plenty of untapped potential in these
activities.
• Research has shown that the costs of poor quality in service-based

businesses and processes typically run as high as 50% of total budget
(10-20% in manufacturing processes)
• Administrative and service processes, prior to improvement, perform in a

range of 1.5 to 3 sigma
• Analysis of service processes reveal that less than 10% of total process
cycle time is devoted to real work on tasks that are important to
customers
There are some important, understandable reasons why service-based

processes often have more opportunities for improvement than
manufacturing operations.
! !179
1. Invisible work processes: Most service processes are hard to spot

with the naked eye: information, requests, orders, proposals,
presentations, meetings, signatures, invoices, designs, ideas. As more
and more service processes revolve around information handled in
computers and networks, the work product becomes virtual. It makes
an understanding of how the work gets done harder to come by.
2. Evolving workflows and procedures: In service arena, a process can

be changed quickly, unlike that in manufacturing. Responsibilities can be
shifted, forms revised, new steps added, guidelines altered without any
capital investment or serious deliberation. Many changes arise out of
individual, even spur-of-the-moment decisions, with ramifications that
may be small. Add up all the individual choices and changes and the
overall impact can be huge.
3. Lack of facts and data: The nature of service processes make them
inherently more difficult to measure. The data that exists, is narrowly
focused and subjective. Accurately measuring the time and cost of the
rework and redundancy is difficult.
4. Lack of a “head start”: A vast majority of service activities have not

been touched by the powerful methods of process measurement and
improvement. It means there is a lot of catching up to do and for that,
one should be ready to adapt the Six Sigma approaches to the special
conditions of a service environment.
Following are broad guidelines for making Six Sigma more effective in
services:
1. Start with the process: In most service organizations, one would need
to investigate processes to start with. Although, it might be a rude
awakening, it also can be an enlightening event that gets the Six Sigma
effort off to a fast start.
2. Fine-tune the problem: Once the processes are identified, the next
step would be to work detailing the processes, customer requirements
and the issues affecting them.
! !180
3. Using facts and data to reduce ambiguity: One of the biggest

obstacles in clarifying issues, measuring performances and generating
improvements in the service arena is the fact that things often are not
well described. That means that as one starts to shed light on processes
and customers in a service environment, high priority will have to be
given to translate ambiguity into clear performance factors and
measures. Lower volumes in some service processes pose an extra
challenge. For that, one will need to gather and analyze the data little
differently.
11.2 Manufacturing Process Opportunities
Designing, producing and selling manufactured products is the core

business of many companies and the need to provide defect-free products
is more important than ever. A successful manufacturing business needs to
master many competencies including:
• Keeping track of new technologies and being able to develop them

rapidly into viable products
• Understanding existing and emerging customer needs that can be met by

improved processes and improved products
• Establishing and managing supplier networks so as to ensure a timely

supply of parts and raw materials
• Taking, processing and filling customer orders accurately – including

building to unique specifications as needed – and profitably
• Adapting to shifting market conditions
An increasing number of businesses have handed over responsibility for

manufacturing to a vendor so that they can focus on product design,
development and marketing. However, the specialist firms who supply
manufactured products to these design-and-marketing-only clients must
also have processes capable of planning and setting up for production,
managing order flow and building effective interfaces with customers.
! !181
The efforts to apply Six Sigma to manufacturing bring with it some unique
challenges too. Following are some of the most prevalent difficulties
organizations must be mindful of:
1. Adopting a broader perspective: People on the shop floor have

always tended to be somewhat isolated from the rest of the business.
The Six Sigma system would demand communication and coordination
all along the company’s critical processes, as well as the demolition of
the barriers between manufacturing and the rest of the world.
2. Moving past “certification” to improvement: The growing emphasis

on various certifications and audits have hampered many companies’
improvement efforts. Once a process is “certified”, it tends to be
perceived as law. Certification activities have also drawn resources away
from process improvement efforts. Tying Six Sigma to certification
efforts offers some impressive potential improvement synergies.
3. Adapting tools to manufacturing environment: Manufacturing

processes differ from each other vastly in different industries. It is,
therefore, difficult and not advisable to adapt same Six Sigma methods
and tools for these varied processes.
4. Six Sigma is a very robust system: Even with the challenges likely to
arise in manufacturing or service set-up, one can be successful if he/she
remembers that this is not really a program or a technique, but a
flexible and essential way to make business more responsive, efficient,
competitive and profitable.
Visit a manufacturing industry in your town, and discuss with the

management, the opportunities in and the advantages of implementing Six
Sigma initiative in their organization.
! !182
11.4 Summary
Application of Six Sigma is not restricted to any particular type of industry

and since the steps involved in Six Sigma are so basic, the same can be
made applicable to different walks of business. Although, the approach to
Six Sigma is pretty standardized, the format is flexible enough to suit one’s
organizational needs, product portfolio and funds available.
11.5 self assessment questions
1. Service industry has more improvement opportunities for Six Sigma is

compared to manufacturing industry – Explain.
2. What are the improvement opportunities for manufacturing industry?
1. Sales, finance, marketing, procurement, customer support, logistic and

human resources are:
a. Service processes
b. Manufacturing processes
c. Continuous processes
d. Statutory processes
2. Processes which relate to the development and production of tangible

products are:
a. Service processes
b. Manufacturing processes
c. Continuous processes
d. Statutory processes
3. Research has shown that the costs of poor quality in service-based

businesses and processes typically run as high as ----------------- of
total budget as against 10-20% in manufacturing processes.
a. 25%
b. 30%
c. 40%
d. 50%
! !183
4. Administrative and service processes, prior to improvement, perform in

a range of :
a. 3.5 to 4 sigma
b. 4.5 to 5 sigma
c. 4.5 to 6 sigma
d. 1.5 to 3 sigma
5. Analysis of service processes reveal that ---------------- of total process

cycle time is devoted to real work on tasks that are important to
customers.
a. More than 60%
b. Less than 75%
c. Less than 10%
d. More than 5%
Answers: 1-a, 2-b, 3-d, 4-d, 5-c
! !184
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !185
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES IN SIX SIGMA MANAGEMENT
Chapter 12
Roles And Responsibilities In Six Sigma
Management
Objectives
• Details about roles and responsibilities of Leadership team, various team

members viz. Champions, Process Owners, Master Black Belts, Black
Belts, Green Belts and Yellow Belts.
• Information about Role Relationship Map.
Structure
12.1 Project Excellence Leadership Team (PELT)
12.2 Organization of the Project Excellence Leadership Team
12.3 Project Responsibilities
12.4 Role Relationship Map
12.6 Summary
! !186
12.1 Project Excellence Leadership Team (PELT)
Selection of a Project Excellence Leadership Team (PELT) is the first very

important step in starting the Six Sigma Initiative. While the skills like six
sigma belts are required, what makes a successful project excellence
leader is demonstrating skills and behaviors beyond these methods. It’s not
the technical skills but the adaptive skills that makes a Project Excellence
Leader successful.
1. Leaders need the ability to get into the core of an issue and also to see
the larger picture. It’s essential to have this focus so as to understand
the strategic imperatives of business and processes which are needed to
change to make an improvement. They need to be able to quickly see
how the details of individual processes connect up with the big-picture
of the business. In everything that they do, Project Excellence Leaders
need to be system thinkers who see problem solving in the context of
the larger business system and how this affects other parts of the
business. This not only helps ensure that improvements in one area
aren’t negatively affecting another, but also ensures that all process
improvement work is supporting the strategic objectives of the business.
2. Process improvement is as much about convincing people to change as

it is going around and changing processes. The ability to engage other
people, therefore, is essential. Process Excellence Leaders must be able
to persuade the CEO and other senior leaders to adopt process
excellence practices for business improvement. This is about being able
to sell performance-enhancement ideas to leaders based on the explicit
& implicit needs of the business, and then being able to support them
start-to-finish to catalyze the changes necessary.
3. Senior leaders look at him as a trusted partner while people at junior

and middle management look at him as an inspirational leader who is
able to motivate them to adopt process-practices for eliminating some
of the deep chronic issues that they could be facing. The Project
Excellence Leader should be able to provide visibility to teams on how
their efforts impact the strategic objectives of the company.
4. The Process Excellence Leader does not keep the people who oppose the
process agenda out of his way but proactively gets them to the table to
understand their concern and even allows them to find holes in the way
! !187
he is proposing the deployment. Project Excellence Leaders need to

treat those who attack us with respect and engages with them to allay
their concerns. We are able to successfully manage a wide-range of
behaviours that oppose / raise doubts about the process agenda.
5. Process Excellence leaders need to demonstrate to the business the

financial value of the work the team is undertaking but also understand
how process improvement work affects the financial of the company.
6. The ability to help others become better is a key skill which Project
Excellence Leaders should master. We are in the business of not only
improving processes but also helping to improve businesses. A key part
of that is ensuring that we are building up capabilities and skills in
others in the business.
7. Project Excellence Leaders work towards improving the value delivered

to the customer. We must work with other leaders in the company to
design a suitable value proposition for the customer and make sure that
each part of the business works in tandem to deliver the customer
promise. We need to keep an eye on the emerging trends that impact
customers and help the CEO to design a business-strategy with the
customer at the centre.
8. The real power of process improvement starts when business units have
the skills necessary to make improvements and changes to their role.
9. A Project Excellence Leader should be adept in the key improvement

approaches and should be in a position to guide teams when required.
While it helps to have deep knowledge in process improvement
practices, he shouldn’t worry if he is not a master of any of them. What
is really required of Project Excellence Leaders is the ability to ask the
right questions and understand the technical output of teams.
! !188
12.2 Organization of the Project Excellence Leadership

Team
The full deployment and implementation of a Six Sigma initiative in an

organization requires the collective participation of numerous people, each
of whom is responsible for fulfilling specific roles and obligations at both
the managerial and technical levels. The rigorous nature of a Six Sigma
deployment compels an organization to call on its very best people to
participate. Most often these people are drawn from within the ranks of the
company and are specially trained to the requisite skills.
Six Sigma requires energised thinking, an open mind and an unquenchable

thirst for truth and betterment. The Six Sigma mindset is one that initiates
change, sees problems as opportunities and formally questions
fundamental assumptions until the root causes are characterised,
optimized and controlled. These are principles and practices of leadership
and they are a fundamental part of the character of everyone who carries
the Six Sigma flag.
For every participant, Six Sigma is a breakthrough leadership initiative.

Just like the breakthrough performance returns realised by the
organization, everyone involved in Six Sigma realises a nearly unbounded
sense of potential. Barriers and limitations melt away. Anything is possible.
After one drinks the Six Sigma elixir, there is no turning back — one is
transformed. Energised thinking and thirst for truth become part of one's
being. One feels naturally compelled to question assumptions, search for
root causes and to characterize and optimize things. One becomes a leader.
Six Sigma is a top-down initiative, it begins with a team of executives and
business-unit leaders, who approve the Six Sigma deployment program,
endorse projects and are accountable for achieving the results. They inject
the initial dose of vision and ambition into the organization and apply the
business savvy and people skills to stimulate the drive for change. While
the methods and tools of Six Sigma are applicable at all levels,
breakthrough organizational performance requires a full coordinated
commitment — and that can only come from the top.
There are several positions in an organization that are critical to the Six
Sigma management process. These positions are: Senior Executive (CEO
or President), Executive committee, Champion, Process owner, Master
Black belt, Black belt and Green belt.
! !189
The Hierarchy of Six Sigma Roles
[The leadership and technical roles of Six Sigma flow down through an
organization in hierarchical fashion, with a very small number of leaders
and champions at the top, small number of Master Black Belts, Black Belt
and Green Belts in the middle and a large number of Yellow Belts and team
members at the bottom].
Senior Executive
The most successful Six Sigma efforts have had one thing in common:
unwavering, clear and committed leadership from top management. There
is no doubt in anyone’s mind that Six Sigma is “the way we do business”.
Although it may be possible to initiate Six Sigma concepts and processes at
lower levels, dramatic success will not be possible until the senior
executive becomes engaged and takes a leadership role.
! !190
The senior executive provides the impetus, direction and alignment

necessary for Six Sigma’s ultimate success. The senior executive should:
• Lead the executive committee in linking strategies to Six Sigma projects
• Participate in appropriate Six Sigma project teams
• Maintain an overview of the system to avoid sub-optimization
• Maintain a long-term view
• Act as a liaison to stakeholders explaining the long-term advantages of

Six Sigma management
• Constantly and consistently, publicly and privately champion Six Sigma

management
• Conduct project reviews
Executive Committee
The members of the executive committee are the top management of an

organization. They should operate at the same level of commitment for Six
Sigma management as the senior executive. The members of the executive
committee should:
• Deploy Six Sigma throughout the organization
• Priorities and manage the Six Sigma project portfolio
• Assign champions, black belts and green belts to Six Sigma projects
• Conduct reviews of Six Sigma projects with the senior executive and
within their own areas of control
• Improve the Six Sigma process
• Identify strategic improvement initiatives
• Remove barriers to Six Sigma management and projects
! !191
• Provide resources for the Six Sigma management process and projects
Champions
Champions take a very active sponsorship and leadership role in

conducting and implementing Six Sigma projects. They work closely with
the executive committee, the black belt assigned to the project and the
master black belt overseeing their project. A champion should be a
member of the executive committee, or at least a trusted direct report to a
member of the executive committee. He or she should have enough
influence to remove obstacles or provide resources without having to go
higher in the organization. Champions have the following responsibilities:
• Identify their project’s impact to the organization
• Develop and negotiate project objectives and charters with the executive
committee
• Select a black belt (or a green belt for a simple project) to lead the
project team
• Remove any political barriers or resource constraints
• Provide a link between their project team and the executive committee
• Help team members manage their resources and stay within the budget
• Review the progress of their project with respect to the project’s

timetable
• Keep the team focused on the project by providing direction and

guidance
• Ensure that Six Sigma methods and tools are being used in the project
! !192
Process Owner
A process owner is the manager of a process. He or she has the

responsibility for the process and has the authority to change the process
on her or his signature. The process owner should be identified and
involved immediately in all Six Sigma projects relating to his or her own
area.
In some organizations, it is difficult to determine an appropriate process

owner. For example, in many banks, the “obtaining new customers
process” is the responsibility of both the marketing department and branch
management. It is possible that the CEO of the bank is the only common
process owner, under whom there is ownership for both marketing and
branch operations. In this case, it may be more convenient to have a
virtual process owner who will take ownership and have decision making
authority for projects dedicated to obtaining new customers. In some
cases, the process owner will be a team of leaders who jointly have
responsibility for the process. If the team effort is used, it requires that the
joint process owners establish a good working relationship with frequent
communication and cooperation regarding projects. A process owner has
the following responsibilities:
• Be accountable for the monitoring, managing and output of his or her

project
• Empower the employees who work in the process to follow and improve
the best practice method for the process
• Focus the project team on the project objective
• Assist the project team in remaining on schedule
• Allocate the resources necessary for the project
• Accept, manage and sustain the improved process after completion of

the Six Sigma project
• Ensure that the project objectives and indicators are linked to the
organization’s mission
! !193
• Understand how the process works, the capability of the process and the
relationship of the process to other processes in the organization
Master Black Belt
A master black belt takes on a leadership role as keeper of the Six Sigma
process and advisor to senior executives or business unit managers. He or
she must leverage his or her skills with projects that are led by black belts
and green belts. Frequently, master black belts report directly to senior
executives or business unit managers. He or she is a proven change agent,
leader, facilitator and technical expert in Six Sigma management. Ideally,
master black belts are selected from the black belts within an organization.
However, circumstances sometimes require hiring master black belt
external to the organization. Master black belts have following
responsibilities:
• Help identify, priorities and coordinate key project areas in keeping with
strategic initiatives
• Teach black belts and green belts Six Sigma theory, tools and methods
• Mentor back belts and green belts
• Continually improve and innovate the organization’s Six Sigma process
• Be able to apply Six Sigma across both operations and transaction-based

processes such as sales, human resources, information technology,
facility management, call centres, finance, etc.
Black Belt
A Black belt is a full time change agent and improvement leader who may
not be an expert in the process under study. The ideal candidate for a black
belt is an individual who possesses the following characteristics:
• Has technical and managerial process improvement/ innovation skills,

including mastery of the DMAIC and DMADV models
• Has a passion for statistics and systems theory
! !194
• Understands the psychology of individuals and teams
• Has excellent communication and writing skills
• Works well in team format
• Can manage meetings
• Has a pleasant personality and is fun to work with
• Communicates in the language of client and does not use technical

jargon
• Is not intimidated by upper management, process owner or champion
• Has a customer focus
The responsibilities of a black belt include:
• Help to prepare/refine a project charter
• Communicate with the champion about progress of the project
• Lead the project team
• Schedule meetings and coordinate logistics
• Help team members design experiments and analyze the data required
for the project
• Provide training in tools and team functions
• Help team members prepare for reviews by the champion and executive
committee
• Recommend additional Six Sigma projects
• Lead and coach green belts leading projects with limited scope
! !195
A black belt is a full time quality professional who is mentored by a master

black belt, but who may report to a manager for his or her scope of duty as
a black belt.
Importance of Six Sigma Black Belt
Aim is to create technical leaders, advanced users and teachers of the Six
Sigma tools and methods. These individuals have the potential to produce
highly credible breakthrough success stories and then subsequently
transfer these method, techniques, procedures and tools to their colleagues
and customer focus teams.
The focus is on developing an in-depth understanding of the Six Sigma

philosophy, theory and application tactics as well as advanced applications
in the areas of statistics, quantitative bench marking, process control
techniques, process diagnostic methods, design of experiments,
organizational/group dynamics and change process. This knowledge is
acquired to facilitate breakthrough improvement in key processes.
The intent is to implant people within organization who can:
• Effectively develop and lead people and teams to improvement
• Work with and advise management on the formulation and subsequent

implementation of improvement plans
• Utilize and disseminate the Six Sigma tools and methods
The target population for Black Belt training is characterized by those

individuals who are technically oriented, are highly regarded within their
discipline area or line of work and are actively involved in the process of
organizational change and development.
! !196
Roles of a Six Sigma Black Belt
• Instrumental in preparing project charters: and selecting Six Sigma

projects and communicating progress to executive leadership.
• Leads problem-solving projects: Trains and coaches project teams
• Monitoring: Cultivate a network of local Six Sigma individuals at the

local site
• Teaching: Provide formal training of local personnel in new strategies or

tool
• Supporting: Provide one-on-one support to local people
• Discovering: Finding application opportunities for Six Sigma strategies

and tools both internally and externally with suppliers and customers
• Identifying: Surfacing business opportunities through partnerships with

other organizations
• Influencing: Convincing the organization to use Six Sigma tools and

strategies
Green Belt
A Green belt is an individual who works on projects part time, either as a

team member for complex projects or a project leader for simpler projects.
Green belts are the “work horses” of Six Sigma projects. Most managers in
a mature Six Sigma organization are green belts. Green belt certification is
a critical prerequisite for advancement into upper management in a Six
Sigma organization. Green belts leading simpler projects have the following
responsibilities:
! !197
• Refine a project charter for the project
• Review the project charter with the project’s champion
• Select the team members for the project
• Communicate with the champion, master black belt/black belt and

process owner throughout all stages of the project
• Facilitate the team through all phases of the project
• Schedule meetings and coordinate logistics
• Analyze data through all phases of the project
• Train team members in the basic tools and methods through all phases of
the project
Black belt and Green belt Six Sigma projects differ on the basis of five
criteria.
1. Green belt projects tend to be less involved (e.g., they have one CTQ
and few Xs), whereas black belt projects tend to deal with more
complex situations that may involve two or more CTQs and many Xs.
2. Green belt projects do not deal with political issues compared to black
belt projects which involve substantial political issues
3. Green belt projects do not require many organizational resources as

compared to black belt projects
4. Green belt projects do not require significant capital investment to

realise the gains identified during the project as compared to the black
belt projects
5. Green belt projects utilise only basic statistical methods, whereas black
belt projects utilise sophisticated statistical methods.
! !198
Yellow Belt
Everyone in the organization can apply elements of the Six Sigma

methodology and improve their work environments. Everyone can assist
Green Belts and Black Belts in completing projects. But not everyone needs
to be immersed in the details or challenges to the extent that requires the
level of training or skill of the Green Belt or Black Belt.
The Six Sigma Yellow Belt is “everyone else”. Yellow belts are staff
members, administrators, operations personnel, project team members or
anyone else – technical or non-technical. Nearly anyone can identify
measurement scales, define critical process factors, collect some data,
characterise a process, make easy improvements and cultivate
opportunities.
Responsibilities in a Six Sigma project are shared as indicated below in its

life cycle.
12.3 Project Responsibilities
! !199
An individual can satisfy more than one role in Six Sigma management. For
example, senior executives, members of the executive committee and
champions can also be green belts. In fact, because senior leaders typically
control large budgets, they can typically lead or participate in projects as
green belts having great financial impact on the organization.
Six Sigma roles are not necessarily driven by position within an

organization. For example, senior executives who are green belts might
have master black belts and black belts reporting to them. Roles are more
related to the level of training and expertise than to position within the
organization.
12.4 Role Relationship Map
!
[The project is the center point of Six Sigma activity]
! !200
Plan and organize a Project Excellence Leadership Team (PELT) in your

organization, considering that you want to implement Six Sigma initiative
in your organization.
12.6 Summary
Selection of a Project Excellence Leadership Team (PELT) is the first very

important step in starting the Six Sigma Initiative. While the skills like six
sigma belts are required, what makes a successful process excellence
leader is demonstrating skills and behaviours beyond these methods. It’s
not the technical skills but the adaptive skills that makes a Project
Excellence Leader successful.
Organization structure for successful implementation of Six Sigma project

would depend on type of industry, size and spread of an organization,
project skills it possesses and the magnitude and complexity of the project.
Various personnel in the organization will have to shoulder different
responsibilities depending upon their functional role, seniority and skills
they have. These responsibilities have been lebelled under different roles in
Six Sigma. The chapter explains all such roles in detail and also tries to
project their interrelationship.
The importance of various belts, particularly “Black Belt” is very significant

in Six Sigma, in the stages viz. Measure, Analyze and Improve.
1. Explain the concept of PELT.

2. Explain the importance of Black Belt.
3. Write a brief note on Six Sigma organization.
4. List down various roles in the hierarchy of the Six Sigma setup and
explain responsibilities of green belts and yellow belts.
! !201
1. It’s not the technical skills but the adaptive skills that makes a
------------------ successful.
a. Black Belt
b. Green Belt
c. Project Excellence Leader
d. Yellow Belt
2. Who is the manager of the process?

a. Black Belt
b. Process owner
d. Yellow Belt
3. Who takes on a leadership role as keeper of the Six Sigma process and
adviser to senior executives or business unit managers?
a. Process owner
b. Black belt
c. Master black belt
d. Champion
4. Who is Instrumental in preparing project charters and selecting Six

Sigma projects and communicating progress to executive leadership?
a. Process owner
b. Black belt
c. Master black belt
d. Champion
5. Who is an individual who works on projects part time?

a. Black Belt
b. Green Belt
d. Champion
Answers: 1-c, 2-b, 3-c, 4-b, 5-b

 
! !202
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !203
SIX SIGMA CERTIFICATION
Chapter 13
Six Sigma Certification
Objectives
• Benefits of Six Sigma Certification
• Details about certification of various team members such as Master Black

Belts, Black Belts, and Champions
Structure
13.1 Six Sigma Certification
13.2 Benefits of Six Sigma Certification
13.3 Certification of Six Sigma Black Belt
13.4 Certification of Six Sigma Master Black Belt
13.5 Certification of Six Sigma Champion
13.7 Summary
! !204
13.1 Six Sigma Certification
Learning Six Sigma methodologies for your work life can help impact your
career future. The ability to add Six Sigma Certification to your resume
proves your commitment to improving your business acumen and
analytical skills, as well as improving the business where you work. Famed
the world over, the principles of Six Sigma find applications in countless
organizations across a wide range of industries worldwide.
What is the Six Sigma Certification?
Six Sigma is a carefully designed set of tools and techniques that help
improve processes within an organization. The primary goal of the Six
Sigma certification is to validate individuals who possess the skills to
identify errors or defects in a business process and eliminate them.
The Six Sigma certification comes in various skill levels: Green Belt, Black
Belt, and Master Black Belt. These certifications can be obtained through
an accreditation body like the American Society for Quality (ASQ). These
certifications also help you become a specialist in process improvement
and will enhance your career’s standard and credibility.
13.2 Benefits of Six Sigma Certification
1. Help Your Organization Eliminate Errors
From an organization’s perspective, acquiring a Six Sigma certification

enables an individual to become crucial to an organization’s ability to
identify and eliminate repeatable process errors.
With a Six Sigma certification, you would be able to transform and enable
an organization to increase revenue by identifying and eliminating errors
that would otherwise have brought poor customer satisfaction and losses
to the business. Certified Six Sigma professionals can help reduce invoicing
errors, customer complaints, complaint resolution time, spending, schedule
delays, and cost overruns.
! !205
2. Improve Business Processes and Sustain Quality Improvement
Once you attain the Six Sigma certification, you’ll be able to prove you
have the knowledge to identify the characteristics of an organization’s
manufacturing and business processes and be able to measure, analyze,
control, and improve them. You will also have the ability to conduct a
complete review of current practices and gain a very clear understanding of
their impact on quality performance.
You’ll also develop the ability to achieve the level of sustained quality
improvement that organizations require—monitoring processes closely to
ensure there is little to no deviation from the mean and taking corrective
measures to reel in a project that may be straying from the path.
3. Applicability Across Industries
What is the value of a Six Sigma certification? Six Sigma techniques are
applied in aerospace, electronics, telecommunication, banking and financial
services, IT, HR, marketing, and many more industries.
Getting a Six Sigma certification can lead to better job opportunities. One
of the reasons Six Sigma certified professionals get so much respect is that
the exams are not easy to pass—and executives and hiring managers at
major companies are well aware.
With a Six Sigma certification, you will be able to position yourself as a

change agent within the organization, spearheading quality improvement
throughout your team or organization, bolstering your leadership skillset.
Individuals certified in Six Sigma are knowledgeable in dozens of different
methods to streamline business processes, improve employee acceptance,
reduce costs, and increase revenue—all of which lead to a better bottom
line, no matter the industry.
As a professional, you need to adapt yourself to the changing demands of

your industry. No matter what industry you are a part of, you need to learn
to adapt your knowledge to different situations.
! !206
4. Ensure Compliance
With the stringent quality standards of Six Sigma, manufacturing and

process errors are reduced to insignificant figures. This has meant that a
number of vendors, procurers, and oversight organizations apply Six Sigma
standards when evaluating products or accounts. As a certified Six Sigma
professional, you will be able to help your organization comply with
international standards, as well as maintain profitable contracts.
5. Helps Nurture Managerial And Leadership Ability
Six Sigma training also prepares you for leadership roles, with the
techniques and knowhow to cut costs, increase revenue, and ways to
improve the efficiency of the business process. Those who achieve Six
Sigma Black Belt are not only educated on the methodologies of Six Sigma,
they are also prepared to become a change agent within their organization,
leading efforts to improve processes and the quality of products and
services delivered to customers.
Once you complete your Six Sigma course and obtain your certification,
you will have a clear understanding of measuring and quantifying financial
benefits from executing any Six Sigma project. Because financial
management and risk assessment are highly desirable skills for middle and
top-level management, certified Six Sigma professionals stand a very good
chance of rising to senior managerial positions.
6. Gain Hands-On Experience In Quality Management
Unlike a few other certifications, the Six Sigma certification process

includes hands-on work on industry projects and experience with
implementation of theoretical principles to real-life scenarios. As a certified
Six Sigma professional, you will gain valuable experience even before you
enter the workforce.
! !207
13.3 Certification of Six Sigma Black Belt
The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB) is a professional who can
explain Six Sigma philosophies and principles, including supporting
systems and tools. A Black Belt should demonstrate team leadership,
understand team dynamics, and assign team member roles and
responsibilities. Black Belts have a thorough understanding of all aspects of
the DMAIC model in accordance with Six Sigma principles. They have basic
knowledge of lean enterprise concepts, are able to identify non value-
added elements and activities, and are able to use specific tools.
One example of certification method is given below:
• Target population: Experienced SBU engineers and operations

personnel
• Prerequisites: Technical background and leadership abilities
• Class size: 20 to 30 participants per class
Session 1:
(a) Understand the basic concepts of Six Sigma
(b) Develop the language of Six Sigma and statistics
(c) How to compute and apply basic statistics
(d) How to establish and benchmark process capability
Session 2:
(a) Understand the theory of sampling and hypothesis testing
(b) Application of key statistical tools and hypothesis testing
(c) Understanding the elements of successful application planning
(d) How to apply and manage the breakthrough strategy
(e) Identifying and leveraging dominant sources of variation
(f) Establishing realistic performance tolerances
Session 3:
(a) Understand the basic principles of experimentation
(b) How to design and execute multi-variable experiments
(c) How to interpret and communicate the results of an experiment
(d) How to plan and execute a variable search study
! !208
Session 4:
(a) Understand the basic concepts of process control
(b) How to construct, use and maintain charts for variables data
(c) How to construct, use and maintain charts for attributes data
(d) How to implement and maintain pre control and post control
plans
(e) How to plan and implement process control systems
Time table for sessions

Session (Please Day Morning Post lunch
refer certification
process given
below)
1 (1st month) 1 Core six sigma concepts Basic statistics
2 Basic statistics Basic statistics
3 Advanced six sigma Advanced six sigma

concepts concepts
2 (2nd month) 1 Advanced statistics Advanced statistics
2 Advanced statistics Advanced statistics
3 Breakthrough strategy Diagnostic methods
3 (3rd month) 1 Principles of experiment Full factorial designs

design
2 Full factorial designs Full factorial designs
3 Fractional factorial designs Advanced topics in

experiment design
4 (4th month) 1 Foundations of process Control charts for variables
control
2 Control charts for variables Control charts for variables
3 Control charts for attributes Planning process control
! !209
Black Belt Certification Process
Duration
Event Cycle Activity
(days)
1st month 1 - Initial meeting and planning 2
2 1 Champion coordination meeting 1
3 1 Black belt training session 1 3
4 1 On-the-job application exercise 21
2nd month 5 2 Champion coordination meeting 1
6 2 Standard Six Sigma review 1
3rd month 9 3 Champion coordination meeting 1
4th month 13 4 Champion coordination meeting 1
16 - Contingency 6
! !210
13.4 Certification of Six Sigma Master Black Belt
They have more training and experience than any other level of Six Sigma
employee. As the ultimate process improvement authorities, Master Black
Belts are often called upon to provide Six Sigma advice and counsel to
Black Belts and members of upper management.
Master Black Belt training often covers advanced Six Sigma and
deployment related topics (in addition to topics covered in black belt
training) such as:
• DFSS: (Design for Six Sigma) The DFSS methodology for process and
product design, DMADV roadmap and selected DFSS tools.
• Lean: The Lean approach, major tools used in manufacturing as well as

transactional/service environments.
• Integration of initiatives: How to align different initiatives in a

company such as Six Sigma, ISO9000, balanced scorecard, Lean?
• Cross-cultural project leadership: What are cultural issues when

dealing with cross-cultural Six Sigma deployments in multi-national
companies? How to recognize and approach them?
• Strategic project selection and performance management: How to

translate a company’s strategy into processes and determine indicators
that drive strategy? How to build and report on dashboards?
• When it comes to developing specific skills or behaviour, training is

usually more limited and always needs to be accompanied by practical
exercises as well as application of these skills in day-to-day operations.
Given that Master Black Belt training is conducted in multiple sessions,
individual development plans should be determined before the end of the
first session. Master Black Belt candidates are then asked to work on the
improvement areas highlighted in their plan. In the following sessions
they are then challenged against their development plans.
! !211
Personal development-related topics in Master Black Belt training typically

are:
• Coaching skills: How to master coaching situations with other Belts?
• Training skills: How to deliver highly effective training to all levels of

audience? How to build high-impact training sessions? How to make vital
presentations and hold participants’ attention?
• Consulting skills: How to consult at different levels of an organization

in an advanced strategic improvement environment?
13.5 Certification of Six Sigma Champion
They translate the company’s vision, mission, goals and metrics to create
an organizational deployment plan and identify individual projects, identify
resources and remove roadblocks.
• Talking of six sigma has led to the breakthrough improvement of

business, engineering, manufacturing, service and administrative
processes. Such a process oriented focus has led to significant reduction
in cost and cycle time. The principal focus is always on continuous
improvement and customer satisfaction. To this end, the Six Sigma
Champion Program is designed and developed.
• Intent is to provide key individuals with the management and technical

knowledge necessary to facilitate the leadership for implementation and
deployment of six sigma.
• The goal is to transfer and reinforce the fundamental six sigma

strategies, tactics and tools necessary for achieving breakthrough in key
product designs, manufacturing processes, services and administrative
processes.
To support this focus, the program has been structured into two self
contained segments (in addition to topics covered in black belt training)
which when successfully completed, leads to certification.
! !212
Session 1: Technical
• Inferential statistical methods
• Non-parametric statistical methods
• Advanced diagnostic tools
• Design and analysis of experiments
• Statistical process control charts
Session 2: Organizational
• Strategic planning
• Creating the vision
• Deployment planning
• Technology and human behaviour
• Analysis of change
• Conflict management
• Role and use of empowerment
• Building high performance teams
• Strategic improvement workshop
• Result oriented marketing and sales skills
• Creating management sponsorship
• Short cycle knowledge transfer process
• Short cycle knowledge transfer tools
Get certified as Black Belt by enrolling your name in an Institute so that

you can actively participate in the Six Sigma initiative.
! !213
13.7 Summary
1. Learning Six Sigma methodologies for your work life can help impact
your career future. The ability to add Six Sigma Certification to your
resume proves your commitment to improving your business acumen
and analytical skills, as well as improving the business where you work.
Famed the world over, the principles of Six Sigma find applications in
countless organizations across a wide range of industries worldwide.
2. As you are aware, Six Sigma is a carefully designed set of tools and
techniques that help improve processes within an organization. The
primary goal of the Six Sigma certification is to validate individuals who
possess the skills to identify errors or defects in a business process and
eliminate them.
3. Benefits of Six Sigma Certification
• Help Your Organization Eliminate Errors

• Improve Business Processes and Sustain Quality Improvement
• Applicability Across Industries
• Ensure Compliance
• Helps Nurture Managerial And Leadership Ability
• Gain Hands-On Experience In Quality Management
4. The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt (CSSBB) is a professional who can
explain Six Sigma philosophies and principles, including supporting
systems and tools. Details of the certification are given in the chapter.
5. Master Black Belt have more training and experience than any other
level of Six Sigma employee. As the ultimate process improvement
authorities, Master Black Belts are often called upon to provide Six
Sigma advice and counsel to Black Belts and members of upper
management. Master Black Belt training often covers advanced Six
Sigma and deployment related topics.
6. Champion translates the company’s vision, mission, goals and metrics to

create an organizational deployment plan and identify individual
projects. Identify resources and remove roadblocks. The certification
training program has been structured into two self contained segments
such as technical and organizational. (in addition to topics covered in
! !214
black belt training) which when successfully completed, leads to

certification.
1. What are the benefits of Six Sigma certification?
2. Explain the important features of certification of Black Belts and

Champions.
1. The Six Sigma certification comes in various skill levels: Green

Belt, Black Belt, and Master Black Belt. These certifications can be
obtained through an accreditation body like the:
a. ISO
b. ASQ
c. ISI
d. BSI
2. CSSBB is:
a. Central Six Sigma Bureau of Britain
b. Central Six Sigma Black Belt
c. Center of Six Sigma Black Belts
d. Certified Six Sigma Black Belt
3. Black Belts have a thorough understanding of all aspects of the

---------- model in accordance with Six Sigma principles.
a. DMAIC
b. Poka Yoke
c. ASQ
d. APQP
4. Target population for Black Belt Certification training:

a. SBU engineers and operations personnel
b. Marketing executives
c. Finance personnel
d. Storekeepers
! !215
5. Personal development-related topics in Master Black Belt training

typically are:
a. Process flow charts
b. Fail safe techniques
c. Marketing skills
d. Coaching skills and Training skills
Answers: 1-b, 2-d, 3-a, 4-a, 5-d
! !216
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !217
BUILDING A STRONGER SIX SIGMA CULTURE
Chapter 14
Building A Stronger Six Sigma Culture
Objectives
• Details about roles of various Belts, process owners, champions and

project excellence leaders.
• What is Six Sigma culture
• Requirements of culture change
• What is change management
• Eight-step process for leading change
Structure
14.1 Importance of People in Six Sigma
14.2 Six Sigma Roles and Responsibilities
14.3 Six Sigma Culture
14.4 Change Management
14.5 Eight-Step Change Leadership Process
14.6 Conclusion
14.8 Summary
14.10 Multiple Choice Questions  
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14.1 Importance of People in Six Sigma
• Process inputs control the outputs and determine their level of quality.
• Focus is on an unending quest for improving business processes and

reducing wastes.
• The methods of Six Sigma are known as:
❖ DMAIC (define, measure, analyze, improve, and control)
❖ DMADV (define, measure, analyze, design, verify).
❖ DFSS (Design for Six Sigma)
• Measure of success is to ultimately reduce defects to 3.4 per one million

opportunities.
• Six Sigma is fueled by people with a hunger for continuous improvement.
❖ Six Sigma relies heavily on data analysis and statistical measurement,

but what really makes Six Sigma work is the people who practice it. To
help coordinate the efforts of Six Sigma practitioners and give them the
training and support they need, Six Sigma uses a belt system.
❖ Six Sigma turns an organization’s employees into quality improvement

experts and equips them with principles and tools to solve quality
problems by reducing defects. A lower defect rate helps companies
produce more goods or services at a lower cost – all while increasing
overall profitability.
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14.2 Six Sigma Roles and Responsibilities
The Six Sigma belt system uses a ranking structure similar to the one used
in martial arts disciplines. This belt system creates a hierarchy. The
structure helps Six Sigma-certified employees coordinate their work by
clearly defining the roles they play on the project team.
Each belt level has different qualifications and responsibilities.
The various levels are:(from bottom to top)
Y e l l o w B e l t s : T h e y p a r t i c i p a t e a s a p r o j e c t t e a m m e m b e r.
Review process improvements that support the project.
Green Belts: These employees usually practice Six Sigma part-time. They
generally spend 25% of their work time on Six Sigma projects. They help
with data gathering and data analysis, and contribute their functional
knowledge to project teams. Green Belts work under the direction of Black
Belts.
Black Belts: Black Belts practice Six Sigma as their full-time job. They are
instrumental in preparing project charters and selecting Six Sigma
projects. They help mentor and train team members, guiding them through
complex statistical analysis. Black Belts communicate progress to
executive leadership.
Master Black Belts - (MBBs): They have more training and experience
than any other level of Six Sigma employee. As the ultimate process
improvement authorities, Master Black Belts are often called upon to
provide Six Sigma advice and counsel to Black Belts and members of upper
management.
A process owner: He is the person who has the authority to determine

how a process operates, and the responsibility to make sure it continues to
meet customer and business needs today and into the future. This is a role
that no company can afford to overlook if it wants to be world class. A
good process owner knows his or her process like an auto mechanic knows
cars. A process owner:
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1. Knows what is critical about the process.
2. Monitors process performance with data.
3. Makes sure the process is documented, and that the documentation is

used and updated regularly.
4. Makes sure a process management (or control) plan is in

place. Everyone in the work area knows how the process should
operate. Everyone knows how to detect signs of trouble and what to do
if a problem appears (often called a response plan). Process data is
charted and posted in the work area, visible to all.
5. Holds regular reviews.
6. Makes sure that any improvements identified through projects are

incorporated and maintained in the process.
7. Provides linkage to customers, suppliers and other processes.
8. Makes sure that process operators have the training and resources to do
their jobs well.
Champion or Sponsor: They translate the company’s vision, mission,

goals and metrics to create an organizational deployment plan and identify
individual projects. Identify resources and remove roadblocks.
Project Excellence Leader: Provide overall alignment by establishing the

strategic focus of the Six Sigma program within the context of the
organization’s culture and vision.
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14.3 Six Sigma Culture
Most employees are inevitably shaped into their company’s prevailing

culture. However, when the company culture is focused on teaching and
practicing the principles of Six Sigma, it can transform the way
employees see themselves and their work.
Six Sigma expands employees’ vision and gives them the power to move
from passively witnessing a problem to actively solving it. Once employees
are steeped in the practice of Six Sigma, they may never be the same
again.
Employees trained in Six Sigma develop the following stand-out qualities:
• They possess the training they need to use Six Sigma tools
• They take ownership for creating and implementing solutions to problems
• They play an active role in eliminating defects and variance
• They see their work as part of the larger picture instead of their assigned
job function
What Difference the Six Sigma Culture Can Make
Many organizations focus broadly on providing their employees with Six

Sigma training. While broad-based Six Sigma training is important, it is
only the beginning. It is necessary to build a culture to sustain Six Sigma.
When an organization lacks a culture to sustain Six Sigma, employees are

more likely to slip back into their old patterns of solving problems,
regardless of stated strategy.
Hence, training must be reinforced by a company culture that nurtures a

Six Sigma outlook and prevents employees from returning to their old and
less-effective ways.
Six Sigma efforts must be planted in the rich soil of a supportive culture so
as to take root.
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Differences Between Traditional and Six Sigma Cultures
Aspects of Culture Traditional Six Sigma
Work orientation Departmental, Process flow and customer-output

functional and/or task related
Who defines what needs Senior managers and Senior and department managers
improving department managers plus bottom-up suggestions from
project leaders and team members
Leadership for Functional managers or Champions and improvement
improvement designated project specialist (Belts)
leaders
Who has skills to Specialists (e.g., Specialists plus project leaders,
develop and implement engineers) and team members and managers
solutions managers
Improvement methods/ The most familiar ones Common, state-of-the-art
tools used approach and tools
Degree of operator Ad hoc Widespread through Yellow Belt
involvement training
Project management Variable Gate reviews at each step of
discipline related to DMAIC
improvement
How performance is Actual versus budget Impact on Xs (causal measures)
measured that affect Ys (outcomes)
Requirements for Culture Change
• Top down commitment and involvement
❖ Setting the example; being active in the audit process
• Measurement system to track progress at both macro and micro level
• Common well understood set of metrics
❖ METRICS=Measure Everything That Results In Customer Satisfaction
• Tough Goal Setting
• Benchmark Best In Class
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• Spread the success story
• Six Sigma is a mandatory activity
Please note that Six Sigma culture can be definitely developed by means of
change management.
14.4 Change Management
Change management is an umbrella term that covers all types of processes

implemented to prepare and support organizational change. These range
from methodologies applied to resources, business processes, budget
allocations and other operational aspects of a project. Change
management in the context of project management often refers to a
change control process when working on a project.
One thing is certain: change is going to happen. It is an inevitable fact of

any team or project and, therefore, an aspect of any project that must be
planned for. To best plan and respond to change, first a clear definition of
change management must be understood.
Change management is not solely organizational, either. You are preparing,

equipping and supporting team members, real people, to adopt to change.
This drives the organizational success of the project. While change can
happen anywhere and at any time, and people’s responses can vary,
change management offers a structured method that can reign in the
chaos and control your project. But it takes a strong leader to manage that
change.
• Individual Change Management: People are the root of all change.

You can change systems and procedures, but if you have not addressed
the human in the room, then you are not changing anything. To get
people to change, you must know your subject. What do they need to
hear to become open to change? How and when do offer training to help
them with the transition? The tools of this trade are psychological; even
neuroscience can help with finding the right angle to steer a person from
one behaviour to another more productive one.
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• Organizational Change Management: While the people on your team

are the core target to effect change, there are also larger, more
organizational issues you must address if you want to create real change
in a project. To do so requires first identifying the groups that require
change and how they must change. Then creating a plan that addresses
these components of the project, which includes making everyone aware
of the change, leading that change through coaching or some other
method like training, and then driving that change in congress with the
management of the whole project.
• Enterprise Change Management: Taking a step up from the

organizational change is to address the entire enterprise. It’s basically
taking change management to encompass all aspects of an organization,
meaning roles, structure, process, projects, leadership, etc. By
approaching change on the macro-level you’re more likely to implement
change on the micro-level, as a strategic engagement with change has
been applied to the very workings of the organization. It creates an
organization, able to stay flexible and adapt quickly to changes as they
occur.
Triple Constraint
Another way to understand change management on projects is through the

triple constraint. The triple constraint is what is referred to as the process
of managing scope, budget and quality on a project to bring it in
successfully. Simply put, that means completing your project on time,
within budget and to the standards assigned by its stakeholders, customers
or sponsors.
Change management, therefore, is the process of controlling the triple

constraint on your project. You have already set up process to accomplish
this when you created your project management plan. In that document
you detailed the time management, scope management, budget, quality,
risk, issues and other plans, all of which influence your change
management plan.
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14.5 Eight-Step Change Leadership Process
Dr. John P. Kotter is a professor of leadership, Emeritus, at the Harvard

Business School. He is known as the inventor of an eight-step process for
leading change that has become instrumental in change management
strategy.
• Create Urgency: There needs to be a compelling case for change, and

it’s up to the project leader to explain that reason clearly so people
understand and are inspired to change.
• Form a Powerful Coalition: One person cannot shoulder they change

themselves, it requires a team, so it’s important to collect the key people
to help enable that change.
• Create a Vision for the Change: Make it short, clear, relevant and easy
to understand by the people who are going to be affected by the change.
• Communicate the Vision: Communicate the change, but also don’t just
talk the talk, walk the walk of the change and have it reflected
throughout the project.
• Remove Obstacles: As you work towards implementing change, you

will hit both physical and emotional obstacles, so you and the team need
to help people overcome these blocks by listening to their concerns and
seeking their feedback.
• Create Short-Term Wins: By demonstrating the benefits of the change

early in the process you’re more likely to get buy-in and expedite the
process overall.
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• Build on the Change: Don’t think you’re done too early in the process,
instead repeat the above steps for a while and let the change settle in.
• Anchor the Change: Finally, make sure the change sticks by embedding
it in the organizational procedures, operating models and people’s day-
to-day work.
This change management theory is an expansion on what is the bedrock of

change management. Change management stands on four pillars. They
are:
• the determination that there is a need for change,

• preparing and planning for that change,
• implementing that change and, lastly,
• sustaining the change.
As said earlier, cultural change begins with leadership. Executives must

take the lead in showing tangible support for Six Sigma. When they do,
employees adopt Six Sigma into their daily work and the organization
benefits in three different ways:
• Opposition to Six Sigma from lower levels of the organization

diminishes
• Projects are managed more efficiently
• Management allocates resources to make actions consistent with
strategy
Once employees’ hearts and minds are prepared for a cultural shift, it is
time to put Six Sigma into continuous practice. Fortunately, Six Sigma
training can be adapted to the abilities and needs of every member of the
organization. The more employees who receive certification, education and
training the better established Six Sigma becomes in the culture.
Sticking to a solid change management plan will help the cultural shift keep
moving forward. However, every path to change contains unanticipated
hurdles that appear suddenly and demand a quick response. These hurdles
can include a lingering fondness for the old ways or a sudden flare up of
the old culture. Being prepared to deviate from the plan and willing to face
challenges as they arise keeps the cultural change on track.
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Be Liberal with Rewards
You get more of what you reward. Companies that bestow generous
rewards on the employees who support a Six Sigma culture will in turn be
rewarded with more support for the culture.
14.6 Conclusion
A Six Sigma culture pays long-term benefits. It provides trained eyes to

see problems and qualified hands to fix them.
A Six Sigma culture has the potential to literally transform employees.
Those with Six Sigma certification are cultured to see themselves and the
work they do differently than traditional employees. They’re taught to:
• See work in terms of process flow, and not just departments and
functions
• Take an active role in defining improvements and identifying solutions,

instead of relying on management.
• Utilize the appropriate skills to create and implement solutions
• Actively involve themselves in continuous improvement efforts.
Make your own write up about any additional steps (other than the eight
steps given in the chapter) required for leading organizational change.
! !228
14.8 Summary
• Process inputs control the outputs and determine their level of quality.
• Focus is on an unending quest for improving business processes and

reducing wastes.
• Six Sigma is fueled by people with a hunger for continuous improvement.
• The Six Sigma belt system uses a ranking structure similar to the one
used in martial arts disciplines. This belt system creates a hierarchy. The
structure helps Six Sigma-certified employees coordinate their work by
clearly defining the roles they play on the project team.
• Most employees are inevitably shaped into their company’s prevailing

culture. However, when the company culture is focused on teaching and
practicing the principles of Six Sigma, it can transform the way
employees see themselves and their work.
• Six Sigma expands employees’ vision and gives them the power to move
from passively witnessing a problem to actively solving it. Once
employees are steeped in the practice of Six Sigma, they may never be
the same again.
• Employees trained in Six Sigma develop the following stand-out qualities:
❖ They possess the training they need to use Six Sigma tools
❖ They take ownership for creating and implementing solutions to
problems
❖ They play an active role in eliminating defects and variance
❖ They see their work as part of the larger picture instead of their
assigned job function
• Requirements for Culture Change

❖ Top down commitment and involvement
❖ Setting the example; being active in the audit process
❖ Measurement system to track progress at both macro and micro level
❖ Common well understood set of metrics
❖ Tough Goal Setting
❖ Benchmark Best In Class
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❖ Spread the success story

❖ Six Sigma is a mandatory activity
• Six Sigma culture can be definitely developed by means of change

management.
• Eight-Step Change Leadership Process

❖ Create Urgency
❖ Form a Powerful Coalition
❖ Create a Vision for the Change
❖ Communicate the Vision
❖ Remove Obstacles
❖ Create Short-Term Wins
❖ Build on the Change
❖ Anchor the Change
1. Explain “Change Management”.
2. Write a short note on: Change leadership.
3. What are Metrics? Why are they important in Six Sigma initiative?
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1. W h o p a r t i c i p a t e a s a p r o j e c t t e a m m e m b e r a n d
review process improvements that support the project?
a. Yellow Belts
b. Sponsor
c. Process owners
d. Champions
2. Metrics in an acronym of “Measure Everything That Results in

-----------”
a. Central system
b. Core solutions
c. Customer satisfaction
d. Creative solutions
3. Who is a professor of leadership, Emeritus, at the Harvard Business
School, who is known as the inventor of an eight-step process for
leading change?
a. John Kotter
b. Peter Drucker
c. James C. Collins
d. Warren Bennis
4. Cultural change begins with:

a. Entrepreneurship
b. Ownership
c. Scholarship
d. Leadership
5. The triple constraint is what is referred to as the process of managing

scope, budget and ----------------- on a project to bring it in
successfully.
a. Cost
b. Quality
c. Quantity
d. Delivery
Answers: 1-a, 2-c, 3-a, 4-d, 5-b
! !231
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !232
SIX SIGMA PROJECT SELECTION PROCESS
Chapter 15
Six Sigma Project Selection Process
Objectives
• How to pick right projects

• What are CTQs and CTQ trees
• Projects that benefit customers and that improve processes
• Details about project charter and metrics
Structure
15.1 Picking right projects
15.2 Efficacy of a Business Process
15.3 Critical to Quality (CTQs)
15.4 Critical to Quality CTQ Tree
15.5 Projects that directly benefit Key Customers
15.6 Projects that Improve a process in a measurable way
15.7 Project Charter
15.8 Project Metrics
15.10 Summary
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15.1 Picking Right Projects
With a Six Sigma project, the solution for the issue should be unknown.
• Project selection and building organizational support through the Project

Champion or sponsor are two critical factors in achieving success.
• The major difference between general improvement projects and a Six

Sigma project is the focus on improving a process by shifting the average
result, and reducing the variation or both.
Picking the right projects is a key responsibility of organizational

leadership. Resources are limited, so set priorities on Six Sigma projects
specifically for process improvement so each project supports the following
criteria:
• Directly benefits to key customers. List the specific customers and

benefits expected-improved customer service is a good process goal for
scheduling, warehousing, shipping and production planning.
• Provides a direct link to the strategic goals of the organization.

For each project proposed, list each specific strategic goal that is linked
to the project. If at least one strategic goal for the project cannot be
identified, take the project off the list.
• Directly impacts key business objectives. For each proposed project,

specify how it will impact a key business objective.
• Improves a process in a measurable way. List all critical to quality

(CTQ) processes. Evaluate the defects per million opportunities and
express this as a sigma level. Set an organization goal for sigma level
attainment. Rank the CTQs and work in order with the worst listed first.
• Financial contribution. Does the project meet minimum financial

contribution to the bottom-line profitability or top-line growth? An
organization may want to establish a minimum financial impact based on
expected project costs, which often can be INR 15 Lakhs to INR 30 Lakhs
for major projects. Does the overall Six Sigma process contribute enough
to financial results? Two percent of gross sales is a useful guideline for
annual savings impact for a well-run Six Sigma initiative.
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15.2 Efficacy of a Business Process
Efficacy of a business process is decided by following two aspects:
• How effectively it meets Voice of the Customer : customer demands

(CTQs)
• How efficiently it meets business objectives. (Process goals)
The Six Sigma project must address a strategic process that improves the
company’s quality and profitability as well as the satisfaction of its
customers.
15.3 Critical to Quality (CTQs)

satisfy the customer. These outputs represent the product or service
characteristics defined by the customer (internal or external).
15.4 Critical to Quality CTQ Tree

competitors.

! !235

and services for your "internal customers.”
that customers will use to evaluate the quality of your product. For

! !236
Step 1: Identify Critical Needs
You first need to identify the critical needs that your product has to meet.
Do a CTQ Tree for every need that you identify.
During this first step, you're essentially asking, "What is critical for this
product or service?”
It's best to define these needs in broad terms; this will help ensure that
you don't miss anything important in the next steps.
If you can't ask customers directly about their needs, brainstorm their
needs with people who deal with customers directly – sales people and
customer service representatives – as well as with your team.
Step 2: Identify Quality Drivers
Next, you need to identify the specific quality drivers that have to be in
place to meet the needs that you identified in the previous step.
Remember, these are the factors that must be present for customers to
think that you are delivering a high quality product.
Don't rush this – it's important that you identify all of the drivers that are
important to your customers.
Again, speak to people with customer contact, and ask your customers
what factors are important to them.
! !237
Step 3: Identify Performance Requirements
Finally, you need to identify the minimum performance requirements that

you must satisfy for each quality driver, in order to actually provide a
quality product.
Here it's important to remember that there are many things that will affect
your ability to deliver these. For example, do you have enough resources
or the right technology in place? And, what will you need to do in other
parts of your organization to meet these requirements?
Once you've completed a CTQ Tree for each critical need, you'll have a list
of measurable requirements that you must meet to deliver a high quality
product.
CTQ Tree Example
Ajay is launching a store that sells baby clothing. After speaking with
potential customers, one of the critical needs he identifies is "Good
Customer Service." So he uses a CTQ Tree to create a list of measurable
performance requirements that will help him achieve this.
! !238
Ajay's Example CTQ Tree
Let us discuss another example of a CTQ tree.
The project is say a new standard of netbook, perhaps a customer's

requirement is that the netbook be light and small. This first step has a lot
of sub-steps, all of which are directly related to what a customer is looking
for. Try to identify at least three to five requirements that a customer is
looking for. Some more customer’s requirements are:
• the netbook should be able to run high quality graphics (for media
playback or video games),
• it should have a fast processor,
• it should have a high level of customization (such as laptop color or

design), and last but not the least,
! !239
• affordable price.
These goals are of course achieved with open dialogue between both the
team working on the CTQ as well as the customer. Then it is time to set
measurements for the requirements; that is, that discussion begins on how
realistic the requirements are.
• Can the netbook still be light and small if it has the ability to run quality
graphics?
• Can an affordable price be had ?
The last step is to confirm the requirements that the customers have set
for the product and that those requirements can be met by the company or
manufacturer. Again, open discussion is advised in order to get to a point
where both the customer and the company are happy with the projected
ideas and expectations.
The main points a CTQ tree are to make sure that the needs of the
customer are met and then converted into a reasonable and detailed
project plan for continuation. It also helps the team working on the project
get from the idea stage - that of the needs and requirements of the
customer - to the planning stage, that is the stage in which the design is
put into a more specialization context for the company itself. The time it
takes for the completion of a CTQ tree is dependent on when the needs are
met and if any more ideas come to the table.
15.5 Projects that Directly benefit key customers
Some examples of common core business processes are:

• New product development
• Order generation
• Order fulfillment
• Customer service
• Acquisition
• Purchasing
! !240
These are Level 1 processes. Let us analyze the order fulfillment process.
On the basis of the voice of the customer or the customer expectations,

some of the CTQs are as follows:
• On time delivery
• Ease of doing business
• Billing accuracy
• Packaging performance
• Product performance
• Time to repair
• Product dimensions e.g. Length of the side panel
The CTQs have to be validated with customers.
Let us build the linkages for the CTQ “On-time Delivery”.We call
this CTQ as “Y”.
• Top level Y is big enough to be seen at a business unit or at a customer

level. It is also called as process effectiveness goal.
• Y1….Yn are effectiveness drivers.
• X1.1… are the predictors of process effectiveness. (or drivers of drivers)
! !241
Key drivers of on-time delivery Xs--->
!
Let us analyze the order fulfillment process further. This is a level 1
process.
Level 2 processes for order fulfillment are:
• Demand forecasting
• Production planning
• Sourcing and purchasing
• Materials conversion
• Warehousing
• Order entry
• Shipping
! !242
Level 3 processes for materials conversion (process no. 4 above)

are:
• Extrusion
• Braided PTFE assembly
• Sub-assembly
• Final assembly
• QA
• Packaging
• Sterilization
Level 4 processes for assembly and packaging are:

• Bluing
• Fitting
• Tightening
• Packaging
• Leak test
• QA release
Such analysis has to be done in case of every level 1 business process.e.g.

new product development, order generation, customer service, purchasing
etc.
Projects are to be found in level 3 and level 4 processes.
! !243
15.6 Projects that Improve a process in a measurable way
In this case, we use the word “process goal” or VOP (Voice of the Process)
instead of CTQ.
Once we complete this task, we have to prioritize drivers to attack. Pay

particular attention to yield and capacity constraints.
After selecting the projects from the above trees, level 3 and 4 processes,
we have to assign a Champion, Black Belt and team members who are fully
trained and certified, to each project. Please note that Black Belt is a team
! !244
member working for full time on the project, and so his normal duties have
to be assigned to some other person.
15.7 Project Charter

clear direction, the project charter is critical. This document must contain
all of the essential information to focus and guide the project team
activities through the DMAIC methodology. The project charter is a
summary document, ideally one page in length containing the following
information.
• Business case and project rationale/ key drivers: A summary of the

strategic business situation that is the motivation for this project. This
summary is linked to the strategic goals indicated in the section on
project selection.
• Project statement: A simple, concise statement that explains what the

team will work on and what is not the focus of the project, what the
team is expected to accomplish and a target date for achieving the
primary goal.
• Project goals: The primary goal is the specific improvement goal

associated with the project statement, which is linked to the financial
gains and customer satisfaction expectations. The secondary goals are
additional goals that will be achieved as a result of the primary goal,
such as increased production capacity and reduced materials costs that
are realized from improved quality of a product or service.
• Process and process boundaries: Specify the process that is the focus
of the improvement effort-for example, printer assembly line 6 at the
West Plant. Identify the specific starting and ending boundaries for the
project teamwork.
• Project timeline and milestones: Identify a timetable for the project,

including the start and end dates. Propose start and end dates for each
step of the DMAIC methodology. Projects should be doable in four to
eight months.
! !245
• Team members: Each Six Sigma project will have from five to seven
team members. If expertise from additional persons is required, consider
them as support resources rather than full-time team members. Team
members should include people selected to represent the employees who
work on the process associated with the project, engineering and
maintenance functions, and the outside customer of the process, as well
as the preceding and following processes.
How does the Project Charter look like?
SIX SIGMA PROJECT PROJECT NO.
DIVISION DEPARTMENT DATE:
PROJECT STATEMENT:
Aim of the Project:
Business case and project rationale/ key drivers (Voice of the customer/process/
CTQ and CTQ tree):
Defect definition:
Process metrics / defect metrics:
Project Goals:
Process that is the focus of improvement:

Project timeline and milestones
Names of the team members and their status
Meeting frequency:
Project Approved by:
Sponsor
Project Excellence Leader
! !246
Following are the keys to an organization’s success:
• Select and train good Champions and Project Leaders
• Select the right projects, prioritize them and clearly charter them
If in the Six Sigma journey the expected results are not being achieved,
the answer may lay within these critical success factors.
Organizations invest in Six Sigma to achieve a return for themselves and

improvement for their customers. Successful Six Sigma projects have a
high impact and payback to the organization. They are the result of:
• careful selection, planning and execution by the organization,

• management by the Champion,
• leadership by the Belts and
• hard work by the project team following the direction summarized in
the project charter.
They do not happen by chance, follow the process-achieve the results.
15.8 Project Metrics
One of the crucial elements of the project charter is the selection of project
metrics- (a system or standard of measurement).
Project metrics selected should reflect the voice of the customer (customer
needs), as well as ensure that the internal metrics selected by the
organization are achieved. Metrics selected should be simple and
straightforward and meaningful. Metrics selected should create a common
language among diverse team members.
When drafting metrics for a particular project one should consider how the
metrics are connected and related to key business metrics. Typically, there
is no one metric that fits all the requirements for a particular situation.
! !247
Developing Project Metrics
The most common approach used by teams is to understand the problem

statement, brainstorm metrics, and finally decide what metrics can help
them achieve better performance. The team then reviews these metrics
with executive management to ensure that they are in synergy with the
overall strategy of the business.
Care should be exercised in determining what is measured. Metrics should

be based on what needs to be measured to improve the process, rather
than what fits the current measurement system. Metrics need to be
scrutinized from the value they add in understanding a process.
The teams can employ an effective method by answering the following

questions :
1. What financial objectives have to be accomplished to ensure the success

of the project?
2. By working on this project, what customer objectives will be met?
3. To achieve our customer objectives, which process have to be worked

on?
4. To achieve our project goals, how should our team learn and innovate?
Primary Metric
The primary metric is a generic term for a Six Sigma project's most
important measure of success. The Primary metric is defined by the Black
Belt, GB, MBB or Champion.
A primary metric is an absolute MUST for any project and it should not be
taken lightly. Here, are a few characteristics of good primary metrics:
• Primary metrics should be tied to the problem statement & objective
• Primary metrics should have an operational definition
! !248
• Primary metrics should be measurable, expressed in the form of an

equation and simple
• Primary metrics should be aligned to business objectives
• Primary metrics should tracked at the proper frequency (hourly, daily,

weekly, monthly etc)
• Primary metrics should be expressed graphically over time with a run

chart, time series or control chart
• Primary metrics should be validated with an MSA
Secondary Metric
The secondary metric is the thing you don't want to sacrifice on behalf of a
primary improvement. For example, you were accountable for saving
energy in an office building and your primary metric was energy
consumption then you could shut off all the lights and the HVAC system
and save tons of energy. But your secondary metric(s) are probably
comfort and functionality of the work environment, which you cannot
sacrifice.
Prepare a project charter of the Six Sigma projects planned to be

undertaken by you in your organization.
! !249
15.10 Summary
Picking the right projects is a key responsibility of organizational

leadership. Resources are limited, so set priorities on Six Sigma projects
specifically for process improvement so each project supports the following
criteria:
• Directly benefits to key customers

• Provides a direct link to the strategic goals of the organization
• Directly impacts key business objectives
• Improves a process in a measurable way
• Financial contribution
Efficacy of a business process is decided by following two aspects:
• How effectively it meets Voice of the customer / customer demands

(CTQs)
• How efficiently it meets business objectives. (Process goals)

satisfy the customer.

clear direction, the project charter is critical.
One of the crucial elements of the project charter is the selection of project
metrics- (a system or standard of measurement).
! !250
1. Explain:
• Key drivers
• Voice of the process
2. What are project metrics?
3. Which are level 2 processes?
1. Efficacy of a business process is decided by two aspects viz. How

effectively it meets Voice of the Customer and how efficiently it meets:
a. Process goals
b. Business profits
c. Bottom line performance
d. Balance sheet
2. Demand forecasting is a level 2 process. What is the level 1 process for

this?
a. Order fulfillment
b. Production planning
c. Sourcing and purchasing
d. Materials conversion
3. If primary metric is energy consumption, what could be the secondary

metric?
a. Comfort
b. Cost
c. Quality
d. Delivery
4. While building the linkages for the CTQ “On-time Delivery”, this CTQ is
called as:
a. X
b. Y
c. Z
d. Sigma
! !251
5. ------- of gross sales is a useful guideline for annual savings impact for
a well-run Six Sigma initiative.
a. 10%
b. 5%
c. 8%
d. 2%
Answers: 1-a, 2-a, 3-a, 4-b, 5-d
! !252
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
! !253
ROAD MAP FOR SIX SIGMA
Chapter 16
Road Map For Six Sigma
Objectives
• The primary constituencies on which Business must concentrate for

results
• The Life cycle of a Six Sigma initiative
Structure
16.1 Primary Constituencies for Results
16.2 Life Cycle of a Six Sigma Initiative
16.3 Training for Six Sigma
16.5 Summary
! !254
16.1 Primary constituencies for results
In the final analysis, there are four primary constituencies on which a

business must concentrate in terms of results – customers, leadership,
employees and financials.
Customers
In terms of results, the customer takes the top priority. Without customers,
there can be no company, no results. Companies that worship only the god
of profit wind up with neither profit nor customer loyalty. Four primary
factors are key to customer results:
1. Core customer loyalty: Their retention rate as a percentage of the

total customer base is crucial for the success of a company.
2. Value added to the customer: A company’s primary objective is to

add value to the customer, as perceived by the customer. If that value
added is insufficient, customer could change suppliers or take on the
product/service to himself.
3. Customer base reduction: Not all customers are worth keeping. In

fact, the mark of smart companies would be to give their poor
customers to the competition.
4. Public perceptions of the company: When all is said and done, a

company grows in stature or fades away based on the perceptions of
the public-at-large about the company as a good employer and as a
responsible citizen.
! !255
Leadership
Next only to customers, leadership is the most important criterion for

results. A company without true leadership is rudderless. Four primary
factors are vital to leadership results.
1. Releasing the full potential of all employees: The true measure of a

successful leader is to release the creative genie of each employee
currently trapped in a bottle of bureaucracy and giving it full scope to
flower and bloom for the betterment of the employee and of the
company.
2. Transforming managers into leaders: Most employees estimate that

the ratio of leaders to managers in companies is 1:99. The measure of a
successful, results-oriented company is the extent to which this dismal
ratio has been reversed to favour enlightened leaders over autocratic
managers.
3. Conveying ethics, trust and help: These are the hallmark of

leadership. Without ethics, the company is not likely to survive in the
long run. Without trust, employees will always feel alienation. Without
active, concrete help, they will not rise to their maximum of their god-
given potential. Leadership involves uncompromising integrity in all
business dealings, even at the expense of the bottom line. It involves
trust in people so that the latter can earn that trust. It involves helping
people technically, managerially, administratively or emotionally, as
coach and guide, rather than as an overbearing boss.
4. Gain sharing: One of the distinctive differences between a truly

successful company and a mediocre one is the differentials in gain
sharing between senior managers and those employees who have
earned it by their tangible contributions to profitability.
Employees
Behind customers and leadership, employees are next in the rank order of
constituencies. It is becoming axiomatic that a company cannot have
customer loyalty without a corresponding employee loyalty. Four primary
factors are essential in generating employee loyalty
! !256
1. “Create joy in workplace” – Deming: Company’s productivity and

employee morale can be gauged in a brief walkthrough in its plant. If
workmen appear busy, happy and hustling, a good productivity can be
presumed. On the other hand, if they appear furtive, cowed, bored or
sullen, one can sense a poor work climate and poor productivity.
2. Empowerment: Empowerment ranges from total passivity to industrial

democracy. With the introduction of open book management, self-
directed work teams and mini companies, an organization can make a
leap of faith to the full potential.
3. Ratio of CEO salaries to line worker salaries: No rational worker

would ever begrudge the higher salaries of top managers who have the
onerous responsibility of guiding companies in these turbulent times.
But if the ratio is excessively high, the gap is the harbinger of a
potential revolt. It contributes to worker dejection, frustration and
alienation. If free enterprise is to survive, this ratio by design, be
reduced, voluntarily by a company’s board of directors.
4. The reduction of organization layers between top management

and the worker: One sure mark of a company’s employee health is the
number of organizational layers between the CEO and the lowly worker.
Modern organizational development recommends no more than five
layers, even for the largest of companies. When managers have to
shepherd fifty to a hundred employees each, instead of six to ten, they
can no longer micromanage them. They must have faith in their
employees, give them the freedom to attain corporate goals and get out
of their way. This transforms autocratic managers into coaches and
teachers.
Financials
Financials are important to gauge health of an organization; however, they

are lagging indicators, not leading ones. Following primary factors give a
well rounded perspective on financials:
• Profit on Sales: The most common yardstick of financial performance is

profit on sales. But since profit on sales is not tied to money invested, it
is less effective as compared to other parameters of financial
performance, notably:
! !257
• Return on Investment (ROI): Income after interest and taxes, divided

by assets minus current liabilities
• Return on Assets (ROA): Income divided by assets (i.e., inventory and

receivables plus fixed assets)
• Return on Net Assets (RONA): Income before interest and taxes,

divided by assets minus current liabilities
• Return on Equity (ROE): Income after interest and taxes, divided by

stockholders’ equity.
Of these, ROI and RONA are the most meaningful of yardsticks because of
the multiplier effect of asset turns on profits, which is expressed as ROI =
Profit on Sales x Asset turns even a mediocre profit on sales of one per
cent can be turned into an outstanding ROI of 20 % with asset turns of
twenty.
1. Market position: Several companies consider market share to be

particularly attractive and strive mightily to increase it. It, however,
could give a company a false sense of well-being as its market share
increases while customer defections may also be on rise slowly. By
contrast, market position vis-a-vis other companies in the same
business gives a clearer signal of performance. General Electric’s Jack
Welch would jettison any of his businesses if it does not achieve the
number-one or number-two position and maintain it in the marketplace.
2. Value added per employee: Frequently, companies use the metric of

sales per employee per year as a measure of their financial/productivity
performance. A truer productivity measure is value added per employee
– that is, revenue minus material cost. With this, comparisons across
companies become meaningful.
! !258
16.2 The Life cycle of a Six Sigma Initiative
A Six Sigma initiative occurs in five major stages
• In first stage, goals are established and infrastructure is installed
• In second stage, the initiative is deployed by assigning, training and

equipping the staff
• In third stage, the projects are implemented to improve performance and

yield financial results
• In fourth stage, the scope of the initiative is expanded to include

additional organizational units and
• In the fifth stage, the initiative is sustained through re-alignment, re-

training and evolution.
Initialise
Six Sigma initiatives are programs. They require programmatic-type

preparations and planning, beginning with a prospective set of readiness
tasks. The initialisation stage includes selecting the core team, preparing
the supporting infrastructure and enabling the processes, which must be in
place to facilitate the deployment activities of the next stage.
As part of initialisation, executive training prepares the executive staff and

senior leaders by providing a comprehensive overview of the Six Sigma
deployment process and what to expect. The executives also agree on
macro items including scope, time frames, goals and objectives and they
issue a formal commitment statement to all employees and constituents.
The scope of the first deployments should be kept in check. The most
successful Six Sigma initiatives begin with the deployment scope limited to
a selected line of business or division of activity.
Deploy
With a supporting infrastructure, corporate goals and metrics established,

the deploy stage begins with the selection of the champions and the first
candidate Black Belts, Green Belts and Yellow Belts.
! !259
Champions are trained in the Six Sigma methodology, principles of

implementing Six Sigma, project selection, practices and tools and then
they begin the critical work of selecting the first Six Sigma projects. Also,
the infrastructure is deployed by the core team. This includes finance
practices, guidelines for auditing project financials; software tools for
statistical analysis, project management and process optimisation; training
materials, curricula and schedules for all Belt Training and motivational
communications from management. A project tracking and performance
dashboard system is deployed.
According to the deployment plan, the first waves of Black Belts, Green
Belts and Yellow Belts are trained and assigned to projects. Six Sigma
deployments include the practice of conducting projects as part of the Belt
training. All types of Belt training include the definition, characterisation
and improvement of a work process as part of training regimen. Although
this extends the training period, trainees deliver results to the bottom line
as they complete their initial training. The training has immediate-term
ROI.
Implement
Upon completion of the first waves of Belt training, the early successes
create momentum and the Six Sigma initiative begins to gather traction. As
successes continue, the initiative can become infectious and turn around
even the skeptics.
In this stage, the practitioners define and map the processes, identify
critical-to-quality indicators, collect performance data and characterise the
process performance. They conduct statistical analysis, discover the root
causes of problems and improve performance levels. At this stage,
company begins to root out waste, increase productivity, lower costs and
decrease cycle time.
It’s important to watch the process closely. Black Belts must be assigned
full time to their projects and given leverage to perform. Green Belts and
even Yellow Belts must be supported in their projects. Technical issues
must be addressed head-on with appropriate skill to ensure success.
! !260
Not all first projects go well – for a variety of reasons. If early high-profile
projects sputter, it can threaten the success of the initiative. For this
reason, one must choose early projects that have a manageable scope,
moderate risk and the promise of reasonable returns. Big risk-High reward
projects can be withheld for a little later.
Expand
Following the first successful waves of implementation, the organization

expands Six Sigma into new geographies, functional areas and lines of
business.
The introduction of Six Sigma into each new line of business is an initiative
unto itself and includes the stages of initialisation, deployment and
implementation. The lessons learned from the first deployment are
included in revisions to the implementation plans going forward.
Some form of tailoring or customisation of Six Sigma is required to deploy

into each new business or functional area. Examples include
• Six Sigma in engineering and design areas would employ methods and
tools of DFSS and tools like Axiomatic design
• Six Sigma in manufacturing includes lean practices
• highly computerised environments may incorporate automated process

execution management tools
• deployment into foreign countries requires internationalisation and

localisation of materials and tools
Also, as the portfolio of projects grows and diversifies, it is important to

apply enterprise-class tracking and management tools.
The first few waves of projects in any given function or business area
harvest what is known as the low-hanging fruit – the obvious opportunities
with big returns. As the Six Sigma initiative matures, two phenomena
occur
! !261
• The biggest projects have all been completed
• The Yellow Belt culture is curing little problems before they become big
problems
At this point, the project-oriented Six Sigma culture begins to give way to
the sustaining culture.
Sustain
Six Sigma is a problem solving methodology. A Six Sigma deployment

applies the Six Sigma suite of problem solving tools to business challenges
in a series of projects, each of which addresses technical, performance,
quality and other problems in core and enabling processes of the
organization.
Through expansion, typically over a period of several years, the initiative

reaches the four corners of the enterprise. At this point, the Six Sigma
initiative changes character. The deployment leader and champion shift the
sustaining direction away from a project orientation into a process-
management approach, where the tools of Six Sigma move to a supporting
role – as part of how business and work processes execute most efficiently
and effectively. The Six Sigma tools take their place in the organization’s
methodological toolbox, along with other selected tools of business
performance operations.
In the sustain phase, the culture is self-healing. The Six Sigma project is
used as a hot-shot tool for addressing flare-up issues that emerge from
new initiatives and outside forces. Six Sigma training supports these
project needs and is also integrated with other methods to support process
needs. Training is used as a refresher for existing staff and to enable new
hires, contractors and acquisitions.
16.3 Training for Six Sigma
Training is a key ingredient to achieving success by following the Six Sigma

way. The emphasis in Six Sigma training should be to improve employee
skills and the methods they need to fulfill their roles. A model Six Sigma
training curriculum could work out as below
! !262
Six Sigma Training Curriculum
Training
Key Content Audiences
Topic
1 Orientation to the Six Basic Six Sigma All
Sigma concepts principles; Review of
business need for Six
Sigma; Brief practice
and simulation;
Overview of roles and
expectations.
2 Leading and sponsoring Role requirement and Business Leaders;
Six Sigma efforts skills for leadership Implementation
council and sponsors; Leaders
Project selection;
Reviewing team
projects.
3 Six Sigma processes and Condensed and Business Leaders;
tools for leaders adapted instructions in Implementation
Six Sigma Leaders
measurement and
analysis process/tools.
4 Leading change Concept and practices Business Leaders;
for setting direction, Implementation
promoting and guiding Leaders; Coach/Master
organizational change Bleak Belts; Team
Leaders/ Black Belts.
5 Six Sigma Improvement Process improvement, Team Leaders, Black
Basic skills training Design/ Redesign and Belts; Manager/Green
cost measurement and Belts; Team members,
improvement tools Project Sponsors.
6 Collaboration and Team Skills and methods for Business Leaders,
leading skills developing consensus Coaches/Master Black
leading discussions Belt, Team Leaders/
conducting meeting, Black Belts, Managers
managing
disagreement
! !263
7 Intermediate Six Sigma Technical skills for Coaches/Master Black

measurement and more complex project Belt; Team Leading/
analytical tools. challenges; Sampling Black Belts.
and dote collection;
Statistics process
control; Tests of
statistical significance;
Correlation and
regression; Basic
design of experiments,
etc.
8 Advanced Six Sigma Modules in specialised Coaches/Master Black
tools. skills and tools; Quality Belts; Internal
function deployment; Consultants
Advanced satisfied
analysis; Advanced
DOE; Taguchi methods,
etc.
9 Process Management Defining a cost or Process owners,
principles and skills support process; Business Leaders;
identifying critical Functional Managers
outputs, Requirement
and measure;
Monitoring and
response plans
Make a write up about following:
Which constituencies, as per your opinion, other than the four primary
constituencies mentioned in this chapter, a business should concentrate?
! !264
16.5 Summary
Having decided on the need for a Six Sigma project, making funds
available and setting up the organization structure, management will have
to lay out a roadmap for going ahead with it. Training the personnel for the
appropriate skills, methods and use of tools becomes imperative for the
successful completion of the project.
1. Which are the four primary constituencies, a business should

concentrate for results? Explain one of those in detail.
2. Write a brief on Six Sigma Life-cycle.
3. Write a brief on Six Sigma training curriculum.
1. One of the four primary factors key to customer results is:

a. Core customer orders
b. Core customer loyalty
c. Core customer competencies
d. Core customer cost
2. A company’s primary objective is to add ------------ to the customer, as

perceived by the customer.
a. Cost
b. Price
c. Value
d. GST
3. One of the four primary factors vital to leadership results is releasing full
potential of:
a. Customers
b. Employees
c. Materials
d. Finance
! !265
4. One of the four primary factors essential in generating employee loyalty

is:
a. Create joy in workplace
b. Keeping watch on their work
c. Being strict with them
d. Create workload
5. Six Sigma in engineering and design areas would employ methods and
tools of --------- and tools like Axiomatic design.
a. DMAIC
b. Process FMEA
c. SPC
d. DFSS
Answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-b, 4-a, 5-d
! !266
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !267
GETTING STARTED WITH SIX SIGMA
Chapter 17
Getting Started With Six Sigma
Objectives
• The steps involved in Six Sigma implementation
• What is a 6 project life cycle?
Structure
17.1 Steps Involved in the Six Sigma Implementation
17.2 Project Life Cycle
17.4 Summary
! !268
17.1 Steps Involved in the Six Sigma Implementation
Getting started with Six Sigma involves following five steps:
• Identify core processes and key customers

• Define customer requirements
• Measure current performance
• Priorities, analyze and implement improvements
• Expand and integrate the Six Sigma system
1. Identify Core Processes and Key Customers

As businesses become ever more dispersed and global, it gets tougher and
tougher to see the “big picture” of how the work actually gets done. The
purpose of this step is to get clearer focus by defining critical activities and
understanding the broad structure of the business system. The objectives
of this step are applicable to an entire organization or any segment of it.
Even functions that serve internal customers like HR, Information
Technology or Administration have their own core processes.
2. Define Customer Requirements

Getting good customer input on the company’s requirements is the most
challenging aspect of the Six Sigma approach. One can’t develop
meaningful measures until he/she has clear, specific customer
requirements. These requirements fall into two key categories:
• Output requirements that are tied to the end product or service that
make it work for the customer
• Service requirements describing how the organization should interact

with the customer
! !269
Define Checklist
Following is a good checklist to confirm whether sufficient work spread has

been done in define stage of the Six Sigma project in one’s organization
1. Confirmed that the project is a worthwhile improvement priority for

the organization and is supported by business
leaders.......................................................................YES / NO
2. Written a brief project rationale explaining the project impact of the

project on customers, profits and its relationship on the company’s
business strategies........................YES / NO
3. Composed and agreed to a two to three sentence description of the

problem as one sees it – the problem statement – focusing on
symptoms only.....................................YES / NO
4. Prepared a goal statement defining the results one is seeking from

the project, with a measurable target. No solutions are proposed in
the goal statement...................YES / NO
5. Prepared other key elements of a DMAIC team charter, including a list

of constraints and assumptions, a review of players and roles, a
preliminary plan and schedule and a process
scope......................................................................YES / NO
6. Reviewed one’s charter with his/her sponsor for the project and
confirmedhis/her support..............................................YES / NO
7. Identified the primary customer and key requirements of the process

being improved and created the SIPOC diagram of the areas of
concern............................................YES / NO
8. Prepared a detailed process map of areas of the process where one

expects to focus initial measurement........................YES / NO
! !270
3. Measure Current Performance
This step looks into how well the organization is delivering the customer
requirements and how the performance can be sustained in future. There
are several other benefits of this step:
• Creating a measurement infrastructure: It sensitises the changes in

performance – good and bad – and responds promptly to warning signs
and opportunities. Over time, this data becomes valuable input to the
responsive Six Sigma organization.
• Setting priorities and focusing resources: Knowledge derived from

these measures drives decisions as to where to make the most urgent
and high potential improvements.
• Selecting the best improvement strategies: Having accurate process

capability measures allows gauging the real nature of performance issues
and strategizing improvement plan.
Measure Checklist
If one can respond “yes” to each statement below, he/she is doing well
with the measurement and is ready to move into the “Analysis” phase of
DMAIC.
1. Determined what one wants to learn about the problem and process and
where in the process one can go to get the
answer..................................................................YES / NO
2. Identified the types of measures one wants to collect and have a

balance between effectiveness/efficiency and input/process
output.................................................YES / NO
3. Developed clear, unambiguous operational definitions of the things or

attributes one wants to measure .......................YES / NO
4. Tested one’s operational definitions with others to ensure their clarity

and consistent interpretation........................................YES / NO
! !271
5. Made a clear, reasonable choice between gathering new data or taking

advantage of exiting data collected in the organization
.........................................YES / NO
6. Clarified the satisfaction factors we need to identify to facilitate analysis

of one’s data...........................................................YES / NO
7. Developed and tested data collection forms or check sheets which are
easy to use and provide consistent, complete data
..........................................YES / NO
8. Identified an appropriate sample size, subgroup quantity and sampling

frequency to ensure valid representation of the process one is
measuring..............................YES / NO
9. Prepared and tested one’s measurement system, including training of

collectors and assessment of data collection stability
..........................YES / NO
10.Used data to prepare baseline process performance measures, including

proportion defective and yield...............................YES / NO
4. Priorities, Analyze and Implement Improvements

The objective of this step is to identify high-potential improvement
opportunities and develop process-oriented solutions supported by factual
analysis and creative thinking. The objective is, also, to effectively
implement new solutions and processes and provide measurable,
sustainable gains. Six Sigma techniques and tools can be applied to large,
complex business problems or to fairly simple process improvement
opportunities.
! !272
Analyze Checklist
If one can respond “yes” to statements below and have done many of the
tasks described in the other statements, then one is ready to begin
developing solutions in the “Improve” phase of DMAIC.
1. Examined one’s process and identified potential bottlenecks, disconnects

and redundancies that could contribute to the problem on which one is
focusing.........................................................................................
........................YES / NO
2. Conducted a value and cycle time analysis, locating areas where time
and resources are devoted to tasks not critical to the customer…………
YES / NO
3. Analyzed data about the process and its performance to help stratify the
problem, understand reasons for variation in the process and identify
potential root causes..................................................YES / NO
4. Evaluated whether one’s project should focus on process design or

redesign, as opposed to process improvement and confirmed one’s
decision with the project sponsor.........................................YES / NO
5. Ensured that one understands the key workings of the process so one
can begin creating a new process to meet the needs of the customer
efficiently/effectively………........................YES / NO
6. Developed root cause hypotheses to explain the problem one is

solving...........................................................................................
........................YES / NO
7. Investigated and verified one’s root cause hypotheses, so that one is

confident that one or more “vital few” root causes for the problem have
been uncovered.................YES / NO
! !273
Improve Checklist
If one can respond “yes” to each of the statements below, he/she has
achieved success with one’s improvement and is ready to plan to “control”
his/her process/solution
1. C r e a t e d a l i s t o f i n n o v a t i v e i d e a s f o r p o t e n t i a l
solutions ............................................................ YES / NO
2. Used the narrowing and screening techniques to further develop and

quantify potential solutions............................................... YES / NO
3. Created a “solution statement” for at least two possible proposed

improvements.................................................................YES / NO
4. M a d e a f i n a l c h o i c e o f o n e ’s s o l u t i o n b a s e d o n s u c c e s s
criteria................................................................ YES / NO
5. Verified one’s solution with his/her sponsor and received buy-in and the
go-ahead.....................................................YES / NO
6. Developed a plan for piloting and testing the solution, including a pilot
s t r a t e g y, a c t i o n p l a n , r e s u l t s a s s e s s m e n t , s c h e d u l e ,
etc.............................. YES / NO
7. Evaluated pilot results and confirmed that one can achieve the results
defined in the goal statement............................................YES / NO
8. Identified and implemented refinements to the solution based on

lessons from the pilot............................................. YES / NO
9. Created and put in place a plan to expand the solution to a complete

implementation...............................................................................
.......................YES / NO
10.Considered potential problems and unintended consequences of the

solution and developed preventive and contingent actions to address
them........................... YES / NO
! !274
5. Expand and integrate the Six Sigma system
Objective of this step is to initiate ongoing business practices that drive

improved performance and ensure constant measurement, re-examination
and renewal of products, services, processes and procedures. In this step,
organization works hard to achieve its vision of a Six Sigma organization.
A Six Sigma project passes through following stages, time duration of

which will depend upon complexity and magnitude of the project.
Control Checklist
If one can respond “yes” to each statement below, he/she has completed
all key steps in the DMAIC project and celebrations are now due for the
successful completion of the Six Sigma project.
1. Compiled results data confirming that the improvement has achieved

the goal defined in the DMAIC team charter..................... YES / NO
2. Selected ongoing measures to monitor performance of the process and

continued effectiveness of one’s solution..................... YES / NO
3. Determined key charts / graphs for a “process scorecard” on this

Process..........................................................................................
.................YES / NO
4. Prepared all essential documentation of the revised process, including

key procedures and process maps.......................... YES / NO
5. Identified an “owner” of the process who will take over responsibility for
the solution and for managing continuing operations.................. YES /
NO
6. Developed Process Management charts detailing requirements,

measures and responses to problems in the process....................
YES / NO
7. Prepared a storyboard documenting the team’s work and data collected

during the project............................................................... YES /
NO
! !275
8. Forwarded other issues/opportunities which the team was not able to

address to senior management............................................. YES /
NO
17.2 Project Life Cycle
Practical
Problem
" Generally, a systemic or chronic problem that is impacting the
success of a process or a function.
 
Six Sigma
Project
! A well defined effort that states the problem in quantifiable terms
with known expectations.
Statistical
Problem
! Data-oriented problem that is addressed with facts and data
analysis method.
Statistical
Solution
! Data-driven solution with known confidence/risk levels versus an
“I think” solution.
Control
Plan
! A method of assuring the long-term sustainability of the fix it the
problem.
Practical
Solution
! The solution is not complex, expensive or irrational and is readily
implementable.
Result
! Tangible results measurable in metrics with quantifiable financial
or strategic value.
! !276
Make a project activity-on-node diagram of your plan for implementing Six

Sigma initiative in your organization.
17.4 Summary
Six Sigma is an organization-wide initiative and when the whole

organization is driven by an urge to improve, then one can say that the Six
Sigma initiative is successful in that organization. Six Sigma, however, will
start small as a problem solving or quality improvement initiative and then
grow in magnitude and spread across the organization as success breeds
success. It is, for this reason, important to know, what necessitates Six
Sigma and how to get started with it.
1. What are the steps involved in setting started with Six Sigma?
2. What will you check in ‘Define’ stage to ascertain that sufficient spread
work has been done?
3. What will you check in ‘Measure’ stage to make sure that the needful
has been done?
! !277
1. One of the five steps for getting started with Six Sigma is identifying
core processes and:
a. Key customers
b. Key suppliers
c. Key result areas
d. Key suppliers
2. One of the five steps for getting started with Six Sigma is defining:
a. Employee requirements
b. Supplier requirements
c. Customer requirements
d. Financial requirements
3. One of the five steps for getting started with Six Sigma is measuring:
a. Profits
b. Market share
c. Current performance
d. Employee efficiency
4. One of the five steps for getting started with Six Sigma is prioritizing,
analyzing and implementing:
a. Investments
b. Increments
c. Improvements
d. Manufacturing schedules
5. The first step of project life cycle is to select ------------------- that is

impacting the success of a process or a function.
a. A systemic or chronic problem
b. A supplier
c. A customer
d. An employee
Answers: 1-a, 2-c, 3-c, 4-c, 5-a
! !278
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !279
DO’S AND DON’TS OF SUCCESSFUL SIX SIGMA IMPLEMENTATION
Chapter 18
Do’s And Don’ts Of Successful Six Sigma
Implementation
Objectives
• The good practices used in Six Sigma implementation
• The mistakes one should avoid while implementing Six Sigma
Structure
18.1 DO’s of Six Sigma implementation
18.2 DON’Ts of Six Sigma Implementation
18.4 Summary
! !280
18.1 Do’s of Six Sigma implementation
Successful Six Sigma efforts have several practices and characteristics in

common. Following are some of the best practices followed by the
successful Six Sigma enterprises:
DO’s
Aligning projects with key goals

One of the most important Six Sigma success factors is selecting projects
that are aligned with the key goals and strategic objectives of the
organization. Six Sigma efforts that are successful and lasting are always
made up of projects that are each specifically focussed on moving an
organization towards its stated objectives.
Setting stretched goals

Six Sigma has repeatedly proven that it produces breakthrough
improvement. But to achieve this, one has to combine the power of the Six
Sigma method and tools with stretched goals, goals that almost seem too
aggressive, too optimistic.
Specifically, a stretched goal represents a 70 per cent improvement over

current performance. For example, if the company’s profit margin is seven
percent, one would want to aim for 11.9 per cent, or if a certain process or
product is producing ten defects per 100 units, one would want to reduce
that number to three defects per 100 units.
Linking customers, processes, data and innovation

These are the core elements of the Six Sigma approach. When one
understands markets, operations and can use measures and creativity to
maximize value and performance, then that is the potent combination to
make life difficult for the competitors.
Targeting tangible results

Six Sigma project must be tied to a tangible financial measures of return –
money saved, new revenue gained, specific costs avoided, etc. These
financial returns must be formally measured, tracked and rolled up if one
wants to achieve the startling financial returns – that is a hallmark of Six
Sigma. Without tying projects to tangible financial measures and tracking
! !281
their financial impact, Six Sigma efforts naturally drift away from their
financial potential.
In few cases, a Six Sigma project is targeted on a strategic objective, such

as increasing the brand awareness. So, long it enables the company’s key
business strategies, the project is still worth the effort.
Determining outcomes
Every output or result is determined by a set of inputs. The natural
outgrowth of this principle is that one actively goes out and adjusts and
controls the inputs in a way that enables reaching one’s desired outcomes
with certainty and consistency.
Thinking before acting

Too often, one is tempted to jump into action and do something to solve a
problem. Such an approach usually ends in a continuation of the problem
or, at the best, a sub-optimal solution.
Six Sigma’s DMAIC methodology forces one to shift the bulk of the activity
of solving a problem into defining, measuring and planning a solution. In
the long run, the front loaded DMAIC approach solves the problem more
quickly and with better, more consistent results than other approaches.
Having faith in Data

Data allows one to objectively identify and select the truly best ideas and
solutions from among the many alternatives. Without data, decisions are
based on supposition, estimation, option and sometimes wishful thinking.
Data requires one to suspend judgement and personal bias, to confront

sometimes brutal and undesirable facts. One has to believe that, in the
long run, trusting data will consistently lead towards better and more rapid
solutions.
Minimizing variation
Variation will always be present in the plans one designs, the products one
makes, the transactions one conducts or services one delivers. Even in the
environment outside one’s control, events and circumstances change and
vary in ways beyond one’s control.
! !282
Six Sigma does two important things. One, it narrows the range of
variation in any process, product, service or transaction. Two, it enables
configuration of the work, so that performance targets are met, in spite of
the variation one cannot control.
Making top leaders responsible and accountable

Until senior managers of the corporation, business unit or even department
accept Six Sigma as part of their jobs, the true importance of the initiative
will be in doubt and the energy behind it will be weakened.
Successful Six Sigma practitioners communicate with and involve the

owner of the process or system they are working in. They solicit their input
and provide feedback through all stages of DMAIC. Then, when the time for
change arrives, the owner jumps at the chance to implement the awaited
improvements.
Unleashing everyone’s potential

The best Six Sigma efforts extend beyond full-time Black Belts. When an
organization broadens its Six Sigma knowledge and participation to Green
Belts and Yellow Belts, it unleashes the vast potential of a greater number
of its employees. Instead of relying on a handful of isolated, specialized
experts to drive organization-wide improvement, an entire army is enlisted
to contribute to the effort.
Celebrating success
Success is contagious. When the first, small victories are showcased and
lauded – with recognition, rewards, praise and publicity – people develop
real interest. They build confidence and trust. They begin to believe in the
power and potential of the method. Each successive victory becomes that
much easier.
Navigating through Six Sigma can be treacherous. One should be aware of

common mistakes and perceptions that can hinder project’s success.
! !283
18.2 DON’Ts of Six Sigma Implementation
Not allowing enough time

An organization breaking through to a new level of performance requires
an engine of project activity. That’s why the Black Belts are asked to
dedicate all their time and efforts towards completing Six Sigma projects. A
common mistake is to assume that an organization can get the same
magnitude and speed of change by having Black Belts work on projects on
the side, as a part-time assignment, between the tasks and duties of their
regular work. This approach simply doesn’t generate the force necessary to
sustain organizational change. Project completion drags out and resulting
savings languish. Ultimately, momentum and interest wane.
Not having a project leader

Some organizations have tried to deploy Six Sigma without a designated,
empowered deployment leader. They believe breakthrough change will
occur by the sum of the individual, independent efforts. But a Six Sigma
deployment without a leader is like a ship without a captain – individual
crew members may know what to do in their own areas, but there is no
direction or overall progress.
Taking too big a bite

Almost invariably, the failure of any Six Sigma project can be traced to a
scope that was too broad. Trying to minimize variation in an entire product,
for example, is so defocused that little improvement can happen on any
part of the product. Concentrating on minimizing the variation in a single
critical characteristic of a product, however, allows to dig deep enough to
discover the real source of improvement.
Focussing on isolated areas

A mistake companies can make with Six Sigma is to implement it in
isolated pockets, rather than as a uniform and pervasive campaign.
Sometimes, an organization will allow a couple of Black Belts or Green
Belts to be trained and work a few projects. The problem with this
approach is that the Belts don’t get the needed support from management,
and they run into political and organizational roadblocks that impede their
success.
! !284
“But we are different”

It’s natural to consider one’s organization to be unique – so unique that
what has worked for others, couldn’t possibly work for his/her
organization. This is one of the most common myths people have about Six
Sigma.
Six Sigma is general methodology. It has proven itself in every arena

where it is been applied – manufacturing, operations, logistics, design,
supply chains, services, transactions, processing, legal, human resources,
software, sales, marketing, management, health care, the public sector,
defence contracting – the list literally goes on and on! One need not think
to be lone exception to the rule.
Overtraining
It is not necessary that everyone doing Six Sigma needs to know the
details of every advanced statistical tool and method. Expediency in
learning and application is the key. The best system gets the right
knowledge to the right person at the right time.
Blindly believing in measurement system

Data and measurements are the foundation of Six Sigma. All too often,
however, practitioners neglect to check the validity of their measurements.
It would be prudent to perform a measurements’ system analysis at the
beginning of the project. This step saves from many potential headaches at
a later part.
Six Sigma measures are not static. As customer requirements change, Six
Sigma performance will change. In some Six Sigma organizations,
calculations continue to be made simultaneously on “old rules” and “new
rules” for a while, to make the transition smoother.
“Is it CLs or SLs?”

Control limits (CLs) are a critical part of every control chart. They capture
and represent the true voice of the process. The problem is that they are
often confused with specification limits (SLs) – which represent the voice of
the customer. It is critically important to know when to use which limit in
which situation – control limits for the voice of the process and
specification limits for the voice of the customer.
! !285
Exaggerated opportunity counts

The definition of Six Sigma performance is no more than 3.4 defects per
million opportunities for defects – counting every single opportunity for
defects in a given system. Some practitioners erroneously inflate the
number of opportunities in a system to make their performance look better
than it really is. This should be avoided.
Not leveraging technology

Technology and software are inseparable from Six Sigma. Yet many
practitioners try to segment technology into its own, isolated corner. Some
dismiss its contribution outright, because they do not understand how to
leverage its potential. The right technology can help any person in Six
Sigma do his or her work better and faster.
In the list of Do’s and Don’ts, add more points as per your own
assessment, which might be missing in this chapter. Make a detailed write
up.
18.4 Summary
There are many organizations, worldwide, which have been immensely

benefitted implementing Six Sigma. There are also many organizations,
which could not harness as much success as these organizations would
have desired. If Six Sigma is a well laid approach, why then, some
organizations are not so successful? A reader of the subject should know
that every organization has its own peculiarities and it may be necessary to
make finer changes in the Six Sigma implementation suiting its product
offerings, skills, management culture, etc. The chapter provides DO’s and
DONT’s in implementing Six Sigma, which can be taken as a guideline.
! !286
1. Which are the best practices followed by the successful Six Sigma
enterprises?
2. Which are the pitfalls one should guard against, while implementing Six
Sigma initiative?
1. In Six Sigma initiative, a stretched goal represents a _________ per

cent improvement over current performance:
a. 35%
b. 15%
c. 60%
d. 70%
2. The core elements of the Six Sigma approach are linking customers,
processes, data and:
a. Innovation
b. Invention
c. Inventory
d. Investigation
3. Money saved, new revenue gained, specific costs avoided, etc are
___________ financial measures of return to which Six Sigma project
must be tied.
a. Intangible
b. Tangible
c. Tentative
d. Tangential
4. One has to believe that, in the long run, trusting ---------- will
consistently lead towards better and more rapid solutions.
a. Deadlines
b. Data
c. Dates
d. Dealers
! !287
5. It is ------------------- that everyone doing Six Sigma needs to know the

details of every advanced statistical tool and method.
a. Necessary
b. Not mandatory
c. Required
d. Not necessary
Answers: 1-d, 2-a, 3-b, 4-b, 5-d
! !288
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !289
BEST PRACTICES
Chapter 19
Best Practices
Objectives
• Guidelines to make the Six Sigma initiative a success
• Advice about the pitfalls to be avoided while implementing Six Sigma

initiative
• Advice about where to get any help from in vase of difficulty
• Project checklist
Structure
19.1 Ten Guidelines
19.2 Pitfalls to Avoid
19.3 Places to go for Help
19.4 Project Checklist
19.6 Summary
! !290
BEST PRACTICES
19.1 Ten Guidelines
19.1.1 Lead and Manage the program
Leadership and management are needed to make Six Sigma work in

practice.
• Leadership from a senior executive who takes on the sponsorship role,
• Management through a Project Excellence Leader appointed by the senior

team to manage the Six Sigma deployment across the organization.
If you are a Sponsor (senior executive), here is a quick reference list of

what you will need to do:
• Provide drive and direction

• Articulate why this approach is so important
• Provide the budget and resources for the team as needed
• Regularly review progress
• Spread the message
• Recognize success
• Act as a role model
• Ensure you are not easily diverted off-track.
The Six Sigma Project Excellence Leader’s main tasks are:
• Designing the overall program

• Planning the initial roll-out
• Engaging stakeholder support
• Setting the framework and structure
• Organizing training and support
• Reporting on progress, target and measures
• Dealing with internal communications
• Sharing internal best practice
! !291
BEST PRACTICES
19.1.2 Appreciate that Less is More
• Keeping things simple

• Matching to changing customer expectations and requirements
• Eliminate non-value adding steps
• Simplified, faster process
• Use of simplifies deployment flow charts
• Map the process across the entire organization
• Relentless simplification
19.1.3 Built in Prevention
Prevention is better than cure
• Prevent the failure in the first place
• Handling customer complaints, carrying out expensive rework, paying for

additional warranty shipping are non-value added costs
• You will lose your customer who will go to your competitor who is
practicing six sigma. Lost customer will spread word about your poor
quality.
• Preventive techniques such as Poka Yoke, FMEA have to be practiced.
19.1.4 Challenge Your Processes
Understanding how the work gets done and then improving processes is at
the heart of Six Sigma.
19.1.5 Go to the Gemba
It means go to the workplace where the work gets done. Go to the root of
problems and involve the people who do the work.
! !292
BEST PRACTICES
19.1.6 Manage your processes
• A clear customer focused objective reflecting the CTQ’s.

• An agreed process map
• An agreed data collection plan with an appropriate balance of X and Y
measures
• An ongoing control plan
• A standardized process with appropriate documentation in place
• A visual management system with SPC charts
19.1.7 Pick the right tools for the job

In the various chapters, the tools to be used are explained. Make a proper
use of the right tools.
19.1.8 Keep a storyboard of a Six Sigma Project to communicate

the project to the wider organization
Communication is the heart of Six Sigma methodology. A complete
storyboard has to be prepared for communication to all the concerned
about the progress.
19.1.9 Understand the role of a champion (sponsor)

Take all the help from him without any hesitation.
19.1.10 Use strategy to drive Six Sigma

Implementing a Six Sigma program is pointless if it is not aligned with the
direction being taken at a strategic level by the business. Six Sigma is
about making change happen and strategy is about deciding which
direction the company is heading in. So, they need to work in tandem.
! !293
BEST PRACTICES
19.2 Pitfalls to be avoided
• Jumping to conclusions
• Getting complacent
• Thinking “we are already doing it”
• Overtraining
• While covering the hard stuff such as statistical techniques, DMAIC

methodology, array of tools and techniques, we should not ignore the
people issues.
• Some people in your organization don’t share your vision and say:
❖ This is just a common sense
❖ Our place is different
❖ It costs too much
❖ We are all too busy to do that
❖ Why change? This is still OK
❖ We are not ready for this yet.
❖ We have always done it this way.
• Deal with these aspects properly and strictly
• Six Sigma is not voluntary, it is mandatory and hence everyone must

contribute to the success of the projects.
• Don’t run too many projects at a time. Don’t undertake too large a
project. Don’t have a goal that is not measurable.
! !294
BEST PRACTICES
19.3 Places to go for help
• Your colleagues
❖ A well managed Six Sigma program relies on teamwork and support

being available for everyone involved across the organization through
an internal network. Support can be offered through a spectrum of
different colored “Belts”, for example, Green Belts who in turn, will get
support from Master Black Belts.
• Your champion
❖ Every project deserves a good sponsor or champion. When things get

tough, as many projects get problems from time to time, the project
champion is a good source for help.
• Other organizations
❖ Visiting other organizations who are deploying Six Sigma and learning
from their experiences is well worthwhile.
• The Internet
❖ So, many websites are aimed at Six Sigma. E.g.

❖ www.isixsigma.com and
❖ www.asq.org
• Networks and associations
❖ Quality associations such as American Society for Quality (ASQ),

European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM), British
Quality Foundation (BQF) provide opportunities to share good and not
so good practice through meetings, visits to businesses, conferences,
workshops and online resources. In India, one can visit following
websites for such opportunities.
❖ https://students.benchmarksixsigma.com
❖ https://www.benchmarksixsigma.com
! !295
BEST PRACTICES
• Conferences
❖ Six Sigma conferences are a regular feature of the conference calendar.

Conference organizers hold Six Sigma Summits every year at different
locations around the world.
• Books
❖ You can find a wealth of books on various aspects of Six Sigma such
as:
❖ Practitioner’s guide to statistics and lean Six Sigma for process

improvements by Mike J. Harry, Prem S. Mann etc.
❖ Implementing Six Sigma by Forrest Breyfogle III
❖ The Toyota Way: 14 Management Principles from the World’s Greatest

Manufacturer by Jeffrey Liker.
• Periodicals
❖ Several journals are devoted to Six Sigma such as:

❖ International Journal of Six Sigma and Competitive Advantage
❖ Quality World
❖ iSixSigma Magazine
• Software
❖ If you decide to use software for process flowcharting, consider Visio,

iGraphix, or FlowMap.
• Training and consultancy companies
❖ A wide range of specialist training and consultancy companies provide

services for clients in the Six Sigma arena. When you choose a supplier,
try to use the “quality x acceptance” equation. You want your trainer to
have excellent technical skills, but also consider how well they work
with your organization. Will your organization’s culture accept the
trainer? Will the trainer instil confidence and provide all the services
you require?
! !296
BEST PRACTICES
19.4 Project Checklist
• Is the project focused?
• Is the defect and defect opportunity clearly defined?
• By eliminating process defect, what key business measures will improve?
• Have you selected right members?
• Can the members give the required time?
• Are the milestones realistic? What are the barriers to achieve them?
• Are you ready to own the responsibility? Can you get the cost benefit?
• Are the CTQs actionable?
Make your own write up as to which best practices, other than those given
in this chapter, you will follow while implementing Six Sigma initiative.
! !297
BEST PRACTICES
19.6 Summary
• Leadership and management are needed to make Six Sigma work in

practice
• Keeping things simple is necessary
• Matching to changing customer expectations and requirements
• Eliminate non-value adding steps
• Simplified, faster process
• Prevention is better than cure
• Improving processes is at the heart of Six Sigma.
• Go to the Gemba
• A clear customer focused objective reflecting the CTQ’s.
• An agreed process map
• Pick the right tools for the job
• Keep a storyboard of a Six Sigma Project to communicate the project to

the wider organization
• Communication is the heart of Six Sigma methodology. A complete

storyboard has to be prepared for communication to all the concerned
about the progress.
• Understand the role of a champion (sponsor)
! !298
BEST PRACTICES
Pitfalls to be avoided
• Jumping to conclusions
• Getting complacent
• Thinking “we are already doing it”
• Overtraining
• While covering the hard stuff such as statistical techniques, DMAIC

methodology, array of tools and techniques, we should not ignore the
people issues.
• Take help from champions, your colleagues, other organizations and the
Internet.
• Six Sigma is not voluntary, it is mandatory and hence everyone must

contribute to the success of the projects.
1. Which are the most important guidelines?
2. Which are the pitfalls to be avoided while implementing Six Sigma

initiative? Mention three most important pitfalls.
3. Whose help should you seek in case of difficulties?
! !299
BEST PRACTICES
1. Poka Yoke, FMEA are:

a. Corrective techniques
b. Management jargons
c. Preventive techniques
d. Statistical controls
2. Sponsor is same as:

a. Black Belt
b. Master Black Belt
c. Senior executive
d. Yellow Belt
3. Go to Gemba means:
a. Implement Six Sigma
b. Go to workplace
c. Improve process
d. Continuous improvement
4. CTQ means:
a. Critical to Quality
b. Customer technical quality
c. Critical to quantity
d. Customer tertiary quotient
5. If you decide to use software for process flowcharting, consider Visio,

iGraphix, or:
a. iMap
b. eMap
c. vMap
d. FlowMap
Answers: 1-c, 2-c, 3-b, 4-a, 5-d

 
! !300
BEST PRACTICES
REFERENCE MATERIAL
chapter
Summary
PPT
MCQ
Video Lecture
! !301
ANNEXURE
Annexure
Six Sigma Conversion Table
% Success DPMO Sigma Level
6.68 933200 0
8.455 915450 0.125

10.56 894400 0.25
13.03 869700 0.375
15.87 841300 0.5
19.08 809200 0.625

22.66 773400 0.75
26.595 734050 0.875
30.85 691500 1
35.435 645650 1.125
40.13 598700 1.25
45.025 549750 1.375

50 500000 1.5
54.975 450250 1.625

59.87 401300 1.75
64.565 354350 1.875
69.15 308500 2
73.405 265950 2.125
77.34 226600 2.25
80.92 190800 2.375

84.13 158700 2.5
86.97 130300 2.625
89.44 105600 2.75

91.545 84550 2.875
! !302
ANNEXURE
% Success DPMO Sigma Level
93.32 66800 3
94.79 52100 3.125
95.99 40100 3.25
96.96 30400 3.375

97.73 22700 3.5
98.32 16800 3.625
98.78 12200 3.75

99.12 8800 3.875
99.38 6200 4
99.565 4350 4.125
99.7 3000 4.25
99.795 2050 4.375

99.87 1300 4.5
99.91 900 4.625
99.94 600 4.75

99.96 400 4.875
99.977 230 5
99.982 180 5.125

99.987 130 5.25
99.992 80 5.375
99.997 30 5.5
99.99767 23.35 5.625
99.99833 16.7 5.75
99.999 10.05 5.875

99.99966 3.4 6
! !303
ANNEXURE
References to the Book
The subject book is a gist of a vast literature written on the subject arising
out of the actual experiments carried out by many practicing managers.
Students are requested to read these books to dive deep into the subject
and initiate the process of Six Sigma as actually doing it will bring out finer
intricacies and a true success.
1. The Six Sigma Way by Peter S. Pande, Robert P. Neuman & Roland R.
Cavanagh.
2. The Ultimate Six Sigma: Beyond Quality Excellence to Total Business

Excellence by Bhote, Ketki R.
3. Six Sigma Business Scorecard-2nd by Gupta, Praveen.
4. Six Sigma Continual Improvement For Business: A Practical Guide by

Truscott, William T.
5. World Class Master Scheduling: Best Practices & Lean Six Sigma
Continuous Improvement by Sheldon, Donald H.
6. The Power of Six Sigma – An inspiring tale of how Six Sigma is

transforming the way we work by Subir Chowdhury.
7. Six Sigma for Dummies by Gygi, Craig, Decarlo Neil/Williams, Bruce.
8. Design for Six Sigma in Technology and Product Development by C. M.

Creve ling, J. L. Slutsky & D. Antis, Jr.
! !304

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SIX SIGMA

Sub Code - 646

Program Design and Advisory Team

Prof. B.N. Chatterjee Mr. Manish Pitke

Prof. Kanu Doshi Prof. B.N. Chatterjee

Prof. Dr. V.H. Iyer Mr. Smitesh Bhosale

Prof. B.N. Chatterjee Prof. Vineel Bhurke

Prof. Venkat lyer Dr. Pravin Kumar Agrawal

Prof. Dr. Pradeep Pendse Mrs. Margaret Vas

Prof. Sandeep Kelkar Mr. Anuj Pandey

Prof. Dr. Swapna Pradhan Course Editor

Prof. Bijoy B. Bhattacharyya Prof. B.N. Chatterjee

Mr. P.M. Bendre Course Coordinators

Mr. Ajay Prabhu Ms. Kirti Sampat

Mr. A.S. Pillai Mr. Kishor Tamhankar

COPYRIGHT © by Prin. L.N. Welingkar Institute of Management Development & Research.

NOT FOR SALE. FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION ONLY.

1st Edition, August 2018

About the Book

Simply stated, Six Sigma is about applying a structured, scientific method

1 Six Sigma – Strategy for Sustained Growth 6-16

19 Best Practices 290-301

After completing this chapter, you will be able to understand:

• Six Sigma – Approach and benefits

1.2 The Six Sigma Approach

1.3 The Critical Elements of Six Sigma

1.4 Activities for the Students

1.6 Self Assessment Questions

1.7 Multiple choice Questions

Features that set Six Sigma apart from previous quality-improvement

• A clear focus on achieving measurable and quantifiable financial returns

• An increased emphasis on strong and passionate management leadership

• A clear commitment to making decisions on the basis of verifiable data

In recent years, some practitioners have combined Six Sigma ideas

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published in

1.2 The Six Sigma Approach

Six Sigma is a methodology for minimizing mistakes and maximizing value.

The emphasis on customers is probably the most remarkable element of

The Six Sigma approach is not for an unprepared organization. It is intense

All businesses, organizations and individuals have room to improve. No

Work is often performed incorrectly, or the outcome is flawed in some way.

Six Sigma was once a quality-improvement methodology, but now it is a

1.3 The Critical Elements of Six Sigma

1. Genuine focus on the customer

There is a very close correlation between customer loyalty and profitability.

In the 1970s, customer satisfaction began to replace profit as purpose of

In the 1980s, customer delight – or customer “wow” – became business

In the 1990s, customer loyalty – or customer long-term retention –

In the first decade of the 21st century, customer loyalty is metamorphosing

2. Data and Fact-driven Management

3. Process Focus, Management and Improvement

6. Drive for Perfection, Tolerance for Failure

1.4 Activities for the Students

1.6 Self Assessment Questions

1. “Six Sigma is yet another management initiative” – evaluate this

1.7 Multiple Choice Questions

1. Six Sigma (6σ) is a set of techniques and tools for process

2. A Six Sigma process is one in which 99.99966% of all opportunities to

3. Other early adopters of Six Sigma include Honeywell and General

4. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published

5. Waste and mistakes cost many organizations as much as --------------

Answers: 1 -d, 2-b, 3-a, 4-c, 5-c

Video Lecture - Part 1

Video Lecture - Part 2