Six Sigma in Organizations Customerfocused and driven six

Six Sigma in Organizations Customer-focused and -driven six sigma approach within organizations helps reducing process variation in order to exceed customer expectations. It was originally developed by Motorola in the 1980 -s, and has been used within several organizations to improve operations management since then. The three basic elements of six sigma are: a. process improvement b. process re-design and the design of new processes c. process management 1

Six Sigma Phases - Define - Measure - Analyze - Improve - Control Without implementing all the steps in operations management no process and quality improvement can be achieved. 2

Define The first step is to define the improvement project. (DTI p. 2. ) This involves preparing a problem statement, creating a mission statement related to the organizational goal and delegating a project team to complete the improvement. The project team needs to have knowledge of all the measures defined in the first step in order to influence them. The definition needs to be quantifiable, including sub-projects and indicators. (DTI p. 3. ) 3

Measure The identification of the problem needs to be completed using the measurements of the symptoms causing it. A baseline measurement needs to be developed. Confirming and refining the mission statement according to the results of the measurements is essential. The measurement of the underlying quality problem chronic signals are identified helping the management making a decision about what to analyze and change. 4

Analyse This step consists of various processes, built upon each other, namely: ● ● ● Formulating theories and creating a cause-effect diagram Testing theories through collecting and analysing data that demonstrates theory. (DTI, n. d. p. 4. ) Identifying the root causes of the problem in order to plan what to change in the processes. 5

Improve This step is also built on several activities in order to reduce deficiency in the system. ● Evaluating alternatives ● Designing an improvement method ● Planning for “cultural resistance” ● Proving effectiveness through testing and data analysis ● Implementation of the change 6

Control ● ● ● In order to maintain the benefits of the improvement made to eliminate deficiencies, it is important to design effective and simple quality control measures. In order to maintain the results, the improvement needs to be “foolproofed”. (DTI, n. d. p. 5. ) Auditing the controls is also crucial to manage change and maintain the direction. 7

Organization and Customer Value ● ● ● Customer expectations and satisfaction are measures that indicate the success of the organization. These measures need to be implemented in the six sigma model. Customer value can easily be influenced by quality improvement, waste elimination, lead time reduction and cost reduction (resulting in lower cost and faster service). Happier customers would indicate a higher market share and profits. 8

Project Management Practices ● ● ● In order to improve processes, the Lean Six Sigma principles need to be applied. Defining value-added and not value-added activities, defining the most common types of waste and deliquencies. Project management needs to prove theory through data and analysis in order to determine the changes. 9

Quality Assurance ● ● ● Implementing quality assurance in the Six Sigma results in cost savings, higher performance, reduced waste and higher customer satisfaction. Reducing the defects within the system calls for methods to implement quality assurance principles: checks and controls. Managers realized that 90 percent of quality problems were the result of poor management. (Basu & Wright, 2012, p. 14. ) 10

Control and Reliability Process control and reliability are important parts of the Six Sigma approach to businesses. The DFFS methodology of Six Sigma (Esposto, n. d. p. 5. ) includes the following steps: ● ● ● Gathering, analysing and prioritizing customer requirements Developing a design Implementing the new requirements determined through the system 11

Control and Reliability ● ● Tracking service or product capabilities through the system: implementing the measurements for processes, in order to close the gap between capabilities and requirements. Design of a control plan that creates reliability and quality assurance, in order to achieve higher customer satisfaction and lower level of deficiencies. 12

Lean Processes ● ● ● In order to reduce lead times and improve efficiency, the combination of Lean processes and Six Sigma approach needs to be used. (Esposto, n. d. p. 1. ) Adding Lean process into the system will reduce investments, costs, and time invested. The combination of the two approaches will result in overall improvement of the organization's performance. 13

DMADV methodology The methodology has several tools to implement Six Sigma. The DMADV methodology has the following steps: ● Define the project goals ● Measure and assess customer requirements ● Analyse potential process changes ● Designing or re/designing the process ● Verifying that the new processes meet customers' requirements 14

Conclusion Several companies have successfully used the Six Sigma approach to initiate organizational changes and improve internal processes. The main benefits identified above related to the implementation of Six Sigma process improvement are: ● Maximizing customer satisfaction ● Minimizing defects ● Secondary benefits: growth, product development, market share and profit growth. 15

References Basu, R. , Wright, N. (2012) Quality Beyond Six Sigma. Routeledge. DTI. (n. d. ) Six Sigma aims to maximise customer satisfaction and minimise defects. Web. http: //www. businessballs. com/sixsigmadtifactsheet. pdf Esposto, F. (n. d. ) Six Sigma Basics. Master Black Belt. Web. http: //www. usccg. com/ref/pdfs/USCWhitepaper. Six. Sigma. pdf Fursule, N. , Bansod, S. , Fursule, S. (2012) Understanding the benefits and limitations of Six Sigma Methodology. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Vol. 2. Issue 1 Jan 2012 Stamatis, D. (2004) Six Sigma fundamentals: a complete guide to the system, methods and tools. Productivity Press 16