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What Is Six Sigma?

by: Pete Pande Larry Holpp
en | McGraw-Hill

9780071381857  9780071412704  0071381856 



What Is Six Sigma?
By Pete Pande, Larry Holpp




Book Description:

A brief introduction to Six Sigma­­ for employees

Six Sigma is today's most talked-about system for improving the quality of organizational processes. Written by bestselling author Peter Pande,What Is Six Sigma? is a concise summary of the core themes and processes of Six Sigma. Unlike almost all other books on Six Sigma, it is written for the employees of organizations rolling out Six Sigma­­not just managers. This helpful overview describes what Six Sigma is, why companies are implementing it, and how employees can make it a success in their own organizations.

Based on the bestselling The Six Sigma Way, this accessable introduction to Six Sigma answers typical employee questions, concerns, and even skepticism about this revolutionary program. Includes:



Download Description:

Six Sigma is today's most talked-about system for improving the quality of organizational processes. Written by bestselling author Peter Pande,What Is Six Sigma? is a concise summary of the core themes and processes of Six Sigma. Unlike almost all other books on Six Sigma, it is written for the employees of organizations rolling out Six Sigma­­not just managers. This helpful overview describes what Six Sigma is, why companies are implementing it, and how employees can make it a success in their own organizations.




Summary: Boring...
Rating: 2

This is sort of an idiot's eye view of the 6 Sigma process. I think it might be useful if you are trying to sell a six sigma program within your organization and your co-workers are like the characters featured in the Dilbert comic strip by Scott Adams. Especially the pointy haired boss.

There are better resources to use in understanding the value of six sigma.



Summary: Great introduction to Six Sigma
Rating: 4

It may not be the most complete book of Six Sigma, but it is short, easy to understand and conveys the meaning of Quality to a greater audience.



Summary: Excellent primer on Six Sigma - recommend it!
Rating: 5

Questions answered by this book
- What is Six Sigma and how does it work?
- What are the new roles employees play in Six Sigma?
- What is the Six Sigma problem-solving process?
- Why Six Sigma is not a flavor-of-the-month management trend?
- How does Six Sigma impact the bottom line?
- How does it impact jobs?
- What is a Six Sigma team and how does it operate?
- What you need to know to be successful in a Six Sigma team?
- How will your customers be affected by Six Sigma?

The Six Sigma Success Story
Approach
- Puts customer first
- Uses facts and data
Targets
- Improving customer satisfaction
- Reducing cycle times
- Reducing defects
Not merely a quality initiative ¡V it is a business initiative
- More than small, incremental improvements => requires breakthroughs in every area of operation
- Reaching ¡§Six Sigma¡¨ => Almost no defects
- Goes beyond statistics => total management commitment and philosophy (excellence, customer focus, process improvement, measurement)
- 80+ years of evolution: ¡§management science¡¨ => TQM => GE/Motorola/J&J/AmEx adoption
Six Sigma vs. TQM
- (External) Customer Focused
- ROI
- Working smarter, not harder (management philosophy)

Six What? What¡¦s a Sigma?
Definition
- Statistical measure ¡V of performance, product or process
- Goal ¡V toward near perfection
- Management System ¡V lasting business leadership and world-class performance
Pizza delivery window example ¡V deliver between 11:45 and 12:15 ¡V anything outside is a ¡§defect¡¨
- 2 Sigma: 68% on time
- 3 Sigma: 93%
- 4 Sigma: 99.4%
- 6 Sigma: 99.9997% (3 defects per million)
Good Sigma Measure
- Focuses on measuring what paying customers of a business care about ¡V outputs not inputs
o CTQs (Critical to Quality): customer requirements and expectations
- Provides consistent ways of measuring and comparison across processes (e.g., pizza baking vs. pizza delivery)
Six Sigma as a Goal
- 3 defects per million sounds like an abnormally high goal ¡V actually there is a compounding of failures in different processes, so end-to-end customer experience is much worse than the defect rates of individual processes
- Failures have a domino effect (e.g., one dissatisfied customer spreading the news)
Six Sigma as a Management System
- Management plays a key role (e.g., Jack Welch linked 40% of bonus of managers to Six Sigma performance)
- Ultimately success or failure depends on implementation at front-lines
The Six Themes of Six Sigma
1. Genuine Focus on the Customer
2. Data and Fact Driven Management
3. Processes Are Where The Action Is
4. Proactive Management
5. Boundaryless Collaboration
6. Drive For Perfection: Tolerate Failure

Six Sigma in Your Organization
Implementing Six Sigma - Three approaches
1. The Business Transformation (enterprise-wide)
a. Rapid change
b. Chaotic
2. Strategic Improvement (middle path ¡V one or two critical business needs)
a. High-Pri Opportunities
b. Not comprehensive
3. Problem Solving (leisurely ¡V most risky approach ¡V target most nagging issues)
a. Least disruptive
b. Risky as it doesn¡¦t fix underlying org issues
Roles
- Black Belt
o Full-time dedicated to Six Sigma change opportunities
o Usually works alongside a team assigned to specific Six Sigma project
- Master Black Belt (MBB)
o Coach and mentor to Black Belts
o Expert in Six Sigma analytical tools
- Green Belt
o Trained in Six Sigma skills
o Has a ¡§real¡¨ job, i.e., part-timer on Six Sigma
o Brings new concepts and tools of Six Sigma to day-to-day activities of business
- Champion and/or Sponsor
o Exec or key manager who initiates and supports Black Belt / Team Project
o Ultimately accountable for the success of the project
o Often member of Leadership Council or Steering Committee
- Implementation Leader
o Typical titles are ¡§Vice President for Six Sigma¡¨ or ¡§Chief Sigma Officer¡¨
o Orchestrates Six Sigma across enterprise
o High stress position => Typically temporary (few years)
o Conscience of top management
Certification Process
- Based on passing a test and completing certain number of projects

The Six Sigma Team¡¦s Problem-Solving Process: DMAIC

DMAIC ¡V pronounced ¡§duh-MAY-ick¡¨ - Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control
- Improvement, problem-solving, and process-design teams are the most visible and active component of a Six Sigma effort.
- These teams are created to solve organizational problems and capitalize on opportunities
- Led by a Black Belt or a Green Belt
- Members come from different departments, job levels, backgrounds, skills and seniority
- DMAIC is the common process that members use
In working with the DMAIC process, the team interacts with the larger organization, interviews customers, gathers data, and talks to people whose work will be affected by its recommendations.
The DMAIC Team Life Cycle
Phase 1: Identifying and Selecting Projects
o Meaningful
o Manageable
Phase 2: Forming the Team
o Good working knowledge of the problem
o Not too deeply rooted (i.e., not be a part of the problem º)
Phase 3: Developing the Charter
o Written Guide (may evolve during the course of the project)
o Includes reason, goal, basic project plan, scope, roles and responsibilities
Phase 4: Training the Team
o DMAIC process (totals 1-4 weeks ¡V spread across project)
Phase 5: Doing DMAIC and Implementing Solutions
o Teams are responsible for implementing their own solutions (no hand-offs)
o Project Plans, Training, Pilots and Procedures, Measurement => Implementation
Phase 6: Handing off the Solution
o Eventually teams disband
o Formal handoff to ¡§Process Owner¡¨

What makes DMAIC different?
- Measuring problem
- Customer Focus
- Root Cause Analysis
- Breaking Old Habits
- Risk Management
- Measuring results
- Sustaining change
Five DMAIC Steps
1. Define the Problem
a. What are we working on?
b. Why on this particular problem?
c. Who is the customer?
d. What are the customer¡¦s requirements? (VoC = Voice of Customer translated to reqs)
e. How is work currently being done?
f. What are the benefits of making the improvement?
Output of this is the Charter which typically includes
- Business Case
- Problem / Opportunity and Goal Statements
- Constraints / Assumptions
- Scope
- Players and roles
- Preliminary Plan
Includes Voice of Customer translated into Customer Requirements, High-Level Process Diagrams showing 5-10 major steps in the process.

2. Measure
a. Gather data to validate and quantify opportunity
b. Begin teasing out facts and numbers to get clues on causes

Check out Figure 4-1 on p. 34 for a good illustration of measurement in different stages -

Output (end results)
Process (things that can be tracked and measured)
Input (things coming into the process)

Output Ys and Process Xs
o Y: measures of results
o X: measures of inputs
X The challenge for the DMAIC team is to figure out which of these Xs has the most impact on the problem being tackled.

Once it is determined what to measure, DMAIC team forms a ¡§data collection plan¡¨
o Move from comfortable conference room to ¡§real world¡¨ of getting people to count and quantify
o Getting cooperation from customers, colleagues, and suppliers is critical

3. Analyze
a. Analysis to find ¡§root cause¡¨
i. Sometimes root causes are evident
ii. Often buried under piles of paperwork, process complexities, etc.
b. Root Cause categories (5M and 1P)
i. Methods (procedures or techniques)
ii. Machines (technology)
iii. Materials (data, instructions, forms, files)
iv. Measures (incorrect or intrusive)
v. Mother Nature (chance factors)
vi. People

4. Improve
a. This step ¡V solution and action ¡V is where many people are tempted to jump right from the start of the project. In fact the habit of starting to solve a problem without first understanding it is so strong that many teams find it a challenge to stick with the objective rigor of the DMAIC process.
b. Truly creative solutions that address the underlying causes of the problem and that people working in the process find acceptable don¡¦t grow on trees. And once new ideas are developed, they have to be tested, refined, and implemented.
c. Assumption busting and other creativity exercises help the team shake up its thinking and approach idea generation in new ways. The team may also look at other companies or other groups in their business to see whether they can borrow ¡§best practices.¡¨
d. Once several potential solutions have been proposed, the analytical headsets go back on, and several criteria, including costs and likely benefits, are used to select the most promising and practical solutions. The ¡§final¡¨ solution or series of changes must always be approved by the Champion and often by the entire leadership team.
e. At this point ¡§Improve¡¨ becomes ¡§Implement¡¨
i. Solutions have to be carefully managed and tested
ii. Small-scale pilots are practically mandatory
iii. Teams go through ¡§potential problem analysis¡¨ to determine risks
iv. New changes have to be ¡§sold¡¨ to critical org members

5. Control
a. Monitoring process to keep track of the recommended changes
b. Response plan for dealing with problems that may arise
c. Keep management focus on Xs (the big ¡§root causes¡¨)
d. Sell project through presentations and demos
e. Hand-off project responsibilities to day-to-day work owners
f. Ensure support from management for the long-term goals

Survivor¡¦s Guide to Six Sigma
- Fundamental Six Sigma principle ¡V ¡§people close to the work are often best equipped to improve it¡¨
- At the same time organizational leaders need to provide direction and be fully engaged
- Trick: Create process that is both top-down and bottom-up
- Putting Six Sigma in place is not a step-by-step rote effort, but rather an evolving learning experience
If called to join DMAIC team, ask yourself
- Am I comfortable working in a team setting?
- Will my workload allow me the time to do a good job?
- Do I really have something to contribute?
- Will I have a say in what the team recommends?
Success Factors
- Engaged Champion - senior management sponsor who is interested in the outcome and willing to provide resources and support the team
- Available Time - of the core team members
- Influence or Control ¡V Core team should include members responsible for part of business intended to be changed
- Alignment with other efforts ¡V No overlaps or conflicts with competing projects
- Accountability ¡V You and your teammates should feel accountable for getting your projects done, as should the Champion and even your own boss, who may drag you away from the DMAIC work if he or she doesn¡¦t see it as important.
Data Gathering Challenges
- Computers and IT group often don¡¦t offer the type of numbers or detail needed for DMAIC analysis
- Black Belts and their colleagues have to pull data from the process manually, using people in the process to count or measure
Why join the Core (DMAIC) Team?
- Experience (overall business management perspective)
- Exposure (recognition from senior leaders)
- Excitement (real issues => making a difference)
- Enlightenment (learn to ask better questions and make fact-based decisions)

A Look Inside the Six Sigma Toolkit

Tools for Generating Ideas and Organizing Information (see p. 52-55 for illustrations)
- Brainstorming
- Affinity Diagramming
- Multivoting
- Structure Tree
- High Level Process Map (SIPOC Diagram) ¡V Supplier, Input, Process, Output, Customer
- Flow Chart (Process Map) ¡V Details of Process
- Cause-and-Effect (Fishbone) Diagram
Tools for Data Gathering
- Sampling
- Operational Definitions
- Voice of the Customer (VOC) Methods
- Checksheets and Spreadsheets
- Measurement Systems Analysis
Tools for Process and Data Analysis
- Process-Flow Analysis
- Value and Non-Value-Added Analysis
- Charts and Graphs
o Pareto
o Histogram
o Trend
o Scatter Plot
Tools for Statistical Analysis
- Tests of statistical significance
- Correlation and Regression
- Design of Experiments
Tools for Implementation and Process Management
- Project Management Methods
- Potential Problem Analysis and Failure Mode and Effects Analysis
- Stakeholder Analysis
- Force Field Diagram
- Process Documentation
- Balanced Scorecard and Process Dashboards



Summary: A Great Outline of Six Sigma
Rating: 4

This book is touted as a primer and that it outlines for employees the core ideas of Six Sigma and I found that it did just that. The authors work their way through the Six Sigma process step by step and in a clear easy to follow manner that anyone could benefit from.

For me I was a little disappointed because I wanted more detail about Six Sigma but that is not the intention of this book (as described on the backcover) and as such should not have been expected by me.

This is a great book for anybody who wants a quick overview of what six sigma is or for those who want to get some basics under their belt before they begin Six Sigma training. I learned enough here that I feel confident enough to understand the pros and cons of Six Sigma and capable to begin reading higher level texts on the subject.



Summary: The big DUH
Rating: 3

This book is good enough at what it sets out to do, which is to define the major concepts and terms used by members of the Cult of Six Sigma. Spoiler alert: Six Sigma is process improvement using logic and data. (Well, duh!) Now you can save yourself nine bucks.