The production of a product, be it a tangible product like a car or a more abstract product like a service, consists of a series of processes. All processes consist of a series of steps, events, or activities. Six Sigma measures every step of the process by breaking apart the elements within each process, identifying the critical characteristics, defining and mapping the related processes, understanding the capability of each process, discovering the weak links, and then upgrading the capability of the process.
It is only by taking these steps that a business can raise the ‘high-water mark’ of its performance.
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LEAN / SIX SIGMA APPROACH
In helping organizations throughout the world apply the Lean Six Sigma methodology, Air Academy Associates has seen the need to show the Lean and Six Sigma approaches as a dynamic, synergistic force, rather than as what often is perceived as two competing initiatives. These two leading business process improvement strategies bring a host of valuable tools to the workplace, which, if used properly with leadership support and commitment, can make a huge difference in the way companies work.
Lean Six Sigma Definition Lean and Six Sigma are complementary in nature and, if performed properly, represent a long-term business initiative that can produce unprecedented results. While Lean focuses on eliminating non-value added steps and activities in a process, Six Sigma focuses on reducing variation from the remaining value-added steps. Lean makes sure we are working on the right activities, and Six Sigma makes sure we are doing the right things right the very first time we do them. Lean defines and establishes the value flow as pulled by the customer, and Six Sigma makes the value flow smoothly without interruption. Measuring Success
One way we evaluate the success of a Lean Six Sigma initiative or strategy is to measure the involvement in Lean Six Sigma by way of numbers of people involved, i.e., numbers trained, practicing, certified, etc. Another is to evaluate the leadership on their behavior and values. Yet another is to evaluate the Lean Six Sigma maturity of the organization. All of these measures are important, but certainly one of the most important aspects that Lean and Six Sigma have brought to the market place is the ability to measure the financial impact of implementation and deployment. We have studied many companies that have implemented Lean Six Sigma and have found that if any organization wishes to place itself in the top tier of companies with regard to financial returns, it should be returning to the bottom line at least 2% of its revenue annually via Lean Six Sigma projects. In order to attain this level of performance, we have found the following elements to be critical, and these must be present and active in any deployment.
(1) Executive ownership and commitment with a strong passion to make it happen. (2) Leadership alignment. (3) Building the proper infrastructure and selecting the right people as Champions, Black Belts, Master Black Belts, Green Belts, and Leadership Team members (4) Selecting the right projects, project teams, and project contracts. (5) Financial accountability and proactive participation by Finance. (6) The right training in the right tools with the best trainers/motivators. (7) Knowledge sharing and communication. (8) Customer and supplier involvement. (9) Rewards and recognition system. (10) Continuous assessment of projects and deployment/implementation issues.
In helping organizations throughout the world apply the Lean Six Sigma methodology, Air Academy Associates has seen the need to show the Lean and Six Sigma approaches as a dynamic, synergistic force, rather than as what often is perceived as two competing initiatives. These two leading business process improvement strategies bring a host of valuable tools to the workplace, which, if used properly with leadership support and commitment, can make a huge difference in the way companies work.
Lean Six Sigma Definition Lean and Six Sigma are complementary in nature and, if performed properly, represent a long-term business initiative that can produce unprecedented results. While Lean focuses on eliminating non-value added steps and activities in a process, Six Sigma focuses on reducing variation from the remaining value-added steps. Lean makes sure we are working on the right activities, and Six Sigma makes sure we are doing the right things right the very first time we do them. Lean defines and establishes the value flow as pulled by the customer, and Six Sigma makes the value flow smoothly without interruption. Measuring Success
One way we evaluate the success of a Lean Six Sigma initiative or strategy is to measure the involvement in Lean Six Sigma by way of numbers of people involved, i.e., numbers trained, practicing, certified, etc. Another is to evaluate the leadership on their behavior and values. Yet another is to evaluate the Lean Six Sigma maturity of the organization. All of these measures are important, but certainly one of the most important aspects that Lean and Six Sigma have brought to the market place is the ability to measure the financial impact of implementation and deployment. We have studied many companies that have implemented Lean Six Sigma and have found that if any organization wishes to place itself in the top tier of companies with regard to financial returns, it should be returning to the bottom line at least 2% of its revenue annually via Lean Six Sigma projects. In order to attain this level of performance, we have found the following elements to be critical, and these must be present and active in any deployment.
(1) Executive ownership and commitment with a strong passion to make it happen. (2) Leadership alignment. (3) Building the proper infrastructure and selecting the right people as Champions, Black Belts, Master Black Belts, Green Belts, and Leadership Team members (4) Selecting the right projects, project teams, and project contracts. (5) Financial accountability and proactive participation by Finance. (6) The right training in the right tools with the best trainers/motivators. (7) Knowledge sharing and communication. (8) Customer and supplier involvement. (9) Rewards and recognition system. (10) Continuous assessment of projects and deployment/implementation issues.
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Six Sigma
- Six Sigma is a management philosophy developed by Motorola that emphasizes setting extremely high objectives, collecting data, and analyzing results to a fine degree as a way to reduce defects in products and services. The Greek letter sigma is sometimes used to denote variation from a standard. The philosophy behind Six Sigma is that if you measure how many defects are in a process, you can figure out how to systematically eliminate them and get as close to perfection as possible. In order for a company to achieve Six Sigma, it cannot produce more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities, where an opportunity is defined as a chance for nonconformance.
- Six Sigma is a management philosophy developed by Motorola that emphasizes setting extremely high objectives, collecting data, and analyzing results to a fine degree as a way to reduce defects in products and services. The Greek letter sigma is sometimes used to denote variation from a standard. The philosophy behind Six Sigma is that if you measure how many defects are in a process, you can figure out how to systematically eliminate them and get as close to perfection as possible. In order for a company to achieve Six Sigma, it cannot produce more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities, where an opportunity is defined as a chance for nonconformance.
There are two Six Sigma processes: Six Sigma DMAIC and Six Sigma DMADV, each term derived from the major steps in the process. Six Sigma DMAIC is a process that defines, measures, analyzes, improves, and controls existing processes that fall below the Six Sigma specification. Six Sigma DMADV defines, measures, analyzes, designs, and verifies new processes or products that are trying to achieve Six Sigma quality. All Six Sigma processes are executed by Six Sigma Green Belts or Six Sigma Black Belts, which are then overseen by a Six Sigma Master Black Belts, terms created by Motorola.
Six Sigma proponents claim that its benefits include up to 50% process cost reduction, cycle-time improvement, less waste of materials, a better understanding of customer requirements, increased customer satisfaction, and more reliable products and services. It is acknowledged that Six Sigma can be costly to implement and can take several years before a company begins to see bottom-line results. Texas Instruments, Scientific-Atlanta, General Electric, and Allied Signal are a few of the companies that practice Six Sigma.
CONTRIBUTORS:
David Calloway and Greg Gleich
SUGGESTED READING
The Six Sigma way
How GE, Motorola and other top companies are honing their performance
by Peter S Pande, Robert Pneumann, Ronald R Cavanagh
Published by TATA Mc GRAW HILL Compamy Ltd in india
ISBN 0 -07- 053321-0
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