Week 1:six sigma foundation and principle

Five Clues to the Purpose of Six Sigma

In general, companies tend to adopt Six Sigma for five specific reasons: 1.
Improve Customer Satisfaction

At its core, the purpose of Six Sigma is to measure and eliminate defects in
manufacturing and development. While some managers use Six Sigma to increase
efficiency, the most successful companies rely on the system to reduce customer
complaints and product malfunctions. When used in a project management setting,
Six Sigma can provide a framework for repetitive project cycles that helps measure
progress against long term goals.

2. Standardize Business Development

Companies that adopt Six Sigma can choose between two implementations of the
strategy, depending on their desired outcome. When the purpose of Six Sigma at an
organization is to overhaul an existing product or service, leaders can use the
“DMAIC” method, in which participants define, measure, analyze, improve, and
control their results. The “DMADV” method helps companies that view the
purpose of Six Sigma as an opportunity to develop entirely new products and
services by defining, measuring, analyzing, defining, and verifying their plans.

3. Coordinate Metrics with Suppliers and Customers

Six Sigma incorporates a variety of established quality management measurements

into its own methodologies. Therefore, many companies use Six Sigma to interface
more directly with both clients and vendors. For example, a client organization that
relies heavily on customer surveys and a third-party supplier that analyzes
manufacturing variances can both be addressed through a unified Six Sigma
strategy.

4. Ensure Industry and Government Compliance

At it’s core, the purpose of Six Sigma involves reducing manufacturing errors to a
rate below 3.4 parts per million. Many key enterprise purchasers, including large
corporations and government offices, now use this metric to review prospective
vendors. Implementing Six Sigma strategies can help companies win or maintain
lucrative, large contracts.

5. Develop Career Growth Opportunities

For many companies, the purpose of Six Sigma involves one or more of the goals
outlined above. However, individuals can enjoy tremendous professional
development opportunities by helping their employers adopt Six Sigma tools and
training. Along with the inherent benefits of improving business practices,
executives with exposure to Six Sigma methodologies can more easily shift jobs to
other companies that share similar outlooks. Promoting a yellow belt, a green belt,
or a black belt in Six Sigma on a resume signals key competencies to prospective
employers.

Finding Your Own Purpose of Six Sigma

Depending on its implementation, Six Sigma can be seen as a rigid system for
standardization or a common ground for innovation. As with any project
management process, setting expectations for outcome early can mean the
difference between success and failure. Fortunately, the broad support for Six
Sigma in the business sector allows managers to easily find guidance and support
for its methodologies.

Coursera 1st video:What is quality-origin of six sigma,David cook.

What is quality? This is an interesting question.Depending on your product,your
service or your business,it can mean any number of things.But, at the end of the
day,
it all boils down to how well we serve the needs of our customers.Crosby described
quality as,"the conformance to requirements realized throughprevention and
reduction of defects and nonconformances. "In essence, do it right the first
time.There are many paths to sound and robust quality.Two of the most
comprehensive and prevalent in the industry are Lean and Six Sigma.Six Sigma is
both a quality management philosophy and a methodology that focuses on
reducing variation,measuring defects, and improving the quality of products,
processes and services.The purpose of Lean is,to maximize customer value while
minimizing waste.So, you can see how Lean and Six Sigma were meant to
complement each other.The evolution of Six Sigma began withstatistical process
control within the quality organization.This developed into business process re-
engineering, and later into process improvement philosophy known as Total
Quality Management.TQM grew into the methodology we know as Six
Sigma.Lean traces its origins to the organization's desire to improve
productivity.One of the first examples of this,the forward production system, was
used to assemble cars.This was used as the basis for the Toyota production
system.Just In Time production philosophies combined withthe Toyota production
system ultimately evolved into Lean.Now, Lean and Six Sigma are emerging to get
the most of both improvement philosophies.Using Lean and Six Sigma
tools,empowers us to eliminate waste and excess cost,reducevariation and defects
and improve our processes and customer experience in our business.The Six Sigma
methodology is grounded in a process known as DMAIC.DMAIC stands for
Define,Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control.The premise behind DMAIC
requires a change in our thinking.Instead of being problem driven,we need to be
customer driven.Instead of reacting to issues and dissatisfaction,we should search
for ways to prevent issues and dissatisfaction.The existence of waste and rework
are viewed as opportunities for improvement, prevention, and reduction.The idea
of Six Sigma is not new,and can be taken from statistical principles.In the past,
organizations aimed for 99 percent defect free.Without realizing that this is the
same as at least 200,000 wrong drug prescriptions each year,too short or long
landings at major airports each day,5,000 incorrect surgical procedures every
week,20,000 lost articles of mail per hour,unsafe drinking water for almost 15
minutes each day,and no electricity for almost seven hours every month.This is
66,810 defects for every one million opportunities.From a cost and
wasteperspective, this is astonishing.Six Sigma aims us toward a goal of 99.99966
Percent defect free.This is 3.4 defects for every one million opportunities.This can
seem staggering and perhaps even difficult to reach and even sustain.But, the
journey to this goal,reaps its own substantial rewards.Once reaching Six Sigma,we
can realize: 68 wrong drug prescriptions each year.One short or long landing at a
major airport each five years,1.7 incorrect surgical procedures every week,seven
lost articles of mail per hour,one unsafe minute of drinking water every seven
months.And, no electricity for almost seven hours every five years.Imagine, the
vast gains we can fulfill in defect reduction,waste reduction and customer
service,as we journey toward a Six Sigma level of quality excellence.

Second video
Six Sigma is a process improvement approach. 
In Juran's Trilogy, this falls in the third part, quality improvement. 
It can also be part of quality planning, 
since it should be strategic. 
This approach is very focused and follows a five step model. 
There is also a heavy reliance on statistical methods. 
TQ stands for total quality. 
It is reflective of Deming's ideas and embodied in the Malcolm Baldrige criteria. 
Some differences between total quality and six sigma are pointed out here. 
Although there are differences, 
these two approaches work quite well together. 
Total Quality tends to focus on culture change, 
empowering workers and teams and much of 
the improvement takes place within the departments or functions. 
Six Sigma focuses on high level cross-functional processes, 
with involvement from upper management and relies on experts to implement. 
Total Quality generally uses simple tools for process improvement, 
but these simple tools can be very powerful. 
You do not need complex statistical methods for everything. 
It is important to use the approach that fits the situation. 
Six Sigma uses a five step model called DMAIC, 
to shape improvement projects and focuses 
on outcomes in terms of benefits for the company. 
Six Sigma focuses on reducing variation, 
measuring defects and improving quality of products, processes and services. 
The beginnings of Six Sigma can be traced to Motorola. 
In the early '80s in which later transformed into 
an enterprise-wide strategy for business management and improvement. 
Motorola introduced Six Sigma as a measure of quality in 1986. 
Bill Smith with Mikel Harry developed the initial four step Six Sigma stages, 
measure, analyze, improve and control to reduce defects. 
Mikel Harry with Richard Schroeder went on to found Six Sigma Academy in
1994. 
Mikel Harry is considered the main architect of the Six Sigma movement. 
The foundations of a Six Sigma can be 
traced to a group of highly knowledgeable individuals in quality. 
Crosby's four absolutes for quality conformance and prevention, 
are high level statements that help us define and 
frame the idea of quality within the realm of our business. 
Dr.Deming is another quality guru who has made 
substantial contributions to the body of knowledge that we call quality. 
These can be summed up as Deming's 14 points. 
These include a constancy of purpose toward improving, 
and an unwillingness to accept commonly occurring defects and errors. 
Deming also strongly opposed inspecting quality in the product, 
and focusing exclusively on price at the expense of quality. 
There is no reason why we cannot have both. If we are strategic. 
Deming was also a huge proponent of 
continual improvement at a time when most industries looked to 
sustain their position in the marketplace as opposed to seizing opportunities for
growth. 
This continual improvement also reflected in terms of training, 
training on the job, cross-training and confirming that training is still valid. 
Deming also points to the difference between supervision and leadership, 
and the need to drive fear out of the organization. 
If an organization is driven by fear, 
it will never achieve and grow. 
Dr.Deming also believed in keeping the message simple in the organization, 
breaking down barriers and building 
cross-functional teams from all areas of the business. 
Deming was not very enthusiastic about 
numerical quotas for the workforce or numerical goals for the management. 
Even today, every organization has a difficult time moving away from 
the need for numerical metrics as a means of tracking performance. 
He also had little use for merit systems and annual ratings, 
and instead felt that these mechanisms fed into 
employee fear and created an environment of competitiveness instead of
collaboration. 
Finally, in line with his ideas of continuous improvement, 
Deming envisioned an organization heavy 
into the education and self-improvement of every employee. 
Employees are the organization's most valuable asset. 
They should be treated as such. 
Once you have raised the level of knowledge of your employees, 
utilize them and everyone to transform your business. 
Too often, organizations have segments of 
their employee population that go un-utilized or underutilized. 
Taguchi was another quality guru who recognized the importance of 
initiating the proper quality at the engineering and design levels of the process. 
Feigenbaum had some similar yet distinct insights 
into quality beyond the manufacturing floor. 
By focusing our quality efforts in the design and delivery realms, 
we can see gains in areas outside the scope found on the manufacturing floor. 
In summation, Feigenbaum characterized 
total quality control as an effective system for integrating the quality development, 
quality maintenance, and quality improvement efforts at the most economical
levels. 
Other contributions found in various stages of the Six Sigma process come from
Ishikawa, 
who is known for the Fishbone diagram and the Five Whys. 
Once we have established the causes, 
Shewhart took things forward to identify assignable and chance causes. 
These causes can be monitored through 
statistical process control and confirmed through PDCA, 
Plan, Do, Check, Act. 
Another luminary in quality circles is Juran. 
Juran's most significant contribution is known as Juran's Trilogy. 
This includes quality planning, 
quality control, and quality improvement.

Third video:
purpose of Six Sigma.
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Six Sigma projects should always focus on things 
that are of high importance to the organization. 
That is what makes it strategic. 
Internally, it requires support from the highest levels of management.
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Six Sigma also emphasizes planning the project and quantifying the results. 
Matrix are essential in tracking the impact of the project and 
help to the process you are measuring.
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Another key concept is the existence of highly skilled process improvement 
experts. 
Six Sigma and Lean, serve as a mechanism to drive change in the business. 
Typically these changes are top down but the power of the methodology allows
for 
the initiation of projects at any level in the organization 
as long as the aims of Lean and Six Sigma are realized.
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In order for Six Sigma and Lean to coexist and serve the interests of 
the organization, several critical success factors must be realized.
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First, the value of using the methodology must be embraced 
at all levels of the organization.
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The organization must have a strong customer focus and welcome change.
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Teamwork and training are also essential to project success.
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The organization must have strong systems, procedures, and 
infrastructure to facilitate effective communication and collaboration.
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Finally, subject matter experts in the use in implementation of quality and 
Lean tools are needed to analyze results and 
device effective means toward measuring and qualifying improvement.
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When comparing short term and long term performance in variation, 
one should expect to see a 1.5 sigma shift. 
Although adapters of the Six Sigma philosophy may struggle to reach a level 
of variance reduction equivalent to 3.4 defects for every 1 million opportunities, 
intermediate gains can be realized to reduce variation significantly.
Start transcript at 2 minutes 6 seconds2:06
In terms of Sigma level, huge leaps in reduction of defects 
can be realized as we move from one Sigma level to the next.
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As defect reduction improves, 
we see a corresponding improvement in percent yield.

Fourth video:
Six Sigma Methodology.
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Although there are many process methodologies for 
six sigma, the most common is DMAIC. 
DMAIC consists of define, measure, analyze, improve, and control. 
It is primarily used in manufacturing, service, and transactional settings.
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Under each phase, there are a series of essential steps required.
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To accompany these steps, are a series of common and effective tools. 
In the define phase, project goals are set and 
boundaries established to align with the aims of the organization.
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The measure phase establishes our baseline and 
attempts to localize the vital few xs that are the prime 
drivers behind the problems we seek to address in our project.
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Using the findings of the measure phase, conjectures are formulated of root causes. 
We can confirm these theories through the collection of data to further localize and 
understand the sources of the problem.
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It is very important that we confirm that our process is functioning 
as it should prior to analyzing the problem. 
Otherwise any results we glean could be invalid. 
Now that we have ascertained the source as the problem, we are ready to develop, 
implement and evaluate solutions targeted at our verified cause.
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Our aim here is to demonstrate a positive change to the current state 
of the process through our adjustments.
Start transcript at 1 minute 30 seconds1:30
The improvement phase is really meant as a pilot of the proposed change. 
To ensure long term affective change on a larger scale, mechanisms must be put into 
place to ensure the problem stays fixed long after the team has been re-purposed. 
We also wish to leave open the possibility for future improvement and 
adoption of best practices in other areas of the business with similar problems.

Fifth video:

Evolution of Six Sigma.

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Lean Six Sigma started with statistical process control on the quality side. 
It evolved in the business process reengineering where we throw out the old 
process and start over.
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And then on to total quality management, 
process improvement which ultimately evolved into Six Sigma.
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On a productivity side, the Ford Production System was used 
to assemble cars, which was used as the basis for the Toyota Production System.
Start transcript at 33 seconds0:33
Just In Time production philosophies joined by TPS which evolved into Lean.
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Now Lean and Six Sigma are merging to get the most of both improvement philosophies.
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Lean began as the Toyota Production System in 1973. 
Lean is essentially the elimination of waste, this waste can be identify to 
the process speed, efficiency and reduce through continuous improvement.
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The five principles of Lean include value, the value chain, 
flow, pull and perfection.
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This five principles can be brought to [INAUDIBLE] through a wide spectrum of 
Lean tools.
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In a related way, 
different areas of emphasis of the business flow directly into Six Sigma.
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We may consider the curve of parts per million defects compared to sigma level. 
We see that many processes commonly used daily are ripe for improvement.
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The best in class organization will consistently deliver products and 
services in the realm of Six Sigma.
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As you can imagine, the financial and 
customer perception risk to the company can be staggering at lower sigma levels. 
Lean Six Sigma requires a fundamental shift on our mindset. 
Instead of being problem-driven, we need to be customer-driven. 
Instead of reacting to issues and dissatisfaction, we should search for 
ways to prevent issues and dissatisfaction. 
The existence of waste and rework are viewed as opportunities for 
improvement, prevention and reduction.

Start transcript at 2 minutes 8 seconds2:08

Together Lean and Six Sigma combines to produce a methodology 
driven to reduce variation by attacking waste and 
excessive cost aimed toward maximizing the customer's experience.

Six sigma roles and responsilbilty: