Six Sigma

Six Sigma Analysis

Process improvement, using methods like Six Sigma, is essential for businesses looking to establish a competitive advantage. This plan for improvement is designed to improve productivity, enhance quality and increase competitiveness by reducing cost.

Six Sigma is lots of different things because it had different meanings over time, and also because it is now interpreted in a number of varying ways. Furthermore, Six Sigma is still evolving. According to the UK Department for Trade and Industry Six Sigma is:

"A data-driven method for achieving near perfect quality. Six Sigma analysis can focus on any element of production or service, and has a strong emphasis on statistical analysis in design, manufacturing and customer-oriented activities"(Chapman,2005). You will gather from the definitions and history of Six Sigma that many people consider the model to be capable of leveraging huge performance improvements and cost savings.

Why the word 'Sigma'? The word is a statistical term that measures how far a given process deviates from perfection. The central idea behind Six Sigma is that if you can measure how many 'defects' you have in a process, you can systematically figure out how to eliminate them and get as close to 'zero defects' as possible. To achieve Six Sigma Quality, a process must produce no more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities. An 'opportunity' is defined as a chance for nonconformance, or not meeting the required specifications. This means we need to be nearly flawless in executing our key processes."

Of course Six Sigma cannot just occur on its own. Teams and team leaders are an essential part of the Six Sigma process. Six Sigma is thus a style which requires and encourages team leaders and teams to take responsibility for putting the Six Sigma procedures into practice. Notably these people need