Six Sigma: What It Is And How It Works

One of the most talked about business management strategy of this era is the Six Sigma way, even if in reality, it had already existed way back in the 1800’s. But what really is this Six Sigma process, and how can it be used to your business’ advantage? Just how effective can it be?

Six Sigma started from a mathematic theory known as the bell curve which involves variations. These variation simply put, is the deviation from expectations, every action or process, and every activity inherent to this so called variation. By knowing this, our concern is to put a limit to it to be able to measure its intensity. To explain further, a variation is the subtle differences through the process. It is said to be inevitable and unavoidable.

As a business management strategy, Six Sigma works on those limits with regards to quality production. It aims, just as what Motorola mentioned about it: customer satisfaction, by serving quality products and managing waste without ruining your company’s budget through it. Six Sigma is like a phase, six stages, of how your company would be able to manufacture ending up with an almost 99.999% perfection.

The Six Sigma strategy should then easily be understood as something your company should adopt within the quality control or production department where it is more applicable. There’s a so called implementation of roles involving positions for the CEOs, and belters (Black, Green and Yellows) referring to the expert Six Sigma professionals and their respective functions.

Under the Six Sigma way, there are two methods that can be used:

The DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) and DMADV (Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify). Through the meaning itself, both describes a strategy on how to analyze and run the production, including how you would be able to manage the troubles to reach perfection. The first method is most applicable for improving an existing business, while the latter is used for or during creation of new products or designs.

By following the systematic approach mentioned above, trouble shooting will be much more effective. Keeping in mind thoughts like - (1) how good your product’s quality is or should be; (2) what and where improvement is needed; and (3) the progress effort you need and must do to attain the said improvements. When you’ve handled all this the right way, success will surely follow.

In the end, Six Sigma is an inspiration as to how you should handle manufacturing and production. The best way to describe it, which will play as a golden vision for the Six Sigma way is to be able to deliver products and services with no defects seen by your customers. However, it never ends with production itself. Defects, negative feedbacks, should be professionally taken care of and acknowledged by giving solutions for it. The whole point is to receive as little, else none at all, complaints.

Once that is established, the company will then rise with a better image and results at a much lesser cost.