Six Sigma Fishbone Diagram

NYC Management Statistical Controls

New York City refines its key performance indicators to sustain its management visibility reporting process. It is not unusual, in the Six Sigma control phase, to revise the measurement system with an updated set of relevant KPI's. ...

... "The administration said that a substantial number of the indicators that were dropped had become outdated and noted that it had added about 200 new measurements to a streamlined version of the Mayor’s Management Report" ...

Via New York Times: Management Statistics

The NYC management report (PDF) reviews the performance of each department or office.

Six Sigma DMADV for Business Process Improvements

Six Sigma methodology can become your foundation for improvement of business processes. DMAIC or DMADV framework can provide the steps necessary to define opportunities, create change, and drive adoption. As companies implement and upgrade ERP systems, the improvement of business process is necessary to create value from the investment. ...

... "It not only provides the framework for setting up new business processes, but also for redesigning processes that have reached their inherent performance limits. The DMADV model includes the project phases of define, measure, analyze, design, and verify. " ...

Via SAP INFO: BPI, Improving Business Processes

Six Sigma Financials

Six Sigma project teams must build a budget and refine it as the opportunity proceeds through the DMAIC gates. ...

... "This approach seems to be carried over in to Six Sigma projects. Projects are drawing members in the company and setting up cross-functional teams. " ...

Via Purchasing: Accurate Budgeting

Lean Manufacturing Measurement Strategy

Ethanol industry confronts challenges in manufacturing yield through the use of Six Sigma and lean manufacturing techniques. Establishing measurements of baseline performance and measuring improvements and sustaining improved performance is key to these methodologies. ...

... "Process improvement methodologies, such as lean manufacturing and Six Sigma, are fundamentally measurement-based strategies that seek to maximize productivity while eliminating variation. In fact, measurement is both the second and fifth step of the Six Sigma DMADV (define, measure, analyze, design and verify) process. " ...

Via Ethanol Producer: Measurement Automation Strategy

Six Sigma Project Tools Upgraded

Minitab has upgraded its Quality Companion tool, a Six Sigma DMAIC process enabler, and is offering web seminars to educate its user base and prospective users. ...

... "Quality Companion by Minitab provides the organization, tools and guidance for completing Six Sigma and other quality improvement projects. " ...

Via Minitab: Quality Companion Tools Overview

Six Sigma DMAIC Benefits from Simulations

Simulating processes may have a role in increasing the realization of benefits from Six Sigma projects. ...

... "That's because in the Define stage of DMAIC (Define- Measure- Analyze- Improve- Control), Six Sigma experts don't have enough information to quantify the benefits. " ...

Via Reliable Plant: Process simulation

Six Sigma DMAIC: The As-Is Process Map

Creating pure water through reverse osmosis or other methods requires a Six Sigma process focus. The improvement team starts with an as-is process map, using the DMAIC process, to understand the opportunities to improve the operation.

... "The team constructed a detailed process map of the membrane manufacturing process, including the preparation and introduction of all raw materials and the testing / grading / dispositioning of each finished roll of membrane material. The exercise of writing an as-is process map created a forum for good communication and the chance to more critically analyze individual operations. " ...

Via Controlled Environments Magazine: Clean Manufacturing

Six Sigma Data Analysis Approach Improves Business Intelligence

For companies to reap the value of business intelligence, competence in data analysis is key to success. An enterprise with Six Sigma experience will have a head start due to the data analysis discipline instilled in the DMAIC process. ...

... "Most organizations don't do this, though through the Six Sigma programs that some companies, like GE run, many more people are now being trained in this way. Their use of information in decision making changes dramatically after this type of training. " ...

Via destinationCRM: Business Intelligence

Customer Satisfaction Essential for GE Leader

GE's Steven Sargent shares his disciplined approach to customer service and life. ...

... "I do use the Six Sigma problem-solving DMAIC methodology - define the problem, measure data inputs, analyse the data, improve the process, control the process - to solve problems at work and at home ... " ...

Via The Age: GE Australia Leader

Six Sigma Supplier Development

Xcitec uses Six Sigma methodology to create supplier optimization projects that translate into successful supplier relationships. ...

... "Xcitec supplier development based on Six Sigma is carried out in 5 process steps (DMAIC = define, measure, analyze, improve, control): development projects are defined, measures established, causes documented and corresponding solutions and goals are set. Process progress is routinely measured and monitored in order to secure supplier development and to sustainably optimize cooperation with suppliers. Supplier and purchasers receive regular updates regarding development progress and the degree of implementation for the optimization measures. " ...

Via Xcitec: Strategic Purchasing

Six Sigma OpenSource Training Materials

Six Sigma training set ...

... "OSSS DMAIC Version 8.0 consists of 1,235 slides, 37 data sets and 19 templates. " ...

Open Source Six Sigma

Six Sigma Thought Process Pervades Employee Culture

Small companies can have success with Six Sigma through using its DMAIC process to guide employee behaviors and thought process. ...

... "Your company may be math-challenged and the thought of doing anything with statistics may put you to sleep, but don't throw out the baby with the bathwater. Through the Six Sigma DMAIC thought process, you can involve employees in reaching company goals. " ...

Via Inc: Six Sigma

DataMining SixSigma DMAIC Methodology

Data mining vendor KXEN adopts Six Sigma DMAIC as its standard implementation methodology for inegrating analytics into corporate business processes. ...

... "The adoption of DMAIC - short for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control - brings for the first time rigidly defined business goals, milestones and measurements to data mining projects. Until now the absence of such discipline has put many businesses off data mining according to Bloor Research analyst David Norris, restricting its use to specialized, low volume projects.

DMAIC is one of two Six Sigma methodologies and is most commonly used to improve existing business processes. It was chosen as the KXEN standard implementation methodology for its completeness, its clear tasks/deliverables descriptions and its suitability for business users. Six Sigma was pioneered by Motorola in 1986 and is a service mark and trademark of that company. The move also highlights KXEN's use in broader Six Sigma projects for overall business performance improvement initiatives where data mining can help identify the true indicators of performance, spot trends and detect failures. " ...

Via KXEN: Six Sigma Methodology For Data Mining Projects

Six Sigma Defect Elimination: Haz Waste Elimination

US Coast Guard uses Six Sigma DMAIC process to minimize defects in the elimination of hazardous waste. Voice of the customer surveys identified training improvements as low-cost, low-risk approach to creating measureable change in performance. Green techniques to environmental improvement is recognized. ...

... "The team followed the Six Sigma DMAIC process improvement model (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control). The team designed and performed a comprehensive Customer Survey targeting all the Environmental Compliance Officers (ECOs) from the various tenant units. Customer surveys revealed that training and knowledge of the system was sporadic due to ECO turnover and the lack of tenant command emphasis. The team quickly acknowledged that a robust and continual education and outreach program would be needed to improve the overall success of the Hazmat management program. In April 2005, a comprehensive training session was successfully implemented and is now offered on a monthly basis by the EB. " ...

Via US EPA: 2006 Awards: Champions of Green Government Awards | Region 9: Federal Facilities ...

Logistics Six Sigma Savings: 3M Brazil

3M will outsource pallet management to CHEP, trasitioning from exchange pallets. Using the Six Sigma DMAIC process, 3M validates significant room for improvement in its pallet operation. It expects to realize benefits with potential cost reductions for transportation and storage. ...

... "To determine whether CHEP services were appropriate for the company's operations, 3M used Six Sigma processes, solicited feedback from wholesale and superstore retail customers and conducted a comprehensive reference call at the Brazilian facilities of a leading global consumer products company. During the review process, managers identified a chance to decrease loss of pallets and reduce the quantity of renewed equipment derived by costumer returns. " ...

Via CHEP: 3M Brazil Sees Cost Savings With CHEP Program

CHEP is the global leader in pallet and container pooling services serving many of the world's largest companies. The company has more than 7,700 employees and operates in 44 countries. Combining superior technology and an asset base of more than 280 million pallets and containers, CHEP offers its customers exceptional value, a platform that enables reduction in customer product damage, and an environmentally sustainable logistical solution. Supply chains served include consumer goods, produce, beverage, and the automotive industry. With global partners that include Procter & Gamble, SYSCO, Kellogg's, Kraft, Nestle, Ford and GM, CHEP is known for Handling the World's Most Important Products. Everyday.

3M Brazil uses a number of management methods in its operations, such as theory of constraints in its supply chain. ...

Via AGI-Goldratt Institute: TOC World 2000 Video Presentations: "3M Brazil successfully applies the Theory of Constraints to their Sales and Operational Plan (SOP) to define their ideal sales mix in terms of addressing the market, the impact on production, and to evaluate the impact on their bottom line. "

In addition to its efficiency focus, 3M Brazil focuses on sustainability in its manufacturing operations. Its skills in pollution prevention are showcased here. ...

3P Examples: "3P team from 3M Brazil's Itapetininga facility replaced the solvent-based paper treatment process the plant used to manufacture packaging, medical and masking tapes with a new, water-based process. As a result of this change, the facility reduced solvent emissions by over 45 tons per year. "

Project Portfolio Management: Six Sigma Support ...

Tata Consultancy builds a project and portfolio management system around the Microsoft Project 2007 product. It will enable the deployment of Six Sigma portfolio management and tracking of projects over the DMAIC lifecycle (DMAIC = Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control). Tata's Six Sigma solution is branded as SigmaX(TM). Enterprise portfolio management tools require a significant amount of effort to design and configure. A pre-configured system, tailored for the Six Sigma methodology, is a winner. ...

... "The TCS-Microsoft EPM Solutions is an end-to-end offering that addresses enterprise project planning, definition, execution, management, measurement and tracking needs for businesses. It offers customized niche solutions for industry verticals, Six Sigma deployment and collaborative product development. Tata SigmaX(TM): helps organizations deploy quality management rapidly and consistently by mapping the robust technologies of the Microsoft Office Enterprise Project Management (EPM) platform to the Six Sigma quality management methodology. " ...

Via Tata: Tata Consultancy Services Among First to Launch Enterprise Project and Portfolio Management Solutions on Microsoft Office Project 2007

Project Portfolio Management: Six Sigma ...

SAP updates its project portfolio management software. It supports management of the Six Sigma project portfolio, enabling project selection at the Define gate of the DMAIC process and monitoring progress through the lifecycle. ...

... "The latest version of SAP xRPM offers new capabilities allowing companies to utilize a single application for portfolio management across different functional groups in the organization. Users are empowered to best prioritize resource allocation by scoring portfolio items based on aggregation of both qualitative and quantitative criteria, such as risk, feasibility and commercial value. SAP xRPM also provides new specialized templates and configurations that deliver support for operational groups including new product development, IT, enterprise asset management and Six Sigma. " ...

Via SAP: SAP Customers Execute Business Strategy with Solution for Portfolio Management

Quality Software: Six Sigma Tool ...

Minitab launches new software for the Six Sigma professional that supports the project roadmap. ...

... "Minitab Inc. announced the release of Quality Companion 2 by Minitab, process improvement software designed specifically to help Six Sigma professionals manage and execute their projects. The new product complements the company's flagship product, Minitab Statistical Software, which professionals worldwide rely on to tackle the sophisticated statistical data analysis at the heart of every Six Sigma project. Quality Companion 2 simplifies the many other challenges involved in quality improvement, and helps teams plan, execute, document and report on their projects. It brings together three elements critical to Six Sigma success: organization, practical tools, and expert guidance. " ...

Via Minitab: MINITAB LAUNCHES QUALITY COMPANION 2 FOR SIX SIGMA PROFESSIONALS ...

Six Sigma BPM: InfoSTEP Offshore ...

Six Sigma BPM: InfoSTEP Offshore: Via Webindia123: US firm InfoSTEP to have offshore facility at Hyderabad ...

... "Primarily driven by the six sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyse, Improve, Control) methodology, BPM utilises sophisticated algorithms and reporting environments to provide measurements at the micro and macro level using balanced scorecards, efficiency metrics, workflow and focused data integration. " ...

Six Sigma Patience and Persistance in Conflict?

Six sigma discipline promotes a patient process of finding the critical few variable that truly impact customer requirements. It takes persistance to apply the various steps in the Six Sigma DMAIC process, instead of jumping too quickly to a solution. Al Kaniss explores the importance of emphasis on the character traits of patience and persistence. ...

Six Sigma Patience and Persistance in Conflict?: Via DC Military: Patience and persistence pay off ...

... "And with the emphasis on total quality and six sigma (3.4 defects per million opportunities), there isn't very much tolerance for mistakes or trial-and-error learning. Perhaps the champion of patience and persistence was Thomas Edison. " ...

Design Engineer Job: Six Sigma DMAIC Methodology ...

Design Engineer Job: Six Sigma DMAIC Methodology: Via Renewable Energy Access: Lead Design Engineer, Location: Austin, Texas ...

... "Communicate, accelerate, and institutionalize process excellence and standardization at all levels; preferably with the use of Six Sigma DMAIC methodology; Identify and leverage best practices across functions and departments; Work with quality and operations teams to develop and utilize Six Sigma tools and methods; " ...

Call Center Performance Management: Six Sigma Baseline

A people performance management approach may be more appropriate to call center improvement at the outset, before introducing discipline Six Sigma. However, it is still important to establish baseline performance measurement, as would occur in the Measure phase of the Six Sigma DMAIC process. Rich Snow, VP Ventana Research, explores the performance improvement of ineffective call centers. ...

Call Center Performance Management: Six Sigma Baseline: Via TMCnet: Ineffective Call Centers Need Performance Management

... "Some observers suggest adopting the Six Sigma approach: set targets, measure and reduce variation at all stages until the measures fall within the targets, then repeat with more exacting targets. " ...

Process Management: Six Sigma Digitization

Industry initiatives in BPM develop synergy with Six Sigma process digitization programs. Doug Henschen explores the adoption of business process management BPM with Connie Moore, Forrester Research.

Process Management: Six Sigma Digitization: Via Intelligent Enterprise Magazine: In Focus: 101 Advice for Process Management Neophytes

... "Process owners see this as a way to commit to Six Sigma or other improvement initiatives. BPM touches many pieces of the organization, and that's why you see it described in many different ways. " ...

References on Six Sigma process digitization:

... "Via AWProfessional: From e-Business to Services: Why and Why Now?: The logical next step of Six Sigma is process digitization. The digitization goal: to utilize Internet-based workflows wherever possible to eliminate process friction and streamline the operations of GE. " ...

... "Via Birlasoft: Advanced Digitization of Six Sigma Implementation: One of the key ingredient to the success of Six Sigma implementation is to manage all key Black Belt and Green Belt projects. These projects ideally link up to organizational strategy and goals. " ...

... "Via destinationCRM.com: Bringing Six Sigma to Customer-Facing Business Processes: CRM supports the Six Sigma methodology DMAIC in the following ways: Improve, Control, and standardize processes through automation, digitization, and use of best practices embedded in the business applications. " ...

Six Sigma PLM Implementation: DMEDI ...

Six Sigma PLM Implementation: PLM and Six Sigma: Complementary Strategies for Success ...

... "Implementing PLM at a Six Sigma Company: Understanding the DMAIC Process is critical to successful implementation of PLM when working with a Six Sigma company. PLM can and must support Six Sigma methodologies for process improvements (DMAIC) and process creation (DMADV, DMEDI or DMADOV are some examples) as well as strong Governance for Culture/Change Management. The DMAIC methodology is used when a product or process is in existence at a company but is not meeting customer specifications or is not performing adequately. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Training

Six Sigma DMAIC Training: Online Six Sigma Green Belt Industrial

... "The Industrial Green Belt candidate is trained to use the powerful Six Sigma process for realizing breakthrough Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control, or simply DMAIC. Through this systematic and scientific method of problem solving, the Industrial Green Belt candidate discovers how to best apply the supporting tools of Six Sigma; thereby, paving the way for short-cycle, high-yield improvements. This means that successful Industrial Green Belt candidates will be able to increase their job-related or product-related output quality and quantity in less time and at a lower total cost, thereby creating additional value. the program presents the foundational principles and core values that underpin the installation of Six Sigma, as well as the driving knowledge for identifying, selecting, initializing, executing, reporting, and validating an Industrial Six Sigma Green Belt project. " ...

BlackBelts Use DMAIC Process ...

BlackBelts Use DMAIC Process: Caterpillar Financial Services Corporation US - 2003 Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Recipient

... "CFSC's 6 Sigma teams use a five-step DMEDI (Define, Measure, Explore, Develop, Implement) process for designing new processes and the six-step DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) for improving existing processes. Specially trained employees called Black Belts, experts in the 6 Sigma process and team facilitation; Green Belts, subject matter experts; and Yellow Belts, trained in basics of 6 Sigma, comprise these teams. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Course Description

Six Sigma DMAIC Course Description: George Group Consulting, LP

... "The first day of the course is delivered as an interactive, business simulation. This simulation has the participants assume roles within an organization and apply the DMAIC improvement methodology and improvement tools on the simulated process. As a team, they move a poorly functioning process to higher levels of performance through the use of the methods and tools including project chartering, process capability, process mapping, narrowing critical process variables, Pareto charts, histograms, box plots, descriptive statistics, run charts, cause and effect matrix and developing and implementing pilot solutions. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Phases ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Phases: IS&T Colloquium - Nancy Eickelmann

... "The defined, rigorous and disciplined approach of Six Sigma is encapsulated in a five-phase process called DMAIC or Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. The define phase requires a project charter which must include a business case with (financial impact), problem statement, goal statement, project scope, team member roles, milestones/deliverables and support required. The measure phase goal is to build a factual understanding of existing process conditions and problems. The analysis phase is applied using multiple analytical and experimental methods such as a full factorial Design of Experiments (DOE). The improve phase consists of implementing the process changes isolated in the analysis phase. The control phase is applied to monitor and ensure that the new process is being followed. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Framework ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Framework: D-1: Statistical Sciences

... "Six Sigma may be considered a modern version of Total Quality Management. There are no new analytical tools with Six Sigma that were not applied in the 1980's with TQM. Six Sigma does have some standard methodology and organizational guidelines that are unique.
Six Sigma's standard framework methodology is called DMAIC (de-may-ic): Define, Measure, Analysis, Improve, and Control. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Implementation Approach ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Implementation Approach: Six Sigma | Lean Thinking | Lean and the Environment | EPA

... "Method and Implementation Approach: A sequence of steps called the Six Sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) is typically used to guide implementation of Six Sigma statistical tools and to identify process wastes and weaknesses. " ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Process

Six Sigma DMAIC Process: Oklahoma Department of Commerce - Workforce - Business Workforce Assistance - Best Practices

... "The fundamental objective of the Six Sigma methodology is the implementation of a measurement-based strategy that focuses on process improvement and variation reduction through the application of Six Sigma improvement projects. This is accomplished through the use of two Six Sigma sub-methodologies: DMAIC and DMADV. The Six Sigma DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) process is an improvement system for existing processes falling below specification and looking for incremental improvement. The Six Sigma DMADV (Define, Measure, Analyze, Design, Verify) process is an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at Six Sigma quality levels. It can also be employed if a current process requires more than just incremental improvement. " ...

Kaizen Event DMAIC

Kaizen Event DMAIC: NAVAIR AIRSpeed Headquarters Pilot a Success ...

Vicky Falcón, NAVAIR Public Affairs Office, writes ...

... "The turning point came during a Kaizen event. Kaizen means continuous improvement, and is an approach used within NAVAIR AIRSpeed. During Kaizen. a repetition of five phases (define, measure, analyze, improve and control) are used to eliminate waste and increase efficiency. " ...

Six Sigma Process Performance ...

Oklahoma Department of Commerce - Workforce - Business Workforce Assistance - Best Practices

... "Six Sigma represents a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving towards six standard deviations between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service. The statistical representation of Six Sigma describes quantitatively how a process is performing. To achieve Six Sigma, a process must not produce more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities. A Six Sigma defect is defined as anything outside of customer specifications. A Six Sigma opportunity is then the total quantity of chances for a defect. Process sigma can easily be calculated using a Six Sigma calculator. The fundamental objective of the Six Sigma methodology is the implementation of a measurement-based strategy that focuses on process improvement and variation reduction through the application of Six Sigma improvement projects. This is accomplished through the use of two Six Sigma sub-methodologies: DMAIC and DMADV. " ...

Six Sigma Historical Perspective ...

D-1: Statistical Sciences

... "Six Sigma originated at Motorola Corporation in the early 1980's. In 1988, Motorola became one of the first companies to win the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award http://www.quality.nist.gov/. The innovation and the implementation of Motorola's 'Six Sigma' initiative began to get national attention. Then, in 1994, Allied Signal adopted Motorola's Six Sigma initiative and by 1998, claimed to have saved $1.2 billion due to the implementation of Six Sigma. Consultants who were experts in Total Quality Management, soon became experts in Six Sigma. Six Sigma may be considered a modern version of Total Quality Management. There are no new analytical tools with Six Sigma that were not applied in the 1980's with TQM. Six Sigma does have some standard methodology and organizational guidelines that are unique. Six Sigma's standard framework methodology is called DMAIC (de-may-ic): Define, Measure, Analysis, Improve, and Control." ...

Lean Six Sigma Curriculum ...

... "OperationsLearning Path: Six Sigma Foundations
Six Sigma Introduction OPER01313.5
OperationsLearning Path: Six Sigma Team Implementation
Six Sigma: Reducing Variation to Improve Quality OPER01414
Six Sigma: Listening to the Voice of the Customer OPER01425.5
Six Sigma DMAIC: Defining the Problem OPER01434
Six Sigma DMAIC: Measuring the Problem OPER01445
Six Sigma DMAIC: Analyzing the Data OPER01455.5
Six Sigma DMAIC: Analyzing the Process OPER01463
Six Sigma DMAIC: Improving the Process OPER01475
Six Sigma DMAIC: Controlling the Improved Process OPER01484

OperationsLearning Path: Lean Manufacturing
Lean Logic OPER01514
Lean Value OPER01524
Lean Techniques OPER01536
Lean Strategies OPER01544.5" ...

Six Sigma DMAIC Process ...

IS&T Colloquium - Nancy Eickelmann ...

... "The defined, rigorous and disciplined approach of Six Sigma is encapsulated in a five-phase process called DMAIC or Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control. The define phase requires a project charter which must include a business case with (financial impact), problem statement, goal statement, project scope, team member roles, milestones/deliverables and support required. The measure phase goal is to build a factual understanding of existing process conditions and problems. The analysis phase is applied using multiple analytical and experimental methods such as a full factorial Design of Experiments (DOE). The improve phase consists of implementing the process changes isolated in the analysis phase. The control phase is applied to monitor and ensure that the new process is being followed. This presentation will describe successful Six Sigma initiatives and how they are used to effectively implement rapid change in an organization and subsequently institutionalize it." ...

Six Sigma Tool Enables Project Define Phase ...

Six Sigma Tool Enables Project Define Phase: ValueCurve(TM) Technologies Releases Project Business Case ...

From PR Newswire (press release) ... TM)Business Case module provides users a low-cost, standardized process for justifying projects such as ERP, Supply Chain, Six Sigma, Software Development and ...

... ValueCurve Technologies, a leading provider of Project Performance Management Solutions, today releases version 2.0 of its Business Case Justification Software as part of their modular, web-based ValueDriver4(TM)Project Performance Management software suite. The ValueDriver4(TM)Business Case module provides users a low-cost, standardized process for justifying projects such as ERP, Supply Chain, Six Sigma, Software Development and R&D initiatives. The Business Case module automates ValueCurve's proprietary Speed2Value(TM) methodology, which focuses on providing practical and winning project justifications that can be tracked to ensure ongoing benefits and project performances are achieved. ...

ValueCurve(TM) is a leader in project performance management for supply chain management, Six Sigma, PMO and ERP initiatives for Global 2000 organizations. ValueCurve offers professional services and performance management tools and methodologies such as the ValueDriver4(TM) software to provide a standardized approach for justifying projects, driving stakeholder accountability and delivering measurable value and ROI from project investments. ValueCurve professionals have deep technical and process knowledge with a proven track record from some of the world's leading organizations including Gillette, Johnson & Johnson, FMC, Saint-Gobain, P&G, Cytec, and Simon & Shuster.

Additional resources on project tools for the Six Sigma Define phase ...

DMAIC Quick Reference - Define Phase: Improvement team members fully trained on Six Sigma and DMAIC. ... with to ensure that the expected project completion date ... What tools and roadmaps did you use for ...

Microsoft Six Sigma Introduction to Six Sigma: Sigma can be used to guide process improvement projects. ... an overview of two common Six Sigma models, DMAIC ... These tools and techniques are applied within the ...

Six Sigma & STATISTICA: phase is concerned with the definition of project goals and ... the Analyze phase of the Six Sigma quality effort ... causes using the appropriate data analysis tools. ...

VBSS Value Based Six Sigma Drives Corporate Performance ...

VBSS Value Based Six Sigma Drives Corporate Performance: ITT Industries Reports Record Q4 EPS of $1.29, Up 12 Percent

From PR Newswire (press release) ... active steps in a series of initiatives, from realignment of our infrastructure to global sourcing and expansion of our Value-Based Six Sigma capabilities, all ...

... ITT Industries, Inc. (NYSE: ITT) reported fourth quarter 2004 net income of $121.6 million, up $13.5 million or 12 percent over the period in 2003. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, including the net impact of special items, was a record high $1.29, up $0.14 per share from reported EPS in the fourth quarter 2003. During the fourth quarter 2004, the company realized a $0.15 per share benefit from the gain on the sale of an investment, which was partially offset by some special items, including restructuring costs, discontinued operations and tax charges of ($0.14) per share. The net effect of these special items was a $0.01 per share benefit to reported EPS for the fourth quarter. Adjusting results to exclude the impact of these special items, earnings per share for the fourth quarter 2004 were $1.28, up 21 percent over the comparable adjusted figure of $1.06 for the period in 2003. ...

ITT Industries, Inc. (http://www.itt.com) supplies advanced technology products and services in key markets including: fluid and water management including water treatment; defense communication, opto-electronics, information technology and services; electronic interconnects and switches; and other specialty products. Headquartered in White Plains, NY, the company generated $6.8 billion in 2004 sales. In addition to the New York Stock Exchange, ITT Industries stock is traded on the Midwest, Pacific, Paris, London and Frankfurt exchanges.

Introduced at ITT Industries in 2000, Value-Based Six Sigma is becoming known as the continuous improvement program that works. The key to success is the training of employees who work full time to improve the company's performance. As a company-wide effort, Value-Based Six Sigma is giving employees around the world the opportunity to make a difference. Every value center has been assigned a Champion who identifies the site's most-worthy improvement projects. Each project is steered by a Black Belt trained in the use of statistical tools that can lead to higher quality, better customer service, leaner production and faster product development.

Additional resources on value-based six sigma ...

Lean Six Sigma for Service by the George Group: As Nori Morimoto, Director of Value-Based Six Sigma at ITT Industries says: "DMAIC is the heart of our improvement approach, but Team Accelerator is the soul.". ...

Value Based Six Sigma: "Value-Based Six Sigma (VBSS) is a central element of our management system, and 2001 was its first full year in operation. VBSS ...

LEADERSHIP IN MANUFACTURING -- Best Practices -- ITT: They are black belts and other employees who are making a comprehensive performance-improvement initiative known as Value-Based Six Sigma (VBSS) work. ...

ITT Investor Relations: "We're energized by the $100 million savings resulting to date from our Value-Based Six Sigma (VBSS) initiative, and intend to continue to expand the use of ...

Inventory Stock-Outs Decreased Using Six Sigma DMAIC Process ...

Inventory Stock-Out Six Sigma DMAIC Process ...

From Decisioneering, Inc ...

... In this case study, the Six Sigma DMAIC process is augmented with powerful optimization tool, CrystalBall, to decrease the number of inventory stock-outs while minimizing inventory costs for a company that sold perishable inventory. The Six Sigma project team resolved this problem and lowered the defect rate for stock-outs. The use of a stochastic solution, such as CrystalBall, in the DMAIC process resulted in lower costs than other methods. Also, the optimization model is run dynamically in the control phase of the DMAIC process to incorporate the latest demand and delivery information to determine if the improvement in defect rate can be sustained.

Crystal Ball is a suite of Excel add-ins that help turn your existing engineering and process spreadsheet models into dynamic forecasting tools. Today, Crystal Ball is the tool chosen by more than 85% of the Fortune 500. Companies like GE, Motorola, Honeywell, Seagate, Black & Decker, and Osram Sylvania all rely on Crystal Ball to manage risk, reduce variability, and make more informed business and strategic decisions. Crystal Ball is for anyone who uses spreadsheets and needs to forecast uncertain results. Six Sigma Black Belts, Master Black Belts, Green Belts, and other practitioners in nearly every industry, from manufacturing to software to pharmaceuticals to consulting, all rely on Crystal Ball to improve the quality of their Six Sigma analyses. In addition to Monte Carlo simulation, key Crystal Ball features include distribution fitting to historic data, correlation of distributions, sensitivity analysis, precision control of simulations, and forecast filtering. ...

Since 1986, Decisioneering, Inc. has been providing decision analysis software and solutions that empower individuals and organizations to make better decisions. Trust the leader in risk-analysis software to deliver better outcomes by defining risk and uncertainty. In October 2004, Decisioneering, Inc. was ranked on the Deloitte & Touche Colorado Technology Fast 50 list of fastest-growing technology companies in Colorado. This is the seventh year in a row that Decisioneering has made the list, which is based on five-year percentage revenue growth.

Six Sigma Cycle Time Measurement and Reduction Benchmarks in the Supply Chain ...

Six Sigma Cycle Time Measurement and Reduction: New Benchmarks for Supply Chain Centers: Driving Efficiency and ...

From PR Newswire (press release) ... Drive cycle time reductions everywhere through six sigma teams and through expanded definition and use of cycle time metrics. ...

... In today's fast changing, competitive and cost-driven market, supply chain organizations have to take every opportunity to lower cycle time, reduce uncertainties and stay current with market trends. Supply chain executives need to optimize both dimensions by working closer with business units, other corporate groups, and with customers directly. A new study by Best Practices, LLC takes a data-driven look at best-in-class supply chain centers. ...

Best Practices, LLC is a research and consulting firm that works on the principle that organizations can chart a course to superior economic performance by studying the best business practices, operating tactics and winning strategies of world-class organizations. Our suite of customized Research and Consulting services is designed to assist you in improving your company's performance by analyzing the winning practices of leading corporations.

Additional resources on Six Sigma Cycle Time Measurement and Reduction ...

Existing Product or Service Improvement: A Six Sigma project was initiated to reduce cycle time. ... methodology consists of Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve ... from initiation of a Six Sigma program for ...

Performance Control and Measurement in Lean Six Sigma Environments: File Format: Microsoft Powerpoint 97 ... Reduce Variation & Batch Size. Improve Flow & Productivity. ... Addresses Cost Reduction, Alignment To Goals, Waste, Cycle Time. ... Lean Six Sigma Across the Enterprise. ...

Future Fab Intl.: the course of a (Phase I) Six-Sigma content-reduction ... influence on overall wafer build cycle time, formed the ... s = standard deviation of time t = average time. ...

Six Sigma: into subgoals such as cycle time reduction, cost reduction ... team methodically proceeds through Measurement, Analysis, Improvement ... A Six Sigma improvement team is ...

Six Sigma Experience Pays Off ...

Six Sigma Experience Pays Off: Mayes Joins Diebold as Vice President, Global Manufacturing

From PR Newswire (press release) ... He has extensive experience in lean manufacturing and Six Sigma processes and has managed plants in Canada, Mexico, China, Poland, Italy, and the United States ...

... Diebold, Incorporated (NYSE: DBD) has appointed George S. Mayes, Jr., as vice president, global manufacturing. Mayes is responsible for the company's worldwide manufacturing operations, focusing on high quality, low-cost production, operational strategy and best practices. Mayes will also help aggressively drive lean manufacturing practices into Diebold's day-to-day operations and culture. Mayes joins the company from Tinnerman Palnut Engineered Products, LLC, where he served as chief operating officer and a member of its board of directors. ...

Diebold, Incorporated is a global leader in providing integrated self-service delivery systems, security and services. Diebold employs more than 13,000 associates with representation in nearly 90 countries worldwide and is headquartered in North Canton, Ohio, USA. Diebold reported revenue of $2.1 billion in 2003 and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DBD.

Additional resources on six sigma experience building ...

DMAIC problem-solving: File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat and Learn from the Results, Conduct the pilot, Measure and verify results to Determine next steps: build experience and lessons ... Citigroup’s Six Sigma Approach ...

Crane Valve Group Employment Opportunities: Experience with Kaizen, Six Sigma and Continuous ... OpEx Director will get tremendous exposure throughout CVNA, as well as Crane Co, build experience with hands ...

Six Sigma Jobs: transactional and growth projects as a GB / BB You must have experience of a non-Six Sigma Line Management role in addition to your Six Sigma experience. ...

Lean Six Sigma Consultant Career Positions at the George Group: Preferred Experience/Skills: Deep Lean and Six Sigma experience; Design for Six Sigma (DFSS) experience; Broad-based client delivery skill in a Services company ...

Six Sigma Jobs: Job vacancies

From online job search - jobs.telegraph.co.uk ...

... "We're looking for a number of certified Six Sigma black belts with three to five years' process design and improvement experience and a track record of working in a variety of process environments. You will bring proven project experience - both of managing and contributing to this work through the complete DMAIC & DMADV cycles. On a personal level, you'll need the confidence and drive to achieve great results and the ability to thrive in a challenging environment. The credibility to train, coach and influence at all levels of our organisation will be essential, and a practical knowledge of lean principles and methodologies will be beneficial. " ...

Six Sigma Business Continuity: Is Six Sigma a useful business continuity aid?

From Continuity Central (press releases), UK ... The primary version is Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control (DMAIC); the leading alternate approach is Design For Six Sigma (DFSS). . ...

In this article, Paul Kirvan, FBCI, CBCP, CISSP, explores how Six Sigma quality measurement systems can help during the business continuity management process ...

... Business continuity, security and emergency management are all process-driven activities. As such, it makes sense to ensure that those processes are constantly being reviewed and improved. Six Sigma is a process that ought to be considered for these disciplines, as it deals with process improvement. ...

Planning for business continuity is a proactive process that identifies key business functions for revenue creation, customer service, and internal operations, the threats to those business processes and the company's primary business assets, creates procedures and processes to mitigate the impact of disruption (or maintain continuity) to those key business functions. Information technology processes for business continuity create methods for disaster recovery which provides the ability to restore both software and data on a server in the event that a failure has occurred. Tape and offsite storage solutions provide simple approach to restoring both server software and data in the event the business continuity process must be executed.

Six Sigma Tools: SBTI Announces Green Belt Toolkit in Excel

From Yahoo News (press release) ... The majority of Six Sigma tools are about capturing and managing variables by name as well as associated data. This software package ...

... Sigma Breakthrough Technologies, Inc., an international business process solutions consulting firm is proud to announce the release of our newly developed Green Belt Toolkit in Excel. The majority of Six Sigma tools are about capturing and managing variables by name as well as associated data. This software package offers an integrated series of 7 Excel-based workbooks in an Excel menu that follow the DMAIC phases central to Six Sigma. ...

Sigma Breakthrough Technologies, Inc. is an internationally recognized consulting firm for enterprise wide business process solutions, and offers an expansive portfolio of products and services to improve businesses in all disciplines at all levels. SBTI has assisted companies in a variety of industries including chemical manufacturing, assembly, transportation and power generation and distribution. Some of SBTI's customers include 3M, American Standard, Celanese and Invensys. SBTI is headquartered in San Marcos, TX and currently has four international offices serving a host of multinational clients.

Six Sigma Tools: Pivotal Resources Launches Oaktree

From PR Newswire (press release) ... Online Six Sigma Reference Tool Designed to Streamline Improvement Projects WALNUT CREEK, Calif., June 21 /PRNewswire/ -- Pivotal Resources, a leader in Six ...

Pivotal Resources is a global consulting and training firm that focuses on organizational improvement through the implementation of Six Sigma, Lean and other methodologies. Pivotal Resources has published three highly respected books related to Six Sigma Deployment -- The Six Sigma Way, The Six Sigma Way Team Fieldbook and What is Six Sigma? The company offers a range of process management solutions, serving Fortune 500 companies in diverse industries all over the world. With offices in North America and Europe, the company is headquartered in Walnut Creek, California.

Pivotal's Training Options:

Executive Overview introduces top leaders to Six Sigma concepts, tools and implementation strategies. Highly interactive, this one-day session provides an overview of the DMAIC process, helps clarify roles and responsibilities, and will prepare leadership for selecting and approving DMAIC projects, as well as their role in driving the effort.

Champions play a critical role in providing leadership support and guidance to Six Sigma improvement projects. This one- to two-day workshop will help Champions develop working knowledge of major phases and tools of DMAIC, clarify their key responsibilities, and give them the tools they need to refine initial project charters.

Pivotal's Black Belt, Green Belt and improvement team training builds a breadth of management and analysis tools, while focusing on the methods needed to put Six Sigma improvement on a fast track. Our standard two-week format — supplemented by advanced skills (see below) — is engaging, effective and builds powerful change leaders.

Unlike the DMAIC process, which focuses on defect reduction and variation control, the goal of Lean methodology is to streamline flow and eliminate non- value adding steps (waste) from an entire end-to-end process. Pivotal's Lean Analysis and Attainment Workshop teaches participants how to successfully identify and remove waste, creating an optimized overall system.

The ability to create new processes, products and services is a key to sustained success. Using DMADV methodology, our Six Sigma Design skills enable people to build new capabilities and take performance to new levels through a combination of advanced analysis and creativity tools.

Six Sigma Training: International Institute for Learning, Inc. Launches New Company - ...

From PR Newswire (press release) ... (IIL), a leading provider of full-service Project Management, Microsoft Project(R), and Six Sigma training, consulting and development solutions, announced ...

IIL provides the training that professionals need to manage today's complex issues. An internationally-recognized leader, IIL offers state-of-the-art training and consulting services in Project Management, Theory of Constraints and Six Sigma to some of the biggest and best-managed companies worldwide.

Six Sigma is the quality and business management initiative credited with taking millions of dollars of cost out of hundreds of corporations, while simultaneously improving the quality and customer satisfaction of those same corporations. Six Sigma starts by aligning all levels of an organization to the goals established by the top leadership. Leaders are instructed on how they should set goals and how they should tie incentives to those goals. They also learn how to clearly identify measurements that serve as indicators of improvement in organizational processes as well as processes that deliver products or services directly to the customer. Once those measurements are clearly identified they are regularly monitored for improvements.

The Six Sigma Black Belt Certificate Program: A 16-day program spread over four months. Black belts are at the core of every Six Sigma implementation. As project managers of the bite size, high impact Six Sigma project, Black Belts are accountable for the root cause identification and elimination of defect drivers.This learning series is designed to provide participants with the knowledge, techniques and tools necessary to successfully fulfill the Black Belt role.

Who Should Attend: Anyone wanting to learn this highly valued skill set. Anyone wanting to use the DMAIC methodology to eliminate a current business problem. Anyone wanting to successfully fulfill the role of a Six Sigma Black Belt. Performance Focus: Using a pre-determined real business problem, participants will learn the proven tools and techniques of the Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control (DMAIC) Methodology. An IIL Master Black Belt Instructor works directly with each participants to show them when, why and how they can use this knowledge to identify and eliminate the vital few defect drivers that are adding cost to the organization and dissatisfaction to the customer. The IIL hands on approach gives participants practice using the tools and techniques on processes they are familiar with and produces and immediate ROI for the organization.

Six Sigma Training: Manufacturing Process Excellence with Six Sigma

From SAS Training ... This course focuses on product production excellence. It is designed for those individuals working directly on six sigma projects and serving as black belts or green belts. It is assumed they will come from different manufacturing and production operations backgrounds and will be working on a variety of projects across the company. Course Description: This sixteen-day course covers the six sigma philosophy. Students will learn the DMAIC methodology and apply it to their manufacturing projects ...

SAS is the world's leader in business analytics software, delivering the breakthrough technology you need to transform the way you do business. SAS software provides one integrated process for analyzing data from every source and gaining the predictive power to drive change at every level. As the world's largest privately held software company, the SAS vision is to deliver strategic value throughout an organization. SAS helps to make a personal impact on business success by giving enterprise's The Power to Know®.

Six Sigma STARR Methdology...

Six Sigma Brokers™ quickly connects you to the right resources – reducing risk, eliminating guesswork, and saving you valuable time and money...

Six Sigma Brokers is an innovative international company offering one-of-a-kind services from offices in New York and London. The key to our business is impartiality. With independence and objectivity we utilize our knowledge, experience, relationships and STARR™ methodology to help build the optimum deployment plan and then to ensure you partner with the best consulting, software and training service providers and new employees available. We offer a fast, personalized and effective, value-based system that will ensure success.

Our experience is extensive. Our repository of information is unparalleled. We operate using Six Sigma and Lean principles and methodologies gained from our wide professional experience. We recognize the importance of cultural awareness and provide a global yet local service. A significant strength of Six Sigma is the structure and discipline that underpins the methodologies used to optimise both processes and new designs. The benefits accruing from DMAIC, DMADV and IDOV, and the toolkits contained within them, are now universally recognised. Six Sigma Brokers believe that a similarly structured and disciplined approach to the deployment process itself is critical to success. Consequently we have created a unique deployment methodology called STARR™ - Strategy, Tactics, Action, Review and Reflect. Supporting each step is a set of tools that maximise the probability of a successful outcome in less time, whilst reducing the risk of things going wrong.

Master Black Belt candidates will be selected from Black Belts who demonstrate the ability to consistently deliver high levels of performance, and have an aptitude for training and mentoring. Master Black Belts will lead complex projects supported by other Black and Green Belts, and will deliver internal training and mentoring within the organisation. Master Black Belts will advise Executives and Managers on ongoing Six Sigma opportunities.

Six Sigma Initiative: Leading Office Furniture Company Standardizes on Business Objects

From Business Wire (press release), CA ... their operations. Haworth is also using Business Objects to structure data specifically for its Six Sigma initiative. Haworth selected ...

Six Sigma provides a systematic way of improving business processes based on customer needs and factual analysis of company processes. Business intelligence is technology devoted to accessing, analyzing, and sharing business information. Organizations like General Electric are combining these two technologies in the form of “six sigma intelligence,” a framework for using information technology to pick Six Sigma projects, get results more efficiently, and ensure their long-term success. Specifically, BI systems from companies such as Business Objects help organization-wide implementation of Six Sigma... In today's fast-moving environments, Six Sigma projects need to be implemented quickly and efficiently. BI is essential for speeding up each phase of change management techniques such as "define, measure, analyze, improve, and control" (DMAIC) ...

Business Objects is the world's leading business intelligence (BI) software company. Business intelligence enables organizations to track, understand, and manage enterprise performance. The company's solutions leverage the information that is stored in an array of corporate databases, enterprise resource planning (ERP), and customer relationship management (CRM) systems.

Popular uses of BI include enterprise reporting, management dashboards and scorecards, customer intelligence applications, financial reporting, and both customer and partner extranets. These solutions enable companies to gain visibility into their business, acquire and retain profitable customers, reduce costs, optimize the supply chain, increase productivity, and improve financial performance.

Six Sigma BSM: Proxima Technology Announces Centauri Business Service Manager ...

From Business Wire (press release) ... It includes new features that specifically address the requirements of these organizations and provides enhanced Six Sigma support -- necessary to optimize IT ...

Six Sigma BSM focuses on:

Improving the quality of IT dependent business processes Centauri Business Service Manager™ measures IT service quality, aligns IT with the business and optimizes IT dependent business processes. This dramatically reduces costs, improves business efficiency, and prioritizes IT resources and services so the return to the business is the greatest. Proxima Technology is a pioneer in business service management and the world's first IT vendor to utilize Six Sigma to improve IT service quality. Our products have been helping leading organizations align IT with their business and reduce costs since 1997. Today, more referenceable organizations run Centauri than any other business service management solution.

Business Service Management - Business service management (BSM) is increasingly relevant as more business is conducted in an electronic universe. BSM applies the adage that if you improve IT service, you improve business service. Centauri Business Service Manager, the leading solution for BSM, improves the quality, speed, and effectiveness of IT dependent business processes. By measuring the quality of service provided by computer systems in the context of the critical business processes they enable, Centauri identifies unacceptable costs of poor quality to the business terms. Shortfalls in quality are then addressed with Centauri’s continuous improvement process — Six Sigma for Service Level Management.

Proxima services include:

The Improving IT Service with Six Sigma workshop provides a management appreciation of the Six Sigma quality management process and explores its potential to dramatically improve the quality of IT service and sustain an ongoing cost reductions by eliminating defects from IT services.

Abstract
The objective of Improving IT Service with Six Sigma is simple: to understand how Six Sigma can bring about improvements to the quality of IT service and how cost reduction can be sustained by the elimination of defects. Participants will gain an insight into the DMAIC project management life-cycle, the key techniques and the steps to successfully adopting Six Sigma in their organization.

Although many public courses are available on Six Sigma, Proxima is unique in delivering courses that address the specific issues of applying Six Sigma to the management and improvement of IT service. The course incorporates the experience we have gained building and implementing solutions that automate the Six Sigma process in large complex organizations. From understanding user perception of service through to reconfiguring services to eliminate defects, Proxima has the experience to help you understand how to utilize Six Sigma to the greatest effect.

It is intended for companies considering Six Sigma as well as those already committed to it who are looking for an initial appreciation of the concepts to help map out an implementation framework.

Six Sigma Supply Chain: Aceva Enables Increased Client Use of Six Sigma(R) Quality Initiatives to Optimize Working Capital

Six Sigma -- White Paper and New Research from Aceva Technologies Focus on Ensuring Quality Throughout the Financial Supply Chain --

SAN MATEO, Calif., March 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Aceva Technologies, Inc., a developer of working capital management solutions for global enterprises, has enabled increased use of Six Sigma methods by its enterprise clients seeking to improve financial process work flow to optimize working capital management. To document this achievement, the company has released an executive research paper entitled "Six Sigma Methodologies to Optimize Working Capital Management," available at www.aceva.com/sigma .

As a strategy for securing business process improvement, Six Sigma has been proven as a clear path for freeing up working capital for strategic investments. Six Sigma creates clear and measurable deliverables and produces high rates of process improvement in quote-to-cash (Q2C), vendor manage inventory (VMI), procure-to-pay (P2P) and working capital life cycles.

"Forward-thinking financial executives view the management of working capital performance as a critical measure of overall operational soundness," said Allen Silberman, Partner, Quote-to-Cash Process Consulting and past Global Credit Director at Honeywell, Corp. "Aceva has demonstrated an impressive level of leadership by enabling companies to examine the quality of all processes in the financial supply chain. This examination involves many disparate systems and processes including pricing and terms policies, order accuracy, product delivery and returns, billing, credit and collections."

Aceva's Working Capital Management Solutions have been used successfully by global corporations to achieve their Six Sigma goals. Aceva enables the aggregation of information from a variety of ERP and enterprise systems, the analysis of Pareto optimality within financial transactions, algorithmic reconciliation and business rule application to proactively identify and prevent operational transaction errors within the forecasting, billing and collections processes.

"As the need to unlock more working capital accelerates in today's challenging business environment, process improvement techniques to reduce Days Sales Outstanding and other measures of the financial supply chain cycle become more critical," said Sanjay Srivastava, COO of Aceva. "Toward this end, Six Sigma methodology and the Aceva platform are helping global companies measure and ensure quality in all areas of the enterprise, including the identification and rectification of inefficiencies and problems throughout the financial supply chain."

The key steps in the Six Sigma DMAIC Loop (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control), pinpoint and prioritize defects and errors, with the twin goals of identifying the root causes of defects within cash conversion cycles and eliminating them. Although Six Sigma was first implemented by manufacturing organizations, it is being widely used today in many types of companies and in every department of the enterprise.

About Aceva

Aceva Technologies provides Working Capital Management Solutions to global enterprises. The Aceva Working Capital Management suite of applications delivers the tools and work flow improvements necessary to reduce Days Sales Outstanding (DSO), eliminate financial process errors, identify and resolve root causes, and unlock working capital. Aceva's solutions focus across the working capital sub-processes of quote-to-cash (Q2C), procure-to-pay (P2P), and supply-chain-management (SCM) to achieve business process optimization for enterprise financial operations, regulatory compliance and quality initiatives. Headquartered in San Mateo, California, Aceva is a privately held corporation with financial partnerships with investors including Accel Partners, Sequoia Capital, Oracle and others. For more details, visit www.aceva.com , send email to info@aceva.com or telephone 1-650-227-5500.

The Six Sigma Shift...

...Six Sigma Consultants, Inc. (SSC) (www.sixsigmaco.com) introduces the "Six Sigma Deployment System," a turnkey product offering the actual Six Sigma success model and material used at GE, Allied Signal and others. The package consists of intellectual property, slides and detailed instructor notes, DMAIC training manuals, implementation roadmaps, and a multimedia library. The DMAIC training manuals are also available independently and are slated to be the standard for use in Universities, MBA programs, and the continuing education sector.

The product represents the evolution of the Six Sigma strategy since its beginning at Motorola -- a decade of experience contained in a stand alone deployment package. The SSC Deployment System was designed to fill the gap between consultant-led deployments, which when done correctly have huge benefits but can be costly, and training programs, such as e-learning and "open enrollment," that have limited bottom line results.

SSC President & CEO, Greg Brue, says, "We are removing the barriers so that any company, regardless of size or industry, can realize the proven benefits of Six Sigma. Like Microsoft did for standardizing the PC industry, we are creating the same 'open-architecture' for Six Sigma delivery."

Cardinal Health, one of the early adopters of SSC's Deployment Systems, summarizes the situation: "This product is long overdue. We have been waiting for this. Finally we've found the solution we have been looking for."

Similarly, CBC Companies, another SSC Deployment System user, responds equally enthusiastically, "There is no other Six Sigma system like this currently available. It's the only comprehensive system we've come across."

The SSC Six Sigma Deployment System is scheduled for an international launch early 2004 and will be available in several languages including French, German, Spanish, Japanese and English.

About Six Sigma Consultants, Inc. (SSC)
Six Sigma Consultants, Inc., has implemented Six Sigma programs worldwide for nearly a decade. President and CEO Greg Brue, was one of the first consultants to implement a global Six Sigma deployment at General Electric and AlliedSignal, now Honeywell International, and owns the rights to the original intellectual property used in those deployments. Since then, he and his team have implemented numerous Six Sigma programs for diverse world-class organizations. SSC's mission is to assist companies to achieve substantial financial results, increase customer satisfaction and sustain those gains through knowledge transfer.

Greg is the author of several publications, including "Six Sigma for Managers" and "Design for Six Sigma," both published by McGraw-Hill, and is a regular guest speaker at major business events and quality conferences...

Six Sigma Healthcare: Premier Expands Agreement with Standard Register to Provide ...

From Business Wire (press release) ... Leveraging its deep industry expertise, innovative solutions, Six Sigma capabilities and leading technology, it is helping healthcare organizations enhance ...

Standard Register (NYSE:SR) is a leading information solutions company, with more than 90 years of innovation in improving the way business gets done in healthcare, financial services, manufacturing and other industries. The company helps organizations increase efficiency, reduce costs, enhance security and grow revenue by effectively capturing, managing and using information. Its offerings range from document and label solutions to e-business solutions to consulting and managed services. More information is available at www.standardregister.com.

First, what it is not. It is not a secret society, a slogan, or a cliché. Six Sigma is a highly disciplined process that helps us focus on developing and delivering near-perfect products and services. Why "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. In fact, the goal of Six Sigma is to decrease defects to only 3.4 per million opportunities for a given product or service transaction. The Six Sigma approach has changed the way we work and everything we do in every product and design. Six Sigma is embedding quality thinking, process thinking, and associate engagement across every level and every operation.

Clients are the center of Fulfillment Services' universe of Six Sigma: they define quality. They expect performance, reliability, competitive prices, on-time delivery, service, clear and correct transaction processing, and more. In every attribute that influences client perception we know that just being good is not enough. Delighting our clients is a necessity. It is a MUST. Because if we don't do it, someone else will!

The Six Sigma quality approach requires us to look at our business from the client's perspective, not ours. In other words, we must look at our processes from the outside-in. By understanding the transaction lifecycle from the client's needs and processes, we can discover what they are seeing and feeling. With this knowledge, we can identify areas where we can add significant value or improvement from their perspective.

People create results. Involving all associates is essential to Fulfillment Services' Six Sigma approach. We are committed to providing opportunities and incentives for associates to focus their talents and energies on satisfying clients.

All of our associates will be trained in the strategy, basic statistical tools, and techniques of Six Sigma. Training workshops are offered at various levels:

Yellow Belt Training: Basic tool introduction to equip associates to participate in Six Sigma projects.

Black Belt and Green Belt Training: In-depth quality training that includes high-level statistical tools, basic quality control tools, action workout process, and flow technology training.

DFSS – (Design for Six Sigma) is a systematic methodology utilizing tools, training and measurements to enable us to design products and processes that meet client expectations and can be produced at Six Sigma quality levels.

DMAIC – (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control) is a process for continued improvement. It is systematically, scientifically, and factually based. This closed-loop process eliminates unproductive steps, often focuses on new measurements, and applies technology for improvement.

Six Sigma – A vision of quality which equates to only 3.4 defects per million opportunities for each product or service transaction; striving for perfection.

Control Chart – Monitors variance in a process over time and alerts the business to unexpected variance which may cause defects.

Defect Measurement – Accounting for the number or frequency of defects that cause lapses in product or service quality.

Pareto Diagram – Focuses on efforts or the problems that have the greatest potential for improvement by showing relative frequency and/or size in a descending bar graph. Based on the proven Pareto principle: 20% of the sources cause 80% of any problems.

Process Mapping – Illustrated description of how things get done, which enables participants to visualize an entire process and identify areas of strength and weaknesses. It helps reduce cycle time and defects while recognizing the value of individual contributions.

Root Cause Analysis – Study of the original reason for nonconformance with a process. When the root cause is removed or corrected, the nonconformance will be eliminated.

Statistical Process Control – The application of statistical methods to analyze data, study, and monitor process capability and performance.

Tree Diagram – Graphically shows any broad goal broken into different levels of detailed actions. It encourages team members to expand their thinking when creating solutions.

Black Belt – Leader of a team responsible for measuring, analyzing, improving, and controlling key processes that influence customer satisfaction and/or productivity growth. Black Belt is a full-time position.

Control – The state of stability, normal variation, and predictability. Process of regulating and guiding operations and processes using quantitative data.

CTQ: Critical to Quality (Critical "Y") – Element of a process or practice which has a direct impact on its perceived quality.

Client Needs and Expectations – Needs, as defined by clients, which meet their basic requirements and standards.

Defects – Sources of clients' irritation. Defects are costly to both clients and to manufacturers or service providers. Eliminating defects provides cost benefits.

Green Belt – Similar to Black Belt but not a full-time position.

Master Black Belt – First and foremost teachers. They also review and mentor Black Belts. Selection criteria for Master Black Belts are quantitative skills and the ability to teach and mentor. Master Black Belt is a full-time position.

Variance – A change in a process or business practice that may alter its expected outcome.

Six Sigma Healthcare: Striving for Perfection

From American Association of Blood Banks ... By Kerry Folan ... Marci Sindall, vice president of Haemonetics Corp., and Sally Caglioti, MT(ASCP)SBB, vice president of Blood Systems Laboratories (BSL), explored the six-sigma quality improvement strategy in Saturday’s session titled “Using Analysis Tools and Techniques from Industry.” Using examples from their companies, Sindall and Caglioti explained how the six-sigma system improves quality and reduces costs...

Six sigma demands a shift from decisions based on hypotheses and anecdotal evidence to those based on data, and must be fully embraced by the company for the system to work...

Success with six sigma hinges on accurate application of the DMAIC (pronounced de-may-ic) method. DMAIC is an acronym for the five steps in the process improvement method: define, measure, analyze, improve, and control...