Lean Six Sigma or Six Sigma There is always a debate in the business world as to whether lean six sigma or six sigma is the best suitable process to implement when it comes to organizing processes pertaining to business and eliminating wastes. Both these systems have their supporters, claiming theirs to be the best. On the other hand, some argue that both should be implemented for ensuring the success of any organization. For clearly understanding the debate, it is essential that the differences between the two systems should be understood. Let us figure out and get deep into this:
Six sigma fundamentals:
The main objective of Six Sigma is the elimination of wastes and defects for ensuring that efficiency and quality improvement is possible by streamlining processes. Initially, even
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The team of personnel trained under the lean technique can focus on improving the speed of the process by effectively reducing wastes. On the other hand, team working on six sigma can focus on eliminating chronic problems. Both these teams can implement DMAIC and DMADV in an efficient manner and prove to be valuable assets to their companies.
To conclude based on comparison, it purely depends on the requirement of the employer whether they provide training to their employees in six sigma or lean. Even though, removal of unwanted wastes is essential, unwanted problems arising in the processes can create issues in the whole process itself. So, many employers prefer six sigma certification over lean training. In today 's education scenario, since the online learning or e-learning became popular, professionals need not travel all the way to the venue of the training institutes and straight away pursue online training for this kind of course. Care should be taken whether the institute is accredited to ASQ examination body or not. Any registered institute is termed as
The method of Lean Six Sigma is the combination of two business techniques that includes Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma. Lean manufacturing focuses on improving the flow of the organization by training highly skilled employees to increase the overall speed while Six Sigma focuses on improving current performance and overall accuracy. In most cases, blending both Lean and Six Sigma can be costly; however the end result can have create an organization that focuses on quality, accuracy, and speed to meet the goal which is profitability.
Lean Six Sigma methodology incorporates number of tools which can be employed in different phases of DMAIC approach such as; 5s, PDCA (Plan, Develop, Check, Act), Project charter, Pareto chart, DMPO, Standard deviation, Root cause analysis, Failure mode effect analysis, Comparative and full factorial experiments, Process thinking, Control charts, and Scorecards. [ book]. Depending upon the type and nature of project any tools can be used in order to achieve research goal.
Even though Six Sigma significantly influences and effects primarily contingency factors of an organization, these sectors in turn influence the structural factors of a company. While Six Sigma can be applied to many industries and a variety of organizational structures, certain aspects of Six Sigma operate more efficiently when specific structural aspects are applied. Primarily, implementing Six Sigma influences the hierarchy of authority and the centralization of an organization.
As you can see from the figure the lean six sigma is customer driven, targets variation, focuses
Barnard, W., De Feo, J. (2004). Juran Institute’s Six Sigma Breakthrough and Beyond. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies
The Six Sigma process, developed by Motorola focuses on saving time, lower costs by improving quality, identifying the causes of defects and removing the causes of defects, and minimizing variability in manufacturing and business process (Satterlee, 2013). The acronym, DMAIC represents the Six Sigma improvement model. The steps in the DMAIC process are to define the purpose, scope and output and then define quality; measure the process and collect data; analyze the data ensuring reliability; to improve by modifying existing process or procedures; and controlling the new processes to ensure increased performance levels are maintained (Satterlee, 2013). The foundation of the Six Sigma processes is to eliminate waste and improve
EMA, Inc. (2003). Six sigma process improvements: Find and fix the problems, hold the gains. EMA, Inc. Retrieved on 17 August, 2006 from Website: http://www.ema-inc.com/PDF/MSS-401.pdf
The article, “Where Process-Improvement Projects Go Wrong,” by Satya L. Chakrvorty, WSJ.com, January 25, 2010 (http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB1000), offers a great example of how and why many Six Sigma and other process improvement projects fail. He examines what happened at an aerospace company that initiated a number of process improvement projects, half of which ultimately failed.
Six Sigma encompasses the methodology of problem solving, and focuses on optimization and cultural change. Six Sigma accomplishes this goal by utilizing an extensive set of statistical and mathematical tools and a well-defined methodology that produces significant results quickly. The adaptation of this methodology leads to fundamental cultural transformation within the organization (Raisinghani, 2005).
The lean principles respond to changing customer desires and also provide high quality, low cost and faster throughput times. Lean principles eliminate waste along entire value streams thus creating processes that require less human investment, time and effort to come up with products and services at far less costs and with much fewer defects compared with conventional business systems.[1]
Sitnikov, C. (2012). Six sigma as a strategic tool for companies. Young Economists Journal / Revista Tinerilor Economisti, 94-102.
Consequentially, these results enable a company to better achieve their goal of providing a product to serve the customer since the necessary resources and focus are on the vital aspects to reach this goal. Moreover, these goals are achieved with less resources as a result of the improved efficiency. Ultimately, Six Sigma helps an organization “achieve superior performance in competitive priorities like quality, reliability, and speed”, all of which lead to cost reductions (Drohomeretski, Gouvea da Costa, Pinheiro de Lima, & Garbuio, 2014,
The methodology of Lean Six Sigma is the merger of two business tools that includes Lean Manufacturing and Six Sigma. Six Sigma focuses on improving current business processes and performance while Lean Manufacturing focuses on the improvement of the processes of an organization by using highly skilled employees to increase speed and quality. Combining the two methodologies creates an organization that focuses on quality, efficiency and speed to lower operational costs and increase profits. By following the Lean Six Sigma methodology, many companies have attempted to create a lean, waste-free environment ultimately at the expense of the employee and occasionally at the expense of the organization.
Six sigma is basically a technique that provides tools to improve the capability functioning and quality of their organization. This enhances the performance of an organization that leads to less reduction and improvements in profits of an organization.
The Six Sigma approach was designed by Motorola in 1986. The primary objective of the concept was to develop a tool for tallying the process defects and, as the result, improving business operations. The foundations of the approach are the customer needs, statistical analysis of data and facts, and timely execution. The method promises numerous benefits such as increasing performance and profitability of an organization, improving product or service quality and employee morale, decreasing costs, the growth of market share, the higher level of satisfying customer needs, etc. (Meredith & Shafer, 2013). The primary advantage