Is Six Sigma A New Quality Initiative?
Six Sigma is often deployed as a quality initiative, where one manager is typically selected as a Six Sigma Leader and a few candidates are sent overseas to learn “new quality methods” and secure billions of dollars in savings “as Motorola and GE do”. Nobody in the company really knows what Six Sigma means, just that other companies are using it and that customers and/or shareholders are starting to demand its deployment. The candidates usually attend a Black Belt training course where they are asked to present their pre-selected project, which is completed in conjunction with the training. Here is where Black Belts may experience confusion, especially if the project selection process is not completed prior to the beginning of training or the selected project is inadequate. Black Belts may also become frustrated when they realize that they lack an understanding of the Six Sigma concept and the supporting infrastructure needed within their company to ensure a successful deployment. Addi
