What Is the Purpose of Six Sigma - Assignment Example

Introduction: In modern times different measures and approaches are adopted to achieve objectives as per requirement of the s. These approaches come in various forms, such as Six Sigma application, I.S.O certification, DPMO, DMADV, DMAIC, auditing, accounts and budgeting. All these processes and activities are undertaken to achieve the outputs. The proper look into each of these processes and methods in a methodical manner and evaluate their effectiveness and relevance according to the situational variability. I.S.O is an entity sufficient enough and it has set certain terms and conditions that are in line with the quality assurance and conformity. I.S.O in other words can be termed as pattern and path which facilitates achieving the objectives and without it these objectives would not be achieved. I.S.O provides all the details which were missing for the practices of management for centuries and as a result the companies and industries yielded low throughput. What is the purpose of six sigma?  Six sigma is an approach undertaken to implement and achieve excellence. The purpose of six sigma is a multi tier one and each of them has a common underlying objective behind them. Each of them is instructed and maneuvered to fulfill the requirements. These requirements can be in terms of service provision, quality maintenance or products delivery. Regardless of the product, service each of them has one thing in common and that is excellence par quality. Six sigma is an approach undertaken to minimize losses, and increase and enhance productivity and affectivity. Six sigma is a holistic approach undertaken. This holistic approach entails all the factors such as the processes, employees working, employees working conditions, the internal variables, the external variables, the stake holders constraints and considerations, the environmental variables and in short all those factors which would impact the final output constitute the consideration and concern of six sigma. Six sigma ensure that’s considerations of all the stakeholders are fulfilled. Explain the history and development of six sigma?  Mankind has always strived for excellence and improvements. Ever since they undertook collective efforts, it has strived for improvements, as a result of this persistence; it has achieved and overcome various pillars of obstructions. Six sigma is one of these achievements undertaken. The domain of six sigma is a very broad one and entails to almost all kinds of organizations regardless of their service or product manufacturing and delivery. Six sigma has been around for a long while, although it came into official existence in recent centuries, yet it was in place many centuries ago. Every time any effort was being made to make improvements, it was an unintentional plan towards six sigma achievement because six sigma is another name for improvement and development. The first traces of six sigma can be sketched back to early in the 19th century in the German background when a local scientist and quality associated member introduced a concept which laid foundations for what would later on turn into a six sigma concept. The bell shape curve is a characteristic function of six sigma and the incumbent’s proposition contained a bell shape curve. It was Carl Gauss, mathematician by profession who came up with such a novel idea to gauge the improvement, affectivity and relevance to the demand.\ It recent times and specifically the six sigma traces can be extended up till 1980s when Motorola took up the task of bringing about improvement in their working and for this purpose they introduced and took up the concept of six sigma formally. The need for six sigma was realized and undertaken largely during and after world war two since heavy machinery was being used in that warfare and for this purpose effective measures of production were needed which were being guaranteed and provided by Six sigma primarily. Explain six sigma in statistics?  Six sigma is a multi faceted concept and has multiple dimensions. It is applicable and effective in different domains, the statistical domain is one of them and it has a set of activity and effectiveness in the statistical domain equally. According to the statistical measure of six sigma, it is a definitive and mathematical outcome comparison and according to this principle a certain few items are to be defective per million parts. The statistical entity consists of number of variables in form of upper specification limit ( U.S.L), lower specification limit( L.S.L) and defective and the functional parts per million(P.P.M). under this concept if the six sigma approach is adopted only 3 to 4 elements would be defective under a million items produced, in other words, a six sigma requirement and fulfillment is achieved in case of compliance in manner where only 3 to four parts are defective as per million items. If the number of defective items is greater than this, it can be safely said that six sigma requirements have not been fulfilled nor has six sigma statistical specifications being achieved. Statistical measurement and study is of high importance since it is a different dimension as compared to theoretical studies and outlines, and it provides an easy reading of the situation in terms of the mathematical measurements and assessment. Establishing a fixed and restricted percentage of only 3-4 per million allows better understanding of the variables which contribute to the process and those that stand as hurdle and add to the defective parts. Explain six sigma in process?  Just like six sigma statistical activity, six sigma has a process activity as well. This activity comes in from of a definitive process which is composed of set of items and units. Each of these units serve as a complementing pillar towards other and allow accomplishing of overall task in form of six sigma process. The process is basically a circular activity with each part contributing in its own domain. The processes contain the following items vis a vis: Define Measure Analyze Improve Control The process starts with defining process. In the defining stage the product or service at hand is defined. It is usually the first and most important part and pertains to knowing what is to be done, how is it to be done and in what circumstances is it to be done. These three factors of how, what, and when constitute the defining phase. This is followed by the measuring phase, which pertains to measuring various variables in terms of their availability and affordability. This is followed by the analyze stage where analysis are made as per situation. This is further followed by the improvement stage to see if there is any margin for improvement and finally the control part to see if anything goes beyond the expected or available resources and budget. Explain six sigma in philosophy?  The philosophy of six sigma is the backbone towards entire six sigma approach. The six sigma processes, statistical model, and other elements are undertaken and adopted based on the philosophy. The philosophy provides an underlying surface to the implementation of the aforementioned functions. Without the philosophy these elements and the entire concept execution would not be possible. Philosophy in general terms pertain to a holistic approach of a particular activity undertaken. Hence under the philosophy of six sigma all the areas of interest are covered which range from theoretical considerations to practical implementation. The philosophy is not just based on improvements rather takes into account all the variables which impede the process and path to success and improvement. It is being normally said that identification of a problem is the first step to eradication of the respective problem that is at hand. Six sigma is based on this principle and it allows digging of the problem from grass root to allow free working and effective environment which would enable maximum output and productivity. In broad segregation the philosophy of six sigma constitute the processes, products delivery and manufacturing, along with the principles and methodologies that are vital to be taken into account for execution and achievement of the aforementioned facts. Key issue in implementation of six sigma ?  Six sigma is another name for excellence, scrutiny, merit, auditing, accounting, and evaluation. All these factors do bring along some resistance from the various sectors and segments of the organization. This resistance may be in form of individuals and personnel’s resistance or in case of the machinery and the underlying interface in place which may block the achievement. Six sigma implementation requires a thoroughly worked out mechanism with roles and responsibilities being assigned and dedicated. other issues involve the dedication and devotion needed, along with the infrastructure availability. Since it is an effort towards excellence and improvement it does require investment and dedications from different segments of the organization. Other issues involve regular training, and at times overall overhauling of the organizational structures to ensure six sigma affectivity. Hence these are few of the issues which can be faced in case of implementation of six sigma concept. Reducing the number of defective parts is one of these. Without the existence and presence of six sigma, many a time, the defective parts are taken as part of the overall process, however in case of presence of six sigma serious consideration must be given to the mitigating of defective parts. The change in mindset can be one of the main issues and obstacles towards achieving maximum fruit from six sigma. Explain DMAIC/ DMADV?  DMAIC is acronym for Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and control. DMAIC basically forms the part of six sigma process and each of them as mentioned above has a vital roles towards the final achievement and outcome. DMADV is a nearly similar term related to six sigma implementation and improvement and it is acronym for Define, Measure, analyze, design and verification. Both the set of activities and units have a common objective amongst them and that is to provide a procedural and methodical approach to handling the process of six sigma. Each of them is a complying pillar to other and both start with the process of defining what is at hand and end with the final step of re assessment and evaluation of what has been achieved against what should have been achieved or what was required. Some experts and players of the management and improvement draw these variables in a cyclic manner and with a reiterative process at back end with a feedback towards begin and define stage again. These steps can either be implemented in case of pilot study or in case of service delivery to the customers and then re evaluating the overall process for next activity(Shankar,2009). Explain DPMO ? DPMO is part of six sigma process and terminology and it is acronym for Defects Per Million Objects/ Opportunities. Since the concept of six sigma is based on improvement and elimination of errors and hurdles, therefore the term DPMO has been introduced. According to the six sigma concept 3-4 defective parts per million can be tolerated, however if the number of defective parts are any higher in the million part, then it can be said that six sigma achievement has not flourished and discrepancies are part of the system. The D.P.M.O is expressed in a mathematical mode with nominators and denominators in the expression. Its formula can be expressed as following: D.P.M.O= million parts * exact number of defects / total number of units * total number of opportunities per entity used. DPMO is an inter dependent entity and it does depend upon the circumstances, the quality of tools and techniques used, the situation inside the organization, outside the organization, the level of awareness amongst the employees. All these factors contribute towards D.P.M.O. however the smaller the number of defects per million part, the better the outcome. explain the component of six sigma ? six sigma is a gigantic entity in its self and it has number of components that make up for a stronger entity of six sigma. These components come in a set of functions. These components re broadly divided into elements like planning, strategy devising , learning in an iterative and , collective and accumulative manner, followed by development which can be in form of development of the thought, mindset, activity and ability or overall infrastructure. Components next in line are selection of the items, resources, along with assessment of the situation and capabilities. The information collection and sharing in due time and right manner are also the components and entity which make up for characteristic function of six sigma. Finally this all is followed by the conclusion and assessment of overall processes undertaken, the products produced, and the efforts and resources being dedicated. No single component can be isolated to make it the most effective, nor can any be isolated to make it least effective, each has its own capability and each allows other to stand firm and allows the organization achieving the final output in a desired manner. Explain the purpose and need of auditing? (200) Auditing is the process of evaluating and assessing the activities in terms of the financial and monitory aspect. Every organization and every department within the organization gets certain amount of budget for the purpose of performing activities. However with allocation come along their auditing and knowing assessing how are they to be used and in what way should they be dedicated. The purpose of auditing is to ensure transparency in the operations and functions of the organization. Six sigma makes auditing an essential part of its overall activity and it stresses the need for strict scrutiny of various components which is another way of ensuring that the tasks, and the objective are kept intact and are being fulfilled as per need. Auditing serves as a litmus test towards the expenditure. Auditing is a benchmarking for future as it provides comparison against what has been achieved. Auditing is a tool which allows assessment both in situations of success and situations of low productivity. For example if the outputs are low, it can be judged and gauged through auditing and it can help creating a better situational activity for future. Without auditing no clear objectives can be derived. 2) Explain system, process and product audit?( (200). Auditing itself is a broad term and it can be of various forms, for example auditing of a particular department, a respective process, a respective product or a particular activity undertaken. It can be auditing of entire organization as well. The system audit pertains to the auditing and scrutiny of the underlying system. It is a broader concept and it may entail audit of departments, their activities and functions Audit of a process as the name implies pertains to a particular process undertaken, this process can be that of a new item being produced, a revamping function within the organization or the service being provided to the customers and with intention of bringing about improvement in the process and for this purpose audit is being performed. Audit of a product is a nearly same concept and it pertains to audit conducted for purpose of a particular product being launched for the first time or an old product. The main objective behind the process of auditing is that of improvement, assessment and gauging of the overall activities and aiming to find out what and where exactly can improvements be brought about. Auditing is usually performed by the auditor staff and experts in the domain. Explain random selection "auditing strategies"(200) Random selection auditing process is based on the principle of sampling procedure where set of samples and randomly taken entities are put up for test in form of auditing. For example an auditing entity may not be able to perform audit of every unit due to the large size of organization, for this purpose it would take certain samples and perform a randomly enabled auditing process. For this purpose specific auditing strategies are being devised and defined and these strategies do vary from other processes and auditing. This form of auditing is more or less like a crash course and crash auditing process where certain elements are taken and others are skipped based on their relevance and no or little significance in other cases. Examples of auditing: Auditing can be performed of a new machinery purchased. Or the equipment and auction of old unit sell out. Second example of auditing can be that of a particular process which may be taken and performed as a a product or service which is not in line with the core functions and representative name of the organization. Finally the third case can be that of auditing pertaining to the resources consumed in a particular activity of intra departmental activity for which the resources may have been derived from the parent organization and in order to assess the authenticity and the level to which these budgets and funds have been utilized a random sample enabled auditing may be performed. Background: Assessing the amount of budget being consumed and the resources dedicated against it, it was felt that auditing must be performed in order to evaluate the effectiveness in the processes undertaken. The need was being felt since large amount of resources and capital was being consumed and also these processes had a direct impact on the annual budget of organization. Observation (what was wrong?): Non utilization of resources, slow responses or personal miss calculations can be few of the facts which may result in non transparent usage of resources and as a result need for auditing Classification (whether the observation made above was a minor non-conformity, a major non-conformity or an opportunity for improvement): The errors were of small magnitude however they have a direct impact on the overall outcome of activities. Overcoming these would allow for better working and better precedence in future . Applicable ISO 9001 clause: I.S.O is acronym for International organization of Standarization, provides guidelines for successful and effective working mechanism. Its scope is quite broad and it enables covering all parts of an organizational entity with consideraiton of imrpvoemnt and excellence in the organization. It has a multi layer objective and purpose. It has set of clauses each working in its own domain and facilitating other. These clauses are the basic tenets of the I.S.O entity and through it the entire system of I.S.O quality assurance, and quality development is achieved. Explain the first purposes that iso 9001 serve? I.S.O’s first purpose is that of conformance to the quality standards are achieved followed by customer satisfaciton. Since custoemrs consideration is the top most, therefore it is the front runner in the i.s.o funcitonal activity. It is being said that a satisfied custoemr brings along three to five cusomters with himself, while a dejected customer takes away five to seven custoemrs with himself. For this purpose I.S.O 9001 ensures that the customer consideration is kept upfront as it is the make or break point towards any organizational success or failure. Every activity undertaken in the I.S.O 9001 plan is with in the core consideration of customers, be it the process or the product manufacturing, even the small activities inside the organization which do not contribute directly towards the process or product are to be maintained in a standardized and offical pattern under the guidelines of I.S.O 9001 certification. I.S.O 9001 in other words is check list and dos and don’ts list which ensure achieving the desired output. Hence if the first step is correct, the later on steps can be set into place as a result of first thoughtout step and it is for this purpose that I.S.O stresses great emphysis on the customer satisfaciton and makes it the first and foremost purpose of accomplishment. Explain the second purpose of I.S.O: While the customer satisfaction was the first purpose underlined by I.S.O. the second purpose that falls under its umbrella is that of self scrutiny, and fulfillment of the requirements which are essential and must be taken in to account, professional approach and inter organizational harmony and discipline. These steps if taken up well and in a desired manner allow fulfilling the first purpose which is that of customer satisfaction. The second purpose is a detailed one and it is these factors which lay foundation for the outcome in form of customers’ satisfaction and winning their hearts. These purposes include the overall working of the personnel, their aptitude, and the policies and planning which would facilitate the success of objectives meeting. These purposes come in the form certain procedures, manuals and working documents which serve as guidelines and benchmark for what is to be achieved. I.S.O manual is a document that facilitates the practical actions as per need of the organization, stakeholders and most importantly the customers and clients. Developing a Q.M.S (Quality Management System) is an equal part of ensuring that I.S.O 9001 requirements are being taken up in true letter and spirit. The Q.M.S enables compliance with the customers’ requirements as well as fulfillment of I.S.O set standards Explain the document requirement in I.S.O: I.S.O is an integrated approach which goes about things in a very organized manner. The document requirement is based on the idea of keeping everything in a documented record so as to keep and verify it for future work. The document requirement pertains to the size of organization, the tasks and projects undertaken. It is a requirement and a prerequisite set upon the organization to work in order to achieve the excellence, without documented procedures, the company cannot achieve the desired outputs as underlined by the organization. Secondly the document requirement enables keeping record for future consideration and in process of auditing it helps a great deal knowing what has been achieved or what went wrong. The document is a set of various elements that contain the manual the procedural unit details, the structural entities, policy definition and the flow charts. The flow charts are pictorial representation of how the tasks would be achieved. The document is a detailed map of the overall activities and functions for which the organization stands and acts in a desired manner. It has great impact on the overall outcome and for this reason it is part of the overall I.S.O requirement. The quality manual in I.S.O 9001: The quality manual is a guideline and pre requisite for what is to be achieved and how is it to be achieved. The quality manual is a form of declaration of objectives and aims to be achieved; it is both for the internal employees as well as for the outsiders who would want to know the working mechanism of the organization. The Quality manual contains information about how the company goes about the tasks, and further what has it achieved and how has it been achieved. Clauses: I.S.O 9001 has a set of clauses/ sections specified and each of them has its own usability and importance towards the overall outcome of the project. For example clause/ section 6 is related to resources management, and clause 8 is related to measurement and analysis based on the situation at hand. These clauses make up for a loop and each contribute in its own way towards accomplishing of the task. Clause 5: management responsibility: I.S.O is a self scrutinizing mechanism and it puts up responsibilities upon people from top level to the lower staff. Section / clause 5 of I.S.O is dedicated to management responsibilities and it puts the onus on the top management for ensuring that the objectives are met in due time and desired manner. The management is solely responsible for ensuring that the tasks are fulfilled and people are employed and assigned in a manner that is most befitting of them. They should enable the synergetic effect and should bring out the best out of the workers and situation. The management is directly responsible not only for their own tasks rather should provide an atmosphere which facilitates and encourages good working practices amongst the workers and enables them working at their best level. The management has the role of providing encouragement and guidance to the members. A considerable amount of I.S.O documented procedure and method is devoted to the role of managers, hence it can be deduced from this fact that the mangers have an integral part towards the success of the overall organization which would otherwise be not possible incase this area is left untouched and un flourished(Tricker, 2006. 39). Clause 7: Product realization Realization is the process and mindset of realizing what is needed ahead and what would be the need of the future. It is a wise step and every organization that strives to outsmart its rivals always ensures a unit established specially for the purpose of product realization. It is a process and activity that takes into account the future consideration relevant to what the clients would need, what would be the need in future. It is the process of thinking ahead of time in order to provide the customers first and before any other organization or competitor may do so. All the actions taken in this process are in due consideration relevant to the customers’ needs and organizational productivity and effectiveness in longer run. It also entails fulfilling the requirements which would arise in future for the customers and the products. For example expanding the organization as per need is part of the realization strategy. The process is a detailed one and it has number of elements to it which involve the verification and development in line with the needs and circumstances. Purchase orders, employees training, identification according to the need, are few of the factors that are taken into account in case of future product realization (Calder, 2009). References: Calder, A., 2009. Information Security Based on ISO 27001/ISO 27002: A Management Guide. s.l.:Van Haren Publishing. Shankar, R., 2009. Process Improvement Using Six Sigma: A Dmaic Guide. s.l.:ASQ Quality Press. Tricker, R., 2006. ISO 9001:2000: The Quality Management Process. s.l.:Van Haren Publishing. Read More