IIBM India : 5 Burning Questions Every Six Sigma Professional Would Ask !!

The value of Six Sigma skills for enterprises is clear. From helping in the successful completion of projects and in improving productivity, to waste and cost reductions in businesses, Six Sigma practices have benefited organizations. 3M, Amazon.com, Boeing, Dell, and Wipro are few of the top enterprise organizations benefiting from Six Sigma practices.

The demand for qualified and certified professionals has also been on the increase. It is estimated that certified Six Sigma professionals have an advantage of more than $ 15,000 hike in their salary when compared to their non-certified peers. On an annual basis, this amounts to over $ 165,000!

If you are making decisions about Six Sigma, we hope this article helps you make the right decisions in terms of investing on the more-suited Six Sigma certification and the right training partner.

If you wish to be validated for your skills in deploying Six Sigma tools and techniques effectively in your organization, then this is the right certification for you. The certification has become a mandate for Quality Specialists who wish to advance in their career in Quality Management. The certification journey is quite a rigorous one that aims at training professionals in advanced skillsets through its different levels of certifications. It is also a booster that helps you with hikes in your salary.

If you’re already in Quality Domain, you’ll be aware of certain important factors like: the industry needs, the level of knowledge expected of professionals at the different rungs in the processes in your organization, the available resources in this domain in your organization, the kind of Six Sigma tools and techniques that your organization uses and so on. With this knowledge, you can cross-check the course content with the requirements, before making the final choice.  

On the other hand, if you are new to the arena, researching on certain basic industry requirements and qualifying yourself in the foundational levels should help you edge ahead.

There is no single body of accreditation to certify from in Six Sigma. While some organizations, like Motorola and GE, take the initiative to train professionals by themselves, there are also training providers who offer training and certification in Six Sigma level of certifications.

First-party certification denotes self-declaration in the part of professionals who declare to have met the criteria of Six Sigma certifications.

Second-party certification is when a company or a training partner create their own certification program with their own set of validators.

Third-party certifications, refer to those that identify and validate that product, process or service meets standards and criteria that are independent of any industry. These are reviewed by independent, impartial associations that maintain the industry standards. American Society for Quality (ASQ) and International Association of Six Sigma Certification (IASSC) are some standard third-party accreditations.

Second-party certification has become the norm in Six Sigma levels of certifications. This way, you can choose the training provider based on your needs.

With good research, you can compare and contrast organizational/professional needs with the course content of different training providers and choose that which suits your needs best.

One thing to note here is that, just as course contents differ from each of the second-party certification providers, so does the demarcation of content that goes into the different levels/ belts of the certifications.

So, ‘needs’ of the professional, is the core criterion to be kept in mind while deciding on the training provider.

Six Sigma, as a customer-driven quality-control program, is advantageous in plenty of ways. From retaining customers, helping employees effectively in time management, reducing cycle time in processes, to effective strategic planning and supply chain management, Six Sigma abounds in benefits to organizations. However, there is a flip side to the coin.

As a vigorous program that has a “defined limit of about 3.4 defects per million products or service processes”, it can create rigidity in its deployment, thereby delaying processes. Also, with greater emphasis on customer satisfaction, it may underplay the value of internal quality-control measures of a company.

Further, this is a program that can only be conducted by employees who are trained in Six Sigma. For smaller businesses, this is a pricey expenditure, as providing Six Sigma training for employees or employing Six Sigma certified employees is expensive.

But the benefits are immense and as more and more organizations are coming to adopt Six Sigma in their processes, particularly those involved in manufacturing, the demands for certified professionals is on a steep increase.

Check-out some of our Six Sigma courses:

Certified Six Sigma Green Belt Certification 

Certified Six Sigma Black Belt Certification

Certified Lean Six Sigma Green Belt Certification 

Certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Certification 

Why Six Sigma Black Belts Make Better Leaders - IIBM INDIA

A survey by IIBM Institute of more than 1,300 business professionals whose companies are using Six Sigma revealed that leadership development programs which involve Six Sigma training are six times more likely to be called “highly successful” than those without. Many of these leadership development programs involve a Black Belt track for future leaders.

Modern Leadership Competencies

It is becoming more fully recognized that only half of the knowledge and skills a successful leader needs are business and functional know-how. At least as important as these skills for modern leaders in a rapidly changing environment, are strong competencies in leading change and in improving, designing and managing processes.

How can a Six Sigma program help to prepare leaders for facing these problems? The fact is that change leadership and process skills are best learned on the job, i.e., through project work. This hands-on experience is emphasized in the certification requirements for becoming a Black Belt,

which typically include:

• Successfully completing multiple major improvement projects in different functional areas.
• Working in their Six Sigma position for three years.
• Helping Champions in project selection.
• Leading, training and mentoring multiple Green Belts in the use of Six Sigma tools and techniques.

Having met these requirements, Black Belts should normally have gathered a wide range of insights into the general leadership competencies:

Business Knowledge

Through their process improvement projects, Black Belts accumulate important understandings of their company. They gather knowledge about the products/services offered by their company, business strategies and objectives, relevant markets, customers and their requirements and, of course, about many core and enabling processes. They also know a lot about roles and responsibilities within their organization – who does what, who makes what decisions, who is an expert on what subject, etc. This gives them the advantage of a broader-than- usual perspective of the business, not to mention a large informal network of contacts.

In addition, Black Belts have proven that they can achieve measurable business results. They have learned to select projects with high leverage, which means they know how to concentrate on business- and strategy-related issues. They are less apt to be distracted by low-priority issues.

Functional Know-How

Black Belt-trained leaders learn the value of staying close to processes – the “nuts and bolts” of how work gets done. Through analyzing and improving multiple processes, Black Belts also gain a deep understanding of the procedures their associates are working in and with. Associates, in turn, are most apt to have confidence in and trust leaders who “know the way it is” on the shop floor or in the backroom.

Process Improvement, Design and Management Know-How

Probably the most important lesson a Black Belt learns is causal thinking. Thinking in cause-and-effect relationships and focusing on the vital few root causes not only helps in day-to-day problem solving, it also is the basis for breaking down strategic or business objectives (so called lagging indicators) into their most contributing influence factors (leading indicators). This is critical when selecting the appropriate projects and improvement activities in the area of their responsibility, and when setting performance goals for their associates. A Black Belt-experienced leader uses dashboards showing the most important leading and lagging indicators to continuously monitor and, if necessary, improve a business unit.

No less important, Black Belts get used to making sound and solid decisions based on data. This means they use facts to validate cause-and-effect relationships, e.g., when verifying whether an investment will significantly improve a given situation and thereby will pay off. A Black Belt in a leading role therefore asks associates for data when they have to make a decision, and they teach associates that they themselves should not rely on gut feelings when doing their daily work. Black Belt-trained leaders ask the right questions…and keep asking questions.

Last, but not least, Black Belts learn to think cross-functionally, i.e., in a process-oriented way with not only external but also internal supplier-customer relationships. In a leading position, former Black Belts therefore structure their area of responsibility along key processes. They design the jobs in their department according to these processes. And, of course, they are eager to continuously improve the processes and, if necessary, redesign the processes they own, always driven by the internal and external customer requirements. Process management charts help them to pro-actively manage these processes.

Change Leadership Ability

Having completed multiple process improvement projects, Black Belts have experience in facilitating change. Normally, they are asked to start on a small scale – in their small project environment – to drive change. They learn, on a manageable scale, how to deal with and overcome resistance to change. They are trained in such “soft skills” as active listening, influencing and communication. After their tenure as a Black Belt, they should have developed appropriate means to deal with people’s natural resistance towards change, to solve interper-sonal and structural conflicts, and to successfully guide people through the difficult and emotional rollercoaster-like transition phase. And, in particular, trained Black Belt leaders learn to identify and to influence the important stakeholders in order to gain their commitment.

Conclusion: A Tool for Growing Leaders

Six Sigma is a results-oriented, hands-on approach for developing critical leadership competencies such as influencing without formal authority, making decisions based on facts, managing change and leading teams of associates. Six Sigma has a “self-financing” nature since Black Belts must complete several projects with significant impact on bottom-line results. Thus, the return on (leadership development) investment is much higher than for many other leadership programs. When supported by a rigorous selection and career planning process, the Six Sigma Black Belt experience is a tremendous vehicle for growing a company’s pool of leadership talent.

Get Certified Today – Go AHEAD

Become a part of Six Sigma Organization. This is the most common and flagship course at IIBM Institute.  IIBM Institute provides training for SIX SIGMA Green Belt, Black Belt, Master Black Belt and quality courses which will make you ready to face all the needs of any organization.

ABOUT IIBM Institute

Established in 2008, IIBM began its mission with the sole purpose of imparting professional education to career aspirants even in the remotest corners of India and the world.

The institute offers a wide range of Master Certifications, Executive Programs, Dual Programs and Professional Programs. All the programs have been designed with industry-oriented and updated curriculum considering the real-world business scenarios.

Thousands of IIBM alumni are working with leading companies like Citibank, Wipro, Dell, Honeywell, and HCL & Convergys.

Why should you go for Six Sigma Certification?

Training for and earning your Six Sigma certification can benefit your career and help with long term goals. Having a thorough understanding of Six Sigma, you may see new career possibilities with higher salary potentials.

The history of Six Sigma speaks volumes about the benefits of its use to a business organization. Since first put into practice by Motorola in 1986, the impact of Six Sigma on a company’s bottom line has led to it being adopted by businesses in many different industries.

This success has also led to more people becoming trained in Six Sigma methodology. What can that training do to help your career? The benefits are not only valuable to your career, but your overall business intelligence, as well.

Benefitsof Six Sigma to Your Career

Learning Six Sigma and applying its methodologies to your work life can have tremendous impact on your future in business. Simply being able to put Six Sigma Certification on your resume proves your commitment to improving your business acumen and analytical skills, not to mention your commitment to improving the business within which you work. In short, a Six Sigma certification makes the recipient stand out from the crowd.

That, in turn, can lead to better job opportunities and improved salary. It’s not easy. Another reason Six SIGMA Certification demand so much respect is that they are not easy to attain, and executives and hiring managers at major companies know this.

Then, of course, there are the practical applications. Those who know Six Sigma are knowledgeable in dozens of different methods to reduce costs, increase revenue, streamline business processes and improve employee buy-in, all of which leads to a better bottom line.

Six Sigma training also prepares students for a leadership role.  Once the Six Sigma Black Belt level is achieved, a person is not only educated on the methodologies of Six Sigma, he or she is prepared to become a change agent within their organization, leading efforts to improve processes and the quality of what is delivered to customers.

Achieving Six Sigma Black Belt status can open the doors for promotion into upper management, as well as improve your chances of obtaining a job with a different employer should you want to leave your current position. It’s not difficult to see why a person with these skills and a Six Sigma certification to prove it would be an attractive job applicant.

Benefits of Six Sigma to the Organization

The proper application of Six Sigma methodology can affect many different aspects of a business, from improvements of goods and services to employees investing more into the final product. Here are some benefits of using Six Sigma to improve a business operation.

• Customer Satisfaction. With Six Sigma methodologies in use, a business will implement improved processes and better quality control, both of which should result in a better product. That, in turn, will lead to more satisfied customers.
• Customer loyalty. Satisfied customers are customers who will stay loyal to a brand and return to make future purchases – as long as the product remains consistent in its quality.
• Improve bottom line. Happy customers mean good word-of-mouth and also customers returning for more, all of which translates into a better revenue stream.  If publicly held, this can also mean a rise in share prices.
• Employee satisfaction. One of the side benefits of Six Sigma is how it can rally employees to a common cause. Unlike companies where management often flounders, Six Sigma offers leaders a chance to clarify and streamline the message. Also, improved results can create a sense of camaraderie that leads to even more good results going forward. Nothing succeeds like success.
• Better partnerships. Whenever a company does well, other companies associated with it can see improvements, as well. This can lead to long-term partnerships as well as having other companies adopt similar Six Sigma strategies for their companies.

As you can see, becoming Six Sigma certified has advantages for both you and the company you are working for. Six Sigma methodologies have the capability of improving your company’s bottom line and making customers happier, as well as improving your marketability and chances of quality employment for many years to come.

Get Certified Today – Go AHEAD

Become a part of Six Sigma Organization. This is the most common and flagship course at IIBM Institute.  IIBM Institute provides training for SIX SIGMA Green Belt, Black Belt, Master Black Belt and quality courses which will make you ready to face all the needs of any organization.

ABOUT IIBM Institute

Established in 2008, IIBM began its mission with the sole purpose of imparting professional education to career aspirants even in the remotest corners of India and the world.

The institute offers a wide range of Master Certifications, Executive Programs, Dual Programs and Professional Programs. All the programs have been designed with industry-oriented and updated curriculum considering the real-world business scenarios.

Thousands of IIBM alumni are working with leading companies like Citibank, Wipro, Dell, Honeywell, and HCL & Convergys.

Why Six Sigma Black Belts Make Better Leaders - IIBM INDIA

A survey by IIBM Institute of more than 1,300 business professionals whose companies are using Six Sigma revealed that leadership development programs which involve Six Sigma training are six times more likely to be called “highly successful” than those without. Many of these leadership development programs involve a Black Belt track for future leaders.

Modern Leadership Competencies

It is becoming more fully recognized that only half of the knowledge and skills a successful leader needs are business and functional know-how. At least as important as these skills for modern leaders in a rapidly changing environment, are strong competencies in leading change and in improving, designing and managing processes.

How can a Six Sigma program help to prepare leaders for facing these problems? The fact is that change leadership and process skills are best learned on the job, i.e., through project work. This hands-on experience is emphasized in the certification requirements for becoming a Black Belt, which typically include:

·         Successfully completing multiple major improvement projects in different functional areas.

·         Working in their Six Sigma position for three years.

·         Helping Champions in project selection.

·         Leading, training and mentoring multiple Green Belts in the use of Six Sigma tools and techniques.

 

Having met these requirements, Black Belts should normally have gathered a wide range of insights into the general leadership competencies:

Business Knowledge

Through their process improvement projects, Black Belts accumulate important understandings of their company. They gather knowledge about the products/services offered by their company, business strategies and objectives, relevant markets, customers and their requirements and, of course, about many core and enabling processes. They also know a lot about roles and responsibilities within their organization – who does what, who makes what decisions, who is an expert on what subject, etc. This gives them the advantage of a broader-than- usual perspective of the business, not to mention a large informal network of contacts.

In addition, Black Belts have proven that they can achieve measurable business results. They have learned to select projects with high leverage, which means they know how to concentrate on business- and strategy-related issues. They are less apt to be distracted by low-priority issues.

Functional Know-How

Black Belt-trained leaders learn the value of staying close to processes – the “nuts and bolts” of how work gets done. Through analyzing and improving multiple processes, Black Belts also gain a deep understanding of the procedures their associates are working in and with. Associates, in turn, are most apt to have confidence in and trust leaders who “know the way it is” on the shop floor or in the backroom.

Process Improvement, Design and Management Know-How

Probably the most important lesson a Black Belt learns is causal thinking. Thinking in cause-and-effect relationships and focusing on the vital few root causes not only helps in day-to-day problem solving, it also is the basis for breaking down strategic or business objectives (so called lagging indicators) into their most contributing influence factors (leading indicators). This is critical when selecting the appropriate projects and improvement activities in the area of their responsibility, and when setting performance goals for their associates. A Black Belt-experienced leader uses dashboards showing the most important leading and lagging indicators to continuously monitor and, if necessary, improve a business unit.

No less important, Black Belts get used to making sound and solid decisions based on data. This means they use facts to validate cause-and-effect relationships, e.g., when verifying whether an investment will significantly improve a given situation and thereby will pay off. A Black Belt in a leading role therefore asks associates for data when they have to make a decision, and they teach associates that they themselves should not rely on gut feelings when doing their daily work. Black Belt-trained leaders ask the right questions…and keep asking questions.

Last, but not least, Black Belts learn to think cross-functionally, i.e., in a process-oriented way with not only external but also internal supplier-customer relationships. In a leading position, former Black Belts therefore structure their area of responsibility along key processes. They design the jobs in their department according to these processes. And, of course, they are eager to continuously improve the processes and, if necessary, redesign the processes they own, always driven by the internal and external customer requirements. Process management charts help them to pro-actively manage these processes.

Change Leadership Ability

Having completed multiple process improvement projects, Black Belts have experience in facilitating change. Normally, they are asked to start on a small scale – in their small project environment – to drive change. They learn, on a manageable scale, how to deal with and overcome resistance to change. They are trained in such “soft skills” as active listening, influencing and communication. After their tenure as a Black Belt, they should have developed appropriate means to deal with people’s natural resistance towards change, to solve interper-sonal and structural conflicts, and to successfully guide people through the difficult and emotional rollercoaster-like transition phase. And, in particular, trained Black Belt leaders learn to identify and to influence the important stakeholders in order to gain their commitment.

Conclusion: A Tool for Growing Leaders

Six Sigma is a results-oriented, hands-on approach for developing critical leadership competencies such as influencing without formal authority, making decisions based on facts, managing change and leading teams of associates. Six Sigma has a “self-financing” nature since Black Belts must complete several projects with significant impact on bottom-line results. Thus, the return on (leadership development) investment is much higher than for many other leadership programs. When supported by a rigorous selection and career planning process, the Six Sigma Black Belt experience is a tremendous vehicle for growing a company’s pool of leadership talent.

Get Certified Today – Go AHEAD

Become a part of Six Sigma Organization. This is the most common and flagship course at IIBM Institute.  IIBM Institute provides training for SIX SIGMA Green Belt, Black Belt, Master Black Belt and quality courses which will make you ready to face all the needs of any organization.

ABOUT IIBM Institute

Established in 2008, IIBM began its mission with the sole purpose of imparting professional education to career aspirants even in the remotest corners of India and the world.

The institute offers a wide range of Master Certifications, Executive Programs, Dual Programs and Professional Programs. All the programs have been designed with industry-oriented and updated curriculum considering the real-world business scenarios.

Thousands of IIBM alumni are working with leading companies like Citibank, Wipro, Dell, Honeywell, and HCL & Convergys.