Perhaps you’ve heard that Six Sigma is fading. In some circles Six Sigma is not the amazing continuous improvement methodology that it was once thought to be. Naysayers say that use of this methodology is falling, and lean programs have taken its place.
While Six Sigma doesn’t fit every problem and isn’t always a good solution, it does have value. Don Buckingham, vice president of operational excellence at Epalign and a Six Sigma Black Belt, offers this example. He explains that quality comes down to a range of acceptable performance in a process. The goal is to get something in the middle. If you picture a bulls-eye on the ground, and you drop a small ball from the roof, consider how many times you would hit the middle. “The goal is to hit the bulls-eye as many times as possible. Six Sigma is designed to narrow that,” Buckingham says, and the statistical tools, measurement and analysis involved can boost the number of times you hit the target. In addition, Buckingham says it could also help reshore manufacturing to the U.S.