Resources for Six Sigma

Introduction to Six Sigma

• Six Sigma Project Presentations in a Nutshell
• Lean, Six Sigma, and Lean Six Sigma Elevator Speech
• More...

Six Sigma Projects

• Six Sigma Project Presentations in a Nutshell
• Lean Six Sigma Improvement and Work Design
• More...

Six Sigma Tools

• Six Sigma Project Presentations in a Nutshell
• Lean Six Sigma Improvement and Work Design
• More...

Six Sigma Statistics

• How to Lie With Statistics-Schwab Chart
• Wikipedia Entry Quality Causes Assessed
• More...

Six Sigma Videos (Requires QuickTime)

• How To Calculate Process Yields
• Hypergeometric probabilities using Minitab
• More...

Leading Six Sigma

• AT&T Finds New Ways to Annoy Its Customers
• Bailed Out Automakers Produce Worst Quality On The Road
• More...

Healthcare Quality

• Quality Guru Chosen to Head CMS
• Doctors Perform C-Section on Woman Who Wasn’t Pregnant
• More...

Process Excellence Podcasts

• Does Six Sigma Apply to Healthcare?
• Business Profits Radio Interview Podcast
• More...

Other Useful Links

Good books on Six Sigma and other topics

What is Six Sigma?

For Motorola, the originator of Six Sigma, the answer to the question "Why Six Sigma?" was simple: survival. Motorola came to Six Sigma because it was being consistently beaten in the competitive marketplace by foreign firms that were able to produce higher quality products at a lower cost. When a Japanese firm took over a Motorola factory that manufactured Quasar television sets in the United States in the 1970s, they promptly set about making drastic changes in the way the factory operated. Under Japanese management, the factory was soon producing TV sets with 1/20^th the number of defects they had produced under Motorola management. They did this using the same workforce, technology, and designs, making it clear that the problem was Motorola's management. Eventually, even Motorola's own executives had to admit "our quality stinks." Read More...