Lean & 6 Sigma, QA QC DMAIC Agile Scrum Certificate Belts or Learnings

Lean is about the front line employees in production mainly in factories or even back offices. Lean management refers to a technique developed with the aim of minimizing the process waste and maximizing the value of the product or service to the customer, without compromising the quality.It is coined by Toyota Production System, which is a part of lean thinking. Simply, lean means creating more value for customers with fewer resources. A lean organization understands customer value and focuses its key processes to continuously increase it.

You can apply the concept of Lean in any business or production process, from manufacturing to marketing and software development.

The Lean methodology relies on 3 very simple ideas:

1. deliver value from your customer’s perspective
2. eliminate waste (things that don’t bring value to the end product)
3. continuous improvement

So now, when you know the core idea, let’s dig deeper and get to know the basic principles of Lean management and where it comes from.

What is Lean Management, and How Did It Start?

Before you start with the basic Lean principles, you need to realize that the Lean methodology is about continuously improving work processes, purposes, and people.

Instead of holding total control of work processes and keeping the spotlight, Lean management encourages shared responsibility and shared leadership.

This is why the two main pillars of the Lean methodology are:

• Respect for people
• Continuous improvements

"The Lean Pillars"

6 sigma is about mid & mid management. Six Sigma is a set of management tools and techniques designed to improve business by reducing the likelihood of error. It is a data-driven approach that uses a statistical methodology for eliminating defects.

The etymology is based on the Greek symbol "sigma" or "σ," a statistical term for measuring process deviation from the process mean or target. "Six Sigma" comes from the bell curve used in statistics, where one Sigma symbolizes a single standard deviation from the mean. If the process has six Sigmas, three above and three below the mean, the defect rate is classified as "extremely low." 

Difference Between Lean and Six Sigma

lean and six-sigma play a vital role. Though six-sigma is based upon philosophy and lean is based upon techniques, both business strategies run side by side to take a business up to sky limits. Lean is one of those key techniques, which are a part of six-sigma methodology.

Lean is improving flow process of any product during its production. In simple words, lean focuses on reducing wastes during any process and ultimately raise the speed of process. There are two concepts of lean. One concept is called “Just-in-time” and the other one is “Jidoka”. “Just-in-time” means organizing a production process in such a manner that chances of accumulating stock will be reduced up to minimum level. On the other hand, Jidoka means indicating and preventing any wrong points in production line, which could become a cause of producing bad product. The flow chart of lean is such that: identifying value, defining value stream, determining flow of process, defining pull and finally improving process. Because, lean deals with over production, therefore it is inventory based.

Six-sigma means reducing process variation of any product during its production. In short, six-sigma is a management philosophy of reducing quality problems in a running process. Its data oriented methodology is based upon research and deals with parts of process. By using this technique, we can overcome the variation of process by approaching the root cause of problem. The flow chart of six-sigma is defining the problem, measuring the problem, analyzing the process, improving the problem and control over problem. With the help of six-sigma, an infrastructure of expert people, in quality management methods, can be developed. For implementation of six-sigma, process data is required, so that based on this data some positive changes could be brought about to improve the process. There are three concepts in six-sigma. The first one is DMAIC, the second one is DMADV and the third one is Lean.

Lean vs. Six Sigma

? Lean focuses on removing wastes and idleness, while six-sigma eradicate variation in process.

? Lean is a technique of improving process. On the other hand, six-sigma is a philosophy of running process in streamline.

? The aim of lean is to raise production by increasing efficiency of process. On the contrary, six-sigma defines and satisfies client’s requirements.

? Lean deals with running setup of process, while six-sigma deals with quality of product.

? Lean tools are visual oriented like Microsoft Visio; however, six-sigma tools are mathematics and statistics.

? Lean is a continuous process and is daily based, while six-sigma is not because of its philosophical methodology of reducing process variation

Conclusion

No doubt, lean is based upon waste and production methodology and the aim of six-sigma is perfection of product. However, it is fact that it is impossible to develop a process and finally business without giving equal attention towards both techniques

The Six Sigma DMADV process (define, measure, analyze, design, verify) is an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at Six Sigma quality levels. It can also be employed if a current process requires more than just incremental improvement.

Both Six Sigma processes are executed by Six Sigma Green Belts and Six Sigma Black Belts, and are overseen by Six Sigma Master Black Belts.

Certification bodies

The certifications come in three forms. You have the main bodies like ASQ, IASSC, universities like Villanova, and in-house certification from corporations like GE.

 ASQ model because they require you to do real-world projects to become certified. Their test is also open-book and much harder than the IASSC; both concepts are more like the real world.

Each certifying body values some subjects over others. Here is my understanding of the differences between the 2 main certifying bodies based upon their published certification exam questions by category and percentage:

ASQ Black Belt vs IASSC Black Belt

ASQ Green Belt vs IASSC Green Belt

University Option

Universities are another great option to choose, so long as the university is accredited. Like nearly every field, you will find a university teaching this without the proper accreditation. This means that the certificate you receive will not be of any use to you. Some universities and many community colleges hire independent contractors to teach Green Belt courses. Some require you to have real-world projects and others do not. 

Let me know your budget & professional level & I might suggest you the best one for your requiements.

Basic Concept of Agile

The basic concepts of Agile revolve in project planning and execution. They teach the members to adapt to the situation instantaneously and help them figure out the plan, scope, and design throughout the project. Another concept that is a must is working on software implementation. Agile doesn’t encourage traditional documentation because it kills a lot of time. The third is collaboration over negotiation. Agile development believes that customers have a stronger bond with the company than any high-value contracts. The final attribute is to adapt to change rather than sticking to the same plan throughout the project. It helps to develop decision-making skills and improves one’s critical thinking. 

What are the major differences between Agile and Six Sigma?

Both Agile and Six Sigma focus on customer fulfillment, flexibility, and bringing economic approaches to take the business to the next level. The difference lies in the mechanisms and outcomes they bring to the table. Six Sigma professionals always aim to maximize profits by reducing the variables. Still, in the case of Agile, they adopt other management approaches that work in the presence of those same variables. Six Sigma practitioners won’t dedicate more time to innovation on the economic front, and they dwell in those same uncertainties. On the other hand, Agile accepts changes and other unpredictable aspects of business and moves forward to the next problem or module. 

One other main difference lies in its variations. Six Sigma is designed in such a way that it can only handle operational processes of the business management. So, the change is very less in Six Sigma. Coming to Agile, it handles multiple parameters in its software development methods. The numbers and patterns are more detailed in Six Sigma when compared to Agile. This way, the management can come up with more intuitions and relationships with its customers. The same is not possible with Agile. Cultural differences also exist between the two programs. Six Sigma believes that iterations and modification are best executed with the help of only experts or professionals. Agile is no way similar to that in cultural values. 

What Is Scrum?

Scrum is the most widely utilised agile framework. The 13th Annual State of Agile report shows that nearly 72% of software teams rely on Scrum or a Scrum hybrid. While Agile provides the core values and principles the project teams should follow, Scrum further defines the development process.

The Scrum process consists of multiple events. Project work is done in sprints, which are time-boxed to one month. In other words, sprints can take from one to four weeks, but not longer.

Before each sprint, the team convenes and creates a sprint plan. Here, the product owner, Scrum Master, and the Scrum discuss which features take priority. Then, they select items from the product backlog the sprint should involve. Finally, after they determine the work necessary to complete the sprint, they put together an outline.

Apart from sprint planning, Scrum includes daily 15-minute meetings where the development team shares what they’ve worked on the previous day and what they’re working on presently. Additionally, they talk about any obstacles that prevent progress, and the Scrum master helps resolve them.

After each sprint, a detailed sprint review and sprint retrospective follow. The team goes over the completed work in the sprint and presents the functionality to the PO or other stakeholders that can provide feedback for future sprints. During the retrospective, the team looks at the successes and weak points of the sprint. That way, they learn how they can improve the process in the next. 

Who Is Scrum Ideal For? 

Scrum is ideal for agile software development companies, but it can work just as well in other industries. As an agile framework, it’s excellent for projects with changing requirements, where the focus tends to shift during the project’s life cycle.

It’s also a good fit for organisations that don’t have a strict hierarchical structure, where the accent is on communication and collaboration between the development teams and individual team members.

Hope your curiosity on the basics of the article title subjects is achieved.