Six Sigma Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

six-spot Sigma - Research Paper ExampleBrief History As a measurement standard, on the one hand, hexad Sigma dated back to the 1800s when the German mathematician named Carl Frederick Gauss introduced the notion of normal curve (Islam 17). As a standard in variation, on the other hand, Six Sigma originated in the 1920s when Walter Shewhart, a Bell Telephone Laboratories statistician, proved that the three sigma from the average level are the reference lodge by which the process in question requires correction (Islam 17). On the other hand of the scale, the history of the praxis of Six Sigma in companies is fairly modern. Its coinage was make precisely in the 1980s by the Motorola engineer named Bill Smith. According to Islam, Smith is the individual credited in coining such term (17). Smiths Six Sigma is one of the results from the Motorolas decision to secure its global leadership. In the same decade, perhaps prior to Smiths coinage, the executive leaders of the Motorola commun ity established a four-point plan as a response to Sundrys our quality stinks (Barney and McCarty 2). Here, Sundry refers to the feedback expressed by the connections costumers concerning ingathering quality. ... In the third point plan, one observes that the phrase quality improvements -- probably the early definition of Six Sigma -- is a concept that comes from the principle or conjecture prominent in TQM. That is to say, Six Sigma in its early inception is not far from similar to TQM in a fundamental manner the modification only occurs in the TQMs adaptation or application to the Motorola culture. Definition and Methodology Pande, Neuman, and Cavanagh define the notion of Six Sigma in several ways they state that Six Sigma is a way, a goal, an approach, and a system (77). First, Six Sigma is essentially a way or method of measuring certain process or processes. This implies that Six Sigma is a technique in which a particular activity or phenomenon (e.g., manufacturing products ) is quantitatively measured. Second, Six Sigma is a goal, or has an end, of near perfection, which is quantifiable by 3.4 Defects per meg Opportunities or DPMO (Pande, Neuman, and Cavanagh 77). As an end, the application of Six Sigma to a specific process or activity largely aims for a 3.4 DPMO that is to say, for every one million of company products being manufactured, the number of their defects should be within the 3.4 range. Third, Six Sigma is an approach in which the culture of the organization is greatly altered. This definition of Six Sigma is historically grounded it reminds us of Motorolas 1980s third point plan -- the function of quality improvements to the companys culture. Unlike the practice of traditional management, Six Sigma as an approach changes importantly the roles of the members (i.e., top and bottom) of the organization. The functions of leaders and their subordinates are fundamentally modified. Fourth, Six Sigma is