By Gary A. Gack - Is Six Sigma for real? Is it the factor responsible for improvements? How much Six Sigma is really necessary to get positive results? Doesn't any quality improvement method yield similar results? These questions are always in the minds of people in every organization – sometimes out in the open, sometimes not. In a thoughtful response to an iSixSigma article entitled "Six Sigma Applies to IT, as Evidenced by Success," a reader brought the issue forward and asked for answers. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 176 )

By Marian R. Powell and Jennifer Tower - When the vice president for sales calls a Black Belt in to talk about sales, the natural inclination for the Six Sigma practitioner is to look for the "pain points" and work with a team to define the problem and build a solution. This approach will help transform the sales process, but it may not improve sales results. That is because the starting point for increasing sales – and growing the company's business – is not the salespeople, it is the customers. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 266 )

By MINITAB - Six Sigma is an information-driven methodology for reducing waste, increasing customer satisfaction, and improving processes, with a focus on financially measurable results. First developed at Motorola Corporation in the 1980’s, Six Sigma is now considered to be a world-class measure of excellence and efficiency. It is perhaps best known because of the well-publicized successes of General Electric and AlliedSignal. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 168 )

By na - Six Sigma at many organizations simply means a measure of quality that strives for near perfection. Six Sigma is a disciplined, data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects (driving towards six standard deviations between the mean and the nearest specification limit) in any process -- from manufacturing to transactional and from product to service. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 203 )

By Ali Kiran and Celal Kaplan - During the past 10 years, businesses have deployed a wealth of information technologies to increase revenue, reduce operational costs, and improve customer service. Yet many CIOs find it difficult to tell whether these investments are producing satisfactory ROI. To understand what really works, and why, these enterprises are turning to process-improvement methodologies like Six Sigma. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 239 )

By Kennedy Smith - Many organizations, however, have taken a look at Six Sigma's track record and surmised that it won't work for them. Why? Because Six Sigma was developed in and for a manufacturing environment; so, how would it apply to a nonmanufacturing environment? Organizations such as financial service providers, health care systems and educational facilities are asking this question. Others have gone so far as to take that leap toward Six Sigma and have witnessed the results first-hand. Often referred to as "transactional Six Sigma," the methodology is proving to be a useful tool in environments that focus more on people and less on product. ^new (Added: 23-Jan-2006 Hits: 162 )

By na - So how do you implement Six Sigma in a way that's risk free? By using the proven power of diffusion (see The Diffusion of Innovations by Everett Rogers). Over 50 years of research into how changes take root and grow in corporations and cultures suggests a much safer route to successful implementation of Six Sigma or any change. ^new (Added: 19-Jan-2006 Hits: 91 )