When you have chosen ‘Operations’ as your specialization, six sigma and 3.4 DPMO are words that cross you every now and then. But very few of us even knew what exactly six sigma is or how it can be achieved!!
During the first semester, we got to know that “six sigma is not 6 sigma but 4.5 sigma” we were even more confused. With a million doubts and questions, we found ourselves in the first class of the Green belt certification workshop. Our ISI faculty, Mr. Subrata Rath entered and wiped our faces clean of all the doubts.
While we were expecting a set of complex equations and statistics functions, we were met with a humble good afternoon. What followed in the next 5 days was one of the most enlightening sessions of our MBA. Linking day-to-day activities to the concepts of six sigma, he explained every detail to the t. We were taught first from an organizations point of view to ‘Recognize’ the areas where stream lining can be used to better the processes. Then we moved on to a project perspective and the concepts of DMAIC.
A live project to explain each stage of DMAIC and a courier game to explain the difference that six sigma can bring to a process and a organization as a whole were added snips that helped us understand better. At the end of day 5 we had not just 36 six sigma green belt certified individuals, but 36 students who has a clear understanding of the underlying processes. The certification session if anything can be said to have left us with a hunger to dwell more and put to use our learnings.