Six Sigma Part 1: Define and Measure

First and foremost, I want to convey my utmost gratitude, praise, and appreciation to Holly Ott for her skillful execution and expertise conducting the course. She made the course interesting as an online course can be. Even for someone who has been out of college for 30+ years, she made it understandable. Not that I did not need to do some significant scratching of the head and dig up some supplemental information, but I did learn a great deal.

The material presented and knowledge (yes, even my old grey hair head can still retain some information) will be used as I work on implementing a new process at my company. The process is tied to the Request for Maintenance Action (RMA). As a manufacturer and distributer of ground based and naval radar systems, the process for customers to return parts that fail in the field was cumbersome and chaotic at best. Additionally, our customers were not very happy with the Turn Around Time (TAT) of receiving their repaired or replaced parts back. These times often exceeded 3 to 6 months. Unless previously agreed to for specific parts, this was completely unacceptable. Furthermore, there are some parts that are failing on a more regular basis. Thus, quality measurements and improvements were in need. Capturing the metrics of the failure rates will drive the organization to reevaluate the design or supplier and hopefully foster improvements for future system deliveries. The data collected will also be used to drive obsolescence, FMEA and FMECA analyses.

The process is somewhat complicated as there are customer reports involved that need to be evaluated, shipping and trade compliance concerns, supplier and vendor interactions and agreed to evaluation pricing, customer purchase orders, vendor purchase orders, work authorizations, etc. etc.

I have just completed the process mapping flow (with help from what I learned in the class) and have received comments back from the review. I have also been working with our Oracle subject matter experts to develop the process tool and alerts to be used. There is a great deal of historical data that also needs to be captured and input into Oracle. From there, once the process is finalized and all stakeholders are in agreement on the use of the tool. I will develop training slide decks for the requisite responsible individuals.

My ultimate goal along with the quality organization is to see a significant reduction in TAT as well as capture statistics on what parts are failing the most, under what conditions, and work with engineering and our supply chain to either modify or redesign or seek alternate suppliers that can meet the failure rate requirements. Everything we work on is driven by Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) and Mean Time To Repair (MTTR). The limits of which are set by customer requirements. And yes, this goes down to something as small as a connector to something as large as a big drive gear.

In closing, while my company does have some process and methods for capturing this critical data for RMAs, it is, as I said dispersed and un- organized. I am confident that what I have learned in the course will help me significantly as I drive the process and help my company achieve a better RMA status and less customer complaints.

I look forward to taking more edX courses and will certainly look for others from TUM if Holly is teaching.

Sincerely,

Elias A. Elias

My name is Rony Tabari and I am from Indonesia, I am currently undertaking a role as an Operations Improvement Advisor for Phu Bia Mining (PBM) with operations in Laos as one of the producing assets for PanAust in South East Asia.

First of all, I would like to sincerely express my gratitude and appreciation to Professor Holly Ott with her skills and expertise for bringing such an excellent series of lectures, and to all the team from Technische Universität München (TUM) and edX for the well packaged courses. I would also like to thank to PanAust through my Operations Improvement team, for the opportunity, support, motivation for me to experience the study to enhance my professional skills and potential career advancement.

The course with TUM via edX has been a quite refresher for me as it has been more than 15 years since I took statistics as a subject in my college and applied some of the tools and calculations during my previous work as a management consultant in various client industries, such as measuring and prioritising defects and setting up improvement measurement baselines using regression to calculate savings.

There are 3 specific things that I have been learning so far from the course that have been adding more value to the extent of the knowledge and skills I have at the moment :

• The knowledge of the need to understand the Voice of Customer, and to convert into Critical to Quality measurement as per Lean principles, would also be the implementation of a ‘Pull System’.
• The knowledge in regards to statistics which equips me with advanced capability for data processing and more accurate decision making.
• The use of Six Sigma with its DMAIC phases to be able to define, formulate and process the information about the problem added with data to be analysed as proof of process improvements. Moreover, this approach has also been formulated in terms of the project approach that will be useful as project guidelines.

Currently, during my time to deliver high quality of work with PBM, I have been on the task to engage people from different departments and levels to train, to coach and to support them to improve the process of their work to be easier, better, quicker, cheaper and safe using the Lean principles, including to use some of the problem solving tools for projects that require us to define the problem and key measurements.

Six sigma has been one of the selected training course which will equip me with useful knowledge and tools especially when we are involved in the data driven decision making process for the project. And thus we will have a more accurate decision from the data to be made and not just simply estimate.
In the mining industry, more specifically, there have been many project opportunities that involve and require data processing for improving the decision making process and actions; such as recovery, liner wear rates, inventories, and so on.

I am looking forward to continue my study via TUM and edX for the next series of Six Sigma courses to complete the Yellow Belt certification. I also look forward to contribute my skills and study experience to seek the Six Sigma Green Belt level through undertaking process improvement projects with PBM, applying the lessons, practicing the tools and sharing the success stories with my team.

Thank you again for the excellent courses.

Sincerely,

Rony Tabari

This course is really interesting and has an organized structure and sequence of contents. As an introduction for the DMAIC Process Improvement Cycle, the course really provides the knowledge related to the phases Define and Measure, specially enforces the importance of understand the costumer expectations (and Critical-to-Quality characteristics), your contribution to design and measure the process' capability and performance. The module Statistics Review is imperative to complete overall the course and module 8 (Quality Topics and Course Summary) provides a very good ending and motivation to go ahead to the next course. Thank you professor Ott and the entire course's team.
Best regards!
Robson Torres Bandeira, city of Fortaleza (Brazil), Economist and Master in Logistics Management, Planning Manager at the Municipal Infrastruture Secretariat (Fortaleza City Hall).

SEB - Perú
Six Sigma: Define and Measure

The “Six Sigma: Define and Measure” course is an excellent introduction to the world of Six Sigma, a methodology that has proven to be invaluable in the manufacturing industry. The course is well-structured, starting with a warm welcome and an introduction to Motorola’s Six Sigma, the company that pioneered this approach.

The course then delves into the ‘Define’ and ‘Measure’ phases of the Six Sigma process. The ‘Define’ phase focuses on understanding customer expectations, a crucial aspect of any business. The ‘Measure’ phase is comprehensive, covering topics from statistics review to process mapping, measurement system analysis, and process capability.

Three Specific Learnings:

- Understanding Customer Expectations: This section emphasized the importance of knowing what the customer wants and needs. It taught me to define quality from the customer’s perspective, which is crucial in the mining and metal mechanic industry where customer specifications can vary greatly.
- Process Mapping: This section provided a systematic approach to understand and document a process. This skill is particularly useful in the manufacturing industry where complex processes need to be streamlined for efficiency.
- Measurement System Analysis: This section introduced me to the concept of gauging the accuracy and precision of measurement systems. This is particularly relevant in the metal mechanic industry where precise measurements are critical.

Application of Learnings:

In my work as a mechanical engineer in the industry, understanding customer expectations has helped me tailor solutions to meet specific client needs. Process mapping has been instrumental in identifying bottlenecks in our manufacturing processes. By creating a visual representation of the process, we were able to reduce downtime and increase productivity. Finally, the knowledge gained from the Measurement System Analysis section has been invaluable in ensuring the accuracy of our measurements, leading to higher quality products and fewer rejections.

"I recently had the privilege of completing the Six Sigma Define and Measure course by Martin Grunow and Holly Ott on edX. As someone with no prior experience in Six Sigma, I found this course extremely valuable in building my knowledge and skills in process improvement.

Over the 8 weeks, I gained a deep understanding of the Six Sigma DMAIC methodology. The step-by-step way concepts were introduced enabled me to master skills such as:

- Creating a Project Charter to clearly define problems and goals
- Advanced process mapping techniques like SIPOC and Value Stream Mapping
- In-depth statistical analysis like measurement system analysis, process capability analysis, understanding variation using probability distributions
- Calculation of defect rates, process yield, capability indices
- Leveraging methods like FMEA, DoE for continuous improvement

What I loved best were the practical case studies and exercises that complemented the lectures. Applying the textbook concepts to simulated real-world situations really cemented my learning. Now I feel fully equipped to map processes, collect and analyze data, identify root causes and come up with data-driven solutions.

I can proudly say that I have developed beginner-level Six Sigma expertise comparable to Yellow Belt/Green Belt certifications thanks to this course. The skills I gained are invaluable for not just process improvement, but also understanding customer needs, measurement systems and statistical thinking in general.

As an Operations and Supply chain student, this course has given me a significant edge. I believe the structured problem-solving approach of Six Sigma will enable me to make meaningful impacts regardless of which industry I join. I highly recommend this high-quality, engaging course to anyone interested in process excellence and continuous improvement."

I recently completed the "Six Sigma Part 1: Define and Measure" course, and I must say it was an incredibly enriching learning experience. This course provided a comprehensive introduction to Six Sigma methodologies, focusing specifically on the Define and Measure phases.

One of the standout features of this course was its clear and structured approach to teaching Six Sigma principles. The instructors Holly did an excellent job of breaking down complex concepts into manageable modules, making it accessible to learners at all levels of expertise.

The course content was well-designed, covering key topics such as DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) methodology, process mapping, data collection techniques, and measurement system analysis (MSA). The inclusion of real-world examples and case studies helped to illustrate how Six Sigma principles are applied in various industries, enhancing the practical relevance of the course.

I particularly appreciated the interactive elements of the course, including quizzes, exercises, and discussion forums. These activities not only reinforced learning but also provided opportunities for active engagement and knowledge sharing with fellow learners.

The instructional materials, including video lectures, readings, and supplementary resources, were of high quality and contributed significantly to my understanding of Six Sigma concepts and techniques.

Overall, "Six Sigma Part 1: Define and Measure" is an excellent starting point for anyone interested in learning about Six Sigma methodologies or seeking to enhance their problem-solving and process improvement skills. I highly recommend this course to professionals across diverse industries who are looking to drive organizational excellence and achieve measurable results through data-driven decision-making.

This is my first time using edx for training and this is the 1st course I have done on edx. I am positively surprised about the course materials. The videos are very detailed and guided me well through the red path. I have now gained a very good basic knowledge of DMAIC. In addition, the analysis part is particularly interesting and helpful for me. I work in the renewable energy sector and work as a Senior Global Quality Manager. My responsibilities include our operations side. It is especially important for me to have a good base of Operations Quality technology and knowledge so that I can better support our Operations Quality team. It is also good to see, especially in the process mapping part, that the processes in our company are documented and used correctly according to standards. What I also think is quite good is that we received a summary/project guideline at the end, so that all the knowledge we learned was systematically explained and summarized again as an example. It is now clear to me how a Six Sigma project can/should be carried out systematically and correctly. And how we can systematically monitor and optimize our production. Various data and projects are carried out in our company. The results often have cross-team effects. For example, FMEA projects are currently being carried out in the Service department. Before I did this course, I only knew that it was an analysis project. Even though this project is related to another project I am in charge of, I couldn't do much with it. Now I can actively work with the reports from this FMEA project and also use it with a monitoring view with my other project. Thank you very much for the training.

Location: Berlin
Type of company: renewable energy/solar battery

Kind regards,

Wenjiao Bilaloglu-Yue

Hi, I am Husain from Bahrain, and I work in financial services and insurance industry.
For a quite long period of time, I became very interested in process improvement and quality assurance for financial services. I have read a lot of books and internet guidelines, I even made a presentation for my company's management to convince them to invest in such a critical and much important addition to the organization. Ever sense then, I've been in search for a reliable and trustworthy academic material so I can further enhance my knowledge in the subject based on a correct and solid fundamentals, and I got to say this course by the Technical University of Munich is one of the best available, if wasn't the best overall!
Dr. Holly makes everything easy and understandable, although it is an online course with no face-to-face interaction, yet it felt like I am in a classroom with some colleagues. Today I just finished the first course out of a long journey towards the green belt certification.

Hello,

My name is Faisal Enad S Alenezi. As I know from my experience from a bachelor's degree Dr Holly Ott, was one of the best I had ever experienced coming from an in-class and online university-level course perspective. Furthermore, I want to convey my utmost gratitude, praise, and appreciation to Holly Ott for her skilful execution and expertise conducting the course. She made the course interesting as an online course can be.

Six Sigma projects are processed along with the phases of the DMAIC cycle (DEFINE-MEASURE-ANALYSE-IMPROVE-CONTROL). And each phase covers a set of chronologically interlinked rational and statistical tools. In the DEFINE phase we answer the question:

What is the problem?

First, a product or service, that deviates from the requirements must be identified as a potential for improvement. Customer requirements are then prioritized as a basis for defining the primary problems of the product or service. The specified customer requirements and the size of the problems help to define the business case for the project.

Finally, the scope and objectives of the project are defined, and a project team is formed with subject matter experts, as supporters for the project.

After defining the problems, we look for their triggering causes in the MEASURE phase.

To identify these negative influences on the problem, the as-is process is mapped and inspected first. The next step is to formulate hypotheses that reflect the relationship between triggering influences and the problem.

In the ANALYSE phase we answer the question:

What are the root causes of the influences on the problem?

At first, the measured data are evaluated graphically. Next, the process capability is calculated and – most important – the hypotheses to identify the significant influences are tested.

In the IMPROVE phase, we answer the question: What is the solution?

At first, solutions are developed to eliminate, adjust or circumvent the identified root causes. Risks and resistances against these solutions are then identified and the solutions are adapted, to put them into practice.

In the CONTROL phase, we answer the question:

How can we ensure the sustainability of our improvements?

First, the degree of improvement is calculated on a statistical basis and the achieved financial benefit is calculated. A Process-Management-Plan is then installed, with control charts to monitor the process and with countermeasures for deviations that occur. New standards for the process are developed and communicated. Finally, the project is handed over to the process owner. This means each Six Sigma project is based on a process.

Thank you, Professor Ott, all of the guest lecturers and TAs, and the rest of the TUM team that worked tirelessly to bring this MOOC to us!

Hi! My name is Julio Alvarado.

I´m from Panama, and I work on the shipping industry, more specifically, my job position is Marine Scheduler. My primary role surrounds coordinating / planning the vessel´s schedule integrity, so that we meet our customer´s delivery dates for their products inside the containers onboard the vessels. (Also for the vessel to arrive ASAP and take the export cargo)

Now that I´ve finished the first part of the Yellow Belt course, I can share that I´ve found this course to be a solid 10 out of 10 stars. I´ve learned a lot more than expected, and I already have three specific learning topics that will be implemented on my team department.

1. Problem definition: Current industry conditions are well known, and we have a clear VoC / idea of what our customers need, however, with the DEFINE phase I´ve learned that it is not enough to have minimal information. The process of collecting the Voc and transforming those into CTQ requirements is a must. Also, the process of documenting such data and presenting the information in a solid format will increase the chances of communicating the defined problem to all my colleagues so we have a unify approach to meet the CTQs. This will also help higher management visualize what we should prioritize, and that´s where the Kano Model that I´ve learn will help organize which requirements need to be prioritize so that our steps moving forward on the Six Sigma project are concentrated on those.

2. Normal distribution: We have a couple of KPIs that will help us predict future events. With the normal distribution and Central Limit Theorem I´m confident that we can build a model that will help us predict the probability of "X" event occurring. I was amazed of how practical the use of the Cumulative Probabilities of the Standard Normal Distribution table is, and now I´m excited to start building such graphs in Power BI so that the mean, standard deviation and variance are calculated on the spot using DAX formulas.

3. Process Mapping: Our job description as Marine Scheduler is changing due to the effects of the global pandemic. With process mapping we can start drawing out all the new processes that are appearing as the months go by. From start to end we will need to redefine all the moving parts that go on our daily jobs, and try to mitigate any process steps that don´t bring value while we are coordinating / planning the vessel´s schedule integrity.

These were my main 3 takeaways of this course, but I can assure that my learning experience was more profound. I´m more confident on my statistical and analytical skills, and hope I can hit the ground running to start making the changes to bring value to our customer´s, while reducing waste in our operations, and get another job position that would help me establish more Six Sigma projects for our pursuit of excellence.

Julio Alvarado

The course content is very much helpful and informative. The course really helps to gain insight into the lean production and six sigma. The concepts are very much latest and related with industry.
The course has helped me a lot for securing the internship at Schaeffler Company. The material has proved to be very much useful with the project I am working in Schaeffler.

The instructor, Dr. Holly Ott, was one of the best I had ever experienced, coming from an in-class and online university-level course perspective. Not only were her lectures engaging and informative but she showed a genuine interest in the subject matter. She went above and beyond what I would expect from any prof and in addition to providing a great portion of the lectures herself, was also a frequent poster in the discussion forums. The guest lecturers that were brought in were world-class experts and it showed. They were able to explain increasingly difficult concepts using basic examples and to me, that is a sign of someone who really knows what they’re talking about!

I also wanted to mention that taking good notes in this course is a must since there are so many different concepts being thrown at you that unless you take good notes now, you may be a little bit confused later on. I still sometimes re-read my notes or re-watch a video to get a better grasp on a topic and see if and how I can implement it at work and in my daily life.

Thank you, Professor Ott, all of the guest lecturers and TAs, and the rest of the TUM team that worked tirelessly to bring this MOOC to us!

Hi,

I'm Bogdan Lupu. I am close to finishing the first step of the program and I have to say that it has been a bit difficult for me to understand the mathematical part of the program as I have a Socio-Human Sciences educational background. However, the examples - most of them - where quite helpful and I have to also give it to the other users who - in the discussions forum - added other several examples on understanding the formulas comprised by the course - I've discovered a completely new section of youtube on this occasion. Although I currently work in the services industry, and some of the more applied engineering segments do not apply to what I do, other sections on improving quality can and do find an application in my current activity.

I opted for this program to the detriment of other private training programs on one hand based on the reputation of TUM and, having almost completed the first segment of the program, I can say that for a non-technical person I gathered quite a lot of insightful information on what quality process and improvement means and how I can apply it in my industry or in my business initiatives in the future.
One downsize is perhaps not having other examples and some cases involving the services fields, for example when you work in a ratings agency or in a software development department which would have broaden the meaning of the formulas for these fields. Also, perhaps an introductory segment for statistics and related fields would prove more than useful to users who had little to no contact with this type of tools throughout their career, but are looking for a change by also taking this course.

Thank you!

My name is Katerina Christopoulos and I have an MEng degree in Mechanical Engineering. I am currently between jobs (I have just moved to Munich in pursuit of my next role - this was a great coincidence!) and having worked as a Project Quality Engineer in my previous employment, I decided to enhance my Quality skillset and dive into the world of Six Sigma.

Before enrolling, I had never taken-on an online course and had my doubts about how successful one might be in truly keeping me engaged. For this reason, I must start off by showing my gratitude to Professor Holly Ott, our lecturer, who made sure to explain concepts in detail and gave us deeper insights on every topic covered through her expertise in the field. Secondly, the structure of the course was easy to follow and the short videos kept me focussed and motivated to continue learning. Thank you to TUM for offering this course online and to edX for supporting the Professional Certificate package.

The methods/theories which stood out the most for me in the course, in terms of envisioning myself utilising them in an improvement project and getting the most valuable data out of, were:

1) Kano Model Theory and Questionnaire - this really allows us to focus on attributes that matter to the customer and ones that can truly differentiate a product from its competition, whilst not wasting energy on non-value-added changes. This helps in TIME and COST saving by weighing/prioritising the customer attributes to narrow down the focus.

2) The Central Limit Theorem - I believe was useful because despite the nature of our population distribution (which for many cases will not be normally distributed), this theory demonstrated that by taking a large number of random samples from the population and creating a sampling distribution, this will tend towards a normal distribution (the larger the sample size, the clearer the trend). This is valuable because the data obtained from a normal distribution can be converted to very useful information, such us the process capability and performance (Cp, Cpk, Cpm, Pp and Ppk).

3) FMEA - I've previously performed DFMEAs in a design process and have found this to be a great help in mitigating risk! By identifying failure modes, in a product or process, and quantifying their impact through Severity, Occurrence and Detectability, we are able to prevent potential detrimental failures before a product reaches the customer. This is a great way for a business to be PROACTIVE rather than reactive and suffering the consequences of a preventable situation.

I'm very excited to continue with my Six Sigma journey to achieving a Yellow Belt Certification and am looking forward to applying my new tools to real improvement projects!

Thanks again for this excellent course!

Sincerely,

Katerina Christopoulos

"I recently completed the Six Sigma Define and Measure course on edX and found it very valuable. As someone new to Six Sigma, I appreciated how the instructors Martin Grunow and Holly Ott started from the basics and built up the concepts in an easy to understand way over the 8 weeks.

Some key things I learned were:
- The DMAIC methodology for process improvement
- How to calculate important metrics like process yield, DPMO, defects vs defectives
- Understanding customer expectations using the Kano model
- Creating a Project Charter to clearly define the problem
- Key statistical techniques like measurement system analysis, process capability analysis etc.

The content was very clearly explained through lectures and reinforced with interactive exercises and case studies. I now feel confident in the fundamentals of Six Sigma thanks to this course.

My name is Saurabh and I am from India. I would highly recommend this course to anyone interested in learning Six Sigma, whether students or professionals. The certification will help advance my career.

I would also request edX and TUM to provide full Lean Six Sigma belt certifications in the future to build on this excellent foundation."

The professor Holly Ott understands what a S.M.A.R.T (specific measurable attainable realistic time) quality objective actually is for a each of her lectures. Furthermore she follows the 3E( FEMA Reinforcing the perception of fair treatment 3E) of communication which most people fail to do in lectures. Some students do not give her enough credit for how she sets up her lectures and her practice question are very good preparations for her quizzes/homework assignments. I have seen a lot of professors in my lifetime none of them of them were ever actually good, very intelligent people that mostly are perceived as critics, but none of them understood the word "Be Humble" while in a lecture especially when you are meeting your students for the first time. I have only met one other professor like her in my lifetime, that was professor Allen Claus who taught me to love organic chemistry again just by sticking to the quality objective, unfortunately I was not able to stay that field, but my point is, considered this Professional Certificate by TUMX

I took this course to understand the terminology of lean production and Six sigma, it has been very helpful in my day to day tasks, especially the fish bone diagrams and the five 5 WHYS that I constantly use to solve problem statements.

For example, if you have never heard the acronym DPMO or 8D I suggest you take this course and the next two for the professional certificate. but if you are more interested in being a critic about grammatical errors that were not intentional and obvious to see, do not take the course. I like the grammatical errors from time to time because to me, it means the people are actually humble and they are human.

My advice to TUMX Staff and Holly Ott don't change a thing about this professional certificate, you guys are doing a excellent job.

My Credentials: I have a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and I currently work as a Amazon Associate at MKE1

If my English structure is incorrect I apologize back in my high school days I was stuck with teachers for three years that spent 45 minutes a day talking about their marriage problems or money problems or just showing videos on subject instead of teaching it and that was in advanced English courses. Had the same problem with one college English course I took for a requirement, thank god for books. Got to love Self interest groups and Nepotism sometimes its not beneficial to students.

Well, I hope this helps.....

Sincerely Juan F.

My name is Pedro and I am from Mexico, I'm a Process Engineer. It has been a great investment of time to take this course and very interesting. The topics are very complete and well explained in each of the practical examples, they give us a clearer way of how to apply the different concepts in the industry.

Understanding customer expectations: This topic taught me the importance of knowing what the customer wants and needs and defining quality from the customer's perspective.

MSA: This topic taught me the concept of measuring the accuracy and precision of measurement systems as this is very relevant in the industry in general.

Process capability: How to calculate Cp Cpk and Cpm and the differences between them, to show the capacity of the process, showing how the process is centered and with respect to the objective. Additionally, I learned the differences between Pp and Ppk, which are to represent the performance of the process in long or short-term analysis.