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Can a Six Sigma Yellow Belt Take on Green Belt Projects?
Six Sigma aims to eliminate flaws and variances in a company’s operation. Six Sigma is used by companies to identify problems and create programs to solve them. The result is a more efficient operation, and a corporation can save money. Six Sigma may seem simple but there are rigorous exams that must be taken to become certified. This article will examine some of the most successful six sigma Yellow Belt project examples or ideas, and then provide tips on how to implement a successful one. Before we get to that, let’s take a look at the Six Sigma Yellow Belt.
What is the Six Sigma Yellow Belt?
Yellow Belt certification is an entry-level qualification. Green Belt, Black Belt, and Master Black Belt are the next levels. Further training may be provided to executives and champions. This session will focus on the Yellow Belt, which is a crucial component in helping a company implement Six Sigma. We will examine what a Yellow Belt actually is, and how it contributes to Six Sigma initiatives.
Six Sigma is an assortment of management strategies and methods that are designed to improve a business by reducing the likelihood of errors. It is a method that uses a statistical approach to eliminate the elimination.
The name comes from the Greek letter “sigma,” which is a scientific term used to quantify process variations from the start of the movement. Six Sigma is a statistical term derived from a bell curve, where the first Sigma represents one standard away from mean. The fault rate will be rated “very low” when the system has 6 Standard deviations. This includes 3 above the mean and 3 below it.
The graph below illustrates the Six Sigma concept in terms of normal distribution. The larger the standard error is, the wider the range of values that can be encountered.
What is the Six Sigma Green Belt?
The certification for Lean Six Six Sigma Green Belt is an important step to becoming a master in the lean six-sigma technique, and leading improvement initiatives within a company. LSS Green Belts are able to identify areas of improvement and take a leading role in implementing the changes based on what they learned during LSS Yellow Belt Training.
Let’s first learn about the basics of Six Sigma Green Belt. You’ll be able to take on small-scale projects and, if they are successful, feel a sense of accomplishment.
Green Belts play a significant role in the improvement process, which leads to increased productivity and profitability. Under the supervision of a Master Black Belt or LSS Black Belt, they are the ones that put improvements into action.
Can a Six Sigma Yellow Belt take on Green Belt Project Ideas?
We often get calls from various companies wanting an instructor to come to their organization to train Six Sigma Yellow Belts. Before we answer the question, we ask “what is the purpose for the training?”.
The answer is often “to train the Yellow Belts so that they can take on Projects”. What they are really saying is that we want to train our people for one or two days and expect them to take on the role of a Green or Black Belt.
This is a common mistake that can lead to a failed Lean and Six Sigma Deployment. The Six Sigma Yellow Belt is not considered a trained Six Sigma Change Agent (Lean and Six Sigma Green Belt, Black Belt or Master Black Belt).
In a Six Sigma deployment, the Six Sigma Yellow Belt does not take on Six Sigma projects. The Six Sigma Yellow Belt is a S.M.E (Subject Matter Expert) who is trained as a Yellow Belt so they can effectively contribute as a Six Sigma project team member.
The S.M.E is the process owner of the process that the Six Sigma team is investigating. There is usually more than one S.M.E. in a team. The S.M.E. (Yellow Belt) is the most important person on the team. The Change Agent relies on the S.M.E. for process knowledge and experience.
The Six Sigma Yellow Belt training is usually a 2-day training that educates the S.M.E. on the tools that they will be exposed to during the Six Sigma project.
The following topics/tools are discussed in Six Sigma Development Solutions, Inc.’s Six Sigma Yellow Belt course:
- Deployment roles of Lean and Six Sigma
- Six Sigma Project Definition (Project Charter)
- Project Selection Process
- Process Mapping (SIPOC, Value Stream Mapping, Variables Mapping)
- Input Prioritization Tools (Using the C&E Matrix)
- Failure Mode Effect Analysis (FMEA)
- Basic Statistics
- Controlling the Process
Is your company tasking you with getting trained as a Six Sigma Yellow Belt so you can take on Six Sigma cost savings projects?
