Six Sigma Black Belt-Define

Front 1

Describe the benefits of an effective project charter.

Back 1

Managment should approve the project charter in order to give the project legitimacy and informed guidance. A good project charter will establish clear deliverables, so its success or failure can be measured. Also, a good project charter will direct employee efforts to the right areas because it will identify the key variables that affect performance at all levels.

Front 2

Describe how the project charter should express project statement, scope, and deliverables.

Back 2

The first step in composing an effective project charter is to make the problem statement explicit. Indeed, a project charter should express deliverable in terms of actual output and in a manner approved by the financial department of the organization. The charter also should include a reasonable estimation of the project scope.

Front 3

Describe the method of finalizing a project charter.

Back 3

A project charter should include an appointment for an initial meeting, at which the team members will discuss and consent to the scope, deliverables, and provisional schedule to be included in the charter. This information should be entered into a new, updated version of the charter, which then should be submitted to the sponsor for approval.

Front 4

Describe how a project charter should define the business need to be addressed.

Back 4

It should include as much objective data as possible. If possible the charter should refer to specific metrics such as the number of defects, schedule, or profit.

Front 5

Describe the statement of objective and identification of resources in a project charter.

Back 5

The author provides a definition for the intended result of the project in financial terms and other measures like defects per million or return on investment. It will also identify resources required such as equipment, materials, computer time, databases, and other employees.

Front 6

Discuss the identification of deliverables in a project charter.

Back 6

A deliverable is any fungible benefit or advantage. Establishing targets for deliverables allows the project to be judged on its own terms. If possible, deliverables should be placed in financial terms.

Front 7

Discuss the identification of sponsors in a project charter.

Back 7

They provide funding to the project, give the team members access to resources, and inform other managers about the project's existence and intentions. They are responsible for creating enthusiasm and support for the project. They should be selected from departments most relevant to the project. They may need to be drawn from the ranks of those managers who oversee multiple departments.

Front 8

Discuss how a project charter should represent the schedule.

Back 8

It will indicate the dates on which each phase of the DMAIC schedule will be complete. The process is known as a phase-gate review. The authors of the charter will use critical path or program evaluation and review technique (PERT) analysis to set the target dates.

Front 9

Discuss the identification of stakeholders and team members in a project charter.

Back 9

Identify them as clearly as possible. They are the group of people affected by the problem. The team should use a top-level process map to identify all the affected groups. They may include customers, suppliers, other employees, and specific departments within the organization.

Front 10

Discuss the identification of project scope in a project charter.

Back 10

It is better to have a limited scope otherwise team members can become disgruntle and resources can be wasted when a project stretches out indefinitely. Six Sigma projects should take no more than four months. Longer projects run the risk of losing key members.

Front 11

Describe how the Kano model represents the relationship between customer satisfaction and quality.

Back 11

The intention of this model is to shift the focus from customer requirements to customer needs. It is a chart with quality on the x-axis and satisfaction on the y-axis. As quality increases, so does satisfaction. A customer becomes more satisfied when the level of quality is excited.

Front 12

Describe how customer requirements are expressed in business-to-business transactions.

Back 12

The customer declares the value he or she would prefer and then indicate the range of value he or she would tolerate. Any delivered products that fall outside this range is defective. Suppliers should focus on meeting the customer's slated requirements and looking for ways to add more value.

Front 13

Describe the contents of a project status report.

Back 13

It should include a list of the action items, or the tasks to be completed by assigned team members at particular times. It also includes lists of roadblocks or hindrancs. It will also include a list of the data obtained during each phase of the project. Finally, it should list any items that have not been finished.

Front 14

Describe some areas businesses tend to ignore when gathering customer information.

Back 14

Businesses should be concerned with the characteristics of people who choose not to buy their products, so they can consider how to appeal to these people.

Front 15

Describe how customer requirements are expressed in business-to-customer transactions.

Back 15

Collecting infromation about customer in business to customer transactions is time consuming and expensive, but it gives the business the opportunity to micro-target market segments. Business can take the information it gathers to develop small-scale marketing strategies for specific customer and potential customers.

Front 16

Discuss some of the common tools for top-level process definition.

Back 16

A flowchart does a good job of representing process sequences graphically, with a minimum of verbal description. Another tool is the process map, which is similar to the flowchart, although it contains more detail. The primary aim of these representations is to inform stakeholders and other people peripheral to the project.

Front 17

Describe some guidelines for developing customer survey questions.

Back 17

It must draw responses from a range of customers, should be designed to elicit useful responses, the questions should be written without technical jargon, questions should be designed to elicit an unbiased response, questions should not be leading, and ordered in logical manner.

Front 18

Discuss toll-gate reviews.

Back 18

All the team members gather and discuss the success or failure of the tasks just completed. They occur at the end of every phase in the DMAIC and DMADV process. They involve the use of check sheets, project deliverables documents, and milestone lists. The is no value in allowing a project to continue past the toll-gate when objectives are not meet.

Front 19

Describe the process of creating a Gantt chart.

Back 19

List all the tasks that have to be completed, after the tasks have been placed in order determine whether some tasks may be performed simultaneously or whether some tasks require the completion of previous steps. Jobs that can be done at the same time are placed on parallel paths, and other jobs are placed in sequence. If one of the parallel paths can be completed more quickly than another, then some slack time can be built in to the path.

Front 20

Describe affinity diagrams, including their use throughout DMAIC.

Back 20

They organize a collection of issues, problems, or ideas so they may be utilized effectively. It identifies the affinities, or similarities, between seemingly disparate ideas or problems. They are often used at the beginning of a process, when the team is trying to gain a primary understanding of the problem. One common result of an affinity diagram is the identification and elimination of redundancies in thinking.

Front 21

Discuss the interpretation of Gantt charts.

Back 21

The most important benefit is that it indicates areas within the process that can tolerate lag. Essentially, a process that is not on the critical path may be initiated a little late or finished a little early. It is not always possible to obtain a precise measure for the duration of a particular task. For this it may be necessary to perform program evaluation and review techniques (PERT).

Front 22

Describe Gantt charts, including their applications in the define stage of DMAIC.

Back 22

They are used to identify the critical path which includes everything that has to be done to maintain the project's timing. Any process not on the critical path may be slightly delayed without extending the overall duration of the project. They are usually restricted to the define stage of DMAIC but may be used during the improve stage to confirm the reduction of critical path cycle time.

Front 23

Describe the process of creatin an affinity diagram.

Back 23

Begin by identifying the target issue or problem, each member list a few issues that impact this target, the ideas are organized and redundant ideas are discarded, categories are labeled and filled, and then the main ideas listed on the header cards will indicate the most important drivers to be addressed for the achievement of the goals.

Front 24

Describe the use of focus groups for obtaining customer information.

Back 24

Focus groups may be customers or non-customers. Sometimes, businesses assemble focus groups of people from demographics in which they do particularly well or particularly poorly, in the hopes of learning the secrets of their success or failure. The focus group will be more valuable when more specific and targeted information is obtained.

Front 25

Describe how customer service and complaint management can provide useful information.

Back 25

Many businesses obtain most of their information about customers from routine customer service and complaint management. A good company makes it easy for customers to complain and for these complaints to be heard. Complaints are an excellent source of ideas for new Six Sigma projects.

Front 26

Describe the use of comment cards and formal surveys for obtaining customer information.

Back 26

Surveys are more effective when they ask customers for specific information about their preferences. The most basic metric obtained in these ways is customer satisfaction. Comment cards are left in places where customers will be and for this reason very satisfied and very dissatisfied is overrepresented.

Front 27

Describe how field intelligence can be used to obtain customer information.

Back 27

It is obtained by employees through their normal interactions with customers. A salesperson will gain insight into the desires of customers without ever asking a direct question. Open lines of cummunication must exist. For example, a retail store might set up video cameras in order to study areas where customers are more likely to linger.

Front 28

Describe SIPOC, including its application in the define stage of DMAIC.

Back 28

Suppliers, inputs, process, outputs, and processes (SIPOC). Suppliers are those who contribute inputs to the process, inputs are defined as all of the knowledge, resources, and information required to produce the desired output, The outputs are the deliverables, or the products of the process. Finally, the customers are all of those parties that receive the deliverables (outputs).

Front 29

Define the primary critical-to-schedule metrics.

Back 29

Cycle time is the most common critical-to-schedule metric. Cycle time is the duration required for the completion of a defined process. Distinction between process steps that add value and process steps that do not add value will be made. In most projects cycle time is considered secondary to metrics related to quality or cost.

Front 30

Discuss the identification of process metrics during the measure stage.

Back 30

Metrics tend to relate to schedule, cost, or quality. Factors critical to schedule (CTS) have a direct bearing on the completion date of the process. Factors critical to quality (CTQ) have a direct effect on the desired characteristics of the product or service. Factors critical to cost (CTC) have an impact on materials, labor, delivery, overhead, inventory, and/or the cost to the customer of the good or service.

Front 31

Describe the creation and interpretation of work breakdown structures.

Back 31

It is created by breaking a problem into components and then into categories. These categories should represent the different ways the particular problem can occur. The intention of the work breakdown structure is to reduce complex problems to a collection of discrete and manageable issues.

Front 32

Describe the important characteristics of process metrics.

Back 32

Process metrics must be reliable, repeatable, and reproducible. Measurements must be specific and detailed enough to distinguish between the effects of process alterations and process noise. Metrics should be judged by different departments and pertain to values critical to quality, schedule and cost.

Front 33

Describe matrix diagrams, including their applications in the define and improve stages of DMAIC.

Back 33

It is a table in which the value in each cell indicates the strength of the relationship. In the define stage, these diagrams are used to pick projects that will contribute to the achievement of organizational goals and objectives.

Front 34

Describe work break structures, including their applications in the define and analyze stages of DMAIC.

Back 34

It is a diagram that depicts the parts of a problem or process. These diagrams are useful when a problem seems overwhelming, because they break the problem down into manageable sub-problems. In the define stage, work breakdown structures are combined with Pareto analysis to organize problems before solutions are applied. In the analyze stage, work breakdown structures are used to organize all of the issues.

Front 35

Describe critical to quality metrics.

Back 35

Yield is the amount of completed product divided by the amount of product that began the process. A more advanced metric is throughput yield, or the average percentage of units with no defects. Rolled throughput yield measures the expected quality level after several steps.

Front 36

Describe critical to cost metrics.

Back 36

It identifies areas of process that significantly raise the expense. The metric should consider how long it will take to redo or repair a product made incorrectly. A mistake made in the design phase will be significantly less expensive to resolve than an error in the manufacturing phase.

Front 37

Describe the use of analytical statistics in process baseline estimation.

Back 37

Statistical process control charts create an operational definition of special cause variation by noting the location and level of variation within a subgroup at each time in the process. If enough subgroups can be collected, the statistical process control chart will be able to predict the location and extent of special cause variation.

Front 38

Describe the use of enumerative statistics in process baseline estimation.

Back 38

They are useful for evaluating random samples from populations. They can determine whether samples represent the population, meaning they were drawn without bias, they can provide confidence level, an assume distribution, and a set of confidence intervals as well.

Front 39

Describe flowcharts, including their applications in the measure, analyze, improve, and control stages of DMAIC.

Back 39

In the measure stage they are used to map a process as it is currently being performed, in the analyze stage it is used to identify complications in a process that can lengthen cycle time, in the improve stage it can be used to diagram possible improvements and changes, in the control stage they can be used to map out process revisions and improvements.

Front 40

Describe the process of creating and interpreting a flowchart.

Back 40

They simplify communication by representing each task in sequence of symbols. Decisions are represented by diamonds and processes are represented by rectangles. Too many decision points lead to unnecessary delays or adverse variations.

Front 41

Describe the most common methods of sampling.

Back 41

Simple random occurs when every unit in the population has the same chance of being selected, stratified is when the population is divided into groups and a sample is take from each of the groups, systematic is when some method exists, for instance every third unit selected, cluster is when a representative group is selected out of the population and then a random drawn from that group. Judgment relies on expert opinions in their selection of a sample group.

Front 42

Describe the process of simple linear regression.

Back 42

It tries to orient data points around a single straight line. The equation is y= mx + b. The values for intercept and slope typically are estimated according to the method of least squares, in which the line is drawn with a minimal squared distance to each data point.

Front 43

Describe the higher order models of multiple regression.

Back 43

They are required for a process in which more than one factor influences a dependent variable. They can include squares and cubes of the values, which will produce a response surface with definable peaks and valleys. They also are good at defining the area that surrounds a stationary point.

Front 44

Describe regression analysis, including its applications in the measure, analyze, and improve stages of DMAIC.

Back 44

It is a system for identifying when independent variables are influenced by one or more dependent variables. In the measure stage it is used to evaluate the degree to which a measurement is linear, in the analyze stage it can be used to explore the connections between metrics and process factors, in the improve stage it can be used to confirm connections after improvements have been implemented.

Front 45

Describe residual analysis, including its applications in DMAIC.

Back 45

They are the differences between a response's observed value and a regression model's predicted value for that response. A residuals analysis of a regression model will reveal any unusual patterns that could suggest error in the model. If the error truly is random, then the residuals should follow a normal distribution with a mean of zero.

Front 46

Describe the first order model of multiple regression.

Back 46

The value of the dependent variable is based on the influence of each factor by itself, as well as each possible combination of two factors. Whatever error exists in the model is assumed to be the same for all factors and combination of factors.

Front 47

Describe the process of creating an exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) chart.

Back 47

The most important step is setting the value for lambda, the weighting factor. To detect small shifts, the value should be set around 0.2; to detect large shifts, the value should be set between 0.2 and 0.4.

Front 48

Describe exponentially weighted moving-average (EWMA) charts, including their applications in the measure and control stages of DMAIC.

Back 48

It is a type of control chart primarily used for variables data. In the measure stage, these charts are used to baseline a process and in the control stage it is used to control the process and detect small shifts in the process.

Front 49

Describe how multiple events are expressed in probability terms.

Back 49

The occurrence of A or B or both is called union. The occurrence of both A and B is called intersection. The occurrence of A but not B or B but not A is called difference. In the case of two events that cannot happen at the same time, the events are described as mutually exclusive or disjoint events.

Front 50

Discuss the interpretation of exponentially weighted moving-average (EWMA) charts.

Back 50

The first step in the interpretation of exponentially weighted moving average charts is to examine the range chart. If the chart is out of statistical control the control limits found on EWMA cannot be trusted. Run test and specifications are irrelevant in the interpretation of EWMA charts, because process observations will display much broader variation.

Front 51

Discuss the general multiplication rule in probability.

Back 51

In some situations, the occurrence of one event influences the probability of another event. For instance, when the occurrence of A changes the likelihood of B, the new probability for B takes place. One common example of the rule is the probability of selecting a card from a certain suit out of a full deck.

Front 52

Describe how probability is relevant to Six Sigma, and explain the complementation rule.

Back 52

Six Sigma professionals examine processes that are subject to occasional defects or variations and they must be able to express the likelihood of a particular event.

Front 53

Discuss takt time.

Back 53

It can be translated into cycle time. It is a reasonable assessment of the time required to complete each step in a manufacturing process. It can be expressed as the minutes of work required to produce a unit.

Front 54

Describe how traceability can be achieved.

Back 54

Calibration is the process of checking to see that a measurement device has a close relationship with a known standard. Researchers will determine the range of traceability for one metric then the range of traceability for another, and then they will examine the relationship between the two metrics in the areas where these ranges overlap.

Front 55

Describe metrology.

Back 55

It is the study of measurement. It is concerned with the quality of measurement systems, the appropriateness of various metrics, and the systems for creating new forms of measurement.

Front 56

Discuss the pros and cons of implementing takt time systems.

Back 56

The pros is that it makes production evaluation much easier, it encourages employees to eliminate any activities not contributing directly to the accomplishment of goals, and employees will become more consistent. The con is that employees will become bored and if customer demands increase it may require extra stations.

Front 57

Discuss metrological traceability.

Back 57

It is the degree to which a measurement can be compared confidently to a known standard. Generally every measurement is assumed as somewhat inaccurate. A measurement is considered traceable when it can be compared effectively with measurements taken at different times and in different conditions.

Front 58

Discuss measurement uncertainty.

Back 58

Metrology is essentially the struggle to reduce measurement uncertainty, also known as error. One common tool for assessing measurement uncertainty is the analysis of variance (ANOVA) gauge repeatability and reproducibility study.

Front 59

Describe the relationship between engineering tolerance and calibration.

Back 59

Calibration is the process of confirming that a measuring device produces values similar to known standards. The tolerance in most cases is established by the manufacturer and is listed on the instrument along with a range of acceptable conditions for use.

Front 60

Describe the basic calibration process.

Back 60

It requires the definition of measurement uncertainty for both the standard and the measuring instrument. The general rule is that the standard should have at the most a quarter of the measurement uncertainty, or error, as the instrument.

Front 61

Discuss the following two of Deming's 14 points for management: eliminating dependence on inspection and ceasing to award business based on price alone.

Back 61

He believed inspection programs are ineffective because they spot mistakes only after they occur. He asserted that businesses would be better off in the long run if they purchased top quality goods rather than goods that cost the least.

Front 62

Discuss the interpretation of Np charts.

Back 62

It depicts a stable process when all of the data points lie between the upper and lower control limits. Remove the extreme data points from the formulae for average and control limits, which will provide a more reasonable estimate of future performance.

Front 63

Describe the differences between DFMEA and PFMEA.

Back 63

Failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA) is a tool for identifying and mitigating the sources of error in a process. DFMEA is concerned with finding design defects and PFMEA is concerned with identifying potential errors.

Front 64

Describe Np charts, including their application in the measure and improve stages of DMAIC.

Back 64

It is a control chart used to assess attributes data. In the measure stage, they use attributes data to guess the process baseline. In the improve stage they are used to determine the number of errors in process samples.

Front 65

Describe the process of creating an NP chart.

Back 65

It is necessary to gather sample data at the same point in each process. Every sample should have the same number of units. The plotted statistic is defined as the number of items in the sample that have the particular characteristic.

Front 66

Describe linearity analysis, including its applications in the measure stage of DMAIC.

Back 66

It judges the possibility that the bias error found in a particular system of measurement will be present throughout the equipment's entire operating range. In the measure stage it is useful for assessing the accuracy of a measurement system within the range of values likely to be observed during the process.

Front 67

Describe the analysis of variance (ANOVA), including its application in the measure and analyze stages of DMAIC.

Back 67

It is a table that depicts the sum of squares variance that can be credited to a particular source, the sum of the squares that can be credited to error, and the total sum of squares from the data. During the measure stage it is used to identify the origins of errors in measurement. In the analyze stage, it can be used to gather information about the statistical significance of a regression models.

Front 68

Describe the estimation of confidence interval on mean, including its application in the measure and analyze stages of DMAIC.

Back 68

During the measure stage, it is used to estimate the process average when a process control cannot be set because of a lack of data. In the analyze stage it is used to examine the similarities and differences between the sample means taken during various process conditions.

Front 69

Describe the process of performing an analysis of variance.

Back 69

It begins with the null hypothesis, that all subgroup averages are equal. Then, the F statistic is used to compare the average variation between subsets, known as the square treatment. If the p value for the F test is less than 0.05, then the null hypothesis can be rejected.

Front 70

Describe the process of estimating the confidence interval on the mean when the historical standard is known.

Back 70

It begins with calculating the average for sample units. It is assumed that the samples are taken from a population with a normal distribution. Therefore, the z values are calculated according to the confidence level. If the confidence level is 90%, then a = 0.1.

Front 71

Describe the process of estimating the confidence interval on the mean when the historical standard deviation is unknown.

Back 71

First, one must calculate the average X and the sample standard deviation s for n sample units.

Front 72

Discuss the interpretation of confidence interval on proportion.

Back 72

It indicates the percentage of samples in which the confidence interval will include the true error rate. When more samples are obtained, fewer values are required to create confidence.

Front 73

Describe the confidence interval on proportion, including its applications in the measure and analyze stages of DMAIC.

Back 73

If there is a solid history analyst can estimate the confidence level of the mean at a particular confidence level. In the measure stage, this technique is useful in situations where limited data exists for the purpose of establishing process control.

Front 74

Describe the process of estimating the confidence interval on proportion.

Back 74

Calculate the average error rate p for n sample units.

Front 75

Discuss the interpretation of an estimation of the confidence interval on the mean.

Back 75

It indicates the percentage of samples that will contain the true population mean, otherwise known as (mu). The estimation of the true mean becomes more assured as the number of sampled increases.

Front 76

Describe the process of gauge repeatability and reproducibility (R&R)

Back 76

There are three appraisers and ten samples: each appraiser measures each sample three times. However the test is arranged, there should be multiple trials for each sample in order for repeatability to be assessed.

Front 77

Describe gauge repeatability and reproducibility (R&R) analysis, including its applications in the measure and control stages of DMAIC.

Back 77

It assigns a numerical value to the errors caused by a particular measurement system. In the measure stage it is used to assess the degree to which measurement error contributes to common and special cause variation. In the control stage, it is used to evaluate the accuracy of specific measurement systems.

Front 78

Discuss the interpretation of discrimination ratios and gauge repeatability and reproducibility in gauge R & R analysis.

Back 78

If reported as a percentage of process variation, it suggests how useful the measurement system will be in process capability analysis and control charting. If reported as a percentage of tolerance, it suggests how useful the process will be for determining the acceptability of the process deliverables. If the measurement system error is large relative to tolerance, there is a greater chance of improperly accepting or rejecting output.

Front 79

Discuss the interpretation of process performance indices.

Back 79

If the process performance indices have values less than 1, then tolerance (variation that can be allowed) is less than the variation in the sample. If the value is 1, then the variation in the sample is exactly the same as the tolerance. The best result is to have values greater than 1, meaning sample variation is less than the allowable variation.

Front 80

Define the central limit theorem.

Back 80

It is used when the number of samples is relatively small or when the true distribution is unknown. It asserts that the probability distribution of the sample means will approach a normal distribution as the number of samples increases, provided they are simple random samples of uniform size.

Front 81

Describe process performance indices, including their applications in the measure stage of DMAIC.

Back 81

It determines whether a particular batch of materials will be satisfactory to customers. In the measure stage it is used to create a process baseline estimates for uncontrolled processes. To do so the batch must be large to assess variations.

Front 82

Describe the process of creating a process performance index.

Back 82

If the batch sample has both upper and lower specifications, then the Pp statistic may be used. When only one of the specifications is present, the Ppk statistic can be used.

Front 83

Describe how the project charter should express schedule, stakeholders, and team composition.

Back 83

This schedule should include specific dates on which objectives and goals are met, the charter should identify stakeholders, and should include a list of the team members.

Front 84

Describe the problem statement of a project charter.

Back 84

The author defines an adverse situation in the business. The problem statement should provide measureable evidence of the problem's existence. It also should describe the problem in terms of poor outputs. The project charter should include as much preliminary data as possible, with the understanding that it will be updated as the project moves along and more data becomes available.

Front 85

Describe the objectives of the define stage.

Back 85

Define focuses on identifying and articulating a project's important characteristics, including identification of the goals, objectives, and scope of the project. The team should make explicit the team members and sponsors, as well as the proposed schedule for the project. The team should define the desired result of the project, otherwise known as the deliverable.