MARTIN AMERICA LEAN - SIX SIGMA
Six Sigma is a system of practices originally developed by Motorola to systematically improve processes by eliminating defects.Defects are defined as units that are not members of the intended population. Since it was originally developed, Six Sigma has become an element of many Total Quality Management (TQM) initiatives.
The process was pioneered by Bill Smith at Motorola in 1986 and was originally defined as a metric for measuring defects and improving quality, and a methodology to reduce defect levels below 3.4 defects per (one) million opportunities (DPMO).
Six Sigma is a registered service mark and trademark of Motorola, Inc. Motorola has reported over US$17 billion in savings from Six Sigma as of 2006.
In addition to Motorola, companies which also adopted Six Sigma methodologies early-on and continue to practice it today include Bank of America, Caterpillar, Honeywell International (previously known as Allied Signal), Raytheon, Merrill Lynch and General Electric (introduced by Jack Welch).
Recently Six Sigma has been integrated with the TRIZ methodology for problem solving and product design.
Key concepts of Six Sigma
At its core, Six Sigma revolves around a few key concepts.
Critical to Quality: Attributes most important to the customer
Defect: Failing to deliver what the customer wants
Process Capability: What your process can deliver
Variation: What the customer sees and feels
Stable Operations: Ensuring consistent, predictable processes to improve what the customer sees and feels
Design for Six Sigma: Designing to meet customer needs and process capability
BLUE OCEAN STRATEGIES - MARTIN AVIATION GROUP
Companies have long engaged in head-to-head competition in search of sustained, profitable growth. They have fought for competitive advantage, battled over market share, and struggled for differentiation.
Yet in today's overcrowded industries, competing head-on results in nothing but a bloody "red ocean" of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. Most companies compete within such red oceans, this strategy is increasingly unlikely to create profitable growth in the future.
Based on a study of 150 strategic moves spanning more than a hundred years and thirty industries, tomorrow's leading companies will succeed not by battling competitors, but by creating “blue oceans” of uncontested market space ripe for growth . Such strategic moves—termed "value innovation" - create powerful leaps in value for both the firm and its buyers, rendering rivals obsolete and unleashing new demand.
BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY provides a systematic approach to making the competition irrelevant. The strategy presents a proven analytical framework and the tools for successfully creating and capturing blue oceans. BLUE OCEAN STRATEGY highlights the six principles that every company can use to successfully formulate and execute blue ocean strategies. The six principles show how to reconstruct market boundaries, focus on the big picture, reach beyond existing demand, get the strategic sequence right, overcome organizational hurdles, and build execution into strategy.
