The world's largest and most profitable companies - including the likes of GE, Bank of America, Honeywell, DuPont, Samsung, Starwood Hotels, Bechtel, and Motorola - have used Six Sigma to achieve breathtaking improvements in business performance, in everything from products to processes to complex systems and even in work environments.

The world's largest and most profitable companies - including the likes of GE, Bank of America, Honeywell, DuPont, Samsung, Starwood Hotels, Bechtel, and Motorola - have used Six Sigma to achieve breathtaking improvements in business performance, in everything from products to processes to complex systems and even in work environments. Over the past decade, over USD100 billion in bottom-line performance has been achieved through corporate Six Sigma programs. Yet, despite its astounding effectiveness, few outside of the community of Six Sigma practitioners know what Six Sigma is all about. With this book, Six Sigma is revealed to everyone. You might be in a company that's already implemented Six Sigma, or your organization may be considering it. You may be a student who wants to learn how it works, or you might be a seasoned business professional who needs to get up to speed. In any case, Six Sigma For Dummies is the most straightforward, non-intimidating guide on the market. This simple, friendly book makes Six Sigma make sense. With a compelling foreword by Dr. Stephen R. Covey, the internationally recognized leadership authority and bestselling author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and The 8 th Habit, and an afterword by Roxanne O'Brasky, President of the International Society of Six Sigma, Six Sigma For Dummies is the most complete and objective book in the market today. Unlike most other works that are either graduate-level statistics treatises or thinly-veiled autobiographical success stories, Six Sigma For Dummies teaches the reader all the foundation principles, methods, and tools of this magnificent problem-solving system. Intended to help readers understand Six Sigma and how they can use it to improve their performance, this no-nonsense guide explains: What Six Sigma is all about and how it works - The benefits of Six Sigma in organizations and businesses - The powerful "DMAIC" problem-solving roadmap - Yellow, Green and Black -- how the Six Sigma "belt" system works - How to select and utilize the right tools and technologies - Speaking the language of Six Sigma - Knowing the roles and responsibilities - Mastering the statistics skills and analytical methods Six Sigma For Dummies will become everyone's No. 1 resource for discovering and mastering the world's most famous and powerful improvement tool. Stephen Covey is spot-on when he says, "Six Sigma For Dummies is a book to be read by everyone".

• Foreword
• Introduction
• Part I
• Six Sigma Basics
• Chapter
• Defining Six Sigma
• Chapter
• Examining the Principles and Language of Six Sigma
• Chapter
• Pinpointing the Essentials of Six Sigma
• Part II
• Understanding and Enacting the Breakthrough Strategy (DMAIC)
• Chapter
• Finding the Pain Defining Projects
• Chapter
• Measuring the Gaps
• Chapter
• Measuring Capability
• Chapter
• Separating the Wheat from the Chaff
• Chapter
• Quantifying the Critical Few
• Chapter
• Achieving the Objective
• Chapter
• Locking in the Gains
• Part III
• The Six Sigma Tool and Technology Landscape
• Chapter
• Identifying Six Sigma Practitioner Tools
• Chapter
• Mastering Six Sigma Manager Tools
• Part IV
• The Part of Tens
• Chapter
• Ten Best Practices of Six Sigma
• Chapter
• Ten Pitfalls to Avoid
• Chapter
• Ten Places to Go for Help
• Appendix
• Glossary
• Afterword
• Index