Page 132 - Design for Six Sigma a Roadmap for Product Development

Chapter
4

Design for Six Sigma Deployment

4.1 Introduction
The extent to which DFSS produces the desired results is a function of the
adopted deployment strategy. This chapter introduces the elements of
such strategy by highlighting the key elements for successful deployment.
History tells us that sound initiative, concepts, or ideas become suc-
cessful and promoted to norms in many companies when commitment
is secured from involved people at all levels. DFSS is no exception. A
successful DFSS deployment relies on active participation of people on
almost every level, function, and division, including the customer.
The traditional Six Sigma initiative, the DMAIC method, is usually
deployed as a top-down approach reflecting the critical importance of
securing the buy-in from the top leadership level. This has been suc-
cessful so far and should be benchmarked for DFSS deployment. The
black belts and green belts make up the brute force of deployment
under the guidance of the champions. Success is measured by increase
in revenue and customer satisfaction and the extent to which cash flow
is generated in both long and short terms (soft and hard) with each
project. These benefits can’t be harvested without a sound strategy
with the long-term vision of establishing the Six Sigma culture. In the
short term, deployment success is dependent on motivation, manage-
ment commitment, project selection, and scoping, an institutionalized
reward and recognition system, and optimized resources allocation.

4.2 Black Belt–DFSS Team: Cultural Change
The first step in a DFSS project endeavor is to establish and maintain
a DFSS project team (for both product/service and process) with a
shared vision.

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