How do you start a career in six sigma?

Answer 1

Your question must be spawned from some sort of knowledge that it exists, so I assume you are already working with a company that has the methodology in place. Therefore I would start by speaking with the management or the company Black belt and show interest to what your desire is. Any company looking to improve their Quality will jump at the chance to work with you. Most companies will do the training with you and all Master Black belts are certified to do training. If your company does not do Six Sigma, take your skills to a job recruiter and ask them to find a company that uses your skills and applies the Six Sigma method to their process. This is the fastest growing part of any Industry right now, so finding an opportunity is not hard. Below are a few of the key factors to consider before obtaining training or becoming a Six-Sigma practitioner.

a. You should be a highly motivated process oriented resource with good communication and team building skills.

b. You should get involved because you want to help improve your company not because you are seeking credentials that promote your personal agenda. Job growth will come as a result but should not be the focus.

c. As a Green Belt you should have a minimum of 10 hours per week of disposable time to apply towards a process improvement project. Black Belts should be at least 20 hours per week (Full time is preferred).

d. Your company's leadership should be prepared to help select projects for you that have the highest business impact with the lowest risk of project failure. The leadership should also be available to help support the projects. This includes providing the necessary time for the team members to help drive the project as well as removing obstacles that may inhibit the team from being effective.

e. Another large component is the training / project mentoring aspect of the infrastructure. Do not search for the best training by focusing entirely on price. This is a complex methodology and requires a solid trainer to student transfer of knowledge. Many people settle for e-training because it is less expensive and more convenient. There are other low cost solutions that do not sacrifice training quality. In addition to the training make sure you have an available mentor that can help you manage all your newly acquired Six-Sigma knowledge.

There are other factors, however following the rules above you will be in good shape to get your company the improvements they are looking for.