Yesterday’s entry talked about Six Sigma’s (methodology) capability to be deployed simultaneously or in complementary with other process improvement strategies. Today, I would like to bring it further. I came across an article titled “Six Sigma: Complementary Technologies” saying that Six Sigma can actually be interwoven with other initiatives, especially complementary technologies or vice versa.
Six Sigma and improvement approaches such as CMM, CMMISM, PSPSM/TSPSM are complementary and mutually supportive. Depending on current organizational, project or individual circumstances, Six Sigma could be an enabler to launch CMM®, CMMISM, PSPSM, or TSPSM. Or, it could be a refinement toolkit/methodology within these initiatives. For instance, it might be used to select highest priority Process Areas within CMMISM or to select highest leverage metrics within PSPSM.
The Capability Maturity Model for Software (also known as the CMM and SW-CMM) has been a model used by many organizations to identify best practices useful in helping them increase the maturity of their processes.The technologies PSPSM/TSPSM help organizations measure return of investements (ROIs).
Examination of the Goal-Question-Metric (GQM), the software process improvement, Initiating-Diagnosing-Establishing-Acting-Leveraging (IDEALSM), and Practical Software Measurement (PSM) paradigms, likewise, shows compatibility and consistency with Six Sigma. A goal-driven method for developing and maintaining a meaningful metrics program, GQ(I)M meshes well with the Define-Measure steps of Six Sigma. IDEAL and Six Sigma share many common features, with IDEALSM being slightly more focused on change management and organizational issues and Six Sigma being more focused on tactical, data-driven analysis and decision making. PSM provides a software-tailored approach to measurement that may well serve the Six Sigma improvement framework.
It is indeed true that in the software and systems field Six Sigma can play a major role. The methodology may be used differently depending on the state of the business, but one thing’s clear. As long as an organization wants consistency in its processes, Six Sigma can help promote the establishment of a process. For an organization striving to streamline their existing processes, Six Sigma can be used as a refinement mechanism. Continue reading…
With these Six Sigma characteristics, no wonder many companies are now relying on Six Sigma to achieve their business goals.
