Quality systems

‘Six Sigma’ was pioneered 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 six standard deviations or six sigma. In 1995 it was implemented at GE and has since become the most widely recognized and accepted quality system in the world.

From a process perspective the statistical representation of Six Sigma describes quantitatively how a process is performing. To achieve Six Sigma, a process must not produce more than 3.4 defects per million opportunities or, looking at it another way, a process would need to be 99.99966% error -free. A Six Sigma defect is defined as anything outside of customer specifications. A Six Sigma opportunity is then the total quantity of chances for a defect.

The fundamental objective of the Six Sigma methodology is the implementation of a measurement-based strategy that focuses on process improvement and variation reduction through the application of Six Sigma improvement project s. This is accomplished through the use of two Six Sigma sub-methodologies: DMAIC and DMADV. The Six Sigma DMAIC process (define, measure, analyse, improve, control) is an improvement system for existing processes falling below specification and looking for incremental improvement. The Six Sigma DMADV process (define, measure, analyse, design, verify) is an improvement system used to develop new processes or products at Six Sigma quality levels. It can also be employed if a current process requires more than just incremental improvement. Both Six Sigma processes are executed by individuals who are certified as Six Sigma Green Belts and Six Sigma Black Belts, and are overseen by Six Sigma Master Black Belts. The CSI model described in this publication is very close to the DMAIC methodology in Six Sigma.

‘Lean manufacturing’ or ‘lean production’ was pioneered by Toyota in the mid-1980s. It is a quality systems built around these five principles:

• Specify value from the standpoint of the end customer.
• Identify all the steps in the value stream for each product family, eliminating every step and every action and every practice that does not create value.
• Make the remaining value-creating steps occur in a tight and integrated sequence so the product will flow smoothly toward the customer.
• As flow is introduced, let customers pull value from the next upstream activity.
• As these steps lead to greater transparency, enabling managers and teams to eliminate further waste, pursue perfection through continual improvement. (Lean Enterprise Institute)

Which one of these should I choose?

Field experience has shown that while each may be complete unto itself, none provides a total answer for IT management. Indeed, there is a good deal of overlap between them but, for the most part, they are not competitive or exclusive. In fact, many organization s use a combination to more effectively manage and improve IT.

IBM Global Business Services recommends a combination of ITIL, CMMI, Lean and Six Sigma as the best approach to transform organizations. The Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), in conjunction with OGC, created a briefing paper entitled ‘Aligning COBIT, ITIL and ISO17799 for Business Benefit’. Other organizations have combined ITIL, CMMI and Six Sigma as their formula for success. Confusion reigns.

Many organizations become paralysed when faced with this basic decision. After all, no one wants to go down the wrong path. Experience tells us that the best way to break the ‘which framework’ logjam is the bottom-up approach. While the arguments continue in the conference room, IT management can implement and mature Change Management, Service Desk, Incident Management and Problem Management all the while continue to align with every framework or standard mentioned above and prepare for their corporate governance audit to boot. The decision is not ‘Which one should I choose?’ but rather ‘What should I improve first?’

An effective CSI practice will be integrated within all phases of the service lifecycle. The greatest value to the business and IT will be realized by having a continuous monitoring and feedback loop as the service and ITSM processes move through the service lifecycle. Look for improvement opportunities within Service Strategy, Service Design, Service Transition as well as Service Operation. It is imperative that the concept of continual improvement be woven into the day-to-day fabric of the organization.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-02