I need to submit a project charter to complete my certification, but I’m struggling to find a "big enough" problem. Does the project have to involve a specific amount of cost savings, or is it more about demonstrating the correct use of the DMAIC methodology across multiple departments?
3 answers
Most certifying bodies look for a project that demonstrates a clear "root cause" that wasn't obvious at the start. If you already know the solution, it isn't a Six Sigma project; it's just an implementation. For a Black Belt, the financial impact usually needs to be significant—often over $100,000 in annual savings or cost avoidance. However, the most important thing is showing the "Measure" and "Analyze" phases clearly. You need to prove that your improvements were based on data, not just intuition, and that you have a "Control" plan to prevent the process from reverting
Are you finding it difficult to get the data you need, or is the difficulty more about getting the "Process Owner" to agree to the changes you want to test?
Look for "Hidden Factories"—the rework and workarounds people do every day. There is almost always a Black Belt level project hiding in the rework costs.
Michael is spot on. Reducing the Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ) in rework areas is the fastest way to hit those high-dollar savings targets required for certification.
Steven, getting the data is usually the first hurdle. Many companies think they have data, but once you perform a Measurement Systems Analysis (MSA), you realize the data is unreliable. As a Black Belt, you have to fix the measurement system before you can even begin to fix the actual process.