1. Helping Engineering Students Decide on the Advantages of Obtaining Lean or Six Sigma Certification
Dr. Joan Burtner
Dr. Melinda Hollingshed
Mrs. Shelia Barnett
ASEE Zone II Conference
San Juan, Puerto Rico
March 2017

2. History of Professional Certifications in the Quality Field - ASQ
The American Society for Quality (ASQ) began administering quality-related professional certifications in 1968.
The first, and most popular, ASQ certification is the Certified Quality Engineer (CQE).
ASQ has developed many more quality professional certifications (eg CMQ/OE, CQPA, etc).
All ASQ certifications are based on a Body of Knowledge (BOK) that is revised on a periodic basis.
ASQ BOKs are the industry-standard in their respective fields.
March 2017
ASEE Zone II Conference Dr. Joan Burtner, Presenter

3. Six Sigma Certifications
Six Sigma is a statistical methodology with a goal of reducing variation and therefore reducing costs.
Six Sigma has been described as a data-driven process improvement methodology that aims to reduce defects.
Early Six Sigma (SS) certifications
Green Belts, Black Belts and Master Black Belts (hierarchy)
Project documentation required for Black Belt certification
Training and testing conducted in-house by large companies such as Motorola or GE
Training and testing conducted by limited number of outside organizations
More recent trends in SS certifications
Yellow Belts and White Belts are also offered
Training/testing or testing-only options offered by many organizations
Costs are varied
Project is not always required for Black Belt certification
March 2017
ASEE Zone II Conference Dr. Joan Burtner, Presenter

4. ASEE Zone II Conference Dr. Joan Burtner, Presenter
Lean Certifications
Lean had its roots in the Toyota Production System and emphasized the elimination of waste with the goal of cycle-time reduction.
Lean differed from Six Sigma
Did not emphasize data-analysis or statistical thinking
Easier to learn by those who did not have strong math skills
Easier to conduct in-house training
Early Lean certifications
Green Belts, Black Belts and Master Black Belts (hierarchy)
Project documentation required for Black Belt certification
Training and testing conducted in-house by large companies such as Motorola or GE
Training and testing conducted by limited number of outside organizations
More recent trends in SS certifications
Yellow Belts and White Belts are also offered
Training/testing or testing-only options offered by many organizations
Costs are varied
Project is not always required for Black Belt certification
March 2017
ASEE Zone II Conference Dr. Joan Burtner, Presenter

5. Why Obtain Certification?
March 2017
ASEE Zone II Conference Dr. Joan Burtner, Presenter