The purpose of any Six Sigma project is to make an organization more efficient and cost-effective so as to increase profits and make products that customers love and use. One of the metrics used within the project is Six Sigma cycle time, because this is a metric that can easily be held up as a comparison from before and after the implementation. This before and after measurement will clearly show whether the desired effect to achieve continuous improvement has been effective.

If a company is able to reduce how long it takes to perform a function, whether it be a service or a production function; there are two positive effects. It will reduce the costs associated with performing the function and also, especially with manufacturing processes, increase the number of items that can be produced. This, in turn, increases the company's profitability.

Originally the purpose of Six Sigma was to eliminate any errors or defects that are found within a manufacturing process. This has now been expanded to incorporate all the other aspects related to manufacturing and the services provided by an organization. This includes process flow and associated systems.

By analyzing how much time is spent completing each individual task in a process, areas or aspects can be found that are in dire need for improvement. Just by making slight alterations and reducing the time taken for each step of the procedure, the overall production time can be reduced greatly. If this reduction is factored into every facet within the business, there can be quite a dramatic overall reduction made to company expenditure.

Six Sigma Statistical analysis does not only improve the efficiency and profitability of a business; it also has an impact on the organization's customer base. Because there will have been some defects removed from the process, the quality of the goods or services being delivered will have been improved, along with the reduction in how long a customer or end user has to wait for delivery. This will dramatically improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.

When the reputation of a business improves, along with the goodwill generated from its customers, profitability can only improve. Sometimes it can be difficult to see how a single process change can affect the whole attitude that people have towards the company, but taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture, it all begins to make sense. Six Sigma methodologies can improve the start of the whole chain toward customer loyalty.

The ability to measure the duration of a business process has always been present. However, it was not until it was incorporated with Six Sigma tools and ideas that its effect on company profitability has been able to be measured so accurately. It is only with this association has the ability to produce an analytical result been possible that can have an impact on how an organization functions.

The overall Six Sigma analysis is not just a time and motion exercise with the goal of increasing production. If you increase production, and therefore reduce time to market, but the quality of your goods and services diminish, so will your customer base. The aim of improving cycle time along with this popular methodology is to improve all aspects of your processes, and not just speed to the detriment of all other factors.