Six Sigma refers to a management strategy in business that was initially developed in 1986 by Motorola-United States of America. It makes use of a set of quality methods of management, notably statistical methods. It brings about special groups of people in a given organization, for instance Black Belts and Green Belts who have become specialists in the given methods. A Six Sigma process refers to one in which 99.99966% of manufactured products are expected to be defect-free.

The origination of "Six Sigma" is clear. It came about as variety of practices used to help improve processes in manufacturing firms in order to get rid of defects. However, gradually such applications were extended to other fields in the processing industry as well.

Resulting from the discovery of a vital connection between increase of quality and decrease of costs in the process of production, this method was born. Initially, everyone had believed that an increase in quality would be expensive in the long run. Contrary to such belief, a lot of money was in fact spent on such things as maintenance.

The purposes for the development of the methodology were numerous. It sought to inspire the quality of output of processes by the identification and subsequent removal of the various causes of defects in manufacturing procedures. This would, in turn, minimize variations in both business and industrial processes. Another very important use of the 6 Sigma strategy is that it enhances the overall communication with not only customers and employees but also shareholders. Therefore, in general, it leads to the improvement of interaction and in the design of products.

With the discovery of Six Sigma came the need for effective methodologies for its implementation. Two main methods are used; DMAIC and DMADV. The former stands for; D, definition of goals, M, measurement of the process, A, analysis of the present processes, I, improvement of the process and C, control. The abbreviations DMADV stand for; D, definition of consistent goals, M, measurement of Critical To Qualities, A, analysis and evaluation of designs, D, details of design and V, verification of designs. While DMAIC is used for existing processes, DMADV is applied when creating products that are new.

Within 6 Sigma implementation, there is involvement of many roles. These include Executive leadership, Yellow Belts, Green Belts, Black Belts, Champions, Master Black Belts and Experts.   As proof of attainment of a given level of knowledge, there is a certification awarded for justification. This confirms the capabilities of an individual with respect their competence in the Methodology. Possessing a Six Sigma Certification indicates that one has satisfactorily completed the requirements expected by the training provider awarding the certification.

On the dark side, however, Six Sigma has received its fair share of criticism. The strategy has been criticized for among other things, lack of originality, the fact that it is based on arbitrary standards and the fact that it is unable to measure effectiveness in some instances.