Using Six Sigma Certification to Solve the Iceberg Effect

Using Six Sigma Certification to Solve the Iceberg Effect - powered by Aveta Solutions

What if your company was a well-operating machine? You appear to be dominant over your competitors. And you would think that any “serious” problems would be rather obvious. Wait a second… remember Titanic?

The Iceberg

This well-built machine was well aware of the dangers that it faced. However, the captain failed to properly measure the actual severity of the danger. As a result, the failures to properly measure and control the situation lead to its demise. This is why Six Sigma certification is becoming so crucial to successful companies.

The Top

Surely we can’t blame the captain for this. Based on the evidence that he had how much choice did he really have? The captain could only see the iceberg from above the water. He had absolutely no way of knowing the size or shape of the entire iceberg from the little evidence he could observe from above the water. It is the same exact problem that a company will face numerous times throughout its lifecycle without Six Sigma.

The iceberg is synonymous with CoQ (or Cost of Quality). The captain can see all obvious parts of the iceberg (the Traditional Quality Costs). These are typically tangible things like: inspection, scrap, rework, warranty claims, etc.

The Bottom

But what about the things that are intangible? All of the parts of the iceberg that we cannot see below the waterline are called “Hidden Costs”. These crucial and intangible things will include: lost sales, late delivery, lost customer loyalty, long cycle times, expensive engineering improvements, etc. Companies will send their employees for Six Sigma Certification in an effort to properly measure and correct these issues within their organization.

Considering that CoQ makes up 15% of sales, it can easily sink your company. Many improvement processes will act as a lifeboat for your organization, however what makes Six Sigma certification different is its desire to discover all of the facts and make the best approach towards profitability.







		Using Six Sigma Certification to Solve the Iceberg Effect - powered by Aveta Solutions What if your company was a well-operating machine? You appear to be dominant over your competitors. And you would think that any “serious” problems would be rather obvious. Wait a second… remember Titanic? The Iceberg This well-built machine was well aware of the dangers that it faced. However, the captain failed to properly measure the actual severity of the danger. As a result, the failures to properly measure and control the situation lead to its demise. This is why Six Sigma certification is becoming so crucial to successful companies. The Top Surely we can’t blame the captain for this. Based on the evidence that he had how much choice did he really have? The captain could only see the iceberg from above the water. He had absolutely no way of knowing the size or shape of the entire iceberg from the little evidence he could observe from above the water. It is the same exact problem that a company will face numerous times throughout its lifecycle without Six Sigma. The iceberg is synonymous with CoQ (or Cost of Quality). The captain can see all obvious parts of the iceberg (the Traditional Quality Costs). These are typically tangible things like: inspection, scrap, rework, warranty claims, etc. The Bottom But what about the things that are intangible? All of the parts of the iceberg that we cannot see below the waterline are called “Hidden Costs”. These crucial and intangible things will include: lost sales, late delivery, lost customer loyalty, long cycle times, expensive engineering improvements, etc. Companies will send their employees for Six Sigma Certification in an effort to properly measure and correct these issues within their organization. Considering that CoQ makes up 15% of sales, it can easily sink your company. Many improvement processes will act as a lifeboat for your organization, however what makes Six Sigma certification different is its desire to discover all of the facts and make the best approach towards profitability.