Six Sigma is one of the major buzzwords in the corporate world and implementing the Six Sigma in the respective organizations has become the priority for Quality controllers and the QAD (Quality Assurance Departments) in these organizations. What exactly is meant by Six Sigma and what are the benefits that implementing it brings to the table? In statistical terminology, Six Sigma refers to "six" standard deviations from the mean and indicates the margin of error while inspecting the good or services produced by an Organization.

What this principle means is that there can be a tolerance of about two defects per billion samples. In jargon free language this means that a manufacturing process cannot go beyond producing more than two defects per billion of manufactured goods. While this may seem impossible to attain in practice, it is nonetheless a feat that has been achieved by many organizations. The reason that this principle has captured the imagination of the quality controllers is because if this principle is implemented successfully, it is the nearest that the organization can get to perfection in its processes.

While the debate whether there can be a manufacturing process free of errors or a software without bugs rages on, many organizations are turning to this principle to aid them in their efforts to make their processes free of errors. This is a concept that was originally developed by Motorola in 1987 and since then it has been applied to almost all kinds of manufacturing and service industries. As a quality concept, this principle aims for the highest standards of process excellence.

The people implementing Six Sigma are classified as Black Belts, Green Belts and Master Black Belt. Let us look at what each of these terms mean. The green belt is a person or a player who is a member of the Six Sigma process improvement team and is trained in the Six Sigma methodology. This is the basic level for which all potential Six Sigma practitioners aspire.

The Black Belt is a leader in the implementation methodology for process improvements and is someone who can act as a guide to the process improvement teams. These Black Belts also advise the management on how to go about implementing the Six Sigma methodology. This is the intermediate level which one gets after attaining the Green Belt and it is not uncommon to find people who are certified as Black Belts in senior positions in the management.

Finally, the highest level is the Master Black Belt. The person who has achieved this status acts as the Program Manager or Director and leads the Six Sigma implementation effort in the organization. He or she checks all the processes for compliance and is the one whom the Black Belts turn to for advice and guidance in implementing the Six Sigma effort.

A Six Sigma certification is indeed a crowning achievement for the companies that want to be the leaders in their sectors and set higher benchmarks for process excellence. It is with this view that the Six Sigma methodology has been embraced in the business world.