The Six Sigma Handbook: The Complete Guide for Greenbelts, Blackbelts, and Managers at All Levels, Revised and Expanded Edition

by Thomas Pyzdek

The most comprehensive Six Sigma reference available, now revised and expanded. Completely rewritten and reorganized, this second edition of The Six Sigma Handbook covers all the basic statistics and quality improvement tools of the Six Sigma quality management system. This new edition reflects the developments in Six Sigma over the past few years and will help maintain the book's position as the leading comprehensive guide to Six Sigma. Key changes to this edition New chapters on DFSS (Design for Six Sigma) Minitab, the most popular statistical software for Six Sigma Six Sigma philosophy and values Flowcharting SIPOC Coverage of the core problem-solving technique DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control) Dozens of downloadable, customizable Six Sigma work sheets New material on important advanced Six Sigma tools such as FMEA (Failure Mode and Effects Analysis)

Genres: Business, Management, Nonfiction, Buisness, Leadership

848 pages, Hardcover

First published November 16, 2000

Reviews

[Chris Munson]

I used the Six Sigma Handbook as a textbook for Six Sigma Black Belt certification. My first comment will be that this book is NOT an easy read by any stretch of the imagination. It is nearly 500 pages of very dense and complex material. This is definitely not appropriate for anyone who simply wants an overview of the basic concepts of Six Sigma. It is an in-depth analysis of the topic. I would also warn you that if it has been awhile since you have studied statistics you are going to have additional challenges working through this book. However, I cannot complain about the comprehensive nature of the book. It will work very well as a desktop reference for future process improvement and waste elimination work. It is well indexed and the information is easy to find if you know what you are looking for. It is a little uneven at times, but is a great reference book for anyone looking to practice Six Sigma principles in their work.

[Michael]

The "LEAN/Six Sigma" (formerly aka "great management based on best practices") are pivotal concepts in a competitive business world, moreso in the global marketplace that is today's reality. This volume is a bit tedious, much like a college economics/management textbook, but digesting its concepts and methodologies is a key to a successful, factual approach to business management today.

[Povilas]

Great book for Six Sigma concepts. This was my third book in preparation for six sigma exam and it was not so difficult as expressed by other comments.
While I waited for my book to be shipped I read through 'Six Sigma for dummies' (this was fun read), then I studied 'Certified Six Sigma Green Belt' (introduced me to all concepts) and then read this book. So it was not too difficult, just in depth review of what I already new.
Highly recommend similar stepwise approach and reading it will be a pleasure!

[Marcus Goncalves]

This is a classic! Very good material on all you need to know on SixSigma. It’s an older book, but still very relevant, although the discipline is not as novelty as when GE was drumming it up. It had its place though.

[Rishab]

Best exhaustive six sigma handbook. Will help you understand the concepts, pass the certification, be there as a guide for projects at work, all in one.

[Deniz]

Ja so nh

[Gary]

This book is ridiculous. Its gist is that you should minimize mistakes and if you have any, use the scientific method to figure out how they were made. Further, use the scientific method to find ways to be more efficient.

The author makes the argument that mistakes should be made no more than one mistake per thousand or million. However, he focuses on computerized information technology as his examples. Yes, banks make few mistakes, but it is because they are working with information in a computer system, not in a manufacturing environment. As far as I see it, this is hyperbolic myopic thinking that takes a specialized situation and attempts to map it onto all sectors of industry. It's apparent why companies adopt the practices, because the pie in the sky perspective in the book speaks to the goal of any executive. However, the theories in the book are idealized and ignore the reality that people are human and machines break down. Not everything is information and not everything can, or should, be automated.

[Tara Tierney]

This was absolute hell on Earth to get through, but I forged the river. The first third of the book provides an excellent management overview of the philosophy, content and application of Six Sigma, including its relation to prior quality programs. The bulk of the book is devoted to a high level review of all of the statistical tools a six sigma blackbelt might ever use, including Excel/Minitab tools, and practical applications advice. The author makes a lot of assumptions that you know what he's talking about - and for that reason, it can't really be considered a "bible" on the topic. Plus, I managed to find a few typos in several of the problems (which makes it more difficult to trust as a resource when you're already second guessing yourself). All things considered, i used it to successfully complete a Six Sigma course and will likely continue to reference the material.

[Kourosh Keshavarz]

I read this as a requirement for Black Belt certification. At its core it is about the Six Sigma process and how to use it in an organisation. Where possible the wheel hasnt been reinvented and they use existing concepts such as WBS and existing modelling techniques. You could use this as a handbook for optimisation in an organisation and use as much or as little of the analysis tools as you need. Dont fret too much if you cant get your head around the complex statistics. I fancy there are only a handful of people who can. When it comes to crunching the numbers best to use the finance department as suggested. The main aim is to gain an understanding of what to look for when going through an improvement process. It is good to have it as a reference near you which is why I opted for the Kindle version.

[Shawn Fairweather]

Very thorough and detailed. Some of the statistics are presented in what the author feels is a simplified manner, but beware that if you do not have a background in statistics, it may not be so easy to follow or grasp. The book is organized to a point however the fact that the book is written to include all aspects or yellow, green, and black belts, it would have been nice to have the book coded in such a fashion so that someone who is merely going for a yellow belt is taking on too much by reading into black belt territory. Lucky for me this was a text used in a Green Belt class so the instructor had the text broken down already but for those of self study won't be so lucky.

[Ayat Saleh]

I read the book during my preparation for my Six Sigma Black Belt certificate and during my masters' degree.
If you are working in the quality management area, I recommend reading the book even if you are not targeting the six sigma certification. It provides a comprehensive and deep illustration with great practical examples. The book is very large, therefore, you shouldn't read the entire book; you can select the parts that are most relevant to your work.
If you are reading the book for exam preparation, other resources are still needed.

[Wawan Setiawan]

A very complete book about Six Sigma, but be careful, if you don't really need it for your job, you may sleep on it, I mean really sleep on the book (using it as the pillow). :))
It discuss from the beginning of starting your six sigma adventure, choosing the people, forming the team to the statistic methods used by Six Sigma.

Now I know why it is called Handbook. It's there for a reason.

[Nina]

All about DMAIC tools. Now there's a load of fun! Seriously though, this book is a great resource for explanations of process improvement tools and their use. I would highly recommend this for anyone that is interested in Six Sigma management techniques.

[Galih Satria]

About six sigma methodology, continuous improvement, implementation. Many statistical tools introduced as practical tool to translate DMAIC mantra to the real world. Very mathematics, very statistics. (Hey, that's the meaning of "Handbook" rite?)

[Bill]

Not really something to "read" as much as to study. This contains pretty much every tool and technique that's part of the Six Sigma approach, for most people anyways. Not sure what else there is to say about it!

[Sanjay Gupta]

Voluminous but light on technical detail. Much better material available.

[Fabian Lopez]

how,can i read the book???

[Rebecca Houchin]

Great for working toward my six sigma black belt.

[Phyllis]

Excellent resource