Introducing the Post Graduate Program in Lean Six Sigma

A Brief History and Overview of Lean Six Sigma

The Six Sigma methodology is a set of tools and techniques, first developed within Motorola in the 1980s, to help with process improvement. It’s named for the “six sigma process,” in which at least 99.99966 percent of all design and manufacturing processes are statistically expected to be free of defects. The Six Sigma methodology, which is tailored to manufacturing, was adapted by then-CEO of General Electric Jack Welch in the mid-1990s. 

The main objectives of Six Sigma are to reduce waste, achieve predictable (and repeatable) results, and improve collaboration both within teams and among different teams that need to work together. As Six Sigma became more widely adopted by manufacturers, other types of businesses saw the value of the methodology and sought to adapt it to their organizations. 

Enter Lean Six Sigma. As the name suggests, this offshoot of Six Sigma incorporates lean techniques and has been successfully applied to improving quality and efficiency across other aspects of business. Lean Six Sigma incorporates lean waste-reduction principles with the following phases of identifying and reducing inefficiencies, referred to as “DMAIC” (similar to Six Sigma):

Define

What is the business problem from the customer’s perspective? Who are the stakeholders involved in this process? What is the overall scope of the project?

Measure

In this phase, you outline baselines to determine what acceptable (and unacceptable) results look like when they’re measured. This is a good opportunity to use visual tools to understand these measurements.

Analyze

This is where you identify and test the underlying causes of problems, developing a detailed plan to make sure that improvement takes place at the specific point(s) of failure. 

Improve

Using the analysis created in the previous phase, you’ll implement improvements after brainstorming best approaches and developing a design of experiments to determine expected benefits of a given solution.

Control

In order to ensure that successful improvements are fully implemented and repeatable, you’ll want to develop a quality control plan to make sure everyone is on the same page, while documenting and streamlining these processes.

By learning these processes, along with your colleagues, your team can become a well-oiled machine and reduce waste, shorten go-to-market times, and ultimately boost profits. Even if you’re not currently involved in this methodology, learning Lean Six Sigma and getting certified will make you much more marketable in your career. And, unlike the prerequisites for Six Sigma certification, you don’t need to have career experience in order to earn your Lean Six Sigma certification. 

The Post Graduate Program in Six Sigma at a Glance  

Simplilearn’s Post Graduate Program in Lean Six Sigma in collaboration with UMass Amherst, offers a blend of online self-paced videos, live virtual classes, and hands-on projects. Our online bootcamps and unique applied learning approach have proven benefits over competing distance learning models. Students also get access to mentorship sessions that provide a high-engagement learning experience and real-world applications to master essential Lean Six Sigma skills. 

This meticulously crafted program helps you transition from a traditional lean approach to a digital lean framework. The four key areas of the digital lean framework addressed in the program are:

• Process efficiency
• Improvements in yield and utilization
• Operational excellence
• Key technologies for digital transformation 

By acquiring skills in these key areas, you will be well-equipped for an exciting career as an operational excellence professional. After graduating from this Post Graduate Program, you will be able to implement quality projects and apply lean and Six Sigma tools to address business problems.

Some of the key features of this Post Graduate Program include:

• University of Massachusetts Amherst Post Graduate Program Certificate of Completion
• Official membership to the UMass Amherst Alumni Association
• Once accepted into the UMass Amherst Online MBA, Simplilearn coursework transfers as a credit concentration
• Masterclasses from top faculty at UMass Amherst
• Interactive peer learning through group projects and discussions
• Curriculum aligned with PMI-ACP®, IASSC-LSSGB, and LSSBB certifications
• Enrollment in Simplilearn’s JobAssist (India only)
• 150+ hours of applied learning 
• Capstone project in 3 domains
• Earn 122 PDUs to maintain your Continuing Certification Requirements (CCR) for multiple PMI® related certifications

Become uniquely qualified with lean management, agile, and six sigma skills - master tools such as Jira, Excel, and Minitab with our UMass PGP Lean Six Sigma Program. Enroll Now!

In addition to Simplilearn’s unrivaled online learning platform, students will benefit from the experience and prestige of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. UMass Amherst ranks among the top 25 premier public universities by U.S. News Education Rankings, and the AACSB-accredited online MBA program is ranked number one in the United States and number three in the world by the annual Financial Times survey. 

UMass Amherst is committed to academic excellence and innovative thinking to produce revolutionary ideas and impacts—on par with the best universities in the world. Upon completion of this program, you will receive a joint UMass-Simplilearn Certification of Completion.

Enhance Your Career With a Lean Six Sigma Certification: Get Started Today

The present—and future—of business lies in greater efficiency and global collaboration. Whether you’re already in a role that would benefit from this methodology or you’re seeking to switch careers entirely, this Post Graduate Program in Lean Six Sigma with the University of Massachusetts at Amherst is for you. Best of all, you can upskill and boost your professional profile entirely from the comfort of your own home. Apply for enrollment today!