What are the prerequisite knowledge and skills required to using this book? What kind of tools and methodologies are included in this Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (LSSBB) handbook? How is the book organized? Why did we choose to organize the book as we did? The following are our answers to these questions.

The LSSBB methodology has been designed to provide a growth path for the people using it. The following outlines this growth path along with the prerequisites for each step in the path, starting at the beginning level:

• Six Sigma White Belt—No prerequisite
• Six Sigma Yellow Belt—No prerequisite
• Six Sigma Green Belt—Yellow Belt prerequisite
• Lean Green Belt—No prerequisite
• Six Sigma Black Belt—Six Sigma Green Belt or equivalent
• Lean Six Sigma Black Belt—Six Sigma Green Belt and Lean Green Belt or equivalent
• Master Black Belt—Lean Six Sigma Black Belt or equivalent

This book is written on the assumption that the reader has already gained experience in using all the tools and methods required to be certified as a Six Sigma Green Belt (SSGB), or at the least, he or she has been trained in these tools and methodologies. As a result, the tools and methods taught in Six Sigma Green Belt classes, as outlined in our Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook (Harrington, Voehl, and Gupta; Paton Press, Chico, CA), will not be repeated in this book. (A list of the tools and methods that the reader should already have mastered before using this handbook can be found in Appendix C.) A list of the additional tools and methods presented in this book and which are required to be classified as a LSSBB includes the following:

Nonstatistical tools:

• 5S
• Benchmarking
• Bureaucracy elimination
• Conflict resolution
• Critical to quality
• Cycle time analysis and reduction
• Fast action solution technique
• Foundation of Six Sigma
• Just-in-time
• Matrix diagrams/decision matrix
• Measurement in Six Sigma
• Organizational change management
• Pareto diagrams
• Project management
• Quality function deployment
• Reliability management systems
• Root cause analysis
• Scatter diagrams
• Selection matrix/decision matrix
• SIPOC (Suppliers, Inputs, Processes, Output, and Customers)
• SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats)
• Takt time
• Theory of constraints
• Tree diagram
• Value stream mapping

Statistical tools:

• ANOVA—one-way
• ANOVA—two-way
• Box plots
• Confidence intervals
• Data transformation
• Design of experiments
• Measurement system analysis
• Method of least squares
• Multivari charts
• Nonparametric statistical tests
• Population and samples
• Regression analysis
• Rolled throughput yield
• Taguchi methods
• Validation

In developing the content for this handbook, we relied heavily upon the core content that we developed for our Six Sigma Yellow Belt Handbook (Harrington and Voehl; Paton Press, Chico, CA) and Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook (Harrington, Voehl, and Gupta; Paton Press, Chico, CA). Both of these have a core introduction and brief history of the Six Sigma movement. Our primary goal in preparing this book was to develop a comprehensive framework for organizing large amounts of useful knowledge about Lean, quality management, and continuous improvement process applications so that only the tools that the reader will use to solve 90% of the problems are the focus of the books.

The book begins with an overview and brief history of Six Sigma, followed by some tips for using Lean Six Sigma (LSS), along with a look at the LSS quality system, its supporting organization, and the different roles involved. In Section 2 we discuss in detail the theories and concepts required to support a Lean system. It is pointed out that Lean is more a way of managing than a set of tools. Lean focuses on the elimination of all waste. In Section 3 the book presents the new additional skills and technologies that an individual is required to master in order to be certified at the LSSBB level. Next, in Sections 4 and 5, the advanced nonstatistical and statistical tools that are new to the LSSBB body of knowledge are presented in detail.

An LSSBB is an experienced individual who has the capabilities to solve complex problems as well as the capabilities of training Six Sigma Green and Yellow Belts. They also are capable of managing a number of improvement projects simultaneously while giving guidance to Six Sigma Green Belts who are working on improvement projects. The combination of the skills and techniques presented in this handbook are designed to prepare an individual to be certified as an LSSBB. Those individuals who are classified as LSSBBs are required to have mastered both the Lean and Six Sigma methodologies and techniques, making them an extremely valuable resource for any organization.

The format used is that of a handbook; it contains descriptions and diagrams of the tools that a team has practiced or will consider. The Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Handbook is an easy read and is designed to be used by readers at every level of the organization hierarchy and any industry. The handbook discussions will cover the following five areas:

• Alignment of individuals and organizational performance
• Implementation of results-oriented process improvement
• Institution of the human capital management function
• Need for sustained management attention for addressing key organization responsibilities in an integrated manner
• Facilitation of the transformation process within the organization

You may have experienced problem solving as a one-step process—just solve it! But there is more to it than that. For starters, you have to know what the problem or waste area really is, what’s causing the problem, and then look at new creative ways to make things better. These are covered in the following sections by providing a step-by-step roadmap you can use in your organization. The DMADV roadmap that is presented can be used to find the right solutions and avoid some of the pitfalls you have experienced in the past. The roadmap is set up to be followed one step or “tollgate” at a time, but you may not need to follow each step in every situation. For example, if your need is gathering, you can proceed directly to tollgate 5, or maybe if the root causes are already obvious, you can breeze through that step of analyzing the causes. In other words, each one of you may have a different story to tell based on the tollgate sequences that you decide to use. The process starts where the priority is the strongest.

This book is divided into five sections:

• Section 1: Overview of Lean Six Sigma
• Section 2: The Lean Journey into Process Improvement
• Section 3: SSBB Overview
• Section 4: LSSBB Advanced Nonstatistical Tools
• Section 5: LSSBB Advanced Statistical Tools

It is our hope that this book will serve as the basic reference for your training to become an LSSBB and as an ongoing reference book as you use the LSS methodology. But it is important to realize that the assignment as a LSSBB is a stepping stone, not a career. LSSBBs are needed to solve major problems that have a significant impact on the organization’s performance and to help install a new culture where waste is not tolerated. In all well-managed organizations these major problems should have been addressed, solved, and the cultural change implemented within 1 to 3 years. As a result, after a short period of time, there will be no need for full-time LSSBBs, but there will always be a need for the knowledge and skills that the LSSBBs bring to the table. As such, the tools and methodology used by the LSSBBs should become part of the organization’s assets. The skills and experience that the LSSBBs acquire provide a logical base for promoting them to a higher level and more responsible positions once the major problems have been addressed. These are exactly the conditions that we have seen in organizations like IBM, Motorola, and GE. Individuals who have tried to make being an LSSBB a career have often received additional training to become a Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt (LSSMBB) and moved on to another company that had major problems and wanted to install an LSS system, or to become a consultant.