Seven employees of Schneck Medical Center have become certified nationally as Lean Six Sigma Black Belts through training provided by Ivy Tech-Columbus, according to Terrill Paradise, Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt Senior Corporate Trainer at Ivy Tech. The employees are Suki Wright, Susan Zabor, Vicki Johnson, Amy Pettit, Luke Acton, Julie Idlewine, and Makenzie Smith.
Six Sigma seeks to improve the quality of process outputs by identifying and removing the causes of errors and variability in manufacturing and business processes. It uses a set of quality management methods, including statistical methods, and creates a special infrastructure of people within organizations (“Black Belts,” “Green Belts,” etc.) who are experts in these methods. Each Six Sigma project carried out within an organization follows a defined sequence of steps and has quantified financial targets (cost reduction or profit increase).
Black Belts operate under Master Black Belts to apply Six Sigma methodology to specific projects. They devote 100 percent of their time to Six Sigma. They help coach coach, develop, lead, and advise management and employees to achieve their goals. According to the Six Sigma Academy, Black Belts save companies approximately $230,000 per project and can complete four to six projects per year.