DEPARTMENT of STATISTICS

 Dr. Rick L. Edgeman, Six Sigma Black Belt

Email: redgeman@uidaho.edu

TEXTS & OTHER COURSE RESOURCES:

The Management & Control of Quality, 6th Edtion (2005).      James R. Evans & William M. Lindsay.    Published by Southwestern.

MALCOLM BALDRIGE NATIONAL QUALITY AWARD CRITERIA: http://www.baldrige.gov/
BUSINESS CRITERIA:                  http://www.baldrige.gov/Business_Criteria.htm  (REQUIRED READING)
HEALTH CARE CRITERIA:         http://www.baldrige.gov/HealthCare_Criteria.htm
EDUCATION CRITERIA:             http://www.baldrige.gov/Education_Criteria.htm
 
Six Sigma: http://www.isixsigma.com 
Benchmarking: http://hq.nasa.gov/office/codez/benchpolicy.html
Quality Function Deployment (QFD): http://www.mazur.net/publishe.htm

Computer Software: Minitab Statistical Software. A trial version of Minitab can be downloaded from www.minitab.com

This is also available on campus.

Learn a Little More About Six Sigma:
Six Sigma: Heresy or Holy Writ?
Six Sigma: Medical and Healthcare
Six Sigma: Information Technology
Six Sigma: Powerpoint Brief Overview

Class Approach to Learning & Teaching: In order to enhance the value of this course to its stakeholders, active participation from you is expected. Also the course relies on readings to establish key terminology and frameworks and timely review of readings pertaining to the associated lectures is expected.  You are valued customers, though not the sole stakeholder, so that your satisfaction with the course is one key objective. You are invited to contact me about course matters at any time, in class or outside the classroom, formally or informally.  I value meaningful dialogue with students and believe that it is important to assess their satisfaction with the course and associated learning experience.

Special Needs:  Any student with special needs should bring this to the attention of the instructor as soon as possible, but not later than the second week of class.

 Academic Integrity (adapted from the University of Maryland):  YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BECOMING FAMILIAR WITH THE CONTENT OF THE LINKED DOCUMENT

Course Performance: Emphasis is placed on development of a thorough understanding of Six Sigma’s DMAIC Breakthrough Improvement Strategy and its application. Evaluation of participant performance is based on two competency examinations and a required team project intended to provide experience with the DMAIC process.

Project Orientation: A primary motivation for requiring a project is that it provides an experience applying team tools and strategies useful in contemporary professional environments..

Project Presentation / Paper Requirement(s): Specific project paper format requirements will be supplied by the instructor. It is expected that Phase I reports will be of length at least 2500 words, exclusive of graphics, tables and appendices. Phase II (final) reports should leverage and build upon Phase I reports and it is expected that these will be of length at least 5000 words, exclusive of graphics, tables and appendices. All papers are expected to be well written and thoroughly researched. Teams are required to provide a CONCISE Project Presentation of between 20-25 minutes in length, inclusive of questions. Phase II Presentations must be of length 22-25 minutes, inclusive of questions. Written progress reports are to be emailed to the instructor by noon on each of several dates to be determined.  

You are expected to function as a responsible team member and evaluations will – in part – address conformance of your performance to that to which you agreed in your team project charter. Attendance will be monitored, with four, six and eight absences resulting in a one, two, and three-letter grade reduction, respectively, in your course grade. Additionally, peer evaluations are taken seriously and may contribute to differential grades among team members on Project Reports and Presentations.

Tentative Course Schedule (Files Will Be Linked as the Course Progresses)