Key Points

• Six Sigma is a great choice for streamlining the education experience.
• Educators and administrators alike are empowered by the process improvement cycle.
• Students should see higher grades thanks to the work done with Six Sigma in any school.

Is Six Sigma in education viable? We often talk about the applicability of Six Sigma to other industries. However, the benefits of this process improvement methodology are readily applied to other aspects of modern living. Education is one of our greatest assets, providing a stable foundation for the future workforce.

Today, we’re going to take a closer look at how Six Sigma in education can function and excel. This isn’t just about the token representation of the methodology, but rather a complete transformative effect when it comes to dealing with the likes of enrollment, quality of curriculum, and other key aspects. If you’re eager to learn, then you’re in the right place.

What Is Six Sigma?

If you’re new to Six Sigma, don’t fret. While we have plenty of worthwhile materials written by industry experts here at iSixSigma, a simple refresher is always good. Six Sigma is a process improvement methodology originally designed by Motorola for the sake of manufacturing. It made a big splash upon its further refinement and deployment by General Electric, where it showed its true mettle.

These days, most business grads and employees worth their salt should have a passing familiarity with Six Sigma. It is one of the leading process improvement approaches for a good reason. If you’re looking to bolster the output of any business while reducing costs, then it is certainly worth learning the ins and outs of the methodology and getting certified.

While Six Sigma found its footing in the likes of manufacturing, it applies to just about any industry you can dream up. Other methodologies might be present in these sectors, but Six Sigma still has a wonderful toolset meant to transform businesses into the best version of themselves through a constant cycle of process improvement. This helps to reduce costs, boost quality, and make for happier customers in the long run.

Does Six Sigma Apply to Anything?

So, what is Six Sigma best suited for? Well, as I previously said, it is a methodology for everyone and every industry. Yes, it finds its roots in the likes of manufacturing, but that doesn’t paint a complete picture. I’ve seen it deployed in the likes of non-profits with no discernible outputs, managed service providers, and even some customer service roles.

Instead of looking at where Six Sigma fits best, it is important to discern what Six Sigma truly is. At its core, this is a set of tools and approaches that help businesses become the best version of themselves. Any organization does well to learn from the historical data generated from its output, and these form the crux of what makes Six Sigma such a powerful approach at its core.

When you learn tools, like DMADV, DMAIC, and the QC tools, you’re cooking with gas. Further, gathering pertinent historical data to highlight and build toward improving will give you far better results than trying to apply whole concepts without understanding the reason behind their use.

Six Sigma in Education

So, how does Six Sigma in education look? Well, once you start implementing strategies, tools, and other aspects of the methodology, you’re creating a learning environment with excellence in mind. Education doesn’t have a clearly defined metric when it comes to output and deliverables, so you’ll have to deal with a bit of abstraction.

However, that’s not such a bad thing. While it might prove to be a challenge early in, you’re gathering together the components that make for a stellar learning environment for students of all ages. There have certainly been some uses of Six Sigma in education in the past, as you can see in this research paper published by the American Journal of Industrial and Business Management.

You can readily apply these principles in actionable, tangible ways. Developing solid metrics in terms of things like student performance, enrollment numbers, and so forth, are going to be far larger indicators of your success in these endeavors. So, let’s see how Six Sigma gets put to work in the realm of higher learning.

Enrollment

One of the biggest benefits of Six Sigma in education is streamlining the enrollment process. Speaking from personal experience, enrollment for most higher education facilities is inundated with paperwork and red tape. It becomes an exercise of resilience rather than something driven by the desire to learn. That said, the principles of Six Sigma are readily applied to the enrollment process.

A regular review and audit of the enrollment process can reveal where students are getting hung up. Some questions need answering, that’s just a fact when it comes to the enrollment process. However, you can minimize the lag time, streamline the waiting around, and ultimately make a more enjoyable experience.

If it becomes difficult for a student to enroll in your school, what hope do you have of increasing attendance numbers in the first place? Your institution’s record stands on its own, but removing the hurdles to get in the door will see an increase in students to your school.

Waste Reduction

This is sure to rankle a few folks, but that’s alright. Six Sigma in education is a great way of reducing the waste seen in your curriculum. As you lack a truly defined output from your efforts as a school, it comes down to the quality of the education students are receiving in the first place. Instead, you can look at areas that are underperforming.

Certain electives are likely to be less popular than others, which primes it for cuts. This frees up resources for students and educators alike. Further, you’ll find you can tailor the experience for your students to get the best education possible while cutting down on the minutiae.

Curriculums are constantly changing, that’s just the nature of education. However, you can readily look for areas of waste in the entire school to decide where process improvement initiatives are needed. If you have enough students and parents grousing about things like freshman success courses, those could be prime candidates for removal. It is about striking a balance when it comes to education, especially so everyone feels like they’re making the most of their time.

Performance Assessment

One of the most important aspects of Six Sigma is establishing metrics. Understanding where things stand relative to your improvement efforts is instrumental in making sure your DMAIC initiatives take hold. The same holds true for any student, just like a worker or machine. Students have grades, they pass tests, and so forth.

These provide a baseline for assessing performance regularly, which can be a guiding light when it comes to Six Sigma in education. You’ll readily see which students are falling behind and where they can take the initiative to improve their odds.

Regular performance reviews happen when students receive grades, but there is a degree of granularity you can bring with Six Sigma backing you. Additionally, this is a prime time for students to meet with advisors and counselors to get the help they need.

Improving Student Morale

One of the most alienating things about attending any educational facility is feeling like you aren’t part of the student body. Six Sigma provides the means to improve and boost student morale. While every student is going to have to go through their educational journey alone, they all work toward a common goal.

If you’re already assessing the performance of your students, this also gives you the basis for celebrating their victories. Comprehensive profiles analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of students give something to work toward and improve on the whole.

Additionally, this is where Six Sigma in education shines, as it gives the time and space to create a sense of camaraderie while boosting individual morale. If a student feels like you have their back, then they have all the room needed to improve and become the best possible version of themselves academically.

Administrative Efficiency

We’ve discussed at length the measures taken toward improving the caliber of education your students are receiving. However, one area that deserves at least some focus when discussing Six Sigma in education is the administrative side of things. Any educational facility is run by a bureaucracy, and given enough time is going to have a fair amount of waste in its processes.

Ideally, the administrative side of things should have regular audits. You’ll want to establish KPIs so you can ascertain what work needs to be done and to further drive improvement efforts. Depending on the age of the institution, there is a wealth of historical data to mine.

Key metrics to pay attention to at this point are things like enrollment, graduation, and overall performance indicators for educators. If you have educators who aren’t up to the task, this is the time to get them on board. After all, you’re raising the next wave of the workforce, and an educated workforce is a performant workforce.

Empowering Educators

When you take a closer look at the educational system, there are some flaws present. Educators often aren’t part of the decision or improvement process. This is where Six Sigma in education can prove itself, however. Educators are the backbone of any institution. By involving those same educators in the process, you’re priming your school for greater overall success.

Educators should be part of the entire Six Sigma process, given how integral they are to proceedings. As such, when you start looking at areas to improve, get your educators on board. Six Sigma considers all levels of the workforce when working in manufacturing, and the same holds for doing something like education.

As they are part of your team, you have the chance to make their voices matter in the grander operation of your facility.

Other Useful Tools and Concepts

Looking for some other tips and tricks? You might do well to take a closer look at the companies that have thrived thanks to digital transformation. Digital transformation is bound to be a hot topic in the coming years, so seeing where some of the bigger players in the industry have succeeded can help you plot your course.

Additionally, it might help to see how Six Sigma integrates into startups. As this is a universal methodology, there is plenty to learn when it comes to navigating the usual doldrums associated with a startup.

Conclusion

Six Sigma in education might seem like an odd fit, but makes a compelling case. Learning how to utilize the tools present in the Six Sigma toolbox will get your institution streamlined while focusing on the quality of education delivered to your students. Make the jump, you won’t be sorry you’ve integrated this transformative approach into your institution.

The image featured at the top of this post is ©Ground Picture/Shutterstock.com.