Global Computers, Inc.
DMAIC Process
In Six Sigma Methodology consists of five-phase DMAIC Process. DMAIC stands for - Define-Measure-Analyze-Improve-Control, with these steps, any goals could be possible to reach.
First, you need to follow the phases of the process very carefully. You cannot analyze - and improve the quality - what you cannot measure. That means if you cannot express data/information of your process/product, you are not able utilize DMAIC-process in your development actions. Thus, you cannot improve the quality! In the following paragraphs, I would like to explain each of the phases and explain how each of theses phases applies to the Coding Performance Improvement Project.
Define phase
Development of the project starts by recognizing and defining the object/process/problem to be developed and/or solved. Main functional processes are divided into processes of (1) production of products (2) services and (3) transactions.Define who customers are, what their requirements are for products and services, and what their expectations are. Define project boundaries the stop and start of the process. Define the process to be improved by mapping the process flow.
During the define phase, We also address questions like, what is the business case of this project?, what is current state/problem?, What will be the future state?
Process consists of part phases, transactions and activities. It is very essential to keep in mind, when managing a process, that the more complex the process is (more phases), the more difficult it is to control and manage. The complexity of the processes makes it more difficult to reach high quality.
We applied the same Define phase principal to the Coding Performance Improvement Project. First, we identified the problem. In our case, it was the inefficiency in program coding which was leading to many problems. Initial problem was having disintegrated applications, thus leading to long application accessing time, also high cost on computer usage power.
Measure phase
In the second phase (Measure) of development process a practical problem/object is measured and followed.
There are plenty of statistical quality tools are available to measure the problem/object. The tools such as Statistical Process Control (SPC) flowchart & process maps,cause and effect matrix,pareto charts,control charts etc., are available. The goal in these measurements is to get collect data from many sources to determine types of defects and metrics.
During the Measure phase, We address questions like, do we have enough data on the problem? How will I measure progress?, how will I measure ultimate success?
The success of the measurement is absolutely the most critical phase in the whole DMAIC process.
We applied the same Measure phase principal to the Coding Performance Improvement Project. First, we collected data for inefficient coding, prepared gnat charts and Pareto charts.
Analysis phase
Measurement phase is followed by a phase in which measured data is analyzed by statistical methods. In this Analysis phase a practical problem is transformed to a statistical problem. Various types of statistical analysis methods, among them e.g. ANOVA, are used.
Analysis phase aims to find answers to an essential question: "is the current state as good as the process can do?, what resources will we need?, What major obstacles that I would face in completing this project?
We applied the same Analysis phase principal to the Coding Performance Improvement Project. First, we analyzed each application for inefficient coding.
Improvement phase
Improvement phase is the core of Six Sigma Methodology. There the aim is to find an answer to the question "How to reach the desirable quality level”? “what specific activities are needed to achieve project goals”?, “ Do the changes produce the same effects”?
Here the priority is given to certain critical parameters and those are modified. That means development of the process (variation, deviation, capability).
We apply the same Improvement phase principal to the Coding Performance Improvement Project. First, we Re-write most applications in object-oriented programming using multi-threaded architecture, We plan to integrate all applications into one major application with use of a integrated database.
Control phase
The fifth phase in DMAIC process is called Control. The stability and reliability of the process is assured and the final capability is determined. The documentation of the process is also a part of the control phase. Control phase basically keeps the process on the new course prevent reverting back to the "old way"
Require the development, documentation and implementation of an ongoing monitoring plan Institutionalize the improvements through the modification of systems and structures (staffing, training, incentives)
As a result of statistical control final practical results are reached. Statistical process control (SPC) can be used as a very suitable tool.
We apply the same Measure phase principal to the Coding Performance Improvement Project. We create control charts and status report for every phase of the project management process.
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Global Computers, Inc.