The Six Sigma quality improvement methodology has lasted for decades because it gets results. Companies in every country around the world, and in every industry, have used this logical, step-by-step method to improve the quality of their processes, products, and services. And they’ve saved billions of dollars along the way.

However, Six Sigma involves a good deal of statistics and data analysis, which make many people uneasy. Individuals who are new to quality improvement often feel intimidated by the statistical aspects.

Don’t be intimidated. Data analysis may be a critical component of improving quality, but the good news is that most of the analyses we use in Six Sigma aren’t hard to understand, even if statistics isn’t something you’re comfortable with.

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