Certified Six Sigma Black Belt Exam Project Identification and Selection 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A Six Sigma project charter states the problem as 'cycle time is too long.' Why is this problem statement considered inadequate?
- It does not name the responsible Black Belt
- It lacks a quantified baseline, specific location, and measurable gap (Correct answer)
- It should describe the root cause instead
- It must include customer complaints to be valid
Correct answer: It lacks a quantified baseline, specific location, and measurable gap
An effective problem statement quantifies the current performance, specifies where the problem occurs, and describes the measurable gap — 'too long' provides none of these.
Question 2: During project selection, a team uses a cause-and-effect matrix to link process inputs to customer outputs. What does a high score in this matrix indicate about a process input?
- The input is easy to control and should be standardized immediately
- The input has a strong correlation with high-priority customer requirements and warrants investigation (Correct answer)
- The input is already performing at Six Sigma levels
- The input should be removed from the process
Correct answer: The input has a strong correlation with high-priority customer requirements and warrants investigation
A high cause-and-effect matrix score means the input strongly influences critical customer outputs, making it a priority focus for the Six Sigma project.
Question 3: Which of the following BEST describes 'hidden factory' in the context of identifying Six Sigma project opportunities?
- A manufacturing plant that operates during non-business hours
- Unofficial rework and workaround activities that consume resources but are not captured in standard metrics (Correct answer)
- A competitor's production facility
- A pilot plant used only for testing new processes
Correct answer: Unofficial rework and workaround activities that consume resources but are not captured in standard metrics
The hidden factory refers to unrecorded rework, inspection, and workarounds that inflate actual process cost and cycle time without appearing in official metrics.
Question 4: An organization uses an Affinity Diagram during project identification. What is the primary purpose of this tool at that stage?
- To calculate the financial impact of each project
- To organize large volumes of qualitative ideas or issues into meaningful groupings (Correct answer)
- To sequence project tasks on a timeline
- To map the current-state process flow
Correct answer: To organize large volumes of qualitative ideas or issues into meaningful groupings
An Affinity Diagram groups brainstormed ideas, complaints, or issues into natural categories, helping teams identify major themes for potential projects.
Question 5: When a Black Belt presents a project to the champion for approval, the champion asks about the 'opportunity statement.' What information should this statement contain?
- The root cause of the problem and proposed solution
- The quantified financial benefit and strategic value the project will deliver (Correct answer)
- The names of team members and their roles
- The detailed project schedule and milestones
Correct answer: The quantified financial benefit and strategic value the project will deliver
The opportunity statement quantifies the potential financial and strategic benefit of the project, justifying why resources should be committed.
Question 6: A team is using the GE/McKinsey matrix to prioritize business units for Six Sigma investment. The two dimensions of this matrix are:
- Cost and schedule
- Industry attractiveness and business unit strength (Correct answer)
- Defect rate and volume
- Customer satisfaction and employee engagement
Correct answer: Industry attractiveness and business unit strength
The GE/McKinsey matrix evaluates business units on industry attractiveness and competitive strength to prioritize where to invest resources, including Six Sigma efforts.
Question 7: Which scenario BEST illustrates a project that should be rejected during selection because it violates the principle of 'manageable scope'?
- A project to reduce billing errors in one regional office from 5% to 0.5%
- A project to eliminate all customer complaints company-wide within 90 days (Correct answer)
- A project to improve on-time delivery of a single product line from 85% to 95%
- A project to reduce machine changeover time in one production cell by 30%
Correct answer: A project to eliminate all customer complaints company-wide within 90 days
Eliminating all customer complaints company-wide in 90 days is far too broad in scope and too short in timeline to be a manageable Six Sigma project.
Certified Six Sigma Black Belt Exam Project Identification and Selection 4
A Six Sigma project charter states the problem as 'cycle time is too long.' Why is this problem statement considered inadequate?