Is Lean Six Sigma still relevant or is it dated

Question

In your opinion, is Lean Six Sigma still a relevant methodology in today’s business environment, or has it become outdated? How do you feel it compares to newer approaches in project management?

Answer 1

Lean Six Sigma is a practical and modern approach, but its application will vary with industry and project needs.

1. Priority of Efficiency and Quality: The emphasis of Lean Six Sigma on waste reduction and quality improvement is of prime importance to industries like manufacturing, health care, and logistics.
2. Evidence-Based Decision Making: Its dependency on facts and quantifiable results is attractive to companies that stress well-informed decision-making.
3. Compatibility with Future Methodologies: Lean Six Sigma is compatible with Agile or Scrum, with process improvement through adapting to new market changes.
4. Less Flexible than Agile: Being more structured compared to Agile, Lean Six Sigma is less capable of adapting and is therefore ill-suited in rapidly changing scenarios such as that of the technology industry.
5. In Specific Industries Relevance: Still relevant in such industries where there is a need for process enhancement and risk mitigation, e.g., healthcare, manufacturing.

In general, Lean Six Sigma is not obsolete but is more and more combined with other methods to meet various business requirements.