Free or low cost Six Sigma White/Greenbelt Certification?

[DBRENNAN118]

Great points shared Dina. I earned a SSBB some years back with a top tier medical company and the work load is night and day. However, a times are changing and for someone (young in their career) who put the hours in even through e-learning, continued with annual education, coupled with actual participation in real life products - I could see the development of some strong comparable skills. The White Belt vs Online Green/Black felt like an Online Degree vs B&M Degree debate. I have hired MBAs and non degreed employees and it is always fascinating how in the end, it is the individual effort and desire to be a value to an organization that separates them way more than their credentials. Totally get your overall share and it is important for someone thinking they will be able to breeze through an interview just because they have a certificate.

Very well said. I tried to make it pretty clear that I did not consider this online SSBB certificate strong enough to qualify me for a highly complex supply chain process improvement project. That wasn't the goal for me. My job field doesn't exactly require me to reduce defects to 3.4 per million I'm not suddenly or magically an expert in SS, but feel that I am a little bit better than I was before the training. I now can employ DMAIC, fish bone diagrams, the 5S's, etc. in my daily management challenges. That was my goal - to make myself a better manager. I most likely won't end up in front of a sigma-y hiring manager, b/c that's not my field or area of expertise. If I can beat out the competition in my field b/c I have a few extra tools in my toolbox...then the SSBB was well worth it!

I totally agree w/the Online Degree vs. B&M debate comment. I'm actually surprised to read the comments regarding total study hours or minimum # of projects. I'm sure Harvard MBA's are not too intimidated by my 1-year BSBA from TESU, or a 4-month WGU MBA, but we know what we've accomplished is real, and pretty damn amazing!! I don't feel like my degree is worth less because I didn't sit through 16 weeks for each traditional class, attend lectures by renowned scholars, or have access to superior research libraries. I learned, on my own, enough to pass 120 college credits in one year. Should my 6 CR from the Biology CLEP, or my 9 CR from the Spanish CLEP not count b/c I only studied one week for each? I'm not seeking a job at Merck, or as an interpreter at the UN...but that's not the point of our journey, is it?

So...I learned, on my own, enough to become a SSBB in less than one week. Those skills are now mine, and I'm satisfied with that.

Look - I'm pretty sure I'm not suddenly qualified to be CFO of a Fortune 500 company...and it's just as unlikely that I'll be tapped by Toyota to revolutionize their production system. Doesn't mean my BSBA or my SSBB are worth any less to me. I know I'm better now than I was before. That's been my goal throughout this process.
It was just a groupon :o