Determining the project selection criteria is a crucial step toward making sure that the primary objectives are met, the essential goals are accomplished, and the basic lessons are learned. As a rule, the selection criteria can be defined as a combination of elements that determine the boundaries for locating the participants for a certain project. As a rule, selection criteria include three components, i.e., the criteria for the assessment, the process thereof, and the approach toward determining the actions of the participants (Benbow & Kubiak, 2009a).
The selection criteria, in their turn, should be consistent with the framework chosen for the analysis, as well as with the environment, in which the process is going to be carried out, including the spatial, the financial, the economic, and the cultural characteristics thereof.
By the Six Sigma framework, the project criteria determined above should be selected and approved by the agent known as the Project Champion (Benbow & Kubiak, 2009b). According to the definition provided by the Six Sigma framework, the Champion performs the basic role of a supervisor, thus, ensuring that the essential stages of the project should be completed in a timely and efficient fashion. The power that is granted to the Champion, however, does not limit their opportunities to exerting their power on the areas mentioned above. Instead, the Champion selects the project and evaluates it correspondingly.
Applying the information provided above to the environment of the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, one must view the idea of improving the current process management strategy by introducing the members of the project to the concept of the Six Sigma framework. For instance, it is necessary to incorporate the stratification principle suggested by the authors of the Six Sigma framework as the means of labeling the compliance with the Six Sigma guidelines (i.e., low, medium, and high).
As a result, clear expectations for the project outcomes can be set, and very direct, as well as very concise, assessment principles can be introduced into the target environment (Benbow & Kubiak, 2009c).
Similarly, the notion of project selection should be included in the current framework of the project design. Particularly, every project designed in the context of the Sikorsky Aircraft must be selected based on its urgency, as well as the safety of the customer. Specifically, the quality- and R&D-related projects need to be paid special attention to as they create prerequisites for designing safer aircraft. In other words, the company must get its priorities straight and focus on the issues that contribute to product quality enhancement (Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, 2014).
Last but not least, the process of project chartering could be improved at Sikorsky aircraft significantly. Differently put, the quality expectations set at the start of the project will have to be detailed more accurately. Moreover, the goals listed at the end of the charter will have to be split into two large groups, i.e., the Black/Green Belt and the Master Black belt ones. Thus, the company will be able to get its priorities in line.
Quality improvements are not only inevitable but also imperative to the success of any entrepreneurship, let alone the one that supplies aircraft. To maintain customer security and customer satisfaction rates high, Sikorsky will have to adopt the Six Sigma project principles that set specific expectations and allow measuring the outcomes accurately. The increase in precision and quality is exactly what the entrepreneurship needs to improve its performance rates.
Reference List
Benbow, T. M., & Kubiak, D. W. (2009a). Chapter 15. Voice of the customer. The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt handbook (2nd ed.) (pp. 62-70). Milwaukee, WI: American Society for Quality.
Benbow, T. M., & Kubiak, D. W. (2009b). Chapter 16. Project charter. In The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt handbook (2nd ed.) (pp. 71-74). Milwaukee, WI: American Society for Quality.
Benbow, T. M., & Kubiak, D. W. (2009c). Chapter 17. Project tracking. In The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt handbook (2nd ed.) (pp. 75-78). Milwaukee, WI: American Society for Quality.
Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. (2014). About Sikorsky. Web.