"Dear ISSSC, Esau Borja, and Doug Parham:
I want to thank you for all that you have done to help prepare me to start a new career as a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt at a large regional bank. I am taking on a newly-created role as Vice President,.... In this role I will identify, develop, and lead process improvement and control projects across ...lines of business. The bank would never have considered me for the role without my Six Sigma Black Belt and Lean Gold Practioner certifications.
Becoming a displaced worker after a 15-year career with a large financial services company, including the last 11 years as a leader in Information Technology, I found myself frequently reflecting on my talents, skills, knowledge, and experiences to determine what career I should pursue next. I found at the core of everything I’ve experienced and enjoy is project management, process improvement, and leadership. I believed that my extensive background in project management and leadership would not require additional trainings or certifications at this time. So I focused on strengthening my skills in the area of process improvement and control. I had some background in process improvement having led multiple process improvement projects and having received my Six Sigma Yellow Belt in 2005, but most job postings required, or at least preferred, a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification.
While working with the outplacement company provided by my prior employer, I attended an information session on certifications.... The session was presented by the International Society for Six Sigma Certifications (ISSSC). I was extremely impressed with ISSSC...
Using due diligence, I also explored many certification providers—both online and classroom setting. I immediately ruled out online providers since I learn better in a setting that allows me to use more of my senses (i.e. verbal discussions, visual presentations, etc.). Also, I believed that a classroom setting would provide the additional benefit of networking with others. When you are looking for a new job it is all about networking. Knowing that a classroom setting would be my best option to learn Lean Six Sigma, I focused on a few local universities and ISSSC. The universities were expensive, the programs were long, and curriculum seemed very theoretical. I needed to complete a certification in a reasonable amount of time, so that I would have the skills to apply to the positions for which I was interviewing. I found that ISSSC provided a practical approach to learning and applying process improvement/control tools and techniques.... Both of these factors made ISSSC the easy choice.
Thank you Esau Borja (Six Sigma Black Belt instructor) and Doug Parham (Lean Practioner instructor) for helping me learn Lean Six Sigma. Your real-life examples and applications gained through your own professional experience, made the concepts and tools easy to understand and visualize how best to apply. I was able to complete my Six Sigma Black Belt and Lean Gold Practioner certifications in about six weeks. This included five days of intense Six Sigma Black Belt instruction, three days of intense Lean instruction, passing the tests for each, and successfully completing a Six Sigma Black Belt project. I’m not saying this wasn’t a challenging six weeks, but I stayed focused and received tremendous support from both of you at ISSSC. I am proud to say that I am a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt and that I used my time as a displaced worker to improve myself, which helped me land a new career. Again, none of this would have been possible without ISSSC.
Thank you ISSSC, Esau, and Doug!
"
- Micheal Y. |
