Six Sigma Meets Software Development Is off Track

Sandor,

You bring up some very good points about Six Sigma and software development. But I will take an alternative viewpoint on a couple of them.

You write: "insisting on a transfer function for a new design is stupid at best."
> What about a DOE that takes into account price, functionality and user interface? It's obvious that there is an inflection point and maximum for the intersection of these (unless you're Microsoft and then you can bundle it with Office, charge as much as you want and build every feature imagineable into it). A DOE is a transfer function, right? It helps you understand how the various inputs affect the output (number of purchases).

You write: "I'd hate to see anyone who finds a bug in his/her SW to come with a statistic proof  that the bug will not affect the functionality - I'd want to the bug killed anyway."
> Any no one would agree with you that a bug should be killed right away. But how do you prevent that bug from occuring in the next shift? How do you prevent that bug from occuring in the next build? In the next release? Six Sigma gives your product managers the tools necessary to define, measure, analyze, improve and control your development cycle so that you work more productively in the future. Software bugs are rework, and needs to be eliminated -- not just in the short term (for the immediate release), but in the long term.

You write: "There are loads of good methodologies we do not/can not introduce so why should we expend time and effort in trying to make something usable that was not meant to be used in a SW context - and it's effort/benefit ration is doubtful at best?"
> Nobody's forcing you to use Six Sigma as a methodology. Use whatever works for you. The point I'd like to make is that probably nothing is working for you, that's why Six Sigma is being suggested. It's your job to tailor it to your environment. Transactional companies are saving billions using Six Sigma which was developed for a manufacturing environment. Do you think you're development efforts are any different from the sale of a billion dollar lease? Both have processes and Six Sigma can apply to both. Six Sigma is not a panacea; you need to work smart, apply it correctly, and integrate it with your other company best practices.

--Carol