Six Sigma Project Scope Statement
This is a practical guide to building a scope statement for a six sigma project project — a definition of deliverables, boundaries and acceptance criteria, adapted to the realities of reducing defects and variation in a process.
What a Scope Statement is
A scope statement is a definition of deliverables, boundaries and acceptance criteria. For the full concept and how it works in general, see Scope Statement. On a six sigma project project it plays the same role, tuned to this kind of work.
Why it matters for a Six Sigma Project project
Six Sigma Project projects live or die on reducing defects and variation in a process. A well-built scope statement gives the team a shared, explicit reference for exactly that — reducing ambiguity, aligning stakeholders, and making problems visible early enough to act. Skipping it, or doing it generically, is how six sigma project projects drift into avoidable delay and cost.
What to include
- Deliverables
- In scope
- Explicitly out of scope
- Acceptance criteria
- Constraints and assumptions
Six Sigma Project-specific considerations
Tailor the scope statement to the risks that most often derail six sigma project projects:
- Data availability
- Root-cause complexity
- Sustaining control
Example
On a real six sigma project project, the scope statement would be shaped by reducing defects and variation in a process. In particular, it should explicitly account for the project’s biggest risks — data availability, root-cause complexity, sustaining control — rather than treating them as afterthoughts.