The ASQ CSSGB Study Guide

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The Certified Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook, Second Edition

Roderick A. Munro, Govindarajan Ramu, and Daniel J. Zrymiak

The ASQ CSSYB Study Guide

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The Certified Six Sigma Yellow Belt Handbook

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The ASQ Pocket Guide for the Certified Six Sigma Black Belt
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The Certified Six Sigma Black Belt Handbook, Third Edition

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The Certified Six Sigma Master Black Belt Handbook

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Practical Engineering, Process, and Reliability Statistics

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The ASQ Pocket Guide for the Certified Six Sigma Black Belt
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Process Improvement Using Six Sigma: A DMAIC Guide

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Statistics for Six Sigma Black Belts

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The ASQ Pocket Guide to Statistics for Six Sigma Black Belts
Matthew Barsalou

The Quality Toolbox, Second Edition

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Root Cause Analysis: Simplified Tools and Techniques, Second Edition

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 The ASQ CSSGB Study Guide

Roderick A. Munro, Daniel J. Zrymiak, and Elizabeth J. Rice

ASQ Quality Press

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

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 American Society for Quality, Quality Press, Milwaukee 53203
© 2017 by ASQ
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Names: Munro, Roderick A., author. | Zrymiak, Daniel J., author. | Rice,
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Title: The ASQ CSSGB study guide / Roderick A. Munro, Daniel J. Zrymiak, and
Elizabeth J. Rice.
Description: Milwaukee, Wisconsin : ASQ Quality Press, [2017]
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 Table of Contents

Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix

Section 1 Sample Questions by BoK . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Part I Overview: Six Sigma and the Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Part II Define Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Part III Measure Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Part IV Analyze Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
Part V Improve Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Part VI Control Phase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Section 2 Additional Practice Problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119

Appendix: ASQ Certified Six Sigma Green Belt Body of Knowledge (2014) . . . . . 131
Levels of Cognition Based on Bloom’s Taxonomy—Revised (2001) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138

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 Acknowledgments

I would like to thank Govind Ramu for his support and encouragement in getting
this work created.
—Roderick A. Munro

I would like to thank Rod, Elizabeth, Govind, Paul, and Matt for their collaboration
and synergies. I also extend my gratitude to ASQ Quality Press, ASQ’s management
and staff, and the greater ASQ and quality communities for their indulgence and pur-
suit of professional growth and excellence.
This book is dedicated to Susan, Brooke, Ryan, my family, friends, and the commu-
nity of like-minded fellows, lifelong learners, and practitioners. As we continue our
journey from rough origins toward wisdom, virtue, and perfection, may we always
proceed with curiosity, enthusiasm, perseverance, and hope in our hearts so that we’ll
never walk alone.
—Daniel J. Zrymiak

In loving memory of my mother, Helen Frances Rice, whose passion for lifelong
learning and multitude of awe-inspiring accomplishments were always a source of
amazement and inspiration.
—Elizabeth J. Rice

vii

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 Introduction

Welcome to the new ASQ CSSGB Study Guide! A team of ASQ fellows has created this
material from scratch with over 300 new questions primarily based on the second edition
of The Certified Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook (exceptions noted with specific questions).

PURPOSE
The primary purpose of this study guide is to help you determine your readiness for the
ASQ Certification exam, using the questions as a s­ elf-­assessment tool.

PRIMARY AUDIENCE
The primary audience for this work is the individual who plans to sit for the ASQ Cer-
tified Six Sigma Green Belt examination.

STUDY GUIDE LAYOUT

There is one right answer per question. The answers to each chapter’s questions appear
at the end of the chapter. The correct answer is given by letter along with the location of
the topic (page number and paragraph or other locator) in the second edition of The Cer-
tified Six Sigma Green Belt Handbook. If you do not answer all questions correctly and are
looking for additional preparation, it is recommended that you consult the Handbook for
a refresher and deeper dive into the material, along with additional t­ opic-­specific refer-
ence books offered by ASQ Quality Press.

GUIDE USE RESTRICTION

Please know that this study guide cannot be taken into ASQ exam rooms during the
actual exam process. The ASQ Certification Committee uses a ­well-­honed process for
writing exam questions that is designed to produce a thorough competency examina-
tion of the exam taker.

ix

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 x  Introduction

FEEDBACK TO AUTHORS
Your feedback and suggestions for improvement to the CSSGB Study Guide are most
welcome. Please contact us at [email protected] so that we may have the opportunity to
continually improve our resources and incorporate suggestions for improvement into
future printings or editions of the study guide.
Roderick A. Munro
Daniel J. Zrymiak
Elizabeth J. Rice

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 Section 1
Sample Questions by BoK
Part I Overview: Six Sigma and the Organization
Part II Definite Phase
Part III Measure Phase
Part IV Analyze Phase
Part V Improve Phase
Part VI Control Phase

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 Part I

Questions
Part I
Overview: Six Sigma and the
Organization
(Exam Targets 13 Questions)

QUESTIONS

A. Six Sigma and Organizational Goals

1. Value of six sigma

Recognize why organizations use six sigma, how they apply its philosophy and goals, and the
evolution of six sigma from quality leaders such as Juran, Deming, Shewhart, Ishikawa, and oth-
ers. (Understand)

2. Organizational goals and six sigma projects

Identify the linkages and supports that need to be established between a selected six sigma proj-
ect and the organization’s goals, and describe how process inputs, outputs, and feedback at all
levels can influence the organization as a whole. (Understand)

3. Organizational drivers and metrics

Recognize key business drivers (profit, market share, customer satisfaction, efficiency, product
differentiation) for all types of organizations. Understand how key metrics and scorecards are
developed and how they impact the entire organization. (Understand)

1. Why is Six Sigma important in a business application?

a. Customers are demanding the use of Six Sigma in many industries.
b. Organizations must stay profitable to remain in business, and Six Sigma is a
powerful tool to that end.
c. The automotive industry demands that all suppliers use Six Sigma to
continually improve products.
d. Managers demand that Green Belts be trained to support organizations in
today’s businesses.

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 4   Section 1: Sample Questions by BoK

2. Which of the following was the first documented organization to utilize Six Sigma
as we know it today?
Questions

a. Motorola Inc.
Part I

b. Ford Motor Company

c. General Electric
d. General Motors
3. What is the most common cause of a failed Six Sigma program in an
organization?
a. Failure to properly define the processes to be utilized in the organization
b. Lack of proper training for the various team members
c. Too many organizational definitions of what Six Sigma should be
d. Management’s lack of commitment to real process improvement
4. Who developed the concept of what we call statistical process control (SPC)?
a. W. Edwards Deming
b. Joseph M. Juran
c. Kaoru Ishikawa
d. Walter A. Shewhart
5. The quality guru who created the 14 Points and the 7 Deadly Diseases was
a. W. Edwards Deming.
b. Joseph M. Juran.
c. Kaoru Ishikawa.
d. Walter A. Shewhart.
6. The cause and effect diagram, or fishbone diagram, was created by
a. W. Edwards Deming.
b. Joseph M. Juran.
c. Kaoru Ishikawa.
d. Walter A. Shewhart.

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 Part I: Overview: Six Sigma and the Organization   5

7. Which of the following quality gurus wrote extensively about the three
key managerial processes (quality planning, quality control, and quality

Questions
improvement)?

Part I
a. W. Edwards Deming
b. Joseph M. Juran
c. Kaoru Ishikawa
d. Walter A. Shewhart
8. The key tool of a process approach when looking at issues is
a. the Red “X.”
b. the Pareto principle.
c. plan–do–check–act (PDCA).
d. input process output (IPO).

B. Lean Principles in the Organization

1. Lean concepts
Define and describe lean concepts such as theory of constraints, value chain, flow, and perfec-
tion. (Apply)

2. ­Value-­streaming mapping
Use ­value-­stream mapping to identify ­value-­added processes and steps or processes that produce
waste, including excess inventory, unused space, test inspection, rework, transportation, and
storage. (Understand)

9. Which of the following three concepts are fundamental to the understanding of

lean thinking?
a. Purpose, waste, and waste elimination
b. Prevention, value, and continual improvement
c. Value, waste, and the process of creating value without waste
d. Purpose, pull, and partnering without interference

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