Six Sigma Yellow Belt: A Detailed Guide

What is Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt?

The Six Sigma Yellow Belt is the first step for people/professionals into the world of process improvement. Six Sigma Yellow Belt certification is meant for those who wish to gain a basic understanding of Six Sigma and the phases of DMAIC, Define, Measure, Analyze, Measure, Control. Six Sigma is a step-by-step process of statistical tools and interventions, with the help of which companies can interpret the business processes requiring attention, find the root cause of problems, and sustain improvement gains.

Yellow Belt professionals can serve as entry-level representatives. They use their understanding of the Six Sigma concepts to help with the Green Belt projects within the organizations. Essentially, they have the responsibility of administering small projects using the Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA) methodology.

Who can Take up the Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt?

This is ideally suited for candidates aspiring to get started on a career in the sector of Quality management. The Six Sigma Yellow Belt training helps professionals implement the methodologies of Six Sigma in their organization to ensure the success of their projects. 

A Yellow Belt professional would serve as a Project team member for the project, helping Black and Green Belts in maintaining the quality of the project. The Yellow Belt professional would have to use Lean tools and techniques for driving basic improvement projects.

How to Get certified in Six Sigma Yellow Belt?

In the section to follow, we guide you through the entire process for getting SSYB through the IASSC, CSSC and the American Quality for Quality (AQS), respectively.

Certification from the Council for Six Sigma Certification (CSSC)

There are two different paths to earn your Six Sigma Yellow Belt through CSSC. The first path is simply sitting for a standard comprehensive exam, and it is suited for candidates who already have the required mentorship and considerable understanding of the topics covered in the Body of Knowledge for the belt. The second path allows individuals to sit for multiple short exams to progress through different sections, rather than a single large comprehensive exam.

Path 1 (Standard Exam)

• This standard examination is a single comprehensive exam consisting of 50 questions. It is an open book format and a non-timed examination.
• The exam consists of true/false and multiple-choice questions from the major sections of the Body of Knowledge for Six Sigma Yellow Belt.
• Candidates who achieve a score of 140 points or higher successfully obtain the official Certification.
• The exam can be taken either at a designated test center or even online. Applicants are given 3 attempts within 12 months of registration to pass the exam successfully if they fail to do so in the first attempt. Students would be required to pay the examination fee again after 3 unsuccessful attempts.

Path 2 (Self-paced exams)

• This is a flexible option that provides the ability to earn different levels of Six Sigma belts (White Belt, Yellow Belt, Green Belt, and Black Belt) through progression, without any additional exam fee being incurred.
• There is an exam for each chapter of the self-study guide. Upon completing a chapter, the candidate has to take a short online exam that consists of approximately 10-15 questions. These exams are non-timed and open-book and can be taken any day at any time.
• To pass each exam, 70% of the minimum score is required. A new level of Six Sigma belt is awarded after passing consecutive exams.
• The exam for Six Sigma Yellow Belt Exam consists of 11-chapter examinations.
• Applicants can attempt the exams for an unlimited number of times within 12 months of registration.

Certification from the International Association for Six Sigma Certification (IASSC)

If you are planning on taking up the IASSC Certified Yellow Belt™ (ICYB™) from IASSC, then you are required to clear a 2-hour closed book proctored exam, with 60 questions which are in the multiple-choice format.

Certification from the American Society for Quality (ASQ)

You can also get certified by the ASQ, which offers the exam in computer-based and paper-based formats.

Computer-based

The CSSYB examination is a one-part, 85-question, two-and-a-half-hour exam and is offered in English only. 75 questions are scored and 10 are unscored.

Paper-based

The CSSYB examination is a one-part, 75-question, two-hour exam and is offered in English only.

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What are the Roles and Responsibilities of a Six Sigma Yellow Belt?

A Yellow Belt professional is expected to know how to integrate the methodologies of Six Sigma to improve transactional systems and production for meeting of organization objectives and customer expectations better.

For a project, Yellow Belts participate as core team members. They often have the responsibility of running small process improvement projects with the use of PDCA. With the help of PDCA, a Yellow Belt can identify a process that could benefit improvement. These small projects can get escalated to the level of Black Belt or Green Belt, where the use of DMAIC methodology is done for maximizing cost savings with the use of Statistical Process Control.

Preparation for Six Sigma Yellow Belt introduces the basic tools of Six Sigma and process management. This provides candidates with a better knowledge of processes, allowing them to provide the necessary assistance to achieve the overall objectives of the organization. They get an overview of the methodology, allowing them to be aligned with the intentions and goals of the company. They have sufficient knowledge to assist Black and Green Belts with their projects.

What are the benefits of Lean Six Sigma Yellow Belt?

A lot of people wish to get certified at the highest level, which is why they directly skip to the Black Belt. While this approach is not necessarily wrong, earning a Yellow Belt has its benefits that include:

Better understanding of the roles

For getting Black Belt, it is important to understand the Green belt and Yellow belt roles as well. The exam is particularly aimed at the Yellow Belt level. It will provide you with an overview of the specific tasks performed by Yellow Belts for a project. They do not have the statistical abilities of a Green Belt, so it is not expected of them to perform such tasks. However, yellow belts do understand the basic Six Sigma principles such as y=f(x), Process Variances, DMADV variation, ISO, Needs Analysis, and more.

Great for your resume

It is not necessary to have a high-level credential in Six Sigma. With a Six Sigma Yellow Belt on your resume, you show your employers that you are dedicated towards the DMAIC process and have passed the exam to ensure quality. Employers are always looking for employees to know how to minimize wastage and save money. Even having your Six Sigma belts listed on LinkedIn will earn you more visibility as it allows employers to search for people with the traits they need.

Potential for high salary

Earning the certification doesn’t necessarily guarantee you a higher salary, but it does make you a more valuable employee to your employer. Amidst such high competition, employers are always on the lookout for candidates with varying skill sets. They will always value someone who can get more tasks done. Your Yellow Belt will certainly give you an advantage over those who don’t have Six Sigma certification.

Of course, apart from the above-mentioned benefits, there are other reasons to get it as well. One great reason is that you get to learn something new and develop your skills to a great extent. Regardless, having the Yellow Belt is beneficial for yourself and your organization.

Six Sigma Yellow Belt - Exam Requirements

Here is the exam format for Six Sigma Yellow Belt:

ASQ

Type of questions	No of questions	Duration	Open/closed
MCQ	85 for computer 75 for paper-based	Two and a half hour Two hours	Open book

IASSC

Type of questions	No of questions	Duration	Open/closed	Passing score
MCQ and True/False	60	Two hours	Closed book	230/300

CSSC

Type of questions	No of questions	Duration	Open/closed	Passing score
MCQ and True/False	50	Non-Timed	Open book	140/200

How to Apply for the Six Sigma Yellow Belt exam?

For the Six Sigma Yellow Belt exam, there are no prerequisites. To get the IASSC Certified Yellow Belt, you have to sit for the ICYB exam and pass it. To apply for the exam, visit the official websites of the issuing body. Once approved, you will be able to give the 2 hours long, closed-book exam. To pass the exam you have to score 230 out of 300 points.

ASQ

For the ASQ, there are two ways to apply for Six Sigma Yellow Belt Exam, depending on your preference:

Computer-based testing

The exam is delivered on-site, and it is a popular option for a lot of working professionals. IASSC organizes Computer-Based Testing Sessions as well as web-based exams.  

Paper-based testing

It is a more conventional form of testing as opposed to computer-based testing.
Prometric is the testing partner that delivers the certification exam. Here are the steps you need to follow for scheduling the exam:

• Visit the official website of Prometric.
• Under the Test Takers section, click on Schedule Your Exam.
• Search for Six Sigma Yellow Belt in the search bar.
• Click on Read More.
• On the left side of the page, under the Actions table, click on the Schedule option.
• On the next page, select your Country.
• Read the Information Review and click on Next.
• On the next page, agree to the Privacy Policy.
• Enter your Eligibility ID and other details.
• Next, you will be asked to make the Appointment selection where you will have to select the Yellow Belt.
• On the next page, select the date and time for your exam.
• Your exam will be scheduled.

CSSC

For the CSSC Six Sigma Yellow Belt exam, follow these steps:

• Visit the official website of CSSC.
• Click on ‘Add to cart’.
• A pop-up will appear asking you to either ‘View Cart’ or ‘Checkout’. Select the latter.
• Enter the details and make the payment for placing your order.

What is the average salary of a Six Sigma Yellow Belt professional?

Since Yellow Belts have a comprehensive understanding of the Six Sigma methods, they are eligible for roles like:

• Operations Manager
• Quality Engineer
• Process Engineer
• Supply Chain Manager
• Business Process Analyst.

The average annual salary of Six Sigma Yellow Belt professional ranges from $67,000 to $99,000 per annum. The salary also depends on experience. The average salary is $49,539 per annum for people with 1-4 years of experience. The salary increases to $67,580 per year for those with 5-9 years of experience. 

Professionals with 10-19 years of experience earn $90,000 per annum on average. The salary can even reach more than $99,000 per annum for those with more than 20 years of experience. Other factors like job profile also have an impact on the salary. Professionals looking to leverage the benefits must enroll in Six Sigma yellow belt course. All the figures are from Indeed.com's salary estimation based on job advertisements and 512,851 employees.

All the figures are from Indeed.com's salary estimation based on job advertisements and 512,851 employees.

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