Update: Jaatinen B.V. is the only organisation providing training in Finnish that has received international recognition for its Lean Six Sigma Black Belt training and Certification. The Council for Six Sigma Certification, CSSC, has approved the accreditation of the BB and GB Training and Certification.
A participant in my Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Training tipped me off to the idea of the need to clarify the range of Black Belt Certifications. This would help in the choice of training.
TLean Six Sigma Black Belt (BB) certification is a respected indication of a person's competence and therefore a desired and popular certificate among Lean Six Sigma practitioners. The certificate can be obtained through several organizations. However, understanding the differences between certifications is often challenging, finding information is laborious, and I often encounter misunderstandings.
In my blog, I list the most common BB Certificates, requirements and differences between the Certificates. My blog also includes ideas on how to use the information to find the right BB training for you.
For a similar summary of Green Belt certificates, read my blog: Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certification.
What is a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt?
If you are new to the topic, just to clarify what a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt is:
- The Lean Six Sigma Black Belt has extensive knowledge and mastery of the Lean Six Sigma methodology and its methods and leads complex improvement projects. Lean Six Sigma Black Belt understands how to implement Lean Six Sigma and can apply Lean Six Sigma at an advanced skill level.
How to get Black Belt Certification?
The most common way to obtain a Black Belt Certificate is to complete the tasks required by the training provider after the training and become certified as a Black Belt. After the training, it is also possible to obtain certification from an independent organisation.
Certification requirements vary, depending on the organisation:
- Theory test: 1-4 hours written, supervised multiple-choice test (open or closed book)
- Completion of one or more Lean Six Sigma projects
- Combination of points 1 and 2
Various Black Belt Certificates
Black Belt certification is not protected; in principle, anyone can act as a certification body. Therefore, determining the value of a certificate can be difficult. The true value of a certificate should be assessed based on the reputation, reliability, and the certifications and recognitions received by the issuer of the certificate.
Below is a list of the best-known BB certificate providers:
- ASQ (American Society of Quality)
- This is perhaps the most well-known Lean Six Sigma Certification in Finland. The certification requirements include the successful completion of a project and a written multiple-choice exam. The certificate is valid for 3 years, after which it can be renewed. Read more about the requirements: the ASQ Black Belt Certificate
- It is worth noting that ASQ does not accredit training providers but certifies individuals. Training providers cannot therefore issue ASQ certificates. The ASQ website provides a list of organisations that offer licensed ASQ training by ASQ-validated instructors. At the time of writing, there are no ASQ-registered trainers in Europe.
- IASSC (The International Association for Six Sigma Certification)
- The IASSC is less well-known in Finland, but the second well-known international certification organisation in Europe. The IACSS certification requirements include a written multiple-choice exam. The certificate is valid for 3 years, after which it is renewable. Read more about the requirements: the IASSC Black Belt Certificate
- The IASSC also accredits training providers. Accreditation is granted if the training material is validated by the IASSC and at least one of the trainers is certified by the IASSC. There are no Finnish Black Belt Training providers on the list of IASSC accredited trainers, but there are some European ones (see the "Accredited Provider" section in the previous link).
- CSSC, The Council for Six Sigma Certification
- CSSC is the third major provider of Black Belt Certificates. There are three levels of certification. Level I requires a written multiple-choice exam, while Level II and III also require a Lean Six Sigma project that meets certain requirements. The certificate does not expire. Read more about the requirements: the CSS Black Belt certificate
- The CSSC also accredits training providers. In the accreditation process, the CSSC validates the training material and the trainer's level of experience. Jaatinen B.V. is the only organisation providing training in Finnish that is accredited by the CSSC, see the list of accredited organisations at the link: Organisations accredited by the CSSC
- Trainers and companies: in addition to these three large organisations, many training providers and companies that have widely implemented Lean Six Sigma have their own certification. Some require a test, others require one or more projects, management approval, and some internal certifications also require demonstration of mastery of specific capabilities important to the business. Requirements and levels vary widely.
Which certificate should I get?
As the certification field is quite diverse, here are some thoughts and ideas on choosing a certificate:
- The ASQ and IASSC certifications test a very broad range of statistical skills. Deep statistical knowledge is necessary in certain work environments, but in many organisations it is overkill. IASSC does not require a project, which I think is a shortcoming. A successful project is a good demonstration that the Belt knows how to use the methods adequately and can make lasting changes. Renewing the BB Certification every 3 years for both certifications is a reasonably large investment.
- The content of the CSSC certification theory exam, in my opinion, focuses well on testing the methods that are practically needed. In my opinion, an advantage of the certification is also that it does not expire. However, recognition for accumulating one's own experience, a Black Belt can instead be obtained by acquiring certification levels II and III in addition to level I. The CSSC certificate, however, is less well-known in Finland.
- Certificates from different trainers: Since preparing for the certification exams offered by the aforementioned organizations takes a lot of time, it's worth considering how important obtaining such a certification is. If the BB training includes the opportunity to certify by completing a project, it's usually already sufficient evidence of competence.
Tips for choosing BB training
The certificates do not give a very good idea of which Black Belt Training would be right for you. You can obtain an ASQ, IASSC or CSSC certificate if you wish, regardless of your choice of training. Currently, Finnish BB training providers do not offer these certificates except for Jaatinen BV's CSSC-accredited Black Belt training. However, how can one assess training based on certificates? Here are a few tips:
- ASQ's Body of Knowledge, BoK: BB training content presentations often refer to ASQ's BoK content because it is a widely known, public list. Another option is IASSC's BoK, which largely covers the same topics as ASQ's BoK. The list provides a preliminary overview of the training, but merely covering the list does not yet reveal much about the quality of the training or the trainer.
- Based on my experience, ASQ's list is extensive and covers many methods that are not practically needed. In order to teach all the listed methods in the training so that the orientation is sufficient, the trainings become very long (20+ days). In our own trainings, we have opted for a different approach: a limited number of tools, allowing the training to be conducted in a compact manner with the main focus on improvement and project management, rather than excessive statistics.
- Our Black Belt training courses are the shortest in Finland, lasting 13 days. We cover 100% of the CSSC BoK content and approximately 80% of the ASQ and IASSC content, but we have streamlined our training by eliminating unnecessary elements, especially more exotic statistical methods. We conduct training across Europe in various countries, and based on our market comparison, BB training typically lasts 10-16 days. Based on our comparison and experience, this approach best suits the needs and work situations of Black Belt candidates in general.
- In addition to the content of the training, it's also worth familiarizing yourself with the learning environment and the trainer's experience. How different learning styles are accommodated in the training, what teaching methods are used, how experienced the trainer is, etc.
Our choice for BB certification
Our certification requirement is a successful project. We have abandoned theory exams because we noticed during the training sessions that participants were stressing too much about mastering the test questions rather than focusing on improving processes. Attention was diverted too much towards passing the test instead of process improvement.
After completing our Black Belt Training accredited by CSSC, participants can obtain a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification from us upon successfully completing the project.
If you are interested in obtaining a Back Belt Certification for yourself and are looking for a suitable training, check out our Lean Six Sigma Training, our teaching methods and the trainer. We regularly organise open training courses as well as tailor-made training for companies.
Read more: Lean Six Sigma Black Belt Training and Certification
Please contact us if you have any questions or other thoughts about the Certification.
Lean Six Sigma,
Certified Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt
