Andrew BeckrichDr. Evers MET 627

SIPOC

SIPOC can be a very useful communications tool. A SIPOC is a very detail driven process definer that includes suppliers, inputs, process, output, and customers. Suppliers can be defined as the ones providing the inputs to the process. Input is defined as the materials, service, or information that is used during the process. The process is typically any sequence of actions that adds value to the inputs to provide outputs. Outputs are the materials, services, or information produced that the customer finds of value. Lastly, the customers are the users of the products. These types of diagrams provide the basic template for defining a process before you start to measure, improve and control.

SIPOC helps up clearly understand the scope of a process we are trying to define. The scope, for SIPOC, is everything that is related to the supplier and inputs, the processes itself, and the final output to the customer. By defining the process using SIPOC, the owner to the process and the people involved are all in agreement to the boundaries in which they are working on. By utilizing the SIPOC diagram, companies can have consensus and clear definitions of each stage before beginning to draw process maps. This is why creating a SIPOC is a group brainstorming activity. When in a varied group, you can reveal/discover hidden details that would hard to find in a closed group. There are many ways to create a SIPOC diagram.

To define a process using a SIPOC, the following steps can be taken. Begin with identifying the name of the overall process. This is typically done with a verb and a noun in the present tense. An example of this could be “Wash Car”. Next, try to identify and define the outputs to the process; these are typically tangible things. An important note is that outputs specify what the process delivers, not what it achieves. For my example, my output will be a clean, washed car not a “satisfied customer”. Now, define the customer to the output. This is who will be receiving the output; in this case it is me. Now, define the inputs to the process. Again, these are typically tangible things that trigger the process. An example in my case would be that since I bought a car wash, an order request is my input. Next, identify who the supplier(s) is/are. This is who is providing the inputs, whether it is materials, services, or information. The supplier in my case is the gas station I am getting my car washed at. Sometimes the supplier and customer can be the same person. If you think about me washing my own car, I would clean the car, so I would be the supplier providing the service, and the car is mine, so I would also be receiving the service. Lastly, define the sub-processes that make up the overall process. This would be bullets that include: rinsing, washing, drying, waxing, etc…

Two of the most common ways is to start with suppliers and also to start with customers. When starting with suppliers, the process can be ran through chronologically and kept clear in everyone’s heads. Inversely, by working backwards you can identify the entire variable perhaps

more easily by analyzing the final product. Both strategies are very successful. Follow those simple guidelines, and you will be well on your way to developing a SIPOC diagram.

References

2008 Improvement Skills Consulting Ltd. Registered in England number 06427548 Registered Office: 204 Blind Lane, Flackwell Heath, High Wycombe HP10 9LE T: +44 (0)7850 728506 E: info@improvement-skills.co.uk W: www.improvement-skills.co.uk

Saxena, Sanjaya. SIPOC. Discover Six Sigma. 2005-2010. 30 January, 2011. http://www.discover6sigma.org/post/2007/06/sipoc/