Who is this programme for?
Experienced Black Belts, operational excellence leaders, improvement programme and methods specialists, and professionals who support other Belts and shape organisation-wide standards.
Curriculum & Assessment Programme
Six Sigma Master Black Belt – Curriculum and Assessment Programme
Develop improvement work from individual projects into a credible programme. The focus is on portfolio decisions, methodological quality and the development of other Belts. Assessment therefore includes coaching and a reasoned approach to programme governance.
Audience and entry requirements
What are the entry requirements?
Black Belt knowledge or equivalent demonstrated competence, plus experience of methodical improvement-project work. Evidence may include certificates, anonymised project reports and a structured technical discussion. No particular certificate issuer or fixed number of years in employment is required. Before booking, the Academy checks whether the candidate’s experience supports programme-level work; any additional requirements are communicated in advance.
Scope and learning format
A modular course with an individually agreed schedule. Teaching hours, coaching exercises, portfolio work, in-person days and assessment dates are specified before booking. Percentages describe subject emphasis, not a promised number of days. Live teaching is available online or in person; independent assessment work is identified separately.
Which competencies will you demonstrate?
- Design an improvement programme linking strategy, projects and measurable outcomes.
- Prioritise a portfolio using transparent benefit, risk and resource assumptions.
- Critically review a demanding statistical analysis and recognise conclusions that the method cannot support.
- Coach a Belt towards defined objectives, identify learning needs and provide clear technical feedback.
- Develop method standards and reviews that support traceable and ethically sound decisions.
- Defend benefit claims, programme limitations and alternatives to management.
The curriculum
1. Strategy and programme mandate
Translate business objectives into improvement goals; programme mandate, sponsor roles, maturity, competing objectives, governance and decision rights. Distinguish project outputs from programme effects.
Scope / allocation
15% of subject content
Evidence and output
A programme mandate with objectives, responsibilities and measurable decision criteria.
2. Portfolio and benefit management
Project selection and prioritisation, resources, dependencies, risks and capacity constraints; benefit logic, credible baselines and prevention of double-counted savings.
Scope / allocation
20% of subject content
Evidence and output
A prioritised project portfolio with documented assumptions, uncertainty and benefit review.
3. Statistical and methodological assurance
Critically review measurement systems, models and experimental plans; sampling fitness, model validation, robustness, multiple comparisons and transferability. Detect flawed analysis and identify suitable specialist support.
Scope / allocation
25% of subject content
Evidence and output
A review of a demanding analysis, diagnosing defects and proposing improvements.
4. Coaching Belts and developing competence
Learning objectives, observation and feedback, questioning, coaching boundaries, case-based learning and clear explanation. Assess technical capability without equating attendance with competence.
Scope / allocation
20% of subject content
Evidence and output
A coaching plan, observed coaching segment and short assessment of a selected competence.
5. Embedding standards and change
Method standards, stage gates, review rules, data ethics, knowledge transfer, escalation and work with process owners; practical deployment and adaptation.
Scope / allocation
10% of subject content
Evidence and output
A methodology and governance rule defining ownership, review criteria and treatment of deviations.
6. Management dialogue and critical programme review
Decision-ready reporting, limits of metrics and benefit claims, assessment of programme effectiveness, lessons learned and reprioritisation under changed conditions.
Scope / allocation
10% of subject content
Evidence and output
A management paper and oral defence of a justified programme decision.
How your work is assessed
Weighting: 25%
A. Written methodology and portfolio review
Three complex case tasks: assess a flawed statistical analysis, justify a portfolio decision and challenge a benefit claim.
120 minutes, supervised
- Technical accuracy of the diagnosis and proposed correction.
- Prioritisation with traceable criteria and uncertainties.
- Critical: material methodological or data defects must be recognised and incorporated into the decision.
Weighting: 35%
B. Programme and portfolio design
An individual assignment of 20–30 pages excluding appendices, containing a programme mandate, prioritised portfolio, benefit logic, method standard and Belt development approach. Based on an authorised, anonymised organisation or an equivalent Academy case.
Submission within eight weeks of approval of the assignment; workload and supervision are specified separately in the course schedule.
- Strategic coherence and programme mandate (20% of the component score).
- Portfolio, resources and benefit assessment (25%).
- Methodological quality and review design (25%).
- Belt development, implementation and governance (20%).
- Reflection, traceability and limitations (10%).
- Critical: benefit and effectiveness claims must clearly distinguish evidence, assumptions and scenarios.
- Critical: governance must allow a reasoned rejection of technically unsound projects or analyses.
Weighting: 20%
C. Observed coaching
Twenty minutes of coaching in a supplied Belt case situation, followed by ten minutes of reflection. The case is provided with reasonable preparation time and the counterpart’s role is consistently briefed.
30 minutes of assessment; 30 minutes of preparation
- Diagnosis of learning and methodological needs.
- Technically accurate, understandable feedback and appropriate questions.
- Encouragement of the counterpart’s independence and agreement on a verifiable next step.
- Critical: technical errors must not be endorsed as correct; uncertainty in the coach’s knowledge must be acknowledged.
Weighting: 20%
D. Professional programme defence
Ten-minute management presentation followed by twenty minutes of questions, including a change in the scenario’s conditions.
30 minutes
- Rationale for strategic and methodological decisions.
- Response to competing objectives, new information and limitations.
- Critical: central assumptions and decisions must be explained independently and be open to revision when contradicted by evidence.
Pass requirements
A pass requires at least 70% overall after weighting and at least 60% in every mandatory assessment component. Rubric-based work uses a 0–4 scale: 0 = missing or technically unusable; 1 = major errors without a defensible rationale; 2 = substantially sound, with limited gaps; 3 = technically sound, traceable and applied appropriately; 4 = also critically evaluated, with justified alternatives and limitations. Every criterion expressly designated critical must score at least 2 out of 4. These pass thresholds are Academy programme rules; ISO/IEC 17024 does not prescribe them.
Permitted resources and AI
Written review: approved references, formula sheet and analysis tools named in advance; no third-party communication or generative AI. Programme assignment: literature, software and generative AI may support the work if documented; personal responsibility and source verification remain mandatory. Coaching and professional discussion: the candidate’s plan or report and agreed presentation; no undisclosed assistance.
Identity and independent work
Identity is checked before each supervised assessment component. Submitted work includes a declaration of authorship, a record of sources and tools, and identification of contributions by others. The professional discussion checks the candidate’s personal understanding of the submission. Personal and business data must be anonymised or submitted only with documented authorisation.
The common assessment rules also cover retakes, reasonable adjustments, appeals, confidentiality and certificate authorisation.
Assessment and Certificate RulesWhat your certificate demonstrates
Six Sigma Master Black Belt – Assessed Academy Certificate
- Scope of the credential
- Records successful demonstration of the stated programme-design, methodological review, coaching and technical-defence competencies. It identifies the case type, programme ELA-PRG-MBB and revision. It does not attest years of leadership experience or benefits actually realised by an organisation.
- How to interpret the qualification
- An Academy-owned assessed qualification. It is not PECB or ASQ certification and is not accredited personnel certification. The reference to ISO/IEC 17024:2026 describes the assessment programme’s alignment with selected principles; full conformity with the standard is not asserted.
- Assessment date and currency
- Under Academy policy, this certificate is valid for a maximum of three years from its date of issue. It is issued only after all programme and assessment requirements have been met and the award decision has been documented. The validity period does not start on enrolment or at the beginning of the course. The actual validity period and expiry date are stated on the certificate; a shorter period applies only when expressly specified in the relevant course or assessment programme. There is no automatic extension. Renewal requires a documented review of current knowledge and application appropriate to the programme, using recent evidence and/or a suitable update or competence assessment. Repurchasing the entire course is not a blanket requirement. A renewed Academy certificate is also valid for no more than three years from its issue date. Attendance and passing an assessment remain verifiable historical facts tied to their dates; they do not provide indefinite validity as evidence of current competence.
This programme applies to deliveries whose agreed course and assessment plan explicitly references this revision. Existing bookings retain their agreed terms.
Programme questions
Is Master Black Belt simply a more advanced statistics course?
No. Methodological depth remains important, but programme and portfolio management, review of analyses and development of other Belts are also central. Assessment therefore includes observed coaching and a programme design.
Must my Black Belt have been issued by the Academy?
No. Equivalent competence from other providers or documented practice can be considered. What matters is whether the demonstrated knowledge supports the demanding programme and coaching tasks.
Do I need an active improvement programme at my employer?
No. A suitable anonymised organisational case may be used; alternatively, the Academy supplies an equivalent case. A case-based assessment is not presented as an improvement programme actually deployed in a company.
How is coaching assessed fairly?
Published criteria cover identifying needs, providing technically sound support, communicating clearly and agreeing a verifiable next step. A consistently briefed case situation and documented assessment rationale support comparability.
Does the qualification automatically authorise me to certify others?
No. It records the competencies individually assessed. It does not establish accreditation, recognition as a certification body or automatic approval as an examiner by another organisation.
When is the Academy certificate issued?
After successful completion of all mandatory components and a documented certification decision under the Academy assessment rules. Attendance alone or submission of a programme design is not sufficient.
Advice & course planning
Solo self-employed in Germany? Discuss potential KOMPASS support with an official advisory centre before booking. We can help you select a suitable programme in a consultation.
An Academy-owned assessed competence credential. The assessment programme refers to selected principles of ISO/IEC 17024:2026. This is not a claim of accreditation or fully demonstrated conformity.