CLEVELAND, OH-The Six Sigma industry has had a bumpy ride since 2008. After the 2008 economic crisis, the Six Sigma industry saw quite a boom. From year-end 2008 until year-end 2009, search volume for the term "six sigma certification" doubled based upon data generated from Google Trends.

According to Craig Setter, president of the Aveta Business Institute, "After the economic collapse, we noticed a surge in the need for Six Sigma Training. It was a perfect storm. Companies wanted to reduce their bottom line, they wanted to streamline, and above all, they wanted to avoid further layoffs." He continued, "Even on the individual level, Six Sigma certification helps with employability. There was strong fear of what the immediate future would bring."

However, all of the elements pushing the lean six sigma popularity came crashing down by December 2010. Over the course of this year, search volume has returned to mid-2008 levels, nearly a 50% decrease from its peak. A positive interpretation of this decline reflects a lot about the current business climate according to Setter. "It shows that despite what we may hear in the news, businesses really seem to be getting back to normal. It appears the primary fears have dissipated," he concluded.

The Aveta Business Institute is a leading provider in six sigma training and certification. Six Sigma is a business optimization strategy originally developed by the Motorola Company in 1986. Since then, countless global corporations have benefited from the methodology's quality improvement strategies.