This paper examined employee perceptions of the rewards associated with their participation in a six sigma program. Six sigma is an approach to organizational change that…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examined employee perceptions of the rewards associated with their participation in a six sigma program. Six sigma is an approach to organizational change that incorporates elements of total quality management, business process reengineering, and employee involvement.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was completed by 215 employees (34 percent response rate). Respondents rated the extent to which they felt their participation in six sigma was “instrumental” for a range of outcomes, as well as valence (desirability) of each outcome (based on the VIE concept of instrumentality). The outcomes were classified into four categories: extrinsic, intrinsic, social, and organizational.
Findings
Valence ratings revealed that all 12 outcomes were perceived as desirable. Instrumentality ratings showed that extrinsic outcomes were rated significantly lower than intrinsic, social, and organizational outcomes. Additional analyses revealed significant differences on all four outcome categories between participants and non‐participants in the six sigma program.
Practical implications
The positive valence and instrumentality ratings for participants indicate they believe their participation will lead to valued outcomes for themselves and their organizations. However, employees who choose not to get involved in six sigma do not perceive that their participation would have led to desired outcomes. The results also show that while participants value extrinsic rewards, they do not see six sigma as instrumental in their receipt. These perceptions have important implications for attracting and retaining program participants.
Originality/value
While much has been written about the use of reward systems in supporting a successful six sigma effort, this study empirically examines how employees actually perceive the rewards associated with their participation. It also identifies which types of rewards are most instrumental for participants and non‐participants.
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Rodney McAdam and Shirley‐Ann Hazlett
The Six Sigma approach to business improvement has emerged as a phenomenon in both the practitioner and academic literature with potential for achieving increased competitiveness…
Abstract
Purpose
The Six Sigma approach to business improvement has emerged as a phenomenon in both the practitioner and academic literature with potential for achieving increased competitiveness and contributing. However, there is a lack of critical reviews covering both theory and practice. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to critically review the literature of Six Sigma using a consistent theoretical perspective, namely absorptive capacity.
Design/methodology/approach
The literature from peer‐reviewed journals has been critically reviewed using the absorptive capacity framework and dimensions of acquisition, assimilation, transformation, and exploitation.
Findings
There is evidence of emerging theoretical underpinning in relation to Six Sigma borrowing from an eclectic range of organisational theories. However, this theoretical development lags behind practice in the area. The development of Six Sigma in practice is expanding mainly through more rigorous studies and applications in service‐based environments (profit and not for profit). The absorptive capacity framework is found to be a useful overarching framework within which to situate existing theoretical and practice studies.
Research limitations/implications
Agendas for further research from the critical review, in relation to both theory and practice, have been established in relation to each dimension of the absorptive capacity framework.
Practical implications
The paper shows that Six Sigma is both a strategic and operational issue and that focussing solely on define, measure, analyse, improve control‐based projects can limit the strategic effectiveness of the approach within organisations.
Originality/value
Despite the increasing volume of Six Sigma literature and organisational applications, there is a paucity of critical reviews which cover both theory and practice and which suggest research agendas derived from such reviews.
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Milad Yousefi, Moslem Yousefi, Masood Fathi and Flavio S. Fogliatto
This study aims to investigate the factors affecting daily demand in an emergency department (ED) and to provide a forecasting tool in a public hospital for horizons of up to…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to investigate the factors affecting daily demand in an emergency department (ED) and to provide a forecasting tool in a public hospital for horizons of up to seven days.
Design/methodology/approach
In this study, first, the important factors to influence the demand in EDs were extracted from literature then the relevant factors to the study are selected. Then, a deep neural network is applied to constructing a reliable predictor.
Findings
Although many statistical approaches have been proposed for tackling this issue, better forecasts are viable by using the abilities of machine learning algorithms. Results indicate that the proposed approach outperforms statistical alternatives available in the literature such as multiple linear regression, autoregressive integrated moving average, support vector regression, generalized linear models, generalized estimating equations, seasonal ARIMA and combined ARIMA and linear regression.
Research limitations/implications
The authors applied this study in a single ED to forecast patient visits. Applying the same method in different EDs may give a better understanding of the performance of the model to the authors. The same approach can be applied in any other demand forecasting after some minor modifications.
Originality/value
To the best of the knowledge, this is the first study to propose the use of long short-term memory for constructing a predictor of the number of patient visits in EDs.
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Tao (Tony) Gao and Talin E. Sarraf
This paper explores the major factors influencing multinational companies’ (MNCs) propensity to change the level of resource commitments during financial crises in emerging…
Abstract
This paper explores the major factors influencing multinational companies’ (MNCs) propensity to change the level of resource commitments during financial crises in emerging markets. Favorable changes in the host government policies, market demand, firm strategy, and infrastructural conditions are hypothesized to influence the MNCs’ decision to increase resource commitments during a crisis. The hypotheses are tested with data collected in a survey of 82 MNCs during the recent Argentine financial crisis (late 2002). While all the above variables are considered by the respondents as generally important reasons for increasing resource commitments during a crisis, only favorable changes in government policies significantly influence MNCs’ decisions to change the level of resource commitments during the Argentine financial crisis. The research, managerial implications, and policy‐making implications are discussed.