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Article
Publication date: 3 April 2023

Shreeranga Bhat, Jiju Antony, Maher Maalouf, Gijo E.V. and Souraj Salah

This paper aims to unearth the essential components of Six Sigma for successful deployment and sustainment of service quality in four different organizations in the United Arab…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to unearth the essential components of Six Sigma for successful deployment and sustainment of service quality in four different organizations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). More specifically, the paper is intended to determine the motivation to apply Six Sigma, Voice of Customer, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Critical-to-Quality (CTQ), readiness factors, Critical Success Factors, sustainment measures, tools and techniques used, challenges/barriers and performance impact on the company.

Design/methodology/approach

An exploratory research methodology with multiple case study analyses was adopted to determine the answers to the research objectives. Four case studies from different service processes of four companies were analyzed. The case studies were collated from these companies via a case study protocol with pre-defined criteria.

Findings

The analysis shows that service operation improvement projects are primarily dependent on the voice of the internal customer, with return on investment in savings as the KPI of the process. Most organizations prefer cycle time and errors as the CTQs in the Six Sigma projects. Even novice users can effectively apply the Six Sigma methodology with external experts’ assistance, mentoring and interventions. Across the case studies, it is observed that the projects were successfully deployed due to the support of top management leadership, effective communication and cross-functional teams. Employee resistance to change is the common barrier observed during the case study analysis. Eventually, in all the four case studies, Six Sigma is executed with standard tools and techniques within the define, measure, analyze, improve, control (DMAIC) approach.

Research limitations/implications

The present study’s findings cannot be generalized due to the limited number of case study analyses in different ecosystems in the UAE. The authors would like to analyse and report more case studies in service quality improvement through the Six Sigma methodology to comprehend and develop a generic roadmap for the deployment of Six Sigma in the UAE service industry.

Practical implications

The study’s findings provide insights into commonalities and differences between the essential factors of Six Sigma deployment and sustainability in UAE companies.

Originality/value

The study results might help the policymakers and key decision makers in UAE and other countries understand the effectiveness of Six Sigma in service quality improvement with its essential factors for deployment.

Details

International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, vol. 14 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-4166

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Article
Publication date: 6 August 2010

Souraj Salah, Abdur Rahim and Juan A. Carretero

Lean and Six Sigma are the two most important continuous improvement (CI) methodologies for achieving operational and service excellence in any organization. The purpose of this…

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Abstract

Purpose

Lean and Six Sigma are the two most important continuous improvement (CI) methodologies for achieving operational and service excellence in any organization. The purpose of this paper is to explain how lean compares to the Six Sigma and outline the benefits for integrating them. Also, this paper discusses the existing models that describe how Six Sigma and lean fit together. A new detailed description for integrating Six Sigma and lean is developed to provide an improved approach for CI.

Design/methodology/approach

The following research included proposals and discussion, which were mainly based on the authors' own findings and experience, in addition to a literature‐based review of some of the most common and traditional lean and Six Sigma models.

Findings

The paper proposes a new lean Six Sigma (LSS) approach and provides a detailed description of its phases. The paper also presents the views on the integration benefits as well as on how Six Sigma compares to lean. Six Sigma and lean are related and share common grounds in terms of striving to achieve customer satisfaction. Their integration is concluded to be possible and beneficial.

Research limitations/implications

The paper discusses the existing models that describe how Six Sigma and lean fit together. Finally, a new detailed description for integrating Six Sigma and lean is developed to provide an improved approach for CI.

Originality/value

The paper extends previous works on LSS and proposes a novel approach to LSS. The proposed structure is built upon the existing define, measure, analyze, improve and control structure which is well renowned in the literature.

Details

International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, vol. 1 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-4166

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