Lean Six Sigma Implementation Research Articles

Modelling the barriers of Lean Six Sigma for Indian micro-small medium enterprises

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the barriers of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) and develop the interrelationship among them using interpretive structural modelling (ISM) and Matriced Impact Croises Multiplication Appliquee a un Classement (MICMAC). Design/methodology/approach Using systematic literature review and expert’s opinions, 26 LSS barriers have been extracted and finalized through statistical analysis, that is importance-index analysis and corrected item minus total correlation methods. The statistical analysis of purified 22 LSS barriers has been carried out and consistency of finalized barriers has been checked through reliability statistical test in Statistical Package for the Social Sciences software. Finally, the contextual relationship among finalized LSS barriers is developed using ISM and MICMAC approach. Findings The ISM model indicates that insufficient management commitment and involvement, lack of resources, lack of training and education, lack of strategic thinking, lack of training funds are strategic factors; improper project selection, poor selection of employee for belt training, lack of total employee involvement, lack of awareness of about LSS are prudent factors; unclear vision, high implementation cost, resistance to culture change, weak supplier linkage, poor alignment between company’s goal and customer demand are burst factors. Furthermore, MICMAC analysis is splitting the LSSBs in four clusters according to their driving power and dependency. These results provide a clear mind-set to engineering manager for focusing more on LSS barriers according to their driving power and dependency. Research limitations/implications There may be biasness in making pairwise comparison matrix of barriers due to involvement of expert’s opinion as human error. Practical implications The outcome of this paper provides robust practical implication for LSS researchers and practitioners. The researcher and practitioners must consciously concentrate on the identified LSSBs more conventionally during LSS implementation, and they need to plan strategically to avoid any implementation failure. Originality/value For successful implementation of LSS in any organization, it is necessary and permeable to make strategy for controlling LSS barriers at initial stage. So this paper is a leading attempt to highlight main LSS barriers and interrelate them using ISM and MICMAC approach. It provides a clear path for tackling LSS barriers to engineering managers, researchers and consultants.

Lean Six Sigma for the healthcare sector: a multiple case study analysis from the Indian context

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the voice of the customer, key performance indicators, critical to quality characteristics, critical success factors, and commonly used tools and techniques for deploying the Lean Six Sigma (LSS) strategy in Indian private hospitals, with special attention to the medical records.Design/methodology/approachThe study utilizes the action research methodology to obtain a greater understanding of the use of LSS in the Indian healthcare sector. Multiple case studies were designed and successfully deployed to understand and ascertain challenges in LSS implementation. Five case studies were carried out in the Medical Records Departments (MRD) of four private hospitals in India.FindingsPatients perceive that waiting in queue harms their health, which can be rectified by addressing the cycle time of the system. The research also found that effective leadership, availability of data, involvement of cross-functional team and effective communication are critical to the success of LSS projects. In addition, control charts, cause and effect diagram, 5S, gemba, two-sample t-test, standardization, waste analysis and value stream mapping are some of the common tools used to improve healthcare systems.Research limitations/implicationsThe research was restricted to studying the impact of LSS on the workflow and resource consumption of the MRD in Indian allopathic hospitals only. The validity of the results can be improved by including more hospitals and more case studies from the healthcare sector in different countries.Originality/valueThe findings will enable researchers, academicians and practitioners to incorporate the results of the study in LSS implementation within the healthcare system to increase the likelihood of successful deployment. This will provide greater stimulus across other departments in the hospital sector for wider and broader application of LSS for creating and sustaining process improvements.

Contextual effects on the LSS implementation in networked service environments

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the contingency effects that contextual factors of a networked service environment have on the phased Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation frameworks.Design/methodology/approachThis paper employs the critical realism (CR) case study research methodology to examine the contingent and causal relationships between contextual configurations of business networks, the DMAIC or PDCA phases in an LSS implementation agenda, and business management functions. The authors conducted a single case study on the basis of challenges they met in kicking off lean transportation in the Port of Houston.FindingsThe key finding from the study is a mid-range theory regarding the contingency effects of contextual factors of service business networks on the phased LSS implementation frameworks. The authors found that when there are complexity and dynamics of contextual factors at the field layer, management should focus more on tasks in early LSS phases to emphasize influencing. When there is no centralized authority in the network and the value-system is loosely coupled, management needs to execute more tasks as described in the define, measure and analyze phases with the purpose of both influencing and orchestrating. When individual actors have goals not aligned well with the goal of the business network and have unmatched operations capabilities, these factors should be considered as early as possible in these LSS phases. When a business network has complicated business processes with high unpredictability and uncertainty and individual actors’ value-creation systems are not well embedded in the entire value-creation system, PDCA will be the preferred core structure of an LSS implementation agenda.Research limitations/implicationsThis study contributes to the LSS research stream by introducing a causal/contingency model that prescribes the contingency effects of three contextual configurations on LSS implementation. It also contributes to the emerging discipline, business network management, regarding how to use LSS frameworks in strategic planning. It also contributes to the CR school of problem-driven case study by using a strategic initiative framework as a platform and each phase in the framework as a unit. This conceptualization of the entity of interest helps explore the interactions among three theoretical constructs: contextual configurations, phased LSS implementation agenda and management functions.Practical implicationsManagerial implications of this study are twofold. One is the procedure of analyzing the impacts of contextual factors on the causal relationships between LSS implementation phases and network management functions. The entire procedure represents the agenda-setting process of LSS implementation, the most daunting and challenging managerial task in LSS projects. Another one is the guideline on how to determine whether DMAIC or PDCA is appropriate for the LSS agenda when used in a networked environment.Originality/valueThis paper would serve as an excellent resource for both academicians and LSS practitioners in initiating, orchestrating and managing an LSS project in a networked service environment. This study represents the first effort to explore the impact of contextual factors of business networks on lean transformation.

The effect of lean six sigma toward maternal emergency lead time in Penembahan Senopati Hospital, Bantul, Yogyakarta

Introduction : Indonesia is one of the countries with high Maternal Mortality Rate that result partially from in management inefficiency, causing in obstruction of flow, underutilized resources, and imbalance between the number of patients with the availability of care facilities and the alternative care strategies. One of the strategies that can be applied to reduce lead time is Lean Six Sigma (LSS). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology on patient lead time in Maternal Emergency of district government hospital.Methods: Researcher and the participants were involved in planning, gathering data, analyzing, and choosing the best solutions. The participants were trained on LSS methods, its implementation tools and procedures. Evaluations were conducted using lead time observation before and after implementation, and midwives were interviewed about their perceptions. The analysis was based on Value Stream Mapping tools. Results: Patients’ lead time from being admitted in emergency unit definitive diagnosis was decreased by 26.04 minutes or 16.4% in Caesarean Section (CS) and 15.25 minutes or 21.7% in other maternal high risk. For emergency CS, the improvement was 33.06 minutes or 26% from decision until incision. The benefit of LSS implementation was primarily in accelerating service processes and improving communication and team work. Conclusion: This study showed that the implementation of LSS had great potential benefit in a maternal emergency unit. Participation of the midwives is crucial for successful implementation of LSS to reduce patients lead time.

Development of Lean Six Sigma training module: evidence from an emerging economy

PurposeNowadays, firms are keen on improving the quality culture in the organizations. The proven success of Lean and Six Sigma has given rise to the synergetic Lean Six Sigma (LSS) approach that has been catching fire in the past one decade. However, there exists a gap between the understanding and implementation of LSS in the organizations, especially in the emerging economies. Taking this as a valuable opportunity, the purpose of this paper is to present a development of LSS training module.Design/methodology/approachThis study starts with a literature review of LSS to reinforce the understanding of the research subject in scope of manufacturing sector. Then, an online questionnaire was designed and used to collect responses from 181 companies located in the Indian sub-continent. Subsequently, the results obtained from the survey were analyzed using COARSE approach.FindingsThis study reveals two key findings and associated contributions. First, it was found that the overall awareness of LSS within the responded manufacturing firms is about 70.4 percent. Second, there is no single standard training module that exists in any of the sampled firms to cater to their quality programs. Hence, in order to improve the LSS awareness which could subsequently help managers as a resource for creating an efficient workplace, this paper presents a structured LSS training framework.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this paper presents the importance of LSS and associated awareness level among the responded firms, more empirical evidence is required to generalize the model findings. Second, this study is scoped to firms that work out of the Indian sub-continent, and this provides a future opportunity to expand the scope of this research toward a global study for a comparison between emerging and developed economies. Third, this study is limited to manufacturing firms and hence paves an opportunity to research on a similar theme in services context as well.Practical implicationsBefore embarking on an LSS journey, an organization can use the LSS training module proposed in this study to assess the employee awareness on LSS. Furthermore, organizations that already have a mature LSS practice can incorporate the LSS training module for periodic evaluation of the employees for effective change management.Originality/valueThe training module presented in this paper is the original contribution by the authors. This is no association to any single identifiable organization or associated funding. The direct practical implication of its application in real time is the value that managers could derive from the proposed LSS training framework.

An exploratory study into the use of Lean Six Sigma to reduce medication errors in the Norwegian public healthcare context

PurposeMedication errors are a significant cause of injury in Norwegian hospitals. The purpose of this study is to explore how Lean Six Sigma (LSS) has been used in the Norwegian public health-care context to reduce medication errors.Design/methodology/approachA mixed method approach was used to gather data from participants working in the four regions served by the Norway health authorities. A survey questionnaire was distributed to 38 health-care practitioners and semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 health-care practitioners.FindingsThe study finds that the implementation of LSS in the Norwegian public health-care context is still in its infancy. This is amidst several challenges faced by Norwegian hospitals such as the lack of top-management support, lack of LSS training and coaching and a lack of awareness around the benefits of LSS in health care.Research limitations/implicationsBecause of the large geographical area, it was difficult to reach participants from all health regions in Norway. However, the study managed to assess the current status of LSS implementation through the participants’ perspectives. This is a fruitful area for future research whereby an action research methodology could be used.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical study into the use of LSS methodology in reducing medication errors. In addition, this study is valuable for health-care practitioners and professionals as a guideline to achieve the optimal benefit of LSS implementation to reduce medication errors.

Lean Six Sigma institutionalization and knowledge creation: towards developing theory

A review of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) literature highlights two main issues: first, failures are extensively reported in LSS implementation; second, LSS, which is a knowledge-intensive performance improvement methodology building upon the use of data and scientific methods, is itself disconnected from knowledge management models. Building on a systematic review of literature, this paper develops a model for both the institutionalisation of LSS and how LSS practices can be orchestrated to trigger knowledge creation. The paper categorises LSS practices into ‘core’ and ‘behavioral’ and shows that these practices are supplementary to each other and together they enable institutionalisation of LSS in daily organisational routines. This point contrasts to earlier studies presenting LSS as a cache of tools and techniques and, thus, embodying a mechanistic approach. Findings show how LSS practices are capable of triggering knowledge creation. The paper concludes by asserting that rather than merely adding new practices, managers should also focus on aligning the existing ones. It follows that managers should view LSS as a strategic resource for sustainable competitive advantage.

Lean Six Sigma Implementation: Does Success Means Sustainability?

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) has proven as an effective methodology and strategy for business success in both private and public sectors. LSS views business processes as engines that drive performance excellence and help to deliver business value. Hence LSS offers a comprehensible road map, tools and techniques for achieving superior process improvement for business success. However, prior researches of LSS were predominantly focused on the study of success factors for LSS implementation. Whereas, this research aims to explore does the LSS success factors still serve as the driving agents to sustain the continuation of LSS success through a case study on a company that had implemented LSS for 15 years (company D). Five LSS success factors are identified from literature review, which are Continuous Improvement Culture, Innovative Culture, Top Management Support, Employee LSS Knowledge and Communication. The study is quantitative based, the important level of each success factors and the perceived level of LSS project’s performance are assessed via survey questionnaire which answered by 50 engineers or managers from company D. Data are analysed via Person Correlation to gauge the correlation between the 5 LSS success factors and LSS project’s performance.Finding from the research suggests that LSS success factorsInnovative Culture, Communication and Top Management Support which are commonly agreed by prior researchers as important factors for LSS implementation; are viewed by respondents via this research as factors that endorsing weak impact or correlation with LSS project’s performance. Outcome from the research implies that there is/are other underlying variable within the scope of Employee LSS Knowledge and Continuous Improvement Culture that contribute to the sustainability of LSS implementation which is worth for further study.

Impacts of Lean Six Sigma on improving a higher education system: a case study

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the applicability and impact of Lean Six Sigma (LSS), a contemporary quality excellence methodology, for improving education system in a reputed University in Iran. Design/methodology/approach The paper follows a case study approach illustrating how theory has been put into practice, explaining how to implement the LSS define-measure-analyze-improve-control framework in a field-setting in a higher education institution (HEI), and to highlight the subsequent challenges occurred and lessons learned during the implementation. Findings The key finding from the study is the confirmation of LSS applicability in education systems. The goals of the LSS team were to baseline student satisfaction levels and improve the overall rating by 10 percent; to decrease student advising wait times by 15 percent; and increase enrollment by 5 percent. The application of the LSS methodology has delivered promising results to improve the education system of the University by achieving the set goals. Further, the implementation of LSS has demonstrated student-facing benefits of improved quality on the education system. Research limitations/implications LSS implementation in HEIs is relatively a new topic for research. Hence, this case study adds to the body of knowledge with directions to progress future research in this area. Practical implications The outputs of the case study have provided greater stimulus within the facilities for wider full-blown deployment of LSS as a strategic resource for problem solving. Additionally, this case study sets the foundation for many other future projects, and to trigger interest among the HEIs in their journeys for quality excellence. Social implications Higher education sector being a socially responsible field of service, LSS offers continuous improvement benefits, highlighted as part of this paper. Originality/value The applicability of LSS in HEIs is relatively an upcoming research area with immense potential and value. This paper would serve as a valuable means for both researchers and practitioners working in HEIs, in terms of understanding the systematic application of the LSS methodology, and implications in a real-world situation.

Lean Six Sigma in Brazil: a literature review

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in the Brazilian context, seeking to identify its main characteristics and opportunities for future research.Design/methodology/approachThis study focuses on a literature review in the area of production engineering and operations management, where 104 relevant scientific publications were identified.FindingsThe results show that the most important critical success factor for integrating LSS in Brazil is top management support and commitment. LSS integration occurs predominantly in large industrial companies, being incipient in small and medium-sized enterprises. In general, there is no structured way of applying LSS. A standard framework for LSS is still lacking.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited to a sample that only comprises Brazilian scientific studies.Practical implicationsProfessionals and practitioners can understand the evolution of LSS through practical applications and the main LSS tools used in both the industrial and services sectors. It also points out the critical success factor for the implementation of LSS. The study highlights several roadmaps for LSS implementation adopted by large and modern Brazilian automotive industries based on a robust technological base. This study also contributes to expanding the evidence base of LSS application, both in Brazil and in other countries.Originality/valueSome suggestions are proposed to clarify the structure and complexity of integrated implementation of LP and SS as well as expand the LSS application in small and medium-sized enterprises. This study is the first to discuss the current situation of LSS in Brazil and provide suggestions to expand LSS in the country. Comparisons of Brazilian LSS literature review with researches of others countries are also presented.

Lean Six Sigma for small- and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises: a systematic review

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the most common themes within Lean Six Sigma (LSS) relating to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) within manufacturing organisations and to identify the research gaps in the existing literature. Design/methodology/approach Tranfield et al.’s (2003) systematic review methodology was utilised encompassing three stages: planning, conducting and reporting/dissemination. Findings The literature revealed that there are many areas in which LSS has been utilised with varying successes. In total, 52 journals have been reviewed and it has been concluded that although LSS is a powerful methodology, there are many gaps that exist in the literature and further research is needed to address these in the field of LSS. Research limitations/implications The papers included in the systematic review were peer-reviewed papers available in English. Due to these limitations, relevant papers may have been excluded. Moreover, the authors have excluded all conference and white papers for their inclusion in this study. Practical implications It is vital that LSS practitioners are fully aware of the benefits, limitations and impeding factors when implementing a LSS initiative. Therefore, this paper could provide valuable insights to ensuring maximum value, is obtained from LSS implementation in SMEs. Originality/value This systematic review identifies research gaps in the current literature and highlighting areas of future research which will be beneficial to many SMEs in their pursuit of value optimisation.

Modeling the common critical success factors for adoption of Lean Six Sigma in Indian industries

This paper analyses the aspects for successful implementation of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in manufacturing, service and healthcare sectors in India. The information available in the literature is not very comprehensive for LSS implementation. It is an attempt to find effective critical success factors in Indian industries. A survey questionnaire was used for the data collection on critical success factors for effective Lean Six Sigma implementation in the organisation. A total of 186 responses received from 450 industries including three sectors. Automobile manufacturing industries have maximum numbers of application in LSS implementation. Hypothesis testing was used for validation of the common critical success factors. Mean and standard deviation was used for the priority of common critical success factors. Top management initiatives towards LSS, structured review approach of LSS to manage quality improvement activities, mentoring by Master Black Belt (MBB) in an improvement project, organisational roles and responsibilities linkage with LSS were found to be top four common CSFs in Indian industries. The output of this study can be used as a guide for successful implementation of LSS in Indian industries with increased success ratio.

A new framework to support Lean Six Sigma deployment in SMEs

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to propose an assessment approach to evaluate the organizational capabilities to deploy a Lean Six Sigma (LSS) strategy.Design/methodology/approachBased on a comprehensive literature review, critical success factors required to deploy LSS were defined. These key factors are evaluated by a questionnaire based on maturity grids and structured as a multi-criteria model to compute a potential LSS performance indicator. This approach is illustrated through two case studies.FindingsTo promote a successful implementation of LSS in SMEs, it is necessary to consider five main critical factors. The evaluation of these factors could be achieved thanks to a multi-criterion-based maturity indicator for the LSS implementation. The case studies show that this approach allows SMEs to understand their strengths and weaknesses and thus better prepare the implementation of LSS.Research limitations/implicationsThe proposed tool identifies characteristics of companies leading to successful LSS implementation; but is not yet able to provide a detailed strategy to improve them. The case studies were applied to manufacturing companies; therefore, there is no evidence of conclusions in the context of services.Practical implicationsThe proposed methodology will help managers and practitioners to evaluate the readiness level of a company to implement LSS. Then, they could estimate the effort required to achieve the LSS deployment.Originality/valueThis paper proposes a new metric of the capacity to implement the LSS successfully in SMEs: the Lean Six Sigma Global Index. This indicator is based on a survey completed by managers and supported by observable phenomena to establish a tailored diagnosis before the LSS implementation.

A structured review of Lean Six Sigma in various industrial sectors

PurposeThe purpose of present study is to expose the detailed review for benefits and challenges about implementation of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in business organization and spread of LSS literature in term of various sectors wise, research methodology wise and journal wise.Design/methodology/approachThis paper covers the literature on LSS from 2000 to 2018. The authors have selected a large number of research papers using the keywords as Lean Six Sigma implementation in automotive, micro small medium enterprises, health care, education, financial sectors and many more. A total of 216 research papers have been reviewed on LSS distribution of sector wise, research methodology adopted, active countries, year of publication and critical barriers in implementation of LSS.FindingsThe present literature classifies the spread of LSS in four important sectors of manufacturing, health care, human resource, financial and education. It presents the critical barriers and benefits of LSS implementation in various sectors mentioned above and an important research gap, where practitioner/researcher can focus more during their research on LSS.Practical implicationsIt is important for industry, researchers and LSS practitioners to be aware about challenges and success factor during LSS implementation in various sectors such as manufacturing, education, financial, human resource and health care. Hence, this paper could provide significant and valuable insights to industry and practitioners for successful implementation of LSS projects.Social implicationsLSS results in reduced waste, defects and improve process, which in turn provide high-quality products at minimum cost, and this leads to customer delight, which ultimately raises the societal living standard. The results encourage LSS practices without fear because there is a huge discussion of near about all success and failure parameters about LSS.Originality/valueTo the authors’ best knowledge, no studies have still covered the literature review of LSS implementation in three different sectors: manufacturing, service and process. The present study was mainly focused on presenting a systematic review of literature in said sectors and found the gap between current status and future direction for the implementation of LSS in different areas.

An empirical investigation of implementing Lean Six Sigma in Higher Education Institutions

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the applicability and implementation of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). LSS is considered as the most recent service quality practice which has proved its success in manufacturing and service sectors. Though there is plenty of literature available with regard to the application and benefits of LSS in services sectors (like Banking, healthcare, information technology sectors, etc.), there is apparently no evidence in the literature about the implementation of LSS in HEIs.Design/methodology/approachA five-phased approach is followed. A multiple case-study method is used in this paper to explore this implementation of LSS in two select international University colleges. LSS toolkit comprising of define-measure-analyze-improve-control phases is used for the execution of the projects. Featuring student teams in LSS project management adds novelty to the approach.FindingsThe paper empirically validates the application of LSS in HEIs. Further, it highlights the practical challenges and benefits of LSS in the HEI setup. An in-depth empirical analysis of LSS toolkit application, LSS change management and using student teams in LSS project management are the highlights of this paper. The paper concludes that LSS is applicable and could provide positive benefits to HEIs.Research limitations/implicationsLSS application in HEIs is perhaps a new research area, which is at its nascence and upcoming in the researchers’ community. Hence, this paper would serve as a platform and provide directions for future scholars to ponder on the subject.Practical implicationsSince the cases are executed in the real-time setup of HEIs, the paper has several practical implications. First, the academia and practitioners’ collaboration in executing projects adds novelty. Second, the involvement of student teams from project selection to execution brings in practical perspectives alongside the academic education. Several other key lessons learned and benefits of LSS in HEI setup are presented as part of the paper.Originality/valueLSS has been successful in the past few decades in the manufacturing and service sectors. However, its application in HEIs was very nascent, and few researchers even doubted its relevancy of application in HEIs. This study illustrates its importance and application to the higher education sector which is a highly responsible area of the service sector, for imbibing quality excellence, serving as an excellent resource for researchers and higher education professionals.

Lean Six Sigma implementation: modelling the interaction among the enablers

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) methodology has been acquiring a prominent position in organisations. The aim of this study is to demonstrate an approach to LSS implementation in organisations using the development of a hypothetical model based on interpretive structural modelling (ISM) and fuzzy Matriced Impacts Croisés Multiplication Appliquée á un Classement (fuzzy MICMAC) analysis phenomenon. Seventy Lean Six Sigma enablers (LSSEs) have been identified through extensive literature review and out of which 40 most important LSSEs were finalised through opinions of experts both from industry and academia. Furthermore, the valuable expert opinions have been applied to determine contextual relationships between these significant LSSEs and a hierarchical model has been created based on an ISM. The fuzzy MICMAC analysis has also been utilised to classify the enablers based on the dependence and driving power, and validate the created ISM-based model. The developed hierarchical model will assist to understand interrelationships and interdependencies among the identified LSSEs. Having high driving and low dependence power, the LSSEs have strategic significance because of their driving character. On the other hand, having high dependence and low driving power, LSSEs are more performance orientated. The mutual influence, driving and dependence power of LSSEs render valuable information to top management to distinguish between independent and dependent LSSEs. An organisation desiring of adopting LSS may get benefited by the understanding of LSSEs and their interactions.

Lean Six Sigma in developing countries: evidence from a large Brazilian manufacturing firm

Purpose Although the literature on Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation has evolved, a deeper understanding of the LSS practices applied in organisations in developing countries is needed. This paper aims to analyse LSS in a manufacturing company in the context of LSS implementation in an emerging economy. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses case-based research. Data collected in a large manufacturing company through multiple sources of evidence were triangulated to derive the findings. This paper analyses aspects related to the implementation of both programmes and their synergy, as well as some critical and failure factors. Findings The main results show that Lean and Six Sigma are applied separately in two different programmes. Some aspects that are necessary to increase the integration of both approaches were identified while considering each phase of the DMAIC and the current approach applied by the company. Although some positive results have been achieved, there are many critical and failure factors that may influence the implementation of both approaches, such as employee training and changes in the organisational environment. Finally, the comprehensive integration of both approaches needs to be undertaken by the company. Research limitations/implications The findings from this single case study cannot be generalised. Practical implications This paper may be used as a guiding reference for managers and consultants to help them when working towards more successful LSS implementation. Originality/value First, this paper investigates LSS in a manufacturing firm located in a developing country; this issue is still seldom addressed in the literature. Second, it may contribute to practitioners’ knowledge by delivering insights into a real context, as well as the relevant issues to be addressed when implementing LSS in similar contexts.

Revealing research trends and themes in Lean Six Sigma: from 2000 to 2016

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine and introduce comprehensive insights into the field of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) by reviewing the existing literature and identifying the research gap. The state of LSS research is assessed by critically examining the field, along with a number of dimensions, including time horizon, year, journal and publisher, university, country, author, geographic analysis, research design, research affairs, research methods, tools/techniques used, focus industries, major research area, benefits gained by LSS, critical success factors and barriers of LSS implementation.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is based on a systematic literature review of 190 articles containing the word LSS in their title, which are published in a well-known database, such as Elsevier ScienceDirect, Taylor and Francis, Emerald Full Text, Springer Link, Wiley InterScience and Inderscience from January 2000 to September 2016.FindingsThis analysis reveals 15 significant dimensions to identify the state of LSS research. Authors find a noticeable rise in the attention of LSS research in the available literature. Major findings show that, the empirical research holds greater credibility. Statistics prove that the case study method scores the highest among all the research methods used in the discipline. The largest number of studies have investigated research issues related to implementation and process of LSS. The LSS uses a wide range of tools/techniques/methodologies: the choice of tools is situation-specific. Manufacturing and health-care sectors have been the focus of LSS research, but LSS has also been adopted by other types of industries. The organizations following LSS have improved bottom-line results, improved company profitability and growth and enhanced customer satisfaction. In general the research is more interpretive in nature; there is still a lack of standard in the LSS implementation framework.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited to reviewing those articles which contain the word LSS appeared in the title.Originality/valueThis study will help understand the current state of research on LSS, various trends in the field, its applicability and future prospects of investigation in the field.

Lean Six Sigma in policing services

PurposeThis paper is based on a single case study carried out as part of a change programme but is used as a reflective tool to draw on some of the wider organisational learning which can be considered when implementing, reviewing or re-energise a Lean Six Sigma (LSS) Programme. The paper aims to discuss this issue.Design/methodology/approachA case study approach has been used and referenced throughout the paper with references to literature to support the wider learning points drawn which are then applied to any continuous improvement (CI) programmes.FindingsThe paper presents a range of learning points which are drawn from a successful deployment of LSS within a change project carried out as part of an overall programme in Scottish policing services.Research limitations/implicationsThe points are drawn from a single case study which was deployed within a wider change programme and is supported by wider literature but is used as a vehicle for informing strategic considerations within an organisation.Originality/valueThis case study is drawn from policing services in the public sector which alone is an area that has not been significantly studied. It is used to explore wider implications in terms of strategic alignment, organisational performance and project management and presents the argument that the design of a CI programme is much wider than the implementation of LSS itself.

Synergising Lean Six Sigma with human resource practices: evidence from literature arena

Human resource (HR) is one of the essential features of business activities. Moreover, the success rate of the business depends upon the people who are directly or indirectly involved with the activities. However, many firms ignore this key aspect of success and primarily target the production. This paper focuses on reviewing the impact of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) on HR practices from the literature arena. The study has reviewed 68 research articles through the adoption of Tranfield et al. (2003) methodology. The methodology consists of three phases: (1) planning the review, (2) conducting the review and (3) reporting the review. From the review, key findings concerning countries, authors and research methodologies were found. Further, the study has highlighted the research gaps found from the literature reviews. It is evident that LSS and HR go along very well and can be used as a strategy for organisational excellence. This paper can serve the readers in understanding the spread of LSS and HR practices in industries before LSS implementation. Moreover, for academicians, this work provides a comprehensive list of papers for research. Further, the study has proposed the managerial implication with the agenda for the future research.