Lean Six Sigma in consumer banking – an empirical inquiry

Development of an improvement framework for warehouse processes using lean six sigma (DMAIC) approach. A case of third party logistics (3PL) services

This study aims at developing an improvement framework of warehouse processes by improving process cycle efficiency using lean six sigma (DMAIC) approach. A case study method was used to illustrate the evaluation of the existing processes in the warehouse of a third party logistics company with a focus on productivity using warehouse lean tools. Data were collected based on warehouse operational areas of suppliers, customers and internally related with a focus on warehouse core processes. The optimization of the warehouse processes was based on established lean tools. Based on the warehouse evaluation, high non-value added activities were observed leading to a low process cycle efficiency of 40%. After the implementation of the lean six sigma approach, the process cycle efficiency improved of up to 70%. An improvement framework was also established for productivity across the warehouse processes to minimise waste. Lean warehousing has been used to illustrate solutions to a real-time problem of productivity which has negatively impacted on management and customer satisfaction. The study has added to lean warehousing focusing on all the warehouse processes using six sigma DMAIC approach, unlike most literature which concentrates on a specific process. Also develop a framework for the improvement of the processes.

Empirical analysis of Lean Six Sigma implementation barriers in healthcare sector using fuzzy DEMATEL approach: an Indian perspective

Purpose

The present study aims to explore the barriers to Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation in the healthcare sector and develop the ranking of finalized barriers using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) approach under a fuzzy environment.

Design/methodology/approach

The LSS barriers are identified through the literature review and validated by the expert's opinion and statistical analysis. A total of 124 experts were identified through the purposive sampling method for conducting this study. A questionnaire survey method is used to collect the data related to identified LSS barriers in the healthcare sector. The screened barriers are ranked through the Fuzzy DEMATEL approach.

Findings

In this study, a total of 21 barriers were identified with the help of a systematic literature review and screened 13 significant barriers by the expert opinions of healthcare personnel. The result reveals that “Lack of top management commitment and support, lack of awareness about LSS”, “resistance to culture change and inadequate resources emerges as the most critical barriers”. The prioritization of barriers facilitates the managers to make effective policies and guidelines for LSS implementation in healthcare organizations.

Practical implications

To avoid LSS implementation failure, the practitioners and researchers need to focus on LSS barriers as per suggested ranking more conventionally and make plans and adoption policies accordingly.

Originality/value

This study is unique in terms of investigation and empirical analysis of LSS implementation barriers in the healthcare sector in the Indian context. The outcomes of the present study will help the managers of healthcare organizations to make the strategies and policies for LSS implementation as per the recommended LSS barriers.

Critical analysis of Lean Six Sigma black belt certification courses offered in Brazil

Purpose

This study aims to present an overview and analyze the Lean Six Sigma Black Belt (LSSBB) certifications offered by institutions operating in Brazil.

Design/methodology/approach

This research analyzed LSSBB certification courses offered by 48 institutions in Brazil by comparing the syllabi of the classes to the reference model proposed by the American Society for Quality (ASQ) in the Six Sigma Black Belt Body of Knowledge. This study employed the content analysis technique and hierarchical cluster analysis to analyze the data.

Findings

The results revealed a lack of standardization in the content of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) training in Brazil. 100% of the LSSBB courses analyzed covered four of the 108 techniques recommended by the ASQ Body of Knowledge (i.e. data types, measurement scales, sampling, and data collection plans and methods). In contrast, more than 75% of the courses covered all techniques related to the macro areas of organization-wide planning and deployment, organizational process management and measures, measure, and improve. The major shortcoming of LSS training is related to the macro area Design for Six Sigma framework and methodologies. LSS training is offered in a highly concentrated area in Brazil, the wealthiest region, where universities play a crucial role in disseminating LSS.

Originality/value

The literature lacks studies that critically examine LSS certification courses. There is little research on LSS in Brazil and there are no studies on LSS training in this country.

Lean Six Sigma case studies literature overview: critical success factors and difficulties

Purpose

Recently, several areas are successfully applying the Lean Six Sigma methodology, specifically in healthcare, public services, higher education institutions and manufacturing industries. This study aims to present an extensive literature review involving Lean Six Sigma practical applications in the last five years, described in a case studies format.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature review was conducted, and 39 articles were selected and analyzed.

Findings

An increase in Lean Six Sigma applications in healthcare and higher education institutions was identified. Furthermore, Lean Six Sigma is effectively applied in several areas and is continuously used in traditional industries. The main critical success factor identified was leadership and management involvement, project management and organizational infrastructure, as well as training and education. Also, the main difficulties found are related to the organization's culture and developing communication with leaders and managers.

Research limitations/implications

The main difficulties found in this research are related to the lack of data presented in some articles analyzed, where only information about how the Lean Six Sigma application was conducted is shown, not mentioning difficulties or success factors identified.

Originality/value

Case studies are fundamental to help popularize Lean Six Sigma applications, showing a real-life scenario of how the methodology is implemented, the main difficulties encountered and critical success factors found. Thus, the value of this study is promoting and developing research involving Lean Six Sigma case study applications to guide new researchers and practitioners on the subject.

The implementation of Lean Six Sigma framework in the Indian context: a review and suggestions for future research

Purpose

The purpose of this work is to gain insights about Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in the Indian context by reviewing the related literature for one decade based on various perspectives, such as author profile, year of publication, type of firm, type of methodology used, type of industry for which the research work is carried out and the key findings from the research.

Design/methodology/approach

This study reviews the research related to LSS from the articles published in the reputed journals. The literature used for reviewing is derived from the sources, including Science direct, Google scholar, IEEE, Taylor and Francis Group, Emerald Insight, Springer, Inderscience and Elsevier during the period between 2010 and 2021. Totally, the authors have included 141 LSS-related research articles that are published in the Indian context. The keywords used are Lean Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma in the Indian context, Lean Sigma and LSS to identify and consolidate the research papers published during this timeframe.

Findings

The research papers collected from various reputed journals, including Scopus and non- Scopus enlisted, are classified and grouped under various categories to identify the class of author who publishes more in this field, research trend over the years, the type of firm which implements LSS, the research methodology which is commonly used in LSS and related research and also the key takeaway from these articles are highlighted. Further, the authors have also identified the major contributions of researchers in various sectors during this period in India.

Originality/value

This classification framework and the systematic review help in identifying the research gap and in giving directions for future researchers. It will be useful for researchers and practitioners working on the area of LSS, rural and urban entrepreneurs, start-up managers, professionals working in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and executives of the Make in India Project to make India as Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. Further, the clear direction of progress over the current decade in manufacturing industries, service sectors and processing industries can help the professionals working in these sectors.

Application of Lean Six Sigma Methodology using DMAIC Approach for the Improvement of Bogie Assembly Process in the Railcar Industry

The quest for waste reduction, quality improvement and operational efficiency during the assembly process of the railcar bogie necessitates this study. Using a case study approach, this study employs the Lean Six Sigma (LSS) approach for process improvement of the railcar bogie assembly process. Primary data relating to the assembly process such as the labour and material flow, up and down times were collected at every stage of the assembly operation. The improvement process of the assembly process featured the use of some Lean tools such as the Kaizen, Value Stream Mapping, Pareto chart, Single-Minute Exchange of Die (SMED) and 5S. The investigation of the current assembly process with the use of the LSS technique indicates that the process efficiency is low due to waste generation. The results obtained showed significant improvement in the process cycle efficiency (PCE) by 46.8%, via the implementation of the Kaizen continuous process improvement approach, 27.9% reduction in the lead-time, 59.3% increase in the value added time and 71.9% reduction in the non-value added time after the implementation of the LSS approach. The findings of this work demonstrated the feasibility of the LSS approach for waste minimisation and process performance improvement in a bid to achieve operational excellence in a manufacturing organisation.

A hybrid model for ranking critical successful factors of Lean Six Sigma in the oil and gas industry

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to find and prioritise multiple critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of LSS in the oil and gas industry.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a preselected list of possible CFSs, experts are involved in screening them with the Delphi method. As a result, 22 customised CSFs are selected. To prioritise these CSFs, the step-wise weight assessment ratio analysis (SWARA) method is applied to find weights corresponding to the decision-making preferences. Since the regular permutation-based weight assessment can be classified as NP-hard, the problem is solved by a metaheuristic method. For this purpose, a genetic algorithm (GA) is used.

Findings

The resulting prioritisation of CSFs helps companies find out which factors have a high priority in order to focus on them. The less important factors can be neglected and thus do not require limited resources.

Research limitations/implications

Only a specific set of methods have been considered.

Practical implications

The resulting prioritisation of CSFs helps companies find out which factors have a high priority in order to focus on them.

Social implications

The methodology supports respective evaluations in general.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to the very limited research on the implementation of LSS in the oil and gas industry, and, in addition, it suggests the usage of SWARA, a permutation method and a GA, which have not yet been researched, for the prioritisation of CSFs of LSS.

Extension of technology continuance theory (TCT) with task technology fit (TTF) in the context of Internet banking user continuance intention

Purpose

The advancement in Internet technology has played a significant role in revolutionizing the Internet banking services. Therefore, little is discussed about factors that motivate technology user to continue the use of Internet banking services. The current study investigates Internet banking user continuance behavior toward the use of Internet banking services with the integration of two-well known information system (IS) theories namely task technology fit (TTF) and technology continuance theory (TCT).

Design/methodology/approach

The research design of this study is based on positivist paradigm and followed quantitative research approach. Data were collected from 360 Internet banking users of commercial banks across Pakistan. The research model was tested with structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

The research model had explained 53.9% variance in Internet banking user continuance intention. Next to this, the predictive relevance of the research model was tested with Stone-Geisser's Q² values using blindfolding procedure. Results revealed that the newly developed integrated technology continuance research model has substantial power to predict Internet banking user continuance intention. Moreover, the effect size analysis revealed that factors like satisfaction and user expectation were the most important factors in determining Internet banking user continuance intention.

Practical implications

For practical implications importance performance matrix analysis (IPMA) has used to see the importance and performance of the underpinned factors. Findings indicate that managers and policy makers should focus on user satisfaction, perceived usefulness and expectation confirmation in order to enhance the Internet banking user continuance intention toward the use of Internet banking services. Some of the ways banks can do this is to develop esthetic Internet banking website with charm of novelty, relevant information and smooth flows with less complex redirects.

Originality/value

Unlike prior studies that focus on Internet banking user pre-adoption issues, the current study examines post-adoption issue of Internet banking users and investigates Internet banking user continuance intention. This study is significant as it integrates two-well known theories namely TCT and TTF in Internet banking user continuance intention and augments the IS literature by developing an integrated technology continuance model (TCM).

Application of Six Sigma methodology in an Indian chemical company

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to deploy Six Sigma (SS) methodology for addressing the customer complaints pertaining to Chemical-X in an Indian chemical company.

Design/methodology/approach

The study followed a structured Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, Control (DMAIC) approach to address the customer complaints. The complaints have been classified into different categories along with a project charter in the define phase. In the measure phase, measurement system analysis (MSA) and supplier, input, process, output and control (SIPOC) have been applied. In the analyze and improve phase, why–why analysis, process capability study, how–how analysis, Gage repeatability and reproducibility and Taguchi design have been applied to optimize the manufacturing process parameters for Chemical-X. Lastly, in the control phase, validation of 20 batches has been piloted to validate the optimized parameters.

Findings

The findings of this study highlight the optimization and prioritization of the process parameters. It shows that humidity has the least impact on the manufacturing of Chemical-X, whereas shift type has the maximum impact. The experimental output indicates that the 1st Shift, the holding time after grinding should be twenty-four hours, and the temperature after grinding should be 40 °C to reduce the customer complaints concerning lumps formation in Chemical-X.

Research limitations/implications

The study is performed for a single product (Chemical-X). It has focused only from the manufacturing process view and not from the transportation, suppliers and downstream supply chain view.

Originality/value

A systematic and data-driven approach of the SS methodology ensured that the customer complaints due to lumps formation reduced from 5% (approx.) to 1% (approx.) which resulted in the cost saving of INR 4 million (approx.) annually.

Quality and lean practices synergies

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between investments in quality and lean practices, and their impact on factory fitness. Using concepts originating in the theory of swift even flow, this study asserts that manufacturers, in order to improve their production swiftness and evenness, must leverage the potential synergetic effects between quality and lean practices.

Design/methodology/approach

This research uses data from the Global Manufacturing Research Group (GMRG) survey project (with data collected from 922 manufacturing plants, across 18 countries). The constructs and measurement model were assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and the hypotheses were tested using ordinary least square (OLS) models.

Findings

This study highlights that both investments in quality and lean practices have direct impact factory fitness. The results provide insights into the efficacy of the investments in manufacturing practices and their role in augmenting the operational performance. The investments in quality practices were found to enhance the efficacy of investments in lean practices, which in turn impact the factory fitness.

Practical implications

From a practical perspective, the study informs managers on how to leverage investment in quality practices to enhance the impact of lean practice on performance. The results provide empirical evidence to support management decision-making concerning the development of competences in quality and lean practices, which may create competitive advantage.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the quality and lean literature and provides empirical evidence of the synergetic effects between investments in quality and lean practices. The analysis offers a greater understanding of the mechanisms that can be used to maximise the impact of investments in lean practices, from a global perspective. The findings are important to the advancement of theory in operations management, as it integrates three research streams: quality practices, lean practices and swift even flow research.