Date of Conferral

4-15-2024

Date of Award

April 2024

Degree

Doctor of Business Administration (D.B.A.)

School

Business Administration

Advisor

Dina Samora

Abstract

Six Sigma is a fact-based and data-driven methodology for improving products, processes, and services in companies across the world. Many project managers from various industries have tried to implement Six Sigma and have failed, resulting in poor quality of their products, inefficient processes, and cost increases. Grounded in the total quality management framework, the purpose of this qualitative single-case study was to explore strategies that project managers used to implement successful Six Sigma process improvement projects in nonmanufacturing environments. The participants were eight Six Sigma project managers who had experience in enhancing the success rates of Six Sigma process improvement projects at a community college in the Midwest region of the United States. The participants engaged in semi-structured interviews, and the constant comparison analysis was used to code responses and identify themes that emerged from the data. Three major themes emerged from the data analysis: (1) select projects based on opportunities for improvement, (2) leverage the Six Sigma toolbox, and (3) elicit leadership and stakeholder buy-in. A key recommendation is for business leaders and project managers to identify processes with waste that needs to be eliminated, long lead, cycle, and wait times that need to be reduced, and issues keeping staff from operating more efficiently and effectively. The implications for positive social change include the potential for project managers to enhance products, processes, and services and realize cost savings. From the cost savings, company leaders can allocate a percentage of their profits to nonprofit organizations to help underprivileged people through education, employment, housing, and financial programs.

Download

Share

 
COinS