Implementation of a lean six sigma approach in the manufacturing sector: a systematic literature review

Lean Six Sigma is a continuous improvement methodology that aims to reduce production costs, improve organisational capability, and maximise the value for shareholders. This paper aims to explore the most common themes within LSS in the manufacturing sector, and to identify any gaps in those themes which may be preventing users from getting the most benefit from their LSS strategy. This paper also identifies the gaps in current literature and develops a research agenda for future research into Lean Six Sigma themes. The following research is based on a Systematic Literature Review of 33 papers which were published on LSS in the top journals in the field and other specialist journals, from 2000 to 2012. There are important themes cited in this paper which are; Critical Success Factors, benefits, motivation factors, limitations and impeding factors. However, there are many gaps and limitations that need to be covered in future research

Lean Six Sigma maturity model within Saudi Arabian organisations : an empirical study

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) is a continuous improvement methodology that aims to reduce the costs of poor quality, improve the bottom-line results and create value for both customers and shareholders. LSS has been deployed in organisations in the Western countries for more than two decades. However, its implementation in Middle Eastern countries has only just begun to emerge. Furthermore, there is a lack of empirical studies in the area of understanding the current status of LSS in these countries. Therefore, the purpose of this research is to investigate the current status of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in Saudi Arabian organisations and subsequently develop a Lean Six Sigma Maturity Model (LSSMM) which can be used to assess their current level of LSS maturity. The study is based on a systematic literature review of 45 papers that were published on LSS in high ranking journals in the field and other specialist journals, from 2000 to 2015. LSS themes identified include: LSS benefits, critical success factors, motivational factors, tools and techniques, critical failure factors, and limitations. A descriptive survey via a questionnaire was conducted in the second phase of the data collection process and multiple case studies were conducted in the third phase. Based on the literature review and the findings of the empirical research, a LSSMM was developed and used to assess the current level of LSS deployment maturity in five organisations in Saudi Arabia. The results of the empirical study show that LSS is in the early stages of implementation and that organisations in Saudi Arabia have only recently started to recognise the importance of LSS to their business. This finding was also supported by the evaluation of LSS maturity level that was assessed using the model developed in this study. This study contributes to understanding the current status of LSS in Saudi Arabian organisations and provides recommendations to guide the future of LSS in Saudi organisations by comparisons with the LSS literature and best practice. The contribution to knowledge and theory in this study is through validating and extending current operations management theories to LSS deployment, including organisational learning theory, theory of motivation and goal theory. The adoption of a mixed method approach contributes to the advancement of the methodology applied within LSS research in Saudi Arabian organisations. This study adds value for academics and practitioners in the field of LSS in Saudi Arabia by providing an intensive study on the current status of LSS deployment together with the LSSMM

A Study on Factors Affecting the Electronic Service Quality in Higher Education in Light of Covid-19 Pandemic from Students Perspectives

The study is to investigate the factors that influence the Electronic Service Quality (E-service quality) in higher education institutions in light of Covid-19 Pandemic. Constant development in service quality has become one of the most essential goals for many organizations, institutions in various industries, and for diverse reasons. The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting schools, students, teachers and parents. Education is the major factor in determining the growth of a country, and the changes that will affect the country's development are expected from higher education institutions. Higher education institutions have become global businesses, which must always look for new methods to improve the quality of services. The service quality improvement and development is critically essential issue for organizations, particularly higher education institutions, to satisfy the students' needs for better educational environment that contribute to the achievement of their satisfaction. The service quality improvement and development is critically essential issue for organizations, particularly higher education institutions, to satisfy the students' needs for better educational environment that contribute to the achievement of their satisfaction. Educational institutions like universities and other organizations in the business sector, are recognizing the need to adopt technologies to measure service quality. However, they identified five main dimensions for service quality, including reliability, responsiveness, tangibility, assurance, and empathy that capture access and understanding the customer

Knowledge-based Lean Six Sigma Maintenance System for Sustainable Buildings

YesPurpose– This paper develops a Knowledge-based (KB) System for Lean Six Sigma (LSS) Maintenance in environmentally Sustainable Buildings (Lean6-SBM). Design/methodology/approach– The Lean6-SBM conceptual framework has been developed using the rule base approach of KB system and joint integration with Gauge Absence Prerequisites (GAP) technique. A comprehensive literature review is given for the main pillars of the framework with a typical output of GAP analysis. Findings– Implementation of LSS in the sustainable building maintenance context requires a pre-assessment of the organisation’s capabilities. A conceptual framework with a design structure is proposed to tackle this issue with the provision of an enhancing strategic and operational decision making hierarchy. Research limitations/implications– Future research work might consider validating this framework in other type of industries. Practical implications– Maintenance activities in environmentally sustainable buildings must take prodigious standards into consideration and, therefore, a robust quality assurance measure has to be integrated. Originality/value– The significance of this research is to present a novel use of hybrid KB/GAP methodologies to develop a Lean6-SBM system. The originality and novelty of this approach will assist in identifying quality perspectives while implementing different maintenance strategies in the sustainable building context.Ministry of Defence Engineering Services (Sultanate of Oman

Електронна комерція в період пандемії COVID-19: новітні тренди та перспективи для Саудівської Аравії

Ця стаття узагальнює аргументи та контраргументи в межах наукової дискусії з питання поширення у світі електронної комерції завдяки наслідкам пандемії Covid-19. Основною метою проведеного дослідження є визначення факторів змін в розвитку електронної комерції Саудівської Аравії. Систематизація літературних джерел та підходів до розв'язання поставленої проблеми дозволила висунути гіпотезу, що пандемія COVID-19 стала каталізатором нової хвилі зростання темпів збільшення обсягів електронної торгівлі в Саудівській Аравії. Для перевірки висунутої гіпотези проведено анкетування 160 респондентів, які працюють у сфері приватної електронної комерції. До анкети включено питання щодо визначення демографічного профілю респондентів та розвитку електронної комерції. Оцінювання відповідей трьох блоків питань, щодо розвитку електронної комерції здійснювалося за пʼяти бальною шкалою Лейкарта. Більшість учасників анкетування є чоловіками – 66,2%. 56,2% учасників є віком від 30 до 40 років; 38,75% – мають 5-10 річний стаж роботи в приватному бізнесі, 40,6% – мають досвід роботи у компаніях з чисельністю понад 500 осіб, 43% – проживають у місті Ер-Ріяд. За результатами опрацювання відповідей першого блоку питань анкети щодо розвитку електронної комерції встановлено, що відсутність альтернатив має статистично не значущий вплив на наміри споживачів здійснювати купівлі на електронному ринку (середньозважене значення – 3.19 ± 0.75). Результати аналізу відповідей другого блоку питань свідчать про те, що доступність до засобів електронної комерції має позитивний вплив на готовність споживачів здійснювати онлайн-покупки (середньозважене значення – 3,43 ± 1,17). Аналіз відповідей третього блоку питань засвідчив, що дослідження головних причин збитків під час пандемії COVID-19 є статистично не значущими для електронної комерції (середньозважене значення – 3,29 ± 0,90). До того, більшість учасників анкетування (56,2%) зазначили, що їх компанії були не готовими до чергової хвилі карантинних обмежень. Результати дослідження мають практичне значення та можуть бути основою для подальшого аналізу впливу COVID-19 на різні сегменти електронного ринку. Отримані результати можуть бути використані для визначення рівня сприйняття населенням особливостей електронної комерції та бажання здійснювати купівлі в інтернетмагазинах.The traditional retail market has been declining in recent years, while e-retailing has grown at an accelerated rate during the COVID-19 pandemic's lockdown era. The main purpose of the research is to look at the effect of the coronavirus outbreak on the shifting trends of electronic commerce (e-commerce) in Saudi Arabia. The authors investigate the impacts of factors derived by COVID-19 had on the e-commerce market. One hundred sixty individuals operating in e-commerce in the private sector in Saudi Arabia completed a self-administered questionnaire, including demographic information and three sections of five scale questions that meet the study's objectives. Most participants were males (66.2%), 56.2 % were aged between 30 and 40 years old, 38.75% had 5-10 years of experience in the private sector, 40.6% worked in companies with more than 500 employees, and 43.0% of them from lives in Riyadh. The weighted average of the 1st section is 3.19 ± 0.75, indicating that the trend of the establishment of whether lack of alternatives has a positive implication on the intent of using e-commerce during the COVID-19 pandemic is «Neutral». The weighted average of the 2nd section is 3.43 ± 1.17, which indicates the trend of determining whether the perceived ease of use has a positive implication on the adoption intent of consumers using e-commerce during a COVID-19 outbreak is "Agree". The weighted average of the 3rd section is 3.29 ± 0.90, which indicates the trend of exploring the underlying factors that leads to losses for many businesses during the crisis is «Neutral». Furthermore, the highest percentage of participants (56.2%) mentioned that their company was not prepared for another lockdown. The research results could be useful for further analysis of different domains of the ecommerce market that developed during the pandemic. They could be utilized for examining opinions about ecommerce and whether the public wanted to switch from offline to online mode of marketing

A Study on Factors Affecting the Electronic Service Quality in Higher Education in Light of Covid-19 Pandemic from Students Perspectives

The study is to investigate the factors that influence the Electronic Service Quality (E-service quality) in higher education institutions in light of Covid-19 Pandemic. Constant development in service quality has become one of the most essential goals for many organizations, institutions in various industries, and for diverse reasons. The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting schools, students, teachers and parents. Education is the major factor in determining the growth of a country, and the changes that will affect the country's development are expected from higher education institutions. Higher education institutions have become global businesses, which must always look for new methods to improve the quality of services. The service quality improvement and development is critically essential issue for organizations, particularly higher education institutions, to satisfy the students' needs for better educational environment that contribute to the achievement of their satisfaction. The service quality improvement and development is critically essential issue for organizations, particularly higher education institutions, to satisfy the students' needs for better educational environment that contribute to the achievement of their satisfaction. Educational institutions like universities and other organizations in the business sector, are recognizing the need to adopt technologies to measure service quality. However, they identified five main dimensions for service quality, including reliability, responsiveness, tangibility, assurance, and empathy that capture access and understanding the customer