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production (Pearlman & Chacko, 2012). The pur-
pose of the methodology is to improve employee
performance, work processes, productivity and the
quality of the product and, at the same time, reduce
the cost of production (Bhote & Bhote, 1991). The
main reason for the development of the Six Sigma
framework was the continuous improvement in the
manufacturing of complex devices involving large
numbers of parts with a high probability of defects
(Gutiérrez, et al., 2009). Linderman Schroeder,
Zaheer and Choo (2003, p. 195) offered the follow-
ing definition of Six Sigma:
but this group of employees only has part time
contribution to a task. These groups of employees
in the organization have different task and roles.
Thus, teamwork is seen to be pivotal to Six Sigma
implementation. On the other hand, Six Sigma
team members are trained to improve employees'
abilities, teamwork, statistical methods and tools
(Gitlow, 2005; Lee & Choi, 2006; Ravichandran,
2006). Six Sigma offers a solid statistical method-
ology for experimentation and research (De Mast,
2006). In fact, the definition given by Linderman
et al. (2003) indicates that the initiatives for improve-
ment were grounded in powerful statistical meth-
ods. Hence, another distinctive aspect of the Six
Sigma approach is its strong statistical foundation
(Eckes, 2001; McAdam & Lafferty, 2004). Pearce
and Ensley (2004, p. 260) defined Shared Vision
as '... a common mental model of the future state
of the team.' This definition represents a capacity
for sharing the future image of what is desired by
firm members, developing common commitment
to this future image and establishing some princi-
ples for pursuing it. Shared vision was among the
most important ideas concerning leadership in the
twentieth century (Harrington, 1999). Employees'
ability to share a future image toward which they
can direct their efforts enables the achievement of
a series of significant advantages for the organi-
zation. Through Shared Vision, the relationship
between professional improvement, lifelong learn-
ing and long term commitment can be stimulated
(Senge, 1992). These factors have significant impli-
cations for organizational performance.
“Six Sigma is an organized and systematic method
for strategic process improvement and new product
and service development that relies on statistical
methods and the scientific method to make dramatic
reductions in customer defined defects rates”
symbolizes a specific number,
which is 3.4 defects per million opportunities
(DPMO), where opportunity is understood as
any possible source of error in product, process,
or service (Breyfogle III, 2003). This philosophy
proposed continuous improvement in the firm as a
means of increasing the efficiency of job processes
(free from defects) (Pande, Cavanagh & Neuman,
2002). Therefore, by implementing Six Sigma,
firms are able to decrease their defect rates in work
processes, improve the quality of products, satisfy
customers, reduce costs, improve efficiency, and
increase productivity (Breyfogle III, 2003; Pande,
et al., 2002).
In Six Sigma, 6
σ
2.1
)
Teamwork is one of the major pillars in the Six
Sigma methodology (Breyfogle III, 2003; Lloréns-
Montes & Molina, 2006; Lowenthal, 2002; Pande,
et al., 2002). The continuous improvement pro-
posed in this philosophy was developed through
different tasks assigned to teams of workers. The
success of an improvement program depends on
cross-functional teams (Dedhia, 2005; Pande,
et al., 2002). Teamwork was a key factor in Six Sig-
ma's success because team members are the main
carriers of the philosophy. In Six Sigma, roles such
as 'Champions', 'Master Black Belts', 'Black Belts'
and 'Green and Belts' are explicitly established.
According to Pande et al. (2002) and supported by
Gitlow (2005), people that work in the organization
can be categorized into; a) Champions (Executive
Committee)—obtain resources and eliminate bar-
riers, b) Master Black Belts (Top management)—
have important abilities and deep knowledge of
Six Sigma methodology, c) Black Belt (full time
agent)—improvement projects, and d) Green Belt
(Employee)—belong to the improvement program
The dimensions of Six Sigma (
σ
2.2
The application of Six Sigma to service
industry and hospitality sector
In general, the majority of studies on quality man-
agement and improvement programs originate in,
and are designed to improve, product quality in the
manufacturing sector (Sureshchandar, Rajendran &
Anantharaman, 2001). However, scholars and spe-
cialists have posited that some principles could also
be implemented successfully in the service sector
(Kivela & Kagi, 2009; Pearlman & Chacko, 2012).
3 METHODOLOGY
In Part A, the demographic profiles of respondents
will be presented (gender/designation). In Part B,
six questions were adapted to assess Shared Vision
and, again, a 7 point Likert type scale was used and
the questions relating to Shared Vision were taken
from the work of Gutiérrez et al. (2009). The Klang
Valley was identified as the most appropriate geo-
graphical sampling area because the region includes
the main Central Business District (CBD) of Kuala
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