Research on application of six sigma management in project management

Citation

Xijun, Cai. (2017). Research on application of six sigma management in project management. (Independent study, Master of Business Administration). Bangkok: Siam University.

Abstract

Now, it’s a time in a customer-centric and big data era, many companies need to meet the needs of their customers while also managing the quantitative management of customers and products and services for the long-term development of the company. This is crucial for most businesses. The Six Sigma management that developed from the 1990s is precisely such a way to determine the company’s strategic goals and product development design with the customer as the main body, and pursue the management method of continuous improvement. The Six Sigma management is a statistical assessment method. The core is to pursue zero-defect production, prevent product liability risks, reduce costs, increase productivity and market share, and increase customer satisfaction and loyalty. Six Sigma management tools and procedures for process improvement and is one of the strategies for business management. It was originally founded by Motorola in 1986. Later, due to the promotion of Jack Welch, the eighth CEO of General Electric, Six Sigma became the core management thinking of General Electric in 1995 and is widely used in many industries today.

Nowadays, we will find that the development of a company is inseparable from the composition of large and small projects. The project is a temporary effort by the organization to use pre-determined resources for a predetermined period of time to produce a unique, pre-definable product, service or result. Project management, which is the project manager, uses the system’s viewpoints, methods, and theories under limited resource constraints to effectively manage all the work involved in the project. That is, planning, organizing, directing, coordinating, controlling and evaluating from the project’s investment decision-making to the completion of the project to achieve the project’s goals. In order to make the Project management smoothly and perfectly performed, it is particularly important to use correct and appropriate methods and theories therein. Among them, the application of Six Sigma management method in project management is a meaningful and guiding reference. In the actual development, many scholars have studied and discussed many of them. At the same time, many companies have applied Six Sigma management methods in the management of certain projects, such as Lenovo Group, which is also the first implementation of Six Sigma in China.

This paper tries to base on the grounded theory and case analysis, and through the collation and analysis of a large amount of data, to further study the application and significance of Six Sigma management in project management. This paper is divided into five chapters. The chapter 1 is an introduction. It mainly elaborates the research background, purpose, method and significance. The chapter 2 is a literature review. It mainly describes the content, core and theory of Six Sigma management, etc., as well as related to process and content of Project management. The chapter 3 is the research method. Through the analysis of a large number of documents and data, the contents, processes, and differences between Six Sigma management and project management are analyzed and studied. The feasibility and difficulties of the combination of the two are further studied. The chapter 4 is a case study. Through the application of Lenovo Group Six Sigma management in project management, the key factors and significance of the process are analyzed。The chapter 5 is conclusions and discussion suggestions. There are some suggestions about how to more effectively combine the two to make analysis and recommendations in the future.

Keywords:  Six Sigma Management, DMAIC, Project Management.

Research on application of six sigma management in project management

International Master in Business Administration (IMBA), Siam University, Bangkok, Thailand