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In implementing Six Sigma and/or Lean Six Sigma, a practitioner often faces a dilemma of how to select the subset of root causes from a superset of all possible potential causes, popularly known as root cause analysis (RCA). Generally one resorts to the cause and effect diagram for this purpose. However, the practice adopted for identification of root causes is in many situations quite arbitrary and lacks a systematic, structured approach based on the rigorous data driven statistical analysis. This paper aims at developing a methodology for validation of potential causes to root causes to aid practitioners.

Discussion has been made on various methods for identification and validation of potential causes to root causes with the help of a few real life examples for effective Lean Six Sigma implementation.

The cause and effect diagram is the frequently adopted method for identifying potential causes out of a host of methods available for such identification. The method of validation depends on the practitioners’ knowledge on the relationship between cause and effect and controllability of the causes.

The roadmap thus evolved for the validation of root causes will be of great value to the practitioners as it is expected to help them understand the ground reality in an unambiguous manner resulting in a superior strategy for cause validation and corrective actions.

Suggests that the arousability theory of intelligence and personality of Robinson (1996) lacks two important factors: the influence of neural transmission errors and of hemisphericity on intelligence and personality. It is considered that at least two factors contribute to intelligence. The first factor is the potential energetic level of Hebb’s engrams, which may be related to arousability. The second factor is the probability of neural transmission errors. It is suggested that the theory of H.J. Eysenck, that a neural message is sent repeatedly until it is accepted identically a certain number of times, which is smaller for more intelligent subjects, is correct.

Rework is detrimental to project outcomes. However, there is still a lack of attention about rework within the Malaysian construction industry. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of rework on schedule and cost performance, to explore the causes of rework and to propose effective measures to minimise the occurrence of rework in building construction projects in Malaysia.

Using a sample of 114 construction stakeholders consisting of 39 clients, 36 consultants and 39 contractors from the Klang Valley region, the authors investigated the variables on rework through a questionnaire survey. The level of importance of the causes and the potential solutions was ranked and correlated.

From the primary data analysis, the study on Malaysian building projects unveiled the cost of rework to range from 3.1 to 6.0 per cent of the project value and the schedule growth due to rework to range from 5.1 to 10.0 per cent. The significant causes of rework were identified and prioritised. The 18 causes were further categorised into five underlying dimensions by using a factor analysis. Effective rework reduction measures were also given. Finally, the relationships between the causes of rework and the potential solutions were identified using correlation tests.

While this study is limited to rework in Malaysian building construction, rework in infrastructure projects is a potential area to discover new causes and possible solutions.

This paper provides insights into the effects of rework to project outcomes, causes of rework and feasible solutions in reducing rework in building construction projects.

Rework has been the focal point of research; however, empirical studies on rework have been under-represented in the Malaysian construction industry. This paper seeks to fill the gap by conducting an in-depth investigation on rework in the context of Malaysia.

The purpose of this paper is to improve the yield of a particular model of a car windshield, as the organization faces losses due to poor performance and rejection.

The Six Sigma DMAIC (define, measure, analyze, improve and control) methodology is used to reduce variation and defects in the process. It is a methodology based on data-driven and fact-based analysis to find out the root cause of the problem with the help of statistical analysis. A worst performing model is selected as a case study through the scoping tree. The preprocess, printing, bending and layup process defects are reduced by analyzing the potential causes and hypothesis testing.

This paper describes Six Sigma methodology in a glass manufacturing industry in India for automotive applications. The overall yield of a car windshield achieved 93.57 percent against the historical yield of 88.4 percent, resulting in saving 50 lacs per annum. Due to no rework or repairing in the glass, low first-time yield causes major losses. Process improvement through focused cross-functional team reduces variation in the process. Six Sigma improves profitability and reduces defects in the automotive glass manufacturing process.

This case study is applied in automotive glass manufacturing industries. For service and healthcare industries, a similar type of study can be performed. Further research on the common type of processor industry would be valuable.

The case study can be used as a problem-solving methodology in manufacturing and service industries. The tools and techniques can be used in other manufacturing processes also. This paper is useful for industries, researchers and academics for understanding Six Sigma methodology and its practical implementation.

This case study is an attempt to solve automobile glass manufacturing problems through DMAIC approach. The paper is a real case study showing benefits of Six Sigma implementation in the manufacturing industry and saving an annual cost of 50 lacs due to rejections in the process.

Learning outcomes are as follows: students will discover the importance of process orientation in management; students will determine the root cause of the problem by applying root cause analysis technique; students will identify the failure modes, analyze their effect, score them on a scale and prioritize the corrective action to prevent the failures; students will analyze the processes and propose error-proof system/s; and students will analyze organizational culture and ethical issues.

Purpose: This case study is intended as a class-exercise, for students to discover the importance of process-orientation in management, analyze the ethical dilemma in health care and to apply quality management techniques, such as five-why, root cause analysis, failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) and error-proofing, in the management of the health-care and service industry. Design/methodology/approach: A voluntary reporting of a case of “radiation overdose” in a hospital’s radio therapy treatment unit, which led to an ethical dilemma. Consequently, a study was conducted to establish the causes of the incident and to develop a fail-proof system, to avoid recurrence. Findings: After careful analysis of the process-flow and the root causes, 25 potential failure modes were detected and the team had assigned a risk priority number (RPN) for each potential incident, selected the top ten RPNs and developed an error-proofing system to prevent recurrence. Subsequently, the improvement process was carried out for all the 25 potential incidents and a new control mechanism was implemented. The question of ethical dilemma remained unresolved. Research limitations/implications: Ishikawa diagram, FMEA and Poka-Yoke techniques require a multi-disciplinary team with process knowledge in identifying the possible root causes for errors, potential risks and also the possible error-proofing method/s. Besides, these techniques need frank discussions and agreement among team members on the efforts for the development of action plan, implementation and control of the new processes. Practical implications: Students can take the case data to identify root cause analysis and the RPN (RPN = possibility of detection × probability of occurrence × severity), to redesign the protocols, through systematic identification of the deficiencies of the existing protocols. Further, they can recommend quality improvement projects. Faculty can navigate the case session orientation, emphasizing quality management or ethical practices, depending on the course for which the case is selected.

MBA or PG Diploma in Management – health-care management, hospital administration, operations management, services operations, total quality management (TQM) and ethics.

Teaching Notes are available for educators only.

CSS 9: Operations and Logistics.

This paper aims to develop a system dynamics (SD) model to identify causal relationships among the elements of failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA), i.e. failure modes, effects and causes.

A causal loop diagram (CLD) has been developed based on the results obtained from interdependencies and correlations analysis among the FMEA elements through applying the integrated approach of FMEA-quality function deployment (QFD) developed by Shaker et al. (2019). The proposed model was examined in a steel manufacturing company to identify and model the causes and effects relationships among failure modes, effects and causes of a roller-transmission system.

Findings indicated interactions among the most significant failure modes, effects and causes. Moreover, corrective actions defined to eliminate or relieve critical failure causes. Consequently, production costs decreased, and the production rate increased due to eliminated/decreased failure modes.

The application of CLD illustrates causal relationships among FMEA elements in a more effective way and results in a more precise recognition of the root causes of the potential failure modes and their easy elimination/decrease. Therefore, applying the proposed approach leads to a better analysis of the interactions among FMEA elements, decreased system's failure rate and increased system availability.

The literature review indicated a few studies on the application of SD methodology in the maintenance area, and no study was performed on the causal interactions among FMEA elements through an FMEA-QFD based SD approach. Although the interactions of these elements are significant and helpful in risks ranking, researchers fail to investigate them sufficiently.

This paper aims to report on themes of root cause of injury emerging from a qualitative study of investigations into serious workplace injuries undertaken by the Nova Scotia Department of Labour and Workforce Development, Occupational Health and Safety Division.

The study used systems‐based safety management as a theoretical lens and a qualitative grounded theory approach to inductively identify patterns and themes in the root cause of injury. Investigations were purposefully selected and analyzed through document review supplemented by interviews.

A number of themes of root cause of injury emerge from the data reflecting a lack of commitment to safety within the organization and a lack of positive safety leadership by management. Workplace culture is identified as a reflection of beliefs and assumptions of managers which impacts safety behaviour. A trend toward identifying the victim as a cause is also addressed.

Data are limited to investigations of serious injuries reported to the enforcement agency, thus focusing on negative experiences. The identification of root cause of injury may not always be the focus of the investigation, and the nature of acute serious injury limits the industry sectors represented. A need for further investigation across other industry sectors and inclusion of chronic injury is indicated.

These themes represent a cross sectoral perspective and can be used to guide development of prevention and intervention programs, corporate priorities and public policy.

The paper reports on a study of patterns in the root cause of workplace injuries.

The purpose of this paper is to advance a conceptual comprehensive framework to analyze synergy management pitfalls in mergers and acquisitions (M & As). The framework highlights the main dimensions of synergy management, the most relevant synergy pitfalls and the ways to overcome them.

A greater recognition of synergy management literature in M & As is developed. A framework is provided integrating the compatible elements of previous broad areas of research and the main findings of studies on several topics related to synergy.

Prior literature has suggested that synergy is an important motivation of M & As, has tended to be overestimated and has been difficult to achieve. Specifically, there are three relevant synergy pitfalls: the “mirage,” a tendency to overestimate synergy potential, the “gravity hill,” the underestimation of the difficulties in synergy realization and “amnesia,” a dangerous lack of attention to the realization of synergy. An effective synergy management requires an analysis of five dimensions: the steps of the M & A process, the several values of synergy, the forbidding effects of poor synergy management, the potential causes of synergy inflation and the selection of solutions to synergy pitfalls.

The comprehensive framework suggests insights and guidelines to help managers to overcome pitfalls in synergy management. Managers will learn the following lessons: “when” pitfalls should embrace synergy management; “where” pitfalls may occur; “why” pitfalls may occur; “what” consequences can result in a value of “realized synergy” lower than the “expected synergy”; and “how” actions, tools and behaviors can overcome hidden dangers in synergy management.

The study changes the focus from a single, generic synergy trap to three more analytical, useful synergy pitfalls: the mirage, the gravity hill and the amnesia. By shedding light on synergy management pitfalls, this paper enriches M & A literature and enhance practical solutions to reduce pitfalls in synergy decision making.

Product portfolio management is a strategic concern. Product portfolio management includes decisions associated with adding new products, maintaining existing products and deleting or phasing out problematic products. This paper first introduces a framework to identify risks of product deletion along supply chain activities. It utilizes failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) to identify, analyse and evaluate product deletion risks on supply chains and proposes managerial implications for risk management in dynamic business scenarios. It is meant to build upon and address a gap in the product deletion and supply chain linkage literature.

FMEA is utilized in this study to structure and manage potential risks in product deletion decision-making on supply chains. FMEA is based on an analysis of severity, occurrence and detectability of failure modes. FMEA provides methods to help identify managerial preventive solutions to avoid and mitigate risk consequences of such decisions.

Ten top product deletion risks are identified in this study; discussions of their negative impact on supply chain performance, and possible managerial recommendations are followed for risk control, monitor and elimination.

Findings help managers to predict, avoid and mitigate risk consequences of product deletion decisions; especially those related to the supply chain. A framework to structure various risks of product deletion in the supply chain can be useful to both practitioners and researchers.

This study advances product portfolio management through enhanced understanding of product deletion decision-making in organizations; and especially contributes to a broader investigation of such decisions in supply chain management. It also structures the factors that play a role in identifying risks.