Barriers and challenges in the application of Six Sigma in the hospitality industry

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present some of the fundamental barriers and challenges in the use of Six Sigma as a business improvement methodology in the hospitality industry. Design/methodology/approach – The approach taken was to collate data through observations made by the third author during the execution of the research project within the case study company as well as collating data from company story boards and interviewing relevant and appropriate staff members in the case study company. Findings – The challenges of “data collection”, “defining projects” and “getting group consensus” can be considered to be somewhat very challenging in the context of hospitality industry. Research limitations/implications – Due to limited time constraints, the number of people participated in the study was relatively small. Perhaps a simple survey questionnaire could also be distributed to a number of people at the top management level, middle management level and front‐line staff personnel in the case study company. Originality/value – The paper provides an excellent resource for many researchers and practitioners equally who are engaged in research and applications of Six Sigma in the hospitality industry. Moreover there is a dearth of literature on the use of Six Sigma in the hospitality sector.