Lean Six Sigma in Academic Institutions—UK vs. Rest of the World

Purpose: The main purpose of this paper is to illustrate examples of the current maturity of universities both in the UK and abroad when implementing a continuous improvement programme or change agenda using techniques such as Lean Six Sigma. Design/Methodology/Approach: 21 UK universities and 17 International Universities have been identified and targeted with a questionnaire to research their approaches to implementing a continuous improvement programme / change agenda. The results have been collated and presented in two sections – the first being overall trends, the second being detailed questionnaire responses. Findings: This paper highlights the initial findings from 21 universities in the UK which responded to a survey and compares them with the findings from 17 international universities known to be working in the field on Lean Six Sigma. In addition, several trends have been observed from the research – and these are presented as a summary of the results. Research Limitations/Implications: All UK universities have been targeted, with 21 respondents, followed by the contacting of 17 international universities which have attended Lean Six Sigma conferences in the last 2 years. Practical Applications: This is the first step in building a leadership maturity model for international universities in their approach to Six Sigma Originality/Value: This is the first attempt of its kind to map the UK university institutions approach and view of managing change using management strategies such as Lean Six Sigma.