Six sigma approach to improving service quality and an application in the tourism sector

Six Sigma can be regarded as a recent quality improvement initiative that has gained popularity and recognition in many industries around the world. In the tourism sector, the Six Sigma approach is adopted and it is expected that the errors in hotel service functions will be minimized and high service quality will be ensured. In this thesis, it was aimed to apply a Six Sigma in order to improve the service process of a five star hotel in the city center of Antalya. Surveys given to hotel customer's amount of 386 forms, 357 samples were obtained which have a sufficient data quality. The obtained data were analyzed with Six Sigma methods and tools. From these methods, which are the five steps definition, measurement, analysis, improvement, control-DMAIC methodology is followed. In the first step the current state of the hotel is defined, at measurement stage sigma level for service quality calculated, in the analysis phase, the measurements were interpreted and solution suggestions were presented for the problems in the hotel for the improvement, and finally, the controls to be carried out to ensure the continuity of these improvements are explained. One of the purposes of the thesis is to examine whether there is a difference between the quality of service expected and perceived by the customers who buy service from a hospitality company with Servqual model. As a data collection tool, a survey based on Servqual model consisting of tangibles, reliability, responsiveness, empathy and assurance dimensions was designed and used. According to the results, it was observed that the expectations of the customers regarding hotel services were not met in general. The sigma score of the hotel was calculated as 2,01. This level indicates 300,952 defects per million. This low sigma score indicates the negative difference between the general expectation and perception scores of the Servqual Scale. In this study, physical competence and reliability dimensions were found to be the lowest satisfaction level among hotel customers. It is considered that the Six Sigma approach applied together with this study will contribute to a better understanding of the service sector, especially in the tourism, and the research findings will have a significant contribution to the literature in the studies related to hotel enterprices. Key Words: Six Sigma, DMAIC Model, Hospitality Management, Service Quality