Lean Six Sigma in financial services

Abstract

Lean Thinking and Six Sigma are typically considered as separate approaches to process innovation, with complementary strengths. When combined as Lean Six Sigma, this approach provides a unified framework for systematically developing innovations. Lean Six Sigma can also bring about significant results and breakthrough improvements in financial services, as demonstrated with four case studies from Dutch multinational insurance companies. These cases demonstrate the importance of incremental innovations and show that there is room for improvement in the financial services industry. This article takes the integration of Lean Thinking and Six Sigma a step further by providing an integrated framework and a comprehensive roadmap for improvement.