Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects
Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division; in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2013.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | eng |
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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
2013
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/81002 |
| _version_ | 1826208812258820096 |
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| author | Joyce, Michael (Michael Sagar) |
| author2 | Roy E. Welsch and Qi D. Van Eikema Hommes. |
| author_facet | Roy E. Welsch and Qi D. Van Eikema Hommes. Joyce, Michael (Michael Sagar) |
| author_sort | Joyce, Michael (Michael Sagar) |
| collection | MIT |
| description | Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division; in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2013. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T14:12:42Z |
| format | Thesis |
| id | mit-1721.1/81002 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | eng |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T14:12:42Z |
| publishDate | 2013 |
| publisher | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/810022022-01-28T15:03:21Z Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects Joyce, Michael (Michael Sagar) Roy E. Welsch and Qi D. Van Eikema Hommes. Leaders for Global Operations Program. Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Engineering Systems Division Sloan School of Management Sloan School of Management. Engineering Systems Division. Leaders for Global Operations Program. Thesis (M.B.A.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Sloan School of Management; and, (S.M.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Engineering Systems Division; in conjunction with the Leaders for Global Operations Program at MIT, 2013. Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (p. 60). Why do some new initiatives fail while others succeed? This thesis attempts to answer this complex question by investigating the failure of a defect tracking initiative at Amazon and examining how a reintroduction of the process succeeded. Amazon is a very complex and dynamic organization that has both a corporate headquarters as well as a regional fulfillment centers. In distributed organizations like this, successfully implementing network-wide process improvements can be critical to the success of the business. Consequently, Amazon is constantly attempting to roll-out new improvement efforts. Unfortunately, some of these initiatives fail to reach their full potential. Common suggestions for the failure of initiatives include lack of management support, poor technology, limited communication, or lack of vision. This thesis argues that while these suggestions are valid and important when designing a process, these alone cannot by themselves show whether the initiative is destined for success or doomed to failure. To better understand the success rate of the initiative, one must do a deep dive into the incentive structure, motivations, and perceptions of all stakeholders involved in a new process. In 2010, Amazon introduced a defect tracking tool. Adoption grew during the first five months, but declined rapidly during the second half of the year. In 2012, 1 reintroduced the same defect tracking tool but made a number of minor changes to the process. Over the course of 2012, the project resulted in nearly 300,000 defects and nearly one million dollars in vendor chargebacks. More than 50,000 defects were filed in the month of December alone, compared to less than 4,000 in the month January. Approximately 1000 people used the tool at more than 30 different sites. This thesis illustrates how system dynamics modeling of the Amazon defect tracking process can be an effective tool for a more complete understanding of adoption or abandonment rates. At a broader level, this thesis discusses methods for designing new processes or modifying existing ones so they are more likely to succeed. by Michael Joyce. S.M. M.B.A. 2013-09-24T19:36:15Z 2013-09-24T19:36:15Z 2013 2013 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/81002 857789524 eng M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 60 p. application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| spellingShingle | Sloan School of Management. Engineering Systems Division. Leaders for Global Operations Program. Joyce, Michael (Michael Sagar) Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title | Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title_full | Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title_fullStr | Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title_full_unstemmed | Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title_short | Design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| title_sort | design and process solutions for decreasing vendor defects |
| topic | Sloan School of Management. Engineering Systems Division. Leaders for Global Operations Program. |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/81002 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT joycemichaelmichaelsagar designandprocesssolutionsfordecreasingvendordefects |