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Doctor Michael Sony

Digital Business

ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8003-5216
Job Title
Senior Lecturer
Qualifications PhD (Operations Management), Goa University, India; M Eng. (Industrial Engineering), Goa University, India
Organisational Unit Wits Business School

Contact Information

Phone
Websites

Research Interests

Digital Business
Biography

Courses and Disciplines taught at WBS: 

Digital Operations Management; Digital Transformation & Change Management; Digital Strategy.

Other Teaching Experience: 

Research Methodology; Quality Management; Quality Engineering; Reliability Management; Operations Management; System Simulation and Modelling; Supply Chain Management. 

Research Interests: 

Production & Operations Management, Industry 4.0, Quality 4.0, and Industrial Ergonomics.

Work

Industry and Professional Experience:

Michael Sony is currently working as Senior Lecturer in Digital Business, Wits Business School. Prior to this he worked as Senior Lecturer in Industrial Engineering, at Faculty of Engineering, Namibia University of Science and Technology, Windhoek, Namibia, since 2017. Prior to that he worked with Government of Goa, India, in the Goa State Electricity Department. He was also consultant in Operation Excellence, Six Sigma, lean Six Sigma and Industrial Engineering, with experience in power sector, mining, and metals. 

Recent Publications and Scholarly Contributions:

  1. Tortorella, G., Prashar, A., Antony, J., Mac Cawley, A. F., Vassolo, R., & Sony, M. (2023). Role of leadership in the digitalisation of manufacturing organisations. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management.
  2. Zulfiqar, M., Antony, J., Swarnakar, V., Sony, M., Jayaraman, R., & McDermott, O. (2023). A readiness assessment of Quality 4.0 in packaging companies: an empirical investigation. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 1-19.
  3. Naik, S., Sony, M., Antony, J., McDermott, O., Tortorella, G. L., & Jayaraman, R. (2023). Operational excellence framework for sustainability in the organisation: a design science approach. Production Planning & Control, 1-17.
  4. Puram, P., Gurumurthy, A., Antony, J., & Sony, M. (2022). Assessing the “Systemic Barriers” Affecting Lean Implementation: A Comparison Between Manufacturing and Lean Software Development Contexts. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management.
  5. McDermott, O., Foley, I., Antony, J., Sony, M., & Butler, M. (2022). The Impact of Industry 4.0 on the Medical Device Regulatory Product Life Cycle Compliance. Sustainability, 14(21), 14650.
  6. McGrane, V., McDermott, O., Trubetskaya, A., Rosa, A., & Sony, M. (2022). The Effect of Medical Device Regulations on Deploying a Lean Six Sigma Project. Processes, 10(11), 2303.
  7. Antony, J., Swarnakar, V., Salentijn, W., Shokri, A., Doulatabadi, M., Bhat, S., & Sony, M. (2022). A global study on applicability of ISO 18404: 2015 for SMEs: an exploratory qualitative study. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print).
  8. Puram, P., Sony, M., Antony, J., & Gurumurthy, A. (2022). A conceptual framework for a systemic understanding of barriers during lean implementation. The TQM Journal, 34(6), 1469-1484
  9. Fatima, F., Oba, P., & Sony, M. (2022). Exploring employee well-being during the COVID-19 remote work: evidence from South Africa. European Journal of Training and Development, (ahead-of-print).
  10. Antony, J., McDermott, O., Sony, M., Toner, A., Bhat, S., Cudney, E. A., & Doulatabadi, M. (2022). Benefits, challenges, critical success factors and motivations of Quality 4.0–A qualitative global study. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 1-20.
  11. McDermott, O., Antony, J., Sony, M., Rosa, A., Hickey, M., & Grant, T. A. (2022). A study on Ishikawa’s original basic tools of quality control in healthcare. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print).
  12. Antony, J., McDermott, O., Powell, D., & Sony, M. (2022). The evolution and future of lean Six Sigma 4.0. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-04-2022-0135)
  13. McDermott, O., Antony, J., Sony, M., & Looby, E. (2022). A critical evaluation and measurement of organisational readiness and adoption for continuous improvement within a medical device manufacturer. International Journal of Management Science and Engineering Management, DOI:(1080/17509653.2022.2073917 )
  14. Antony, J., Sony, M., McDermott, O., Swarnakar, V., Galli, B., Doulatabadi, M., & Kaul, R. (2022). An empirical study into the reasons for failure of sustaining operational excellence initiatives in organizations. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-05-2022-0176)
  15. Sony, M., et al. (2022). Determining the Critical Failure Factors for Industry 4.0: An Exploratory Sequential Mixed Method Study. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management.
  16. Sony, M., Antony, J., & Mc Dermott, O. (2022). How do the technological capability and strategic flexibility of an organization impact its successful implementation of Industry 4.0? A qualitative viewpoint. Benchmarking: An International Journal, (ahead-of-print).
  17. Sony, M., Antony, J., & McDermott, O. (2022). The impact of medical cyber–physical systems on healthcare service delivery. The TQM Journal, 34(7), 73-94.
  18. Sony, M., Antony, J., & McDermott, O. (2022). The Impact of Healthcare 4.0 on the Healthcare Service Quality: A Systematic Literature Review. Hospital Topics, 1-17.
  19. Sony, M., & Mekoth, N. (2022). Employee adaptability skills for Industry 4.0 success: a road map. Production & Manufacturing Research, 10(1), 24-41.
  20. McDermott, O., Antony, J., Sony, M., & Healy, T. (2022). Critical failure factors for continuous improvement methodologies in the Irish MedTech industry. The TQM Journal.
  21. Therisa Beena, K. K., & Sony, M. (2022). Student workload assessment for online learning: An empirical analysis during Covid-19. Cogent Engineering, 9(1), 2010509.
  22. Erastus Shafoihuna, S., & Sony, M. (2022). Reliability Analysis of Keith Centrifuge at a Meat Processing Plant in Windhoek, Namibia. International Journal of Operations Research and Information Systems (IJORIS) 13(1), 1-20.
  23. McDermott, O., Antony, J., Sony, M., & Daly, S. (2021). Barriers and Enablers for Continuous Improvement Methodologies within the Irish Pharmaceutical Industry. Processes, 10(1), 73.
  24. Antony, J., Sony, M., McDermott, O., Jayaraman, R., & Flynn, D. (2021). An exploration of organizational readiness factors for Quality 4.0: an intercontinental study and future research directions. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management.
  25. Antony, J., Sony, M., McDermott, O., Furterer, S., & Pepper, M. (2021). How does performance vary between early and late adopters of Industry 4.0? A qualitative viewpoint. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQRM-05-2021-0134)
  26. Sony, M., Antony, J., Mc Dermott, O., & Garza-Reyes, J. A. (2021). An empirical examination of benefits, challenges, and critical success factors of industry 4.0 in manufacturing and service sector. Technology in Society, 67, 101754.
  27. Antony, J., McDermott, O., & Sony, M. (2021). Quality 4.0 conceptualisation and theoretical understanding: a global exploratory qualitative study. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-07-2021-0215).
  28. Antony, J., McDermott, O., & Sony, M. Revisiting Ishikawa's Original Seven Basic Tools of Quality Control: A Global Study and Some New Insights. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management, doi: 10.1109/TEM.2021.3095245.
  29. Antony, J., McDermott, O., & Sony, M. (2021). Quality 4.0 conceptualisation and theoretical understanding: a global exploratory qualitative study. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-07-2021-0215).
  30. Antony, J., Sony, M., & McDermott, O. (2021). Conceptualizing Industry 4.0 readiness model dimensions: an exploratory sequential mixed-method study. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-06-2021-0180)
  31. Antony, J., McDermott, O., Sony, M., Cudney, E.A., Snee, R.D., & Hoerl, R. W. (2021). A study into the pros and cons of ISO 18404: viewpoints from leading academics and practitioners. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-03-2021-0065) 
  32. Antony, J, & Sony, M. An Empirical Study Into Qualifications and Skills of Quality Management Practitioners in Contemporary Organizations: Results From a Global  Survey and Agenda for Future Research. IEEE Transactions on Engineering  Management, doi: 10.1109/TEM.2021.3050460.
  33. Antony, J., McDermott, O., Sony, M., Fernandes, M.M., & Ribeiro, R. V. C. (2021). A study on the Ishikawa's original basic tools of quality control in South American companies: results from a pilot survey and directions for further research. The TQM Journal, (ahead-of-print). (https://doi.org/10.1108/TQM-0120210004)
  34. Sony, M., Antony, J., & Douglas, J. A. (2021). Motivations, barriers and readiness factors for Quality 4.0 implementation: an exploratory study. The TQM Journal.
  35. Karingada, K. T., & Sony, M. (2021). Demonstration of the relationship between MSD and online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education.
  36. Antony, J., Sony, M., & Gutierrez, L. (2020). An Empirical Study Into the Limitations and Emerging Trends of Six Sigma: Findings From a Global Survey. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management.
  37. Sony, M., & Naik, S. (2020). Industry 4.0 integration with socio-technical systems theory: A systematic review and proposed theoretical model. Technology in Society, 101248.
  38. Sony, M., & Naik, S. (2020). Critical factors for the successful implementation of Industry 4.0: a review and future research direction. Production Planning & Control, 31(10), 799815
  39. Sony, M. (2020). Design of cyber physical system architecture for industry 4.0 through lean six sigma: conceptual foundations and research issues. Production & Manufacturing Research, 8(1), 158-181.
  40. Vallejo, V. F., Antony, J., Douglas, J. A., Alexander, P., & Sony, M. (2020). Development of a roadmap for Lean Six Sigma implementation and sustainability in a  Scottish packing company. The TQM Journal.
  41. Sony, M., Antony, J., & Naik, S. (2020). How do organizations implement an effective LSS initiative? A qualitative study. Benchmarking: An International Journal.
  42. Sony, M., Antony, J., & Douglas, J. A. (2020). Essential ingredients for the implementation of Quality 4.0. The TQM Journal.
  43. Sony, M., Naik, S., & Antony, J. (2020). Lean Six Sigma and social performance: A review and synthesis of current evidence. Quality Management Journal, 27(1), 21-36.
  44. Sony, M. (2020). Pros and cons of implementing Industry 4.0 for the organizations: a review and synthesis of evidence. Production & Manufacturing Research, 8(1), 244-272.
  45. Sony, M., & Naik, S. S. (2019). Sigma with C-K Theory for innovations in operational excellence: A case study. Benchmarking: An International Journal.
  46. Sony, M., & Naik, S. (2019). Ten Lessons for managers while implementing Industry 4.0. IEEE   Engineering Management, 47(2), 45-52 (https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/8704884 );
  47. Sony, M. (2019). Implementing sustainable operational excellence in organizations: an integrative viewpoint. Production & Manufacturing Research, 1-21. (https://doi.org/10.1080/21693277.2019.158 );
  48. Sony, M., Antony, J., Park, S., & Mutingi, M. (2019). Key criticism of Six Sigma: A systematic Literature Review. IEEE Transactions of Engineering Management. DOI: (https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/8637760)
  49. Antony, J., Sony, M., Dempsey, M., Brennan, A., Farrington, T., & Cudney, E. A. (2019). An evaluation into the limitations and emerging trends of Six Sigma: an empirical study. The TQM Journal. (https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/TQM-12-2018-0191/full/html)
  50. Sony, M., Naik, S., & Therisa, K. K. (2019). Why do organizations discontinue Lean Six Sigma initiatives? International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management. (https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQRM-03-2018-0066)
  51. Sony, M., & Naik, S. (2019). Key ingredients for evaluating Industry 4.0 readiness for organizations: a literature review. Benchmarking: An International Journal. (https://doi.org/10.1108/BIJ-09-2018-0284)
  52. Sony, M., & Mekoth, N. (2019). The relationship between workplace spirituality, job satisfaction and job performance. International Journal of Process Management and Benchmarking, 9(1), 27-46. DOI:1504/IJPMB.2019.097819 
  53. Sony, M. (2019). Lean Six Sigma in the power sector: frog into prince. Benchmarking: An International Journal. (https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/BIJ-10-2017-0276/full/html)
  54. Sony, M. (2018). Industry 4.0 and lean management: a proposed integration model and research propositions. Production & Manufacturing Research, 6(1), 416-432.
  55. Sony, M., & Mekoth, N. (2018). A qualitative study on electricity energy-saving behaviour. Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, 29(5), 961977.
  56. Sony, M., Mekoth, N., & Therisa, K. K. (2018). Understanding nature of empathy through the lens of service encounter: a phenomenological study on FLE's. International Journal of Productivity and Quality Management, 23(1), 55-73

 

Other Scholarly Contributions:

Michael Sony is a certified Energy Auditor with Bureau of Energy Efficiency, New Delhi, India. He is on the editorial board of the International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, published by Emerald publications.  He has edited two books on quality management in higher education.

 

International Experience:

Worked in India and Namibia.