The purpose of this study was to examine managers' perception regarding the importance and application of Six
Sigma principles in the U.S. hotel industry. A total of 22 Six Sigma elements were abstracted from previous quality
improvement programs and Six Sigma research, and participants were asked to respond to level of importance and
applications on each Six Sigma element's. The most important Six Sigma element was management commitment,
followed by teamwork, communication, customer satisfaction, and creativity. Whereas, the highest application
attribute was customer satisfaction, followed by productivity, bottom line, cost reduction, and management
commitment. In contrast, the lowest application attribute was rewards and recognition, which mean value was still
above the neutral scale of four. As major findings, significant differences between perceived importance and
application of Six Sigma elements were found by managers' employment position level and years worked. The
practical implication of this study is that Six Sigma not only is very much applicable in the hotel industry, but also
contributes to the process of reaching the goal of exceeding customer’s satisfaction. Therefore, Six Sigma is a
management philosophy that could be implemented in the hotel industry that intends to increase productivity and
customer’s satisfaction.

key words : Managers' Perception, Six Sigma, and Hotels in the U.S.