Key facilitators to continuous improvement: a Spanish insight

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to analyse the nature of the facilitators of continuous improvement (CI), proposing a classification of them and identifying the different profiles of companies based on them. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve this objective, first, a literature review was done in order to identify the main facilitators; second, some of them were included in a survey based on experts' opinions; third, a survey was conducted amongst people responsible for implementing CI; and finally factorial and cluster analysis were applied. Findings: Based on the results, three main factors were identified: "cultural facilitators", "tactical facilitators" and "human resources involvement facilitators". Additionally, five clusters were defined. Practical implications: As many companies still struggle when implementing CI, the results of this study can help all them to focus on the most important aspects in order to guarantee the sustainability of the CI system. Originality/value: From a theoretical point of view, this work contributes to the CI field by analysing the nature of the main facilitators companies can find when implementing these initiatives. Thus, not only does this study provide a hierarchy of the most important facilitators, but also classifies them. As far as authors are concerned, this is the first attempt to categorise CI facilitators

Toyota Kata for continuous improvement; an action research project in the construction industry

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate how Toyota Kata can be effectively applied in the engineer-to-order (ETO) manufacturing within the construction industry. The objective is to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) for the Toyota Kata implementation in this environment and to develop a continuous improvement (CI) method – based on Toyota Kata and adapted to the ETO manufacturing within the construction industry. Design/methodology/approach: An action research (AR) approach was applied, which includes a participatory form of inquiry and learning from both intended and unintended outcomes, while simultaneously building up scientific knowledge about successful implementation of Toyota Kata. Findings: All the CSFs in the AR project are addressed by the earlier literature, thus confirming the existing body of knowledge. Moreover, the existing knowledge was arguably extended through the modified Toyota Kata as an approach for CI. New elements regarding how to run the small experiments by extending the core team with personnel who work with the problem on a daily basis. Originality/value: This research addresses a gap identified in the literature regarding how Toyota Kata can be adapted to the ETO manufacturing within the construction industry. It also presents an overview of CSFs for the Toyota Kata implementation in this environment.acceptedVersio

Organizational culture aspects that facilitate lean implementation: a pilot study

The paper aims to identify enablers and inhibitors of Lean Implementation (LI) in a small and medium-sized manufacturing (SME) organisation in Saudi Arabia. The paper opted for an exploratory study using the semi-structure interview approach of grounded theory, including seven in-depth interviews with employees representing from top management to the workers in the workshop having mainly an experience of Lean Implementation background. The data was complemented by context analysis, including simultaneous and concurrent data collection and constant comparison methods. It suggests successful communication and teamwork. However, there were two codes which had not been evidenced in prior research and were not identified in the literature review. These include; 'multiple decision makers' and the 'family effect'. This paper fulfils an identified need to study how organisational culture affects LI. It demonstrates the current state of LI in manufacturing companies by uncovering the enablers and inhibitors of organisational culture

Continuous improvement enablers: Defining a new construct

ABSTRACT: Purpose: Continuous improvement is a means of promoting and working through business excellence. However, due to the complexity of the implementation process, many companies fail. Some authors consider that this partly due to the lack of studies which develop and validate theoretical constructs in order to push theory in the CI field. Therefore, this study aims at identifying and better understanding the factors that could act as enablers when implementing a CI initiative by designing and analyzing a new theoretical construct. Design/methodology/approach: After conducting a rigorous literature review and consulting a group of experts, Rasch Measurement Theory was used in order to validate the construct and rank the enablers. Findings: After validating the construct, a hierarchy of priority was obtained, being the following enablers the most important ones: establishing clear objectives, training, recognizing the achievements and learning from the CI process itself and motivation. Practical implications: Identifying the key enablers could help those companies that are about to start with the implementation process. Additionally obtaining a general classification could help managers to make good decisions and handle these enablers, fostering the most important one. Originality/value: This paper provides additional evidence regarding the main enablers that an organization that decides to implement CI can foster. Additionally, as far as authors are concerned, this is the first paper that defines a theoretical construct concerning continuous improvement enablers. Going one-step further, this paper obtains a hierarchy of priority, identifying the main enablers according to managers' opinions

Towards building a theory of Lean implementation in healthcare

Includes bibliographical references.Lean, a management system based on the Toyota Production System, is increasingly being applied to healthcare contexts with mixed outcomes. While there are many case studies reporting on the outcomes of Lean implementation, there is little empirical evidence indicating which factors influence Lean implementation. Furthermore, there is an absence of critical and theory building research of Lean implementation. This study specifically addressed these gaps by identifying some of the enablers and inhibitors of Lean implementation, using empirical methods

The changing role of shop-floor operators in zero defect manufacturing

In the journey towards zero defect manufacturing, digital technologies aiming to improve different aspects of production and quality control will be of high importance. This will not replace existing management approaches such as lean manufacturing, including continuous improvement at the shop-floor level. A single case study is performed, where we have examined various aspects that influence a successful continuous improvement for reducing scrap parts and prevent further propagation in interaction with new zero-defect solutions. The aim is to identify the changing roles of the shop-floor operators and we highlight that they still will remain a key part of the system.publishedVersio

Key lessons to sustain continuous improvement: a case study of four companies

Purpose: This paper analyses the success factors and barriers of sustainable continuous improvement practices in terms of company’s maturity level. The key factors are necessary to establish strategies that reduce the risk of improvement failure and increase the company’s maturity level. Design/methodology/approach: The paper presents a multi-case analysis of the success factors in the implementation of continuous improvement. This lead to comparison between the factors identified from the literature review and the practice of the continuous improvement programs in four large successful companies located in Bogota, Colombia applying Bessant's maturity model. Findings: The results identified five success factors and three barriers that companies should consider while implementing sustainable continuous improvement programs. The key success factors are availability of resources; management commitment; employee participation in improvement task identification; clear and realistic objectives; and, finally, existence of a leader. The major barriers are lack of alignment between organizational and continuous improvement objectives; lack of motivation in the team; and, resistance to change. The results confirm that, in spite the high maturity, it is necessary to align the organizational and continuous improvement objectives. Research limitations/implications: Since this research is a multi-case study, it is limited in terms of results generalizability for companies of different sizes, sectors and context. The academic and practical contribution of this paper is providing a better understanding of sustainable continuous improvement practices in Latin-American emerging economies. Originality/value: The present research provides an integral analysis of the key success factors, the barriers, the level of maturity and the behaviours that the companies should implement to achieve the sustainability of continuous improvement in emerging economies such as Colombia.Peer Reviewe

Creating a culture for radical innovation in a small mature business

This article describes an approach in organizational development to develop an innovation culture for radical product development in a small mature engineering company. The research took place in a business based in the United Kingdom that designed and manufactured instrumentation and specialized packing machines. An initial study within the company’s new product development team identified key aspects that influenced a radical innovation culture. Nine key themes were found to be pertinent, following an iterative process with the development team. These themes were triangulated using the established Organization Culture Assessment Instrument and the Creative Climate Assessment Tool. A third assessment was developed that gauged the development team culture proximity to an ideal position. Seven interventions were developed in conjunction with the company development team, senior managers, the analysis of previous empirical case research and dialogue with UK companies that promote discontinuous innovation. The results of the interventions were evaluated 4 years after implementation. The culture was re-assessed using the same assessment tools and the changes were identified. The outcomes are described and they indicate the success of the company’s attempt to embed a sustainable radical innovation culture into the product development area

Benefits realization from IS/IT investments - a perspective from ERP systems

Delivery of benefits from many ERP systems remains disappointingly low. The high investment in ERP systems means that realizing benefits from these implementations is of critical importance to many organizations. Thus, the main aim this research is to develop insights that can help organizations to improve benefits realization from ERP systems. In doing so, this study is not only evaluating the benefits gained by different organizations, but it is also analysing the key activities that are deemed necessary for benefits realization. This research was conducted in two phases to explore the research objectives. The initial phase was conducted with a selection of stakeholders working in the ERP industry to gather insights concerning the adoption of benefits management approaches and the relationship between ERP customization and benefits realization. The second phase comprised of three in-depth case studies that investigated the activities that were necessary to realize benefits from ERP projects. The research provides a number of important contributions to the academic literature. With respect to the adoption of benefits management (BM) approaches, this research contributes by providing empirical insights about what organizations are actually doing to manage benefits. More specifically, the study provides evidence to suggest that organizations have an increased chance of realizing benefits if they develop localized BM approaches based on organizational needs and context. This study also highlights the role of organisational change in facilitating the realisation of business benefits, in the context of ERP projects. Another important contribution is an attempt in establishing of relationship between different types of customizations and the resultant benefits. The study also contributes by indicating that organizations, in the very particular context of ERP projects, can identify the additional un-planned benefits during the use of the system. This study makes another important new contribution to the literature, by demonstrating the importance of tackling any organizational inhibitors in order to realize maximum benefits at various stages of ERP systems life cycle. Finally, with respect to the evaluation of ERP systems, this research contributes by providing interpretive evaluation of operational ERP systems to explore the process of how benefits were realised, in the participating organizations. It is envisaged that interpretive evaluation will fuel the insights that will maximize the attaining of benefits from ERP implementations

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY

Nowadays the companies live in a constant changing world where customers demand better products, higher quality and shorter delivery times. To achieve these customers requirements companies rely on Continuous Improvement to reach their goals but without having a clear strategy for it. In this paper it is discussed in a literature review, the origin, definition and most used tools of CI. Then it is analyzed if the Learning School for strategy fits with CI to help in the creation of a strategy for CI