Search results

The purpose of this study is to examine the critical failure factors (CFFs) linked to various types of process improvement (PI) projects such as Kaizen, Lean, Six Sigma, Lean Six Sigma and Agile. Proposing a mitigation framework accordingly is also an aim of this study.

This research undertakes a systematic literature review of 49 papers that were relevant to the scope of the study and that were published in four prominent databases, including Google Scholar, Scopus, Web of Science and EBSCO.

Further analysis identifies 39 factors that contribute to the failure of PI projects. Among these factors, significant emphasis is placed on issues such as “resistance to cultural change,” “insufficient support from top management,” “inadequate training and education,” “poor communication” and “lack of resources,” as primary causes of PI project failures. To address and overcome the PI project failures, the authors propose a framework for failure mitigation based on change management models. The authors present future research directions that aim to enhance both the theoretical understanding and practical aspects of PI project failures.

Through this study, researchers and project managers can benefit from well-structured guidelines and invaluable insights that will help them identify and address potential failures, leading to successful implementation and sustainable improvements within organizations.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this paper is the first study of its kind to examine the CFFs of five PI methodologies and introduces a novel approach derived from change management theory as a solution to minimize the risk associated with PI failure.

The purpose of this global study is to investigate the critical failure factors (CFFs) in the deployment of operational excellence (OPEX) programs as well as the key performance indicators (KPIs) that can be used to measure OPEX failures. The study also empirically analyzes various OPEX methodologies adopted by various organizations at a global level.

This global study utilized an online survey to collect data. The questionnaire was sent to 800 senior managers, resulting in 249 useful responses.

The study results suggest that Six Sigma is the most widely utilized across the OPEX methodologies, followed by Lean Six Sigma and Lean. Agile manufacturing is the least utilized OPEX methodology. The top four CFFs were poor project selection and prioritization, poor leadership, a lack of proper communication and resistance to change issues.

This study extends the current body of knowledge on OPEX by first delineating the CFFs for OPEX and identifying the differing effects of these CFFs across various organizational settings. Senior managers and OPEX professionals can use the findings to take remedial actions and improve the sustainability of OPEX initiatives in their respective organizations.

This study uniquely identifies critical factors leading to OPEX initiative failures, providing practical insights for industry professionals and academia and fostering a deeper understanding of potential pitfalls. The research highlights a distinctive focus on social and environmental performance metrics, urging a paradigm shift for sustained OPEX success and differentiating itself in addressing broader sustainability concerns. By recognizing the interconnectedness of 12 CFFs, the study offers a pioneering foundation for future research and the development of a comprehensive management theory on OPEX failures.

This paper aims to understand what reflexivity means and explores which types of reflexivity could be applied within social marketing practice as a critical approach to overcoming failures.

This paper is a critical literature review.

The study proposes a typology for a reflexive approach to social marketing practice to overcome failures. The typology is built on self and critical reflexivity, simultaneously allowing social marketers to reflect on external and internal factors that may affect the individual's role and could negatively affect social marketing practice unless otherwise considered. The types of reflexivity discussed are not prescriptive; instead, the authors intend to provoke further discussion on an under-researched but vital area of social marketing.

The proposed typology is conceptual; an empirical investigation to gain social marketer's views would further enhance the effectiveness of the applications of the typology.

Social marketers could use the proposed typology for future practice.

This is the first study that conceptualises various types of reflexivity within social marketing practice to overcome failures.

The purpose of this study is to identify the critical readiness factors (CRFs) that mainly affect the implementation of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in an organization and their interactions, and to develop a model that allows the management to assess the Lean Implementation Readiness Level.

The methodology is separated into two main parts: the literature review and the assessment model development. In the literature review, the main CRFs and their interactions for LSS implementation in Scopus Data Base were identified. The second part of the methodology is the model development. It was built on a stepwise framework that considers the relations among the CRFs and their importance. Moreover, it was used fuzzy-based linguistic variables given by the experts working in the company to consider the actual performance rating of each CRF. The model has been validated in the healthcare sector in nine hospitals.

From the model application, it is possible to note that the most frequent level among the nine hospitals interviewed is “Average Ready”. Also, the most extreme level of readiness occurred ones while the most extreme level of not readiness never occurred. Results show that in 78% of the cases, there would have been a high probability of implementation failure. Also, it was possible to identify for each hospital if the CRFs are good, if they are weak and need to change or if another factor needs to be improved before it and what this factor is.

This work proposes a new methodology that eliminates the negative aspects and limitations of the total interpretive structural modeling methodology and the fuzzy logic approach currently applied to evaluate the LSS readiness of a company. The present methodology lies in the fact that it provides a solution not only by defining the weak CRFs but also by giving an indication of priority as it identifies the weak antecedent factors that inhibit the preparedness of the depending factors.

This study explores how Lean was deployed in several hospitals in the Apulia region in Italy over 3.5 years.

An exploratory qualitative design was drawn up based on semi-structured interviews.

The drivers of Lean in hospitals were to increase patient satisfaction and improve workplace well-being by eliminating non-value-add waste. The participants highlighted three key elements of the pivotal implementation stages of Lean: introduction, spontaneous and informal dissemination and strategic level implementation and highlighted critical success and failure factors that emerged for each of these stages. During the introduction, training and coaching from an external consultant were among the most impactful factors in the success of pilot projects, while time constraints and the adoption of process analysis tools were the main barriers to implementation. The experiences of the Lean teams strongly influence the process of spontaneous dissemination aided by the celebration of project results and the commitment of the departmental hospital heads.

Lean culture can spread to allow many projects be conducted spontaneously, but the Lean paradigm can struggle to be adopted strategically. Lean in healthcare can fail because of the lack of alignment of Lean with leadership in healthcare and with their strategic vision, a lack of employees' project management skills and crucially the absence of a Lean steering committee.

The absence of managerial expertise and a will to support Lean implementation do not allow for systemic adoption of Lean. This is one of the first and largest long-term case studies on a Lean cross-regional multi-hospital application in healthcare.

This study aims to develop a collaborative governance framework (CGF) to systematically investigate the impeding factors (IFs) in terms of the operational sustainability of PPPs. It examines the transmission pattern (i.e. the way in which network members react to each other) of the IFs network.

Literature review and interview were adopted to identify the IFs. Then, with the data collected from the interview in China, the social network analysis and interpretive structure model were synergised to examine the chain reaction, driving and dependent powers, and hierarchical structure of the identified IFs.

The results reveal that the cognition, institutional, financial and participation aspects are key barriers confronted by PPP sustainability, and the government plays a leading role in controlling factors causing sustainability-related problems in PPPs. Weak government leadership and institutional environment were identified as the most fundamental reasons triggering a chain of IFs, while project governance and management activities act as bridge nodes that play an intermediary role in the IFs network.

This research contributes to the literature on PPP governance by (1) bridging the literature gap through the development of CGF for explaining the governance of PPP sustainability with a holistic view that considers both macro environment and operational project processes; and (2) identifying the transmission pattern of IFs network which uncovers the underlying dynamics causing the unsustainable operation of PPPs.

This research provides practitioners with a list of key checkpoints for preventing failure escalation, enables decision-makers to prioritise obstacle-mitigation efforts and develop a feasible process to control PPP operation, and offers management countermeasures to remove the key barriers impeding PPP sustainability.

This study is novel for adopting network-oriented techniques to quantify the relative importance of the IFs and examine the transmission pattern of the IFs system. Therefore, it visualises the complex underlying dynamics causing unsustainable PPP operation, identifies root and direct causes of PPP failures, and provides decision-makers with insights into sustaining PPP sustainability from a network-oriented perspective.

This study aims to investigate the adoption of Quality 4.0 (Q4.0) and assess the critical failure factors (CFFs) for its implementation and how its failure is measured.

A qualitative study based on in-depth interviews with quality managers and executives was conducted to establish the CFFs for Q4.0.

The significant CFFs highlighted were resistance to change and a lack of understanding of the concept of Q4.0. There was also a complete lack of access to or availability of training around Q4.0.

The study enhances the body of literature on Q4.0 and is one of the first research studies to provide insight into the CFFs of Q4.0.

Based on the discussions with experts in the area of quality in various large and small organizations, one can understand the types of Q4.0 initiatives and the CFFs of Q4.0. By identifying the CFFs, one can establish the steps for improvements for organizations worldwide if they want to implement Q4.0 in the future on the competitive global stage.

The concept of Q4.0 is at the very nascent stage, and thus, the CFFs have not been found in the extant literature. As a result, the article aids businesses in understanding possible problems that might derail their Q4.0 activities.

The effectiveness of Six Sigma programs has varied across different industries and organizations, and leadership styles have been identified as a critical success factor for the installation of Six Sigma initiatives. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the specific elements of leadership styles that are linked with the successful deployment of Six Sigma programs in the automobile industry.

To conduct the study, the researchers utilized a Likert scale questionnaire with a rating system of 1–7 and a simple random sampling method. The survey was distributed to 2,325 potential participants, with 573 responses received, mostly from Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden. Out of those responses, 260 completed questionnaires were received. The study utilized a mixed-methods research design and exploratory research approaches to investigate the implication of leadership style on the success of Six Sigma implementation. The research employed several analysis techniques, including Structural Equation Modeling (SEM), exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Survey methods.

Through various SEM methods, such as EFA and CFA, the study revealed two vital leadership elements: (1) the long-term success of Six Sigma depends on leadership’s support and recognition of it as an improvement strategy and (2) leadership must commit to the organization’s suppliers to ensure quality and the provision of defect-free products.

By incorporating the identified key elements of leadership into their strategies, organizations and researchers can ensure the sustainable implementation of Six Sigma.

This research presents a distinct contribution to the evaluation of leadership style components within the European automotive sector, utilizing a mixed-methods research design and incorporating a variety of descriptive statistics.

Numerous attempts at installing six sigma (SS) have faced challenges and fallen short of the desired success. Thus, it becomes vital to identify the critical factors and characteristics that play a pivotal role in achieving successful adoption. In this study the research has aimed to highlight that a considerable number of corporate SS initiatives, around 60%, fail primarily due to the improper incorporation of essential elements and flawed assumptions.

To validate the influence of critical success factors (CSFs) on SS accomplishment, the study employed a research design combining exploratory and mixed-methods approaches. A Likert-scale questionnaire was utilized, and a simple random sampling method was employed to gather data. Out of the 2,325 potential participants approached, 573 responses were received, primarily from Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden. The analysis focused on 260 completed questionnaires and statistical methods including structural equation modeling (SEM), exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were utilized for data analysis.

The study acknowledged four essential components of CSFs that are imperative for sustaining the success of SS: (1) Competence of belt System employees; (2) Project management skills; (3) Organizational economic capability and (4) Leadership commitment and engagement. These factors were identified as significant contributors to the maintenance of SS’s success.

The practical implications of this research imply that institutions, practitioners, and researchers can utilize the four identified factors to foster the sustainable deployment of SS initiatives. By incorporating these factors, organizations can enhance the effectiveness and longevity of their SS practices.

The investigation's originality lies in its contribution to assessing CSFs in SS deployment within the European automobile industry, utilizing a mixed-methods research design supplemented by descriptive statistics.

The aim of this study is to determine the most critical success factors (CSFs) of lean adoption in a specific Greek public services subsector namely citizen's service centers (CSCs) and to define their underlying structure (latent constructs).

In this study an online structured questionnaire survey was distributed to all the Greek CSCs and six hundred and seventy-two employees responded and fully completed the questionnaire. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) were applied to assess the reliability and validity of the latent constructs of the Lean CSFs.

Data analysis revealed that the latent constructs of the lean CSFs, namely communication, top management commitment and leadership, organizational culture, training and education, change and project management, availability of resources, teamwork, and employee involvement and empowerment are of major importance for the adoption of lean in the CSCs.

The small percentage of the responding employees of the Greek CSCs, given their large population and the subjective nature of the data collected constitute the main limitations of the present study.

The findings of this research can guide managers and decision makers of CSCs in recognizing the key factors that potentially will influence the successful adoption of lean, and the enhancement of the quality management initiatives of these services organizations. Moreover, the formulated model can also serve as a reference for academics and researchers to generate new research ideas. Finally, the results may offer guidelines to managers of public services organizations of other countries with a similar structure of the public sector.

The present study is stimulated by the existing gap identified in the literature in the field of the public sector. Building on the public sector literature, this is the first study that evaluates the importance of the CSFs of lean in the Greek CSCs and defines their underlying structure.