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This paper aims to identify the relationships among critical success factors (CSFs) for lean six sigma (LSS) implementation in higher education institutions (HEIs).

An extensive literature review was conducted to design the survey instrument, which the authors later administered in Mexican public HEIs to identify the existing relationships among the CSFs and their impact on the benefits obtained from implementing LSS projects. The data were empirically and statistically validated using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis. Additionally, the authors applied the structural equation modeling (SEM) technique on SPSS Amos to validate the nine hypotheses supporting the research.

The results suggest that the success of LSS projects in HEIs is highly bound to a serious commitment from top management and several interrelated factors.

The main limitations of the study are that the research is cross-sectional in nature and regional in focus. Namely, the data used to validate the structural model were gathered from a small representative subset of the study population – i.e. Mexican public HEIs – and at a specific point in time.

The results reported here represent a reference framework for HEIs worldwide that wish to continuously improve their processes through LSS improvement projects.

This study proposes a statistically validated model using the SEM technique that depicts the relationships among LSS CSFs in HEIs.

The purpose of this paper aims at investigating which lean supply chain management (LSCM) practices efficiently improve the supply chain performance.

To achieve that, a cross-sectional survey was carried out with 113 manufacturing companies undergoing a lean implementation. The proposed method combines complementary methods of multivariate data analysis in order to determine which bundles of LSCM practices more efficiently entail improvements on supply chain performance.

The findings justify why some LSCM initiatives may find larger barriers than others, compromising their success due to misguided implementation efforts according to the desired performance improvement.

The empirical examination on the efficiency of LSCM practices with regards to a certain set of performance indicators provides guidelines with respect to LSCM implementation depending on which performance indicators are envisioned for improvement.

The objective of the study is to design and validate an instrument that allows organizations to assess their status regarding the adoption of the critical success factors (CSFs) that enable lean six sigma (LSS) implementation in order to achieve the expected benefits.

An extensive literature review was conducted to define the LSS CSFs that have to be considered for the development of the questionnaire that would later be applied across all manufacturing companies on the Northern Mexican border. Once the database was built, a statistical verification of the assumptions required for factor analysis took place. Finally, the due construct validation was carried out to verify whether the proposed instrument measured reliably what it is intended to.

A questionnaire measuring nine CSFs, as well as the benefits associated with the implementation of LSS, was designed and validated through 61 items.

The main limitations of this study are that the research is cross-sectional and that the study was carried out taking as a reference only exporting manufacturing companies located in the border area between Mexico and the United States.

The validated instrument is expected to serve as a useful tool for companies interested in the implementation of LSS.

This study introduces a validated tool for the analysis of LSS CSFs while providing evidence of construct validity and the solid structure of the factors.