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This paper aims to study the relations between lean operations, lean principles in finance functions and the roles of finance functions.

The paper uses structural equation modeling to analyze data from 408 different firms in the Danish production and services sectors. A dyadic approach is applied, as a sub-sample of 107 chief operating officers in the responding firms is used to investigate the construct validity, reliability and average deviation index of the instrument measuring the roles of finance functions.

The paper finds that lean-operation firms emphasize four different yet interdependent roles of finance functions. The paper also finds that lean operation leads to firms’ finance functions adopting lean principles.

This paper characterizes lean-operation firms as contextually ambidextrous to predict relations between lean operation and roles of finance functions. The paper expands prior case study findings on the roles of finance functions in lean-operation firms, and the findings of the paper underline that finance functions continue to play an important role in these firms.

Decision-makers in lean-operation firms should not be hesitant with respect to integrating finance function workers into the lean operation. Furthermore, decision-makers should understand that a balanced emphasis of the roles of finance functions is necessary to avoid overemphasizing exploitation at the expense of exploration, or vice versa.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to provide large-scale evidence of the roles of finance functions in lean-operation firms and to show that lean principles diffuse to finance functions. Furthermore, the paper introduces a new instrument for measuring finance function roles, based on the competing values framework.

Companies that adopt lean operations and lean accounting ultimately should achieve better profitability and cash flows than similarly situated companies that do not adopt lean operations and lean accounting.

Archival data is analyzed through Wilcoxon signed-ranks, matched-pairs tests.

Lean companies had greater returns on net operating assets (RNOA), returns on total assets (ROA), operating cash flows, and cash-adequacy ratios than Non-Lean companies. These results were driven by the larger Lean companies. The profit margins and financing-assets ratios also were marginally better for the Lean companies than the Non-Lean companies.

Lean companies have achieved benefits proposed by the proponents of lean operations. The present study provides a starting point for further research on the financial performance of Lean companies using archival data.

There is limited research on the financial performance of Lean companies that is based on archival data. The present study fills a void in the academic literature. This study measures RNOA, which does not confound operating and financing activities. Additionally, this study utilized a methodology that provides reasonable assurance of the identification of both Lean companies and Non-Lean companies from publicly available data.

For decades, financing constraints have been a major obstacle to corporate performance. Volumes have been written about the probable factors that can help firms alleviate such financial constraints. Nonetheless, empirical evidence concerning the various perspectives on how inventory control may influence financing constraints has been surprisingly scant. Using the resource- and region-based view as theoretical lenses, this study seeks to estimate the relationship between lean inventory, regional financial technology (fintech) and financing constraints.

Utilizing a large-scale sample of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in China's manufacturing sector, the authors empirically test their hypotheses by using hierarchical linear regression models with multiple high-dimensional fixed effects.

Results indicate that firms with higher levels of inventory leanness and those located in more fintech-developed regions are less likely to encounter financing constraints. Furthermore, inventory leanness and regional fintech ecosystem development interact with each other to mitigate financing constraints. Moreover, inventory leanness significantly decreases firms' financing constraints when the regional fintech ecosystem is highly developed.

The present research contributes to the literature on the interface of supply chain management and financial management. It also provides managerial implications for policymakers and SME stakeholders.

The purpose of this paper is to propose an integrated performance measurement framework to measure the effect of lean implementation throughout all functions of an organization.

The paper identifies the seven categories representing all organizational functions. These categories have been divided into 26 performance dimensions and key performance indicators (KPIs) for each performance dimension have been identified to measure lean performance. The interrelationship of each category with lean principles and/or lean wastes has been identified. KPIs are developed on the basis of identified criteria, frequency analysis of existing literature, and discussion with industry professionals. Finally, an integrated performance measurement framework is proposed.

The proposed framework evaluates the organization under seven categories – manufacturing process, new product development (NPD), human resource management, finance, administration, customer management, and supplier management. In total, 26 dimensions and 119 key performance indicators have been identified under the seven categories.

The proposed framework is a conceptual framework and it is to be tested by empirical and cross-sectional studies.

The main novelty of the research is that the leanness of the organization has been measured throughout the supply chain of the organization in an integrated way. The various areas of measurement are manufacturing process, NPD, finance, administration, customer management, and supplier management. Further, the proposed KPIs are also categorized as qualitative or quantitative, strategic or operational, social or technical, financial or non-financial, leading or lagging, static or dynamic. This paper contributes to the body of knowledge in performance measurement.

This study explores the intricate relationship between inventory leanness, financial constraints and digital transformation in listed Chinese manufacturing firms.

Using a large panel data collected from 2,563 Chinese listed manufacturing enterprises over the period from 2012 to 2021, this research employs the instrumental variable method combined with two-stage least squares estimators to explore the U- shaped relationship between inventory leanness and financial constraints. Furthermore, the moderating role of digital transformation is demonstrated.

Contrary to traditional assumptions, our research uncovers a U-shaped relationship between inventory leanness and financial constraints, indicating that excessive inventory reduction can exacerbate financial constraints. Digital transformation plays a significant moderating role, particularly in highly digitalized environments.

Our findings have practical significance for top managers and policymakers. We advocate for a balanced approach to lean inventory management to mitigating financial constraints. The study emphasizes the pivotal role of digital transformation in alleviating the impact of inventory leanness on financial constraints, highlighting the need for digital transformation strategies.

This research provides a comprehensive analysis of inventory leanness, financial constraints and digital transformation dynamics. It challenges conventional thinking by revealing the nonlinear nature of the inventory leanness–financial constraints relationship. The concept of moderation highlights the moderating effect of digital transformation. This study offers practical guidance for practitioners and policymakers.

This research was conducted to study benefits of a concept, known as lean manufacturing, which elicits organizations to do more with less effort, time, space, and equipment by eliminating waste. Because lean implementation involves finances, dedication, and cultural change in business, there is a need to assess a company's lean initiative.

A comprehensive lean assessment tool is designed targeted for use by manufacturing companies. Research of lean principles and practices was conducted through lean organizations, trade publications, manufacturing web sites, professional articles, textbooks, lean exhibitions, and non‐profit lean organizations.

This led to the development of a lean survey questionnaire delivered to 143 lean companies and lean consultants for authentic input. Based on the response, survey participation met a goal of 95 percent accuracy with 15 percent error. Completed surveys were compiled and analyzed for fundamental practices of lean organizations. Answers to the survey were assigned numerical values based on lean significance, and a lean assessment model was developed based on Excel. The lean assessment model was fine‐tuned and programmed to output a numerical and descriptive lean assessment grade. It was tested for soundness by inputting mock lean and traditional company answers into the model. Output results from the model correlated with the input.

Lean thinking philosophy and lean manufacturing methods and principles were exhaustively researched to make a successful lean organization. The research led to the development of a visual indicator, the Lean Thinking Management Wheel. This model to assess lean thinking manufacturing initiatives unique and has a great potential to use industry wide.

Empirical evidence suggests corporate culture and change contribute to every Lean failure. Whilst the prevailing research implies that successful Lean implementations lead to a profitable organisation, it also points towards the low numbers of organisations fully adopting the Lean principles. The purpose of this paper is to identify the existing prevalence of culture in explaining the low numbers (less than 10 per cent) of successful British manufacturing organisations that have fully adopted the concepts of Lean and to advocate preventative actions that organisations could pursue in order to improve the UK implementation records.

The methodology predominantly used included survey questionnaires within 68 manufacturing organisations of various sizes and at differing stages of Lean; this was coupled with seven case studies and subsequently validated by an extensive Lean audit undertaken in 20 organisations.

This research initially deciphers the prevalence of culture to Lean failures and then proceeds to recommend courses of action to facilitate higher implementation rates. The significance of culture was evident. The results reveal that a triumphant implementation requires a systematic and controlled strategy to look at the prevailing culture. Whilst Lean failures are attributable to different causes; the fundamental issues of corporate culture and change is evident.

Any organisation embarking upon Lean needs to unequivocally address the prevailing cultural issues. For Lean to thrive, evidently the processes, appropriate application of tools and its application across the value chain would prove futile without a conducive culture.

Possible remedial and preventative courses of action are advocated which should facilitate successful implementations. The implementation of Lean cannot be taken nonchalantly as there is a requirement for heavy investment in terms of both time and money. Nonetheless, when an organization pursues a conducive culture, the probability of success is improved, which secures the superior levels of performance.

This study investigates the relationship between lean manufacturing practices, management accounting and performance measurement (MAC & PM) practices, organizational strategy, structure, and culture, and facility performance. We extended past research by examining the relationships between lean manufacturing, MAC & PM practices and performance in a broader organizational context. Our study was performed using survey data provided by managers and executives at 368 facilities that had contacted the Shingo Institute for information or that had entered a Shingo Prize competition. Consistent with past research we found a significant positive association between lean manufacturing practices and lean MAC & PM practices. We found that greater employee empowerment, use of process performance measures, and use of lean accounting practices were driven primarily by lean strategy and secondarily by the extent of lean manufacturing practices. We also found that changes in organization structure to support lean are driven primarily by lean strategy and secondarily by lean manufacturing practices. Change toward lean culture, on the other hand, is driven by the extent of lean manufacturing practices. Further, we found that emphasizing process performance measures does not reduce emphasis on results performance measures and emphasizing results performance measures leads to improved financial performance. Process and results measures are being used in tandem and value stream costing has not replaced traditional accounting. The results of our study provide important insights for managers of companies engaged in lean transformation and for academics who teach or research lean accounting.

Compares and contrasts the organizational routines and outcomes of businesses that are managed using practices grounded in batch‐and‐queue and lean production. The former is shown to be poor at providing senior management with timely and accurate information, thus obscuring or altering business realities, while the latter results in greater clarity and improved responsiveness to changing market conditions. It proposes that the primary work of the investment analyst should change to “muda analyst”, whose focus is the elimination of waste in business processes between internal and external stakeholders, while the traditional work of investment analysts is positioned as a secondary activity. Identifies different types of questions to ask senior management in order to assess the underlying business and leadership practices.

The purpose of the paper is to perform a review and analyze the literature on lean accounting (LA) to develop insights into how LA research is developing, offering a critique of the research to date and underlining future research opportunities.

The research uses a structured literature review (SLR) to categorize and analyze 39 research articles from relevant journals with a publication date from 1996 to 2020 (September) and to answer three research questions.

Findings demonstrated that although LA seems to be the most suitable method for lean companies, it still lacks research in terms of the role of accountants in lean organizations as well as how its concepts are integrated with the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).

The paper provides both academics and practitioners with valuable insights regarding the role of management accounting and accountants in the pursuit of lean transformation, presenting meaningful themes and a complete analysis of the literature along with research gaps for future research.

The paper contributes to lean manufacturing literature by providing a comprehensive SLR of articles regarding LA. Also, the paper serves as a basis for developing future research agendas in management accounting practices for lean organizations.