International Journal of Lean Six Sigma 

About: International Journal of Lean Six Sigma is an academic journal published by Emerald Publishing Limited. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Lean manufacturing & Six Sigma. It has an ISSN identifier of 2040-4166. Over the lifetime, 459 publications have been published receiving 12392 citations.

Lean Six Sigma – getting better all the time

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess Lean Six Sigma to identify important advances over the last ten to 15 years and discuss emerging trends that suggest how the methodology needs to evolve. The goal is to aid those who want to use the method to improve performance as well as assist those developing improvement methodologies.Design/methodology/approach – The use and development of Lean Six Sigma is reviewed including the origins of the method, the what, why and benefits of the method, how the approach is different, the integration of Lean and Six Sigma, implementation mistakes made, lessons learned and developments needed in the future.Findings – It is found that organizations have many different improvement needs that require the objectives and methods contained in the lean and Six Sigma methodologies. It is also found that deployment and sustaining improvements are major issues that can be overcome by building a sustaining infrastructure and making improvement a business process. Critical is...

Four decades of lean: a systematic literature review

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a systematic review of four decades of scholarly lean literature and identify phases of lean while highlighting core knowledge and voids from within the scholarly lean literature.Design/methodology/approach – The methodology applied to better understand lean over the past four decades was a systematic review of literature, as described by Machi and McEvoy in The Literature Review: Six Steps to Success.Findings – This literature review has synthesized and categorized four decades of scholarly literature, along with influential books from credible researchers and practitioners of lean, in an effort to decipher the lean thinking paradigm from jargon to a commonly‐shared language. In total, five themes evolved from the analysis starting with the Discovery phase (1970‐1990), Dissemination phase (1991‐1996), Implementation phase (1997‐2000), Enterprise phase (2001‐2005), and the most recent phase of Performance (2006‐2009).Research limitations/implications – The...

Lean, agile, resilient and green: divergencies and synergies

Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to explore the divergences and commitments between the lean, agile, resilient and green paradigms while investigating the effect of paradigms' practices within supply chain attributes.Design/methodology/approach – A conceptual model with lean, agile, resilient and green practices and supply chain management attributes is proposed. Causal diagrams were used to represent the relationships between paradigm practices and supply chain attributes. The four diagrams were aggregated to build the conceptual model.Findings – The conceptual model allows for the identification of synergies and divergences resulting from the paradigms practices implementation. The synergies between paradigms are related to “information frequency” and “integration level” increasing as well as reduction of “production lead time” and “transportation lead time”. However, other supply chain attributes such as “capacity surplus”, “inventory level” and “replenishment frequency” are affected in opposite directions by...

The integration of Six Sigma and lean management

Abstract: Purpose – Lean and Six Sigma are the two most important continuous improvement (CI) methodologies for achieving operational and service excellence in any organization. The purpose of this paper is to explain how lean compares to the Six Sigma and outline the benefits for integrating them. Also, this paper discusses the existing models that describe how Six Sigma and lean fit together. A new detailed description for integrating Six Sigma and lean is developed to provide an improved approach for CI.Design/methodology/approach – The following research included proposals and discussion, which were mainly based on the authors' own findings and experience, in addition to a literature‐based review of some of the most common and traditional lean and Six Sigma models.Findings – The paper proposes a new lean Six Sigma (LSS) approach and provides a detailed description of its phases. The paper also presents the views on the integration benefits as well as on how Six Sigma compares to lean. Six Sigma and lean are rel...

Exploring barriers in lean implementation

Abstract: Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present an analysis of research on lean focusing on barriers in its implementation through a systematic literature survey. Design/methodology/approach – A literature survey of peer-reviewed journal articles, survey reports, master theses, doctoral theses and paradigmatic books with managerial impact is used as the research methodology. Findings – The findings derived from the evaluation of the publications analyzed have led to the identification of 24 lean barriers. The success of lean implementation will not be entirely based on application of appropriate tools and techniques alone but also on the top managements' involvement and leadership, workers' attitude, resources and the organizational culture. Research limitations/implications – This literature survey is primarily focused on lean implementation in the manufacturing sector. Practical implications – This paper explores barriers for successful lean implementation and provides a concise description of the bar...