Abstract
For many years, organisations have studied lean production, and implemented certain aspects of lean in their organisations in efforts to continuously improve. However, lean implementation efforts have neither been successful nor sustainable. This has been primarily attributed to leadership. Furthermore, traditional organisations have not been pursuing the elimination of the eighth lean waste, which is the waste of unused employee creativity.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of standard work for leaders in reducing the waste of unused employee creativity during lean implementation. Lean production is not only dependent on the lean tools and techniques, but also on the human elements of lean. These include both the leadership aspects and the employees. Therefore, successful lean implementation is partly dependent on the leadership of the organisations and human creativity embedded in the employees of the organisation. However, the leadership routines and practices that are required for lean are not always defined in various organisations. Furthermore, the extent to which these leadership routines and practices (referred to as standard work for leaders) affect the human creativity of the employees has not been sufficiently explored in literature.
Based on the results of the data collected from the case study conducted in an auto manufacturing company, it was determined that whenever employees have been trained in lean, and standard work for leaders has been comprehensively implemented, then the ideas suggested by the workers increased, whereas whenever the employees were not trained in lean, and standard work for leaders has not been implemented comprehensively, the suggested ideas were less. Therefore, it was concluded that standard work for leaders when comprehensively implemented can reduce the waste of unused employee creativity.
This research contributes to the current know how within the lean production framework. Organisations that are interested in implementing lean, as well as scholars who are studying lean can benefit from this study. Furthermore, a lean implementation model has been recommended, although it has not been validated.
M.Phil. (Engineering Management)