TY - JOUR
T1 - The effect of environmental complexity and environmental dynamism on lean practices
AU - Azadegan, Arash
AU - Patel, Pankaj C.
AU - Zangoueinezhad, Abouzar
AU - Linderman, Kevin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2013 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2013/5
Y1 - 2013/5
N2 - Increasingly manufacturers implement lean practices to improve operational performance. In addition, manufacturers operate in ever more complex and volatile environments. This research investigates the effects of environmental complexity and dynamism on lean operations and lean purchasing practices. It empirically examines these relationships using archival and survey data from 126 manufacturers. The results show that environmental complexity positively moderates the effects of lean operations and lean purchasing on performance. However, environmental dynamism reduces the benefits of lean operations on performance, but enhances the benefits of lean purchasing on performance. Robustness tests further confirm the contingent effects of complexity and dynamism on lean operations and lean purchasing. This research offers a more nuanced understanding of the effect of external environmental context on lean practices, and suggests that practitioners should carefully consider the external environment when implementing different types of lean practices.
AB - Increasingly manufacturers implement lean practices to improve operational performance. In addition, manufacturers operate in ever more complex and volatile environments. This research investigates the effects of environmental complexity and dynamism on lean operations and lean purchasing practices. It empirically examines these relationships using archival and survey data from 126 manufacturers. The results show that environmental complexity positively moderates the effects of lean operations and lean purchasing on performance. However, environmental dynamism reduces the benefits of lean operations on performance, but enhances the benefits of lean purchasing on performance. Robustness tests further confirm the contingent effects of complexity and dynamism on lean operations and lean purchasing. This research offers a more nuanced understanding of the effect of external environmental context on lean practices, and suggests that practitioners should carefully consider the external environment when implementing different types of lean practices.
KW - Lean operations, Lean purchasing, Environmental uncertainty, Complexity, Dynamism
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84876721174&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84876721174&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jom.2013.03.002
DO - 10.1016/j.jom.2013.03.002
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84876721174
SN - 0272-6963
VL - 31
SP - 193
EP - 212
JO - Journal of Operations Management
JF - Journal of Operations Management
IS - 4
ER -