Benchmarking leagility in mass services : The case of a fast food restaurant chains in Iran

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate and highlight that the application of leagility can be possible in mass services as one type of services. Design/methodology/approach – This paper describes a case study and considers the concept of the leagility in a mass service organization. By highlighting some of the characteristics of mass services, it examines whether or not this concept can be applicable in the context of mass services. Findings – Despite the low customization in mass services, fast food restaurants have faced changing needs of the customers. To respond to these demands, the case study organization can adopt new strategies so that it could be able to serve the customer with short lead times, low costs and high variety. Research limitations/implications – This paper considers leagility in a single mass service. Hence, in order to provide robust results in this type of services, more cases should be studied. It is also necessary to study leagility in other types of services that is, professional services and service shops. Originality/value – Despite the importance of mass services in today's life, research have focused on the application of operations management's concepts in manufacturing sector. This paper has proposed the possibility of applying the leagility concept in a case study organization to show that mass services can benefit from the advantages of both lean and agile paradigms.