The impact of soft lean practices on business performance: mediating role of customer satisfaction

Purpose Many firms have adopted different methodologies such as lean management to increase customer satisfaction. This is because they need to respond to customer demands for improved products and responsive service. This study aims to evaluate the influence of soft lean practices (SLP) on business performance in the service sector. Design/methodology/approach Out of 702 questionnaires distributed to various service companies in Zimbabwe, 260 valid responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to assess the relationship among the factors of the proposed model. Findings The implementation of SLP leads to improvement in the business performance of the service companies. However, the impact of SLP on business performance is mainly indirect, mediated by customer satisfaction. Research limitations/implications The research focused on the implementation of SLP in the service industry of a developing country; hence, the results obtained may require further investigations before generalization to other countries with different sociocultural contexts is made. Originality/value Most previous studies focused mainly on the implementation of the technical lean practices in the manufacturing industry without properly acknowledging the importance of SLP. This research investigates the importance of SLP in the service sector and further explores the mediatory role of customer satisfaction on business performance. The findings also validate the service-profit-chain theory.