To facilitate the implementation of lean production, practitioners and researchers have suggested an array of critical success factors. However, despite a broad consensus about what needs to be done, companies still struggle to implement lean. Contingency theory posits the explanation that the...

There is currently no theory that explains the pattern of change in a plant’s performance as it implements a lean program. Does it improve at a declining, increasing, or constant rate, or in some other pattern? We use empirical data from the implementation of the Volvo Group’s lean program...

We examine how management control practices relate to the implementation of a corporate lean program at the factory level. Our empirical analysis uses data from a large manufacturing firm that is implementing a corporate lean program in its global plant network. We find that using dedicated...

Purpose: Why some assembly factories implement a lean program faster than others is an enduring puzzle. We examine the effect of a fundamental characteristic of every assembly factory—its rhythm of production. Approach: We designed a multi-method study and collected data from a leading global...