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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of increasing employees’ level of continuous improvement (CI) empowerment, i.e. employees’ knowledge and understanding of CI, the possibility of open communication and support from the work environment regarding CI, in the implementation of CI over time. Design/methodology/approach Based on the theory of structural empowerment, the authors test the research question using evidence from a case study in a European financial services provider. Data are gathered with questionnaires on a team level and cover a period of 2.5 years including 780 participants. Findings The findings show that after conducting a CI programme in the case, there is a significant increase in employees’ CI empowerment over time, which has a positive but time-lagged relationship with the level of CI implementation. Research limitations/implications Implications are that CI empowerment can be created sustainably and is an important factor in establishing CI in a company, but that it takes time until empowerment leads to changes in behaviour. However, it has to be considered that these implications are solely derived from empirical results from a single company. Practical implications Financial service providers should invest in establishing CI empowerment and consider a delay in realising measurable benefits in terms of the level of CI implementation. Originality/value This paper is the first empirical study to examine the relationship between employee CI empowerment and the implementation of CI from a longitudinal perspective.

Purpose – Lean thinking is important for a successful implementation of process-driven changes. Especially financial service providers are forced to improve their organisational efficiency due to intense competition and regulatory burdens. The purpose of this paper is to identify how lean financial service companies in Germany are. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative survey published online is used. In total, 3,624 employees from every hierarchical level participated in the study. Findings – The results not only reveal that there is only a moderate lean thinking in financial service companies. We rather observe a “lean fata morgana”. Employees in general believe they are leaner than their actual behaviour discloses. In addition, managers perceive their work environment leaner than subordinates do. At the same time, managers do not behave lean as they spend almost a third of their working time with operational work instead of guiding the employees. Research limitations/implications – Answers are based on the anonymous, subjective ratings of employees and thus statements regarding single organisations cannot be made. Practical implications – The results can be used by managers to address typical weak aspects when introducing lean management to improve the success chances. Furthermore, the questionnaire can be applied for assessments for a single organisation before an introduction of lean. Originality/value – For the first time, this paper presents results which cover the lean degree beyond a single company’s perspective. The results allow for an indication which aspects of lean are unincisive with regard to functional areas and hierarchical levels of financial service providers.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present and discuss results from the first empirical study on the status and the success factors of Six Sigma in the financial services sector.Design/methodology/approachAn empirical study using a comprehensive and tested survey instrument has been conducted in banks, insurance companies, and related service providers in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Great Britain.FindingsOne quarter of financial services providers has identified the Six Sigma methodology as being suited for their continuous process improvement efforts. Pressures to reduce costs, the desire to exploit market opportunities, and dissatisfied customers are the main drivers. However, the uptake of Six Sigma is still in the early stages. Most companies apply the methodology in pilot projects only. Nevertheless, respondents estimate a cost‐benefit ratio of 1‐4.3. Dissatisfaction with Six Sigma projects is often caused by insufficient data quality and data quantity, lack of resources, and missing support from top management.Originality/valueAlthough Six Sigma has been successfully implemented in many industries, its application in the service sector is still in question. This paper presents for the first time results of a survey within the financial services industry with the aim to analyze the acceptance level of the Six Sigma methodology, the achieved results, and the factors that determine its successful implementation.

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