PurposeThe key objectives of this study were to investigate the interactions among the lean, green management practices and organizational sustainable performance measures and explore the possibility of simultaneous implementation of these concepts for improving the organizational sustainable performance.Design/methodology/approachUsing the interpretive structural modeling (ISM) technique, the interactions among the lean, green practices and organizational sustainable performance measures were established. A focus group which consisted of purposively selected 15 experts was utilized in the primary data collection.FindingsIn Sri Lankan context, water and material consumption reduction, energy efficiency, water pollution and greenhouse gas reduction were identified as the dominant green practices, while pull production, lot size reduction, continuous improvement, preventive maintenance, employee involvement and cycle time reduction were the dominant lean practices. Inventory level, profitability, quality, cost, employee satisfaction, customer satisfaction, lead time, resources consumption (material, water, energy) and waste generation were determined as the dominant sustainable performance measures. The resulting ISM-based structural model which consisted of eight levels concluded that firstly lean practices influence the green practices and afterward green practices affect the sustainable performance measures.Research limitations/implicationsThe aim of this study was to develop a hypothetical structural model to explain the interactions among the lean, green management practices and organizational sustainable performance measures. But this hypothetical model was not empirically tested in the current study. So further study is required to empirically test the proposed model.Practical implicationsCurrently organizations who practice for sustainable performance engages, lean and green practices separately without understanding on which practices are stared when and how. So, through the findings of this study, organization who desire to improve the sustainable performance are recommended to begin the journey with lean practices and subsequently move in to green and handle both lean and green initiatives through one functional unit.Originality/valueThe existing literature does not possess a model for explaining the lean–green synergy and organizational sustainable performance and this study successfully fills this gap. Also the study proposes for the practitioners, when and how the lean and green practices should be initiated and implemented for rising the sustainable performance of an organization.

The study's objective was to develop a comprehensive definition for operational excellence (OE) while identifying its attributes, most suitable theoretical lens and dimensions. Attributes of OE were collected by evaluating 32 existing definitions of OE and interviewing 30 OE experts. A focus group interview with 15 OE experts was employed to consensus on the critical attributes and tentative dimensions of OE. Content analysis was employed for data analysis. Continuous improvement of sustainable operational performance, deriving sustainable competitive advantages and implementing the operation strategy consistently and reliably were determined as the critical attributes. Based on the identified critical attributes of OE, the Resource-Based Theory (RBT) was recognized as the most applicable theory for explaining OE. Based on the identified theoretical lens and identified critical attributes, the new definition of OE involves, ‘utilization of valuable, rare, costly to imitate and non-substitutable resources & capabilities to execute the operations strategy consistently and reliably as the organization can achieve: a continuous improvement of the sustainable operational performance and sustainable competitive advantages while upholding the satisfaction of employees, customers, suppliers and other important stakeholders.' Continuous improvement of sustainable operational performance and sustainable competitive advantages were determined as the possible dimensions of OE.  Keywords: Operational Excellence; Resource-Based Theory; Construct Definition, Operational Performance, Competitive Advantages

The current study attempts to examine what exists in the operational excellence body of literature, explore the research gaps, and point out future research directions in the operational excellence context, by conducting a Systematic Literature Review (SLR). A carefully selected sample of 43 papers published within the 2009-2021-time period was analysed to achieve these research objectives. The results of the study were presented under nine different themes; distribution of papers across years, geographical area, industrial sectors, publication venue, research methods, research area, theory application, knowledge contribution, gaps and future research directions. Very little attention on the effect of capabilities (operational and dynamic capabilities) on operational excellence, less application of theoretical base for explaining operational excellence, not researched in some industrial sectors, countries and continents, a very least attention on psychometric scale development, and mixed-method research approach were identified as the existing research gaps in the operational excellence context. The present SLR is beneficial for academics, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers since it explains the current knowledge and gaps in an operational excellent research context.