Emerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.

Purpose Contradictory findings regarding the implication of Lean manufacturing (LM) implementation to business performance (BP) have been observed in prior studies. Hence, more studies are required to be capable of finding the status of LM implementation and its impacts on BP. Accordingly, this study examines and scrutinizes the effects of LM practices on the enhancement of BP from a developing country standpoint. Design/methodology/approach This empirical study uses a survey-based quantitative data collection approach through a cross-sectional research design. A total of 139 large manufacturing companies in Indonesia participated, selected through stratified random sampling technique. Three hypotheses regarding the effect of LM on BP were examined. Findings The results empirically reveal that comprehensive implementation of LM practices is necessary. Also, this study unravels that high BP (in terms of profitability, sales and customer satisfaction) is dependent upon the comprehensive implementation of LM practices. In other words, LM practices are not recommended to be implemented as a subset. Research limitations/implications Although this study is free from the common method bias as an implication of self-reporting by single respondent from one company, future researchers should consider of collecting data from multiple individuals in one company. Additionally, due to the study conducted in limited industries and large manufacturing firms, the results may not be applicable in other industries as well as in small and medium enterprises. Practical implications This study has further confirmed and established the LM–BP relationship. In line with the complementarity theory, it provides an insight that all the LM practices should be implemented simultaneously in a holistic manner because they are mutually supportive. In such a situation, piecemeal adoption is highly not recommended. Originality/value This study emphasizes on how LM contributes to the superior BP. Meanwhile, little attention has been paid to investigate the LM and its implication on BP from a developing country standpoint. Thus, this study is initiated to fill the gap.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide valid and reliable constructs for lean manufacturing (LM) for assessing its implementation level in order to target areas of improvement. Design/methodology/approach Based on an extensive review on LM literature and content validity assessment from practitioners and academicians, nine LM constructs were identified. Measurement items for each construct were developed to become a complete questionnaire. The questionnaire booklets were distributed to large and discrete manufacturing companies in Indonesia. Out of 1,000 survey questionnaires sent, 236 usable responses were returned giving response rate of 23.60 percent. Subsequently, an empirical assessment on the constructs was done by using structural equation modeling approach. Findings The study identified the valid and reliable LM constructs, consisting of nine LM constructs and 64 measurement items. The study found that all the constructs are complementary and mutually supportive with each other. Indeed, it suggests the holistic implementation of all the LM practices. Research limitations/implications Owing the time and resource constraint, this study only involved large and discrete process manufacturing industries in Indonesia. Hence, the generalization of the result is slightly limited. More studies in several different contexts are required. Practical implications This study provided a valuable tool for researchers for gaining deeper understanding regarding the LM and its implementation. For practitioners, it is useful to evaluate the degree of LM employment in their companies, to target area of improvement, as well as to take possible actions in attempting to enhance the organizational performance. More importantly, practitioners should adopt all the LM practices in a holistic manner. Originality/value This study is the first attempt to develop LM constructs for evaluating the LM implementation in Indonesia.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the associations between total quality management (TQM) core elements, knowledge management (KM) processes, and educational organization outcome with respect to academic performance (AP). Design/methodology/approach The study is based on a cross-sectional survey design. The survey was conducted on 87 colleges in Iraqi higher-education institutions (HEIs). Four main hypotheses were developed and tested statistically by applying multivariate data analyses. Findings The results provided evidence that both TQM core elements and KM processes should be implemented holistically. TQM core elements have a positive and significant impact on both KM processes and AP. Moreover, KM processes partially mediate the association between TQM core elements and AP. Originality/value Empirical research on the association between TQM, KM, and performance is very limited. This study provides insights and further understanding of the effect of TQM core elements on KM processes and AP, and therefore, allows decision makers to get in-depth knowledge about these associations and the mediating effect of KM in HEIs context.

Manufacturing plays a very important function in the economy of most countries in nowadays age. Because of the dynamic character of manufacturing itself, its market and environmental situations, manufacturing firms are facing tremendous significance challenges. Developing countries are striving to compete in the global intense market, including Malaysia, and for that reason, this key industry needs to maintain and boost local capabilities for the economic strengthen and stability. As the technological capability (TC) has a strong involvement in the production and operation sectors which are the cornerstones of each manufacturing company, it should be improved and monitored periodically. The nature of a long term commitment of the technological capability creation and accumulation requires a huge considerable effort from a company to realize the effects of TC have on performance measures in every aspect while gaining competitive advantages and sustaining commercial success in the local and international market within their operational periods. Based from a resourcebased view, it is in congruence that capabilities will promote firms' competitive advantage by improving the performance. The major intention of this paper is to have an overview on how TC actually relates towards performance measures in manufacturing companies.