Exploring perceptions of Lean in the public sector

Abstract

This paper explores discourses around Lean by examining the perceptions of new users of Lean in the public sector. The paper draws on actor-network theory as the basis for exploring what these new users think about Lean and uses data analysis tools to extrude concepts of significance. The data suggests that Lean continues to retain diverse, parallel and competing perspectives. The responses also signal that key concepts of Lean are missing from the discourses, and that this highlights a need to discuss Lean as a mindset-not just as a set of tools. The paper suggests future directions for research to further explore the issues emphasised by respondents. IMPACT This paper provides three major lessons for public managers and policy-makers who are in the process of introducing Lean to reduce costs and improve the quality of services. The first is the presence of diverse, parallel and competing discourses around Lean. Second, there is a missing awareness of central Lean concepts like quality, strategy and flow for managers and key personnel in public services for whom Lean is new. Finally, there is the need to emphasise Lean as a mindset in order to support a viable and coherent platform in public services. These lessons have implications for the objectives, perspectives and ways of organizing work associated with Lean initiatives. In particular, when communicating with new users of Lean, the mindset perspective of Lean must be emphasised, and the key concepts behind this mindset, such as quality, strategy and flow need to be developed and conveyed to new users. Clarity in communication of Lean concepts will increase the chances of setting realistic expectations for new users of Lean.

Knowledge for results and the efficiency of public agencies in Colombia

“…One of these principles is related to the central role citizen value plays in the effectiveness of the organization. Andersson, Lynch, Johansen, Fineide, and Martin (2023) reinforce this point with a survey on personnel perceptions of lean thinking that identifies a lack of awareness from managers or other important servants about key lean concepts, such as quality or strategy. The fact that new users may have diverse perceptions about lean represents a challenge for a successful implementation.…”

“…The reason is that, in its core, lean main objective is to streamline processes such that production is fully rationalized by consumer value. Thus, lean thinking is present in a multiplicity of studies that show successful stories about reducing "waste", even when the framework is not explicitly mentioned (Hines, Martins, & Beale, 2008).…”

“…Scholars and practitioners have long considered lean as a method to approach public service reform (Bucci et al, 2006;Radnor, 2010;Scorsone, 2008;Waterman & McCue, 2012). Lean thinking has been used to implement reforms in many areas of the public sector, ranging from the legal court system (Martins & Carvalho, 2004;Hines, Martins, & Beale, 2008) to public procurement (Waterman & McCue, 2012) to health care (Radnor et al, 2012). review a comprehensive body of work on lean implementation in the public sector to discuss its validity as a theory for public services.…”

Lean thinking and strategy deployment: adapting Hoshin Kanri and A3-based project prioritization in police services

“…However, while the alignment between organizational strategy and CI initiatives is consistently described as a critical factor to successful lean implementation (Andersson et al, 2020;Pedersen and Huniche, 2011;Rodgers and Antony, 2018;Yadav and Desai, 2017), its strategic dimension and ability to support strategy design, planning, project alignment and implementation have received less attention, particularly in the public sector context (Barnab e and Giorgino, 2017). For instance, in the UK police services, Antony et al (2019) observed the lack of use of HK in ensuring CI project alignment with overall business goals when implementing LT.…”

Lean Management Implementation in Malaysian Public Sectors: Critical Success Factors and Performance Implications

“…The Malaysian government has taken several measures from the early 1980s to improve the standard of performance and accountability of its members and agencies to provide better services while preserving greater financial transparency [1]. Lean management (LM) is one of the measures, which was first introduced in the service sector in the 2000s, and is now better known for cutting costs and enhancing quality in the public sector [2]. However, despite the reforms, the performance of the Malaysian public sector remained poor [3].…”