Process improvement project failure: a systematic literature review and future research agenda

Abstract

Purpose Although scholars have considered the success factors of process improvement (PI) projects, limited research has considered the factors that influence failure. The purpose of this paper is to extend the understanding of PI project failure by systematically reviewing the research on generic project failure, and developing research propositions and future research directions specifically for PI projects. Design/methodology/approach A systematic literature review protocol resulted in a total of 97 research papers that are reviewed for contributions on project failure. Findings An inductive category formation process resulted in three categories of findings. The first category are the causes for project failure, the second category is about relatedness between failure factors and the third category is on failure mitigation strategies. For each category, propositions for future research on PI projects specifically are developed. Additional future research directions proposed lay in better understanding PI project failure as it unfolds (i.e. process studies vs cross-sectional), understanding PI project failure from a theoretical perspective and better understanding of PI project failure antecedents. Originality/value This paper takes a multi-disciplinary and project type approach, synthesizes the existing knowledge and reflects upon the developments in the field of research. Propositions and a framework for future research on PI project failure are presented.

Implementing Lean Six Sigma in financial services: the effect of motivations, selected methods and challenges on LSS program- and organizational performance

“…Third, our results provide compelling arguments for assuring sound and experienced LSS program management professionals, thereby ensuring correct execution of their core tasks of project selection and portfolio management. Previous research emphasized the importance of project management capabilities in preventing LSS project failure (Lameijer et al, 2021c) and our findings reveal that predominant challenges in successfully managing LSS programs are indeed related to factors in the direct sphere of influence of LSS deployment leaders. IJQRM 41,2 Finally, our results implicate that the perceived benefits of successful LSS programs are typically less quantified and are largely based on perceptions.…”

Why do process improvement projects fail in organizations? A review and future research agenda

“…Indeed, a lack of interdependence between PI projects and the overall business strategy has been identified as a critical contributor that can result in failure (Marolla et al, 2022;Sony et al, 2019). It is interesting to mention that a recent survey conducted by the project management institute (Musawir et al, 2020) brought attention to those factors where only 65% of organizations have a moderate level of alignment between the project objectives and the organizational strategy, while about 33% have an acceptable level of maturity in terms of realizing the expected benefits Lameijer et al (2022). These statistics shed light on the significance of these factors and their potential contribution to project failures in real-world industries.…”

“…Lack of top management support, commitment and involvement Kaizen, Lean, SS, LSS, Agile, PI and CI (Albliwi et al, 2014;Almeida et al, 2021;Alvarado-Ramírez et al, 2018;Antony et al, , 2020Antony et al, , 2022Antony and Gupta, 2019;Barraza et al, 2009;Berhe, 2022;Chow and Cao, 2008;Iyede et al, 2018;Lameijer et al, 2022;Marolla et al, 2022;McDermott et al, 2022;Mishra et al, 2021;Nwabueze, 2012;Patel and Patel, 2020;Scherrer-Rathje et al, 2009;Shokri et al, 2022;Soliman, 2017;Sony et al, 2019;Sreedharan et al, 2018;Su arez-Barraza et al, 2011;Sunder M and Prashar, 2020;Swarnakar et al, 2020Swarnakar et al, , 2021 Lack of alignment betwee...…”

“…Lack of an effective model or roadmap to guide the implementation Kaizen, Lean, SS, LSS and CI (Albliwi et al, 2014;Berhe, 2022;Chakravorty, 2009aChakravorty, , 2009bChow and Cao, 2008;Mostafa et al, 2013;Secchi and Camuffo, 2021;Sreedharan et al, 2018;Sunder M and Prashar, 2020;Swarnakar et al, 2020) Poor project management SS, LSS, Agile, PI and CI (Albliwi et al, 2014;Chow and Cao, 2008;Lameijer et al, 2022;McLean and Antony, 2014;McLean et al, 2017;Shokri et al, 2022;Sreedharan et al, 2018;Sunder M and Prashar, 2020) Lack of cost and time estimation of framework implementation…”

“…6.4 Direction 4: comprehensive evaluation of the consequences of process improvement projects failure Future research should prioritize the comprehensive evaluation of the consequences linked to PI failures in terms of financial, operational, environmental, governance and social aspects (Lameijer et al, 2022). Currently, this area remains largely unexplored, indicating a need for further investigation.…”