In this paper, entitled Developments in Lean - The Role of Art & Science, we examine what “Lean” means for organizations today, and highlight some of the emerging trends and developments in the use of this approach within a variety of sectors.

The concept of “Lean” has been one of the most important influences on business in recent decades, originating in manufacturing and more recently being adapted for use by service sector industries.

Although the widespread adoption of Lean suggests that organizations are benefiting from this approach, the research-based evidence of proven benefits is still fairly weak and somewhat inconsistent. Based on our experience of providing consulting services to organizations in a range of sectors, we believe that one reason for this is that organizations often jump from one Lean improvement initiative to another, without effectively transforming their organizations to support these initiatives.

In this paper, entitled "Developments in Lean - The Role of Art & Science", we examine what “Lean” means for organizations today, and highlight some of the emerging trends and developments in the use of this approach within a variety of sectors. In this way, we hope to inspire readers whose organizations have not yet adopted the concept of Lean to consider the ways in which this might enhance their business performance.
One of our key messages is that the use of Lean methods can only prove successful when they are implemented using what we describe as an “Art & Science of Transformation”® approach.

Download the free white paper here