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Lean Management (LM) is an efficiency-oriented socio-technical management system whose main purpose is to eliminate any source of waste through the simultaneous reduction or minimization of the sources of internal and external variability (Womack, Jones, and Roos 1990;Shah and Ward 2007). The systematic reduction of these sources of variability at both the company level and throughout the supply chain enables business results to be improved and provides the ability to achieve a competitive advantage (Womack and Jones 1996; Moyano-Fuentes and Sacristán-Díaz 2012).On one hand, Supply Chain Management (SCM) has been used for planning and control of physical and information flows, internal and external logistics activities, and processes with other companies, and to address the relationship developed and the processes shared with customers and suppliers (Chen and Paulraj 2004; Kache and Seuring 2014). In recent years, SCM has come to be considered a key factor for increasing companies' efficacy and competitiveness (Frohlich and Westbrook 2001; Ataseven and Nair 2017). So, a suitable SCM strategy enables improvements to operating results in terms of greater efficiency in processes, a lower level of inventory, higher customer satisfaction, better quality, cost reductions, and improved delivery (Christopher and Towill 2000). This, along with an increase in global competitive pressure, has led to Lean principles spreading to the supply chain level with a view to optimizing interorganizational processes from the point-of-view of the end customer (Swenseth and Olson 2016). This has given rise to what is known as Lean Supply Chain Management (LSCM). LSCM consists of organizations directly linked by upstream and downstream flows of goods, services, finances, and information that work together to reduce costs and waste by efficiently and effectively pulling what is required to meet the

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the contribution to improving the efficiency of the focal firm made by lean management at the internal and supply chain levels.Design/methodology/approachAn empirical study was conducted of 285 Spanish focal companies from industrial sectors that occupy an intermediate position in the supply chain. The data gathering method consisted of a telephone survey using computer-assisted telephone interviewing. A structural equation was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe results indicate that there is an improvement in efficiency of the focal firm when lean management extends throughout the supply chain, in line with the resource-based theory and integrated supply chain management. In addition, lean management at the internal level is observed to impact positively on the focal firm's efficiency only when it contributes to enhancing the implementation of lean supply chain management.Practical implicationsTo achieve the best operational performance derived from lean management, managers should pay attention to the transfer to their supply chain members of knowledge, competencies and cultural change linked to the level of internal lean implementation of the focal firm. Moreover, this paper provides a way to assess the operational aspects of lean supply chain strategy implementation and lean supply chain planning.Originality/valueThis study uses a holistic focus on lean supply chain management, to which it applies a validated instrument. It underlines that lean on the internal level should be complemented with lean on the supply chain level to provide a better understanding of the drivers of the efficiency of the focal firm.

This paper aims to investigate the supply network (SN) characteristics affecting the extension of lean programmes to SN and the interactions between lean practices and these characteristics to understand how to create more favorable conditions for lean extension programmes. A multiple case study methodology is implemented to analyze different lean programmes in SNs and different contextual conditions in which they are implemented. Three different SNs have been analyzed to provide insights on the whole value stream of the Andalusian aeronautics SN. This study finds that there is a recursive influence between SN characteristics and lean practices, and explains how this interaction takes place. The choice of lean practices to adopt, their aim and implementation mode are influenced by the state of SN characteristics companies face at the beginning of the programme and the SN distance (i.e. number of SN echelons) between lean knowledge owners and recipients. This study explains also how lean practices can modify the state of SN characteristics and suggests managers a sequence of phases and sets of actions to use depending on the initial state of SN characteristics

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the impact of the level of cooperation in the supply chain on lean production (LP) adoption. The effect of the level of cooperation with both suppliers and customers with regards to the intensity of LP adoption is examined, as is the joint effect of cooperation and information integration with customers.Design/methodology/approachAnalysis is carried out on a sample of 84 manufacturing plants that are first tier suppliers to original equipment manufacturers in the Spanish automotive industry. Data were gathered from plant CEOs via a combination of regular mail, e‐mail and internet‐based survey methods. Data are analyzed using exploratory factor analysis and hierarchical regression.FindingsThe results show that while greater levels of cooperation with suppliers do not impact on the intensity of LP adoption, greater levels of cooperation with customers do have a significant effect. Also, the greater the cooperation with customers and the more information integrated with them, the higher the intensity of LP adoption.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings stress the importance of having a holistic vision of the supply chain to explain the degree of LP adoption. Further developments include simultaneously studying the role of both information and physical flows along the supply chain in LP adoption, and analyzing the time lag that occurs between a company increasing cooperation with suppliers and customers, and progress being made in the intensity of LP adoption.Practical implicationsPractitioners must be mindful that a greater level of cooperation with customers creates a favourable environment for increasing the intensity of adoption of LP.Originality/valueThis paper contributes to research on the explanatory factors of LP adoption by adding new factors to explain it, including the level of cooperation between supply chain agents and the interaction of information integration and cooperation with customers.