ISSN: 2222-6990
Open access
Lean means creating more value for the customer with fewer resources by minimizing waste. Although this concept is applied in manufacturing, the principles of lean management improvement can also be applied in higher education institutions. This paper examines the impact of lean management practices on the organizational performance of Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM). The underlying assumption is that lean management practices can be perceived and have a significant impact on the organizational performance of UUM. In this study, an online questionnaire was used to collect data at UUM. The results of this study indicate that waste elimination, leadership support, and student value have a significant impact on organizational performance. The study concludes that lean management practices that can be implemented at UUM could have a positive impact on organizational performance.
Aka, A., Isah, A. D., Eze, C. J., & Timileyin, O. (2019). Application of lean manufacturing tools and techniques for waste reduction in the Nigerian brick production process. Engineering, Construction, and Architectural Management, 27(3), 658-679.
Allaoui, A., & Benmoussa, R. (2020). Employees’ attitudes toward change with Lean Higher Education in Moroccan public universities. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 33(2), 253-288.
Antony, J., Krishan, N., Cullen, D., & Kumar, M. (2012). Lean six sigma for higher education institutions (HEIs): Challenges, barriers, success factors, tools/techniques. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 61(8), 940-948.
Balzer, W. K. (2020). Lean higher education: Increasing the value and performance of university processes. Productivity Press – Routledge, New York, NY.
Balzer, W. K., Brodke, M. H., & Kizhakethalackal, E. T. (2015). Lean higher education: Successes, challenges, and realizing potential. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 32(9), pp. 924-933.
Bevilacqua, M., Ciarapica, F. E., & De Sanctis, I. (2017). Lean practices implementation and their relationships with operational responsiveness and company performance: An Italian study. International Journal of Production Research, 55(3), 769-794.
Cohen, J. (1992). Statistical power analysis. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 1(3), 98-101.
Cudney, E. A., Venuthurumilli, S. S. J., Materla, T., & Antony, J. (2020). Systematic review of Lean and Six Sigma approaches in higher education. Total Quality Management and Business Excellence, 31(3-4), 231-244.
Douglas, J., Antony, J., & Douglas, A. (2015). Waste identification and elimination in HEIs: The role of lean thinking. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 32(9), 970-981.
Emiliani, M. L. (2015). Engaging faculty in lean teaching. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 6(1) 1-10,
Fagnani, E., & Guimaraes, J. R. (2017). Waste management plan for higher education institutions in developing countries: The continuous improvement cycle model. Journal of Cleaner Production, 147, 108-118.
Francis, D. (2014). Lean and the learning organization in higher education, Canadian Journal of Educational Administration and Policy, 157, 1-23.
Fullerton, R. R., Kennedy, F. A., & Widener, S. K. (2014). Lean manufacturing and firm performance: The incremental contribution of lean management accounting practices. Journal of Operations Management, 32(7-8), 414-428.
Gomez-Molina, D.-L., & Moyano-Fuentes, J. (2022). Lean management in universities: A systematic literature review. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 13(1), 156-177.
Hadid, W., & Mansouri, S. A. (2014). The lean-performance relationship in services: A theoretical model. International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 34(6), 750-785.
Kang, P. S., & Manyonge, L. M. (2014). Exploration of Lean principles in higher educational institutes – based on the degree of implementation and indigence. International Journal of Scientific and Engineering Research, 5(2), 831-838.
Kazancoglu, Y., & Ozkan-Ozen, Y. D. (2018). Lean in higher education: A proposed model for lean transformation in a business school with MCDM applications. Quality Assurance in Education, 27(1), 82-102.
Klein, L. L., De Guimaraes, J. C. F., Severo, E. A., Dorion, E. C. H., & Schirmer Feltrin, T. (2021). Lean practices toward a balanced sustainability in higher education institutions: A Brazilian experience. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. doi: 10.1108/IJSHE-10-2020-0406.
Klein, L. L., de Pádua, S. I. D., Gera, R., Vieira, K. M., & Dorion, E. C. H. (2023). Business process management effectiveness and maturity through lean management practices: The Brazilian federal police experience. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 14(2), 368-396.
Klein, L. L., Tonetto, M. S., Avila, L. V., & Moreira, R. (2021). Management of lean waste in a public higher education institution. Journal of Cleaner Production, 286(3), 1253-1286.
Klein, L. L., Vieira, K. M., Marçal, D. R., & Pereira, J. R. L. (2023). Lean management practices perception and their influence on organizational performance in a public Higher Education Institution. The TQM Journal, 35(3), 673-697.
Ko, C., Ma, J., Bartnik, R., Haney, M. H., & Kang, M. (2018). Ethical leadership: An integrative review and future research agenda. Ethics Behavior, 28(2), 104-132.
Kruja, D., Ha, H., & Tabaku, E. (2021). Students’ perception and satisfaction of services provided by public and private higher education institutes: A case study in Albania. International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, 13(3), 359-380.
LeMahieu, P. G., Nordstrum, L. E., & Greco, P. (2017). Lean for education. Quality Assurance in Education, 25(1), 74-90.
Li, S., Fang, Y., & Wu, X. (2020). A systematic review of lean construction in Mainland China. Journal of Cleaner Production, 257(6), 120581.
Lu, J., Laux, C., & Antony, J. (2017). Lean Six Sigma leadership in higher education institutions. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 66(5), 638-650.
Maldonado, M. U., Leusin, M. E., Bernardes, T. C. D. A., & Vaz, C. R. (2020). Similarities and differences between business process management and lean management. Business Process Management Journal, 26(7), 1807-1831.
O’Reilly, S., Healy, J., & O’Dubhghaill, R. (2018). Continuous improvement in a university – the first steps: a reflective case study. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 67(2), 260-277.
Petrusch, A., Vaccaro, G. L. R., & Luchese, J. (2019). They teach, but do they apply? An exploratory survey about the use of lean thinking in Brazilian higher education institutions. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 10(3), 743-766.
Rodgers, B., Antony, J., Edgeman, R., & Cudney, E. A. (2021). Lean six sigma in the public sector: Yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Total Quality Management and Business Excellence, 32(5-6). 528-540.
Sahibzada, U. F., Xu, Y., Afshan, G., & Khalid, R. (2021). Knowledge-oriented leadership towards organizational performance: Symmetrical and asymmetrical approach. Business Process Management Journal, 27(6), 1720-1746.
Seidel, A., Saurin, T. A., Marodin, G. A., & Ribeiro, J. L. D. (2017). Lean leadership competencies: A multi-method study. Management Decision, 55(10), 2163-2180.
Sfakianaki, E., & Kakouris, A. (2019). Lean thinking for education: Development and validation of an instrument. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 36(6), 917-950.
Simonyte, S., Adomaitiene, R., & Ruzele, D. (2022). Experience of lean application in higher education institutions. International Journal of Lean Six Sigma, 13(2), 408-427.
Wickramasinghe, G. L. D., & Wickramasinghe, V. (2017). Implementation of lean production practices and manufacturing performance: The role of lean duration. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 28(4), 531-550.
Wiegel, V. (2019). Lean in the classroom: The powerful strategy for improving student performance and developing efficient processes. Routledge/Productivity Press, Taylor & Francis Group, New York, NY.
Zhu, X., & Lin, Y. (2017). Does lean manufacturing improve firm value?. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 28(4), 422-437.
Effendi, F. I. M. N., Fuzi, N. M., Azman, S., & Habidin, N. F. (2025). The Perception of Lean Management Practices on Organizational Performance. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 15(12), 1647–1653.
Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode