Lean came to prominence in the academic literature during the mid-1980s as a result of the increased curiosity surrounding the 'secret' of practical Japanese manufacturing techniques such as Just-In-Time (JIT) and the Toyota Production System (TPS) in particular. In recent years though, there has been a shift in focus towards the notion of lean thinking and a view of lean within a broader strategic context. Moreover, lean thinking has been implemented within services, healthcare, construction and other industries. Despite this, however, many authors still argue that lean is only truly applicable to large scale production.

You are asked to provide a critical discussion on the implementation of lean which addresses the following questions:

1) Is there a best way to implement lean?

2) Are all organisations suitable for lean implementation?

Relates to Learning Outcomes:

• Critically analyse the theory, concepts and models of operations and information management and demonstrate an understanding of the strategic importance of information management in global organisations.

• Analyse and critically evaluate the ways in which operations are adapted according to specific market culture and customer requirements in order to achieve operational excellence

• Justify the value of understanding, measuring, reducing and preventing quality costs and understand the application of planning & control techniques.