Measuring employee involvement in Lean Manufacturing efforts: proposal of a robust scale

Abstract

This research addresses a significant gap in the academic literature: the lack of robust tools for quantifying employee involvement in Lean Manufacturing (LM). This shortfall is critical, as employee involvement is a cornerstone of LM's success. To address this deficiency, our study creates a comprehensive measurement scale designed to assess and enhance employee involvement in LM environments. The development of the scale followed a systematic and meticulously organised process. The validation process of constructs identified in the literature review involved conducting a series of expert interviews, adopting the Q-Sort method, utilising different statistical instruments, and administering a preliminary test. This pre-test, conducted with 94 operators, utilised exploratory factor analysis to refine the scale and used a non-probability sampling method. Subsequently, to improve the scale's validity and precision, a comprehensive survey was performed involving 176 employees and confirmatory factor analysis employed to verify its suitability for practical application. Theoretical contributions of this study include expanding the dimensions of literature on employee involvement in LM and providing a novel, robust scale for use in longitudinal and interdisciplinary studies. Managerially, the scale serves as a diagnostic tool for decision-makers, aiding in mapping, identifying, and strategizing employee involvement practices in LM implementations.

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