Lean Management and New Work Concepts

The lean philosophy promotes, like the New Work approaches, an open, flexible and appreciative culture and speaks against a hierarchical, rigid organizational structure (Helmold, 2020; Ohno, 1990). It is very important to understand where an organization is located and what level of maturity in lean management it has reached so far. Setting up football tables or expanding break rooms in creative leisure zones will not ensure overnight or even years that a hierarchical company with traditional leadership will become a modern flagship company for agility, self-organization or new work. In addition to managers, employees must also be open to changes as the lean management cultures empower employees with freedom and choice within a set environment. Coupling the meaning and the exchange on an equal footing is crucial to promote acceptance and identification, otherwise there will be a lack of understanding and lack of interest among managers, employees and stakeholders (Helmold, 2020). Lean management is therefore a modern concept for new work and process optimization in the own organization and the entire the value chain (Helmold & Samara, 2019). Lean management is focusing on making inefficiencies (waste) transparent and on altering these into value-adding activities (Helmold & Terry 2016; Ohno, 1990). The value chain reaches in this context from the upstream (Suppliers) over the own operations to the downstream side (Customers) (Slack, 1995). Inefficiencies are everything, e.g. an activity, a process, a product, which is considered as something for which the customers are not willing to pay for or to spend financial means. The customer is the central point in the lean management concept. The primary objectives in the lean management philosophy are to create value for the customer through the optimization of resources and create a steady workflow based on real customer demands (Ohno, 1990). It seeks to eliminate any waste of time, effort or money by identifying each step in a business process and then revising or cutting out steps that do not create value (Bertagnolli, 2018). The philosophy has its roots in Japan and operations, but is presently widely spread across the world and industries. Lean management focuses on: