London, B C K and Gajendran, T (2010) Diffusing cultural awareness and maturity in lean managed organizations. In: Egbu, C (ed.) Proceedings of 26th Annual ARCOM Conference, 6-8 September 2010, Leeds, UK.
Abstract
Lean construction is a management philosophy intended to reduce waste and maximize productivity. Despite some examples of 'successful' lean implementation in industry our understanding and interpretation of how the lean concept is diffused within an organization varies. From a cultural perspective the lean construction organization is dichotomously interpreted as either positive and empowering or negative and conflicting scenarios. Both interpretations are representative of end-result cultural awareness. Diffusion theory however, tells us that organizational culture is a dynamic construct, in which culture during implementation processes can be interpreted as positive and negative. Consequently, the adoption of an innovative process such as lean management should be considered as an ongoing implementation process whereby the organizational culture evolves. Diffusion theory assists in explaining how and why organizational cultures mature and evolve as a result of implementation processes. Therefore the aim of this paper is to describe a lean cultural maturity model underpinned by diffusion theory. The purpose of the maturity model is to provide an understanding of organizational cultural awareness associated with the lean phenomenon. The model utilizes cultural and diffusion constructs as a foundation to explore the dynamic nature of culture and how the method of implementation is uniquely diffused within organizations to mature culture
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | cultural awareness; cultural maturity model; diffusion theory; lean construction |
| Index terms: | lean construction, diffusion theory, organizational culture, implementation, philosophy, productivity, maturity model |
| Subjects: | evaluation, building construction, sociology, contractual arrangements, philosophical studies, management, innovation and technology management |
| Topics: | Organizational Design, Research Practice, Procurement, Site Management, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here