How lean and industry 4.0 affect worker outcomes and operational performance: A quantitative assessment of competing models

This study explores the relationship between Lean Manufacturing and Industry 4.0, two paradigms that have shaped modern manufacturing. While Lean Manufacturing seeks to optimize sociotechnical systems by integrating workers, processes, and technologies, the focus of Industry 4.0 is to integrate digital technologies into manufacturing processes. Related literature has considered a diversity of relationships between Lean and Industry 4.0 but used contradictory models to explain their associations to operational performance. Also, while much attention has been given to the contribution of Lean and Industry 4.0 to operational performance, little is known about their effect on worker outcomes. Therefore, we aim to investigate how these two paradigms interact and their effects on both operational performance and worker outcomes. We propose competing research models – mediation and moderation – to explain plausible relationships between Lean and Industry 4.0 on worker outcomes and operational performance. We test these models through empirical analysis of survey data from 415 manufacturing companies. Our results reveal that Industry 4.0 technologies act as antecedents when they are used to enhance Lean practices for operational performance (Lean as mediator) but serve as moderators in shaping worker outcomes within Lean systems. We also examine the detailed relationships between specific Lean bundles and Industry 4.0 technologies. Our findings highlight the need to strategically balance the adoption of technologies that support Lean for operational performance improvements with technologies that modify worker activities to enhance overall worker outcomes. We contribute to reconciling different perspectives on Lean and Industry 4.0 in the design of sociotechnical manufacturing systems.