The adoption of Lean in the Greek public sector. An employee perspective

Purpose In times of strong global competition and worldwide economic downturn, there is an imperative need for public services organizations to reform and improve their quality. These organizations can base their improvement efforts on Lean philosophy. The purpose of this study is to assess the employees’ perceived degree of adoption of Lean principles by public services organizations in Greece. Determining the differences in the perceptions of groups of employees with regard to the adoption of Lean principles by public organizations is also an aim of the study. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was published online, inviting employees of Greek public services organizations to assess the degree of Lean adoption by their organizations, specified on the basis of general principles. A total of 1,022 employees completed the structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics were applied to assess the degree of adoption of Lean principles by public organizations. The nonparametric Mann–Whitney U Test and Kruskal–Wallis Test were also applied to determine whether there are statistically significant differences in the perceptions of groups of employees with regard to the adoption of Lean principles by public organizations. Findings According to the perceptions of employees, Greek public organizations adopt Lean principles to a high extent. However, there is room for further improvement in the degree to which Lean is adopted. Statistically significant differences are observed in the perceptions of groups of employees from different sized organizations, hierarchical levels, skill sets and service subsectors, with regard to the degree of adoption of Lean principles by their organizations. Research limitations/implications The employees of the public sector who were invited to respond to the survey through social media, the subjective nature of the data collected and the fact that this is a country-specific study constitute the main limitations of the present study, based on which future studies can be designed. Practical implications By determining the strong and weak points of the adoption of Lean principles by Greek public services organizations, suitable managerial initiatives can be undertaken by these organizations to fully adopt Lean, eliminate waste and enhance quality management. Social implications Understanding and improving the current status of the adoption of Lean principles by Greek public organizations will influence the services provided to the citizens in terms of time, quality and delivery. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study which provides insights, based on employees’ perceptions, into the adoption of Lean by the public services sector.