Critical success factors for operational excellence initiatives in manufacturing: a meta-analysis

Globally manufacturing organizations are implementing operational excellence (OPEX) projects to improve their long-term sustainability and competitive advantage. This research analyzes the critical success factors (CSFs) for implementing OPEX initiatives in manufacturing organizations through the utilization of a meta-analysis technique. Thirty studies were found to be relevant for the meta-analysis. The findings of the study suggest that OPEX implementation in manufacturing organizations is positively and strongly influenced by employee involvement, training and education, management commitment and involvement, and required resources to implement operational excellence. Further, OPEX is moderately influenced by leadership, project prioritization and selection, organizational culture, effective communication, customer relation, supplier relation, performance management and reward system, and teamwork. The findings also suggest that four moderators, namely location of the study, size of the firm, topic of the study, and publication year of the study also have a significant positive relationship for all of the CSFs. A comprehensive study of the CSFs for OPEX initiatives becomes imperative in this context. This research provides a better understanding of CSFs leading to successful OPEX implementation in a manufacturing environment and contributes to the body of knowledge for the OPEX research and practitioner community, especially for OPEX deployment in non-manufacturing sectors.