Effects of management commitment and organization of work teams on the benefits of Kaizen: Planning stage

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of the effects of management commitment and organization of work teams in the benefits of implementing Kaizen in industrial enterprises during planning stages. To gather information, 200 questionnaires were applied to 68 companies distributed in the states of Tabasco, Sinaloa and Chihuahua in Mexico and in the province of Camagüey, Cuba. We used the methodology of least partial squares with the WarpPLS 4.0 software to develop a model of structural equations that explains such effects. The results show that when there is a high level of managerial commitment, this impacts the profits and competitiveness of companies positively. We also found that the organization of work teams has positive impacts on competitive benefits and these, in turn, on economic benefits. As a result of this study, we present the impact of certain critical success factors of Kaizen on the benefits of its implementation, which is a key factor in its sustainability over time.