THE CHALLENGES OF LEAN MANAGEMENT IN HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract Higher education institutions (HEIs) now implement Lean management through the adoption of the Toyota Production System methods to enhance operational efficiency and eliminate waste, and create better value for stakeholders. Academic institutions face many complicated barriers during their transition to lean implementation, which obstruct the complete deployment of lean practices. The research evaluates different barriers preventing the adoption of lean management in higher education through examination of structural and cultural, and strategic challenges. The main obstacle stems from academic employees expressing cultural resistance to lean methods because they interpret these approaches as conflicting with academic freedom and teaching principles (Balzer, 2010). Administrative personnel, along with faculty members, usually consider lean tools as managerial commands input by upper management, which elicits limited cooperation. Many universities with decentralized governance face obstacles to unified lean principle implementation because their departmental variations create disconnected or limited deployments (Emiliani, 2004). The main barrier exists due to the mismatch between lean strategies and institutional organizational objectives. Higher education institutions prioritize innovation and critical inquiry, and student development over organizational efficiency despite the fact that lean management systems push for standard processes and measurement control (Radnor & Bucci, 2011). HEIs commonly struggle to maintain lean initiatives since they underestimate the importance of necessary training and long-term strategy development, and leadership support for lean transformations (Antony, 2014). Educational outcome assessment becomes complex because there are no valid metrics established specifically for measuring lean intervention effectiveness. Achieving benefits from lean management in higher education institutions requires contextual adaptation together with whole-systems change management to address sector-specific challenges.