The impact of lean production practices on the performance of the clothing industry in Ethiopia

Purpose The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of lean production practices (LPP) on the operational performance (OP) and business performance (BP) of the clothing industry in Ethiopia. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 203 middle- and top-level managers at 48 clothing manufacturing companies operating in Ethiopia, with a focus on local and export markets. A self-administered questionnaire was used for an online survey. The respondents in each company were selected purposively. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and covariance-based structural equation modelling in SPSS with AMOS version 21. Findings The results confirmed that LPP had a significant positive effect on both OP and BP. However, OP was not sufficiently mature to significantly influence BP. Specifically, human resource management (HRM), total productive maintenance (TPM), and process management had significant positive effects on OP, while only HRM and TPM had significant positive effects on BP. The effects of just-in-time and continuous improvement on both OP and BP were statistically insignificant. Originality/value The study examined the impact of LPP on OP and BP in the clothing industry, a labour-intensive sector, in a developing country. Methodologically, a stepwise investigation of the impact of lean practices was conducted, beginning with the overall impact of LPP and then examining the specific effect of each lean practice. The paper mainly contributes to the lean implementation body of knowledge by examining the effect of LPP on BP, an area that has been rarely examined in the literature.