Lean leadership attributes: a systematic review of the literature

PURPOSE: Emphasis on quality and reducing costs has led many health-care organizations to reconfigure their management, process, and quality control infrastructures. Many are lean, a management philosophy with roots in manufacturing industries that emphasizes elimination of waste. Successful lean implementation requires systemic change and strong leadership. Despite the importance of leadership to successful lean implementation, few researchers have probed the question of ideal leadership attributes to achieve lean thinking in health care. The purpose of this paper is to provide insight into applicable attributes for lean leaders in health care. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH: The authors systematically reviewed the literature on principles of leadership and, using Dombrowski and Mielke’s (2013) conceptual model of lean leadership, developed a parallel theoretical model for lean leadership in health care. FINDINGS: This work contributes to the development of a new framework for describing leadership attributes within lean management of health care. ORIGINALITY/VALUE: The summary of attributes can provide a model for health-care leaders to apply lean in their organizations.