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This study aims to examine the full mediating role of supply chain flexibility (SCF) between lean production (LP) and business performance (BP) found in the previous literature. This effect negates the direct LP-BP effect (the so-called “total eclipse effect”). The authors analyze the individual contributions that the different SCF dimensions (sourcing flexibility; operating system flexibility, distribution flexibility and information system [IS] flexibility) make to the “total eclipse effect” between LP and BP produced by SCF. The relational resources-based view and resource orchestration theory are used to support the theoretical framework.

Covariance-based structural equations modeling (CB-SEM) is used to test the SCF LP-BP total eclipse hypothesis and four additional mediation hypotheses, one for each of the SCF dimensions. Data obtained via a questionnaire given to 260 companies are analyzed with CB-SEM, and SPSS Process is used to evaluate the mediation effect.

Research results indicate that only one of the dimensions (operating system flexibility) has a full mediation effect between LP and BP and is, therefore, the main contributor to the eclipse effect. Two other dimensions (sourcing flexibility and distribution flexibility) have partial mediation effects, so they also contribute to developing the eclipse effect, although to a lesser extent. Finally, IS flexibility is neither a full nor a partial mediation factor and does not contribute to the eclipse effect.

These findings have some important implications. For academia, they generate new knowledge of the role that each of the SCF dimensions or components plays in the LP-BP relationship. For company management, the findings offer supply chain managers specific information on the individual effects that the different types of SCF flexibility have between LP and BP. This will allow companies to target their efforts to develop certain types of flexibility in LP contexts depending on the outcomes that senior managers want to achieve with their SCs.

The purpose of this study is to examine how a focal firm’s supply relationships influence lean supply chain management (LSCM) implementation and its impact on operational performance.

An empirical study of 285 Spanish focal firms has explored the relationships between supply uncertainty, strategic supplier performance, LSCM implementation and operational performance. A structural equation model was used to test four hypotheses.

The results indicate that supply uncertainty and strategic supplier performance significantly impact the decision to implement LSCM. The findings highlight the importance of strategic supplier performance for driving LSCM adoption. However, this study also suggests that LSCM implementation should be carefully considered in situations characterized by high supply uncertainty.

This study suggests that enhancing LSCM implementation and improving performance from key suppliers are crucial factors in achieving favorable operational performance in focal firms. Practitioners receive guidance on aligning their supply relationships, considering contextual factors and leveraging strategic supplier performance to drive effective LSCM implementation.

This study offers novel insights by examining the antecedents to LSCM implementation from a contingency and relational perspective specifically focused on the context of supply relationships. This research contributes to the existing body of knowledge on supply chain management by shedding light on the interplay between supply uncertainty, strategic supplier performance, LSCM implementation and operational performance.

The purpose of this paper is twofold: firstly, to provide a measurement instrument for supply chain 4.0 ambidexterity by applying the theoretical perspective of ambidexterity to advance Industry 4.0; secondly, to empirically analyse how supply chain 4.0 ambidexterity and lean supply chain management contribute to enhancing the focal firm’s operational performance.

Empirical results are obtained through analysis of survey data from a sample of 209 Spanish focal firms in industrial sectors in an intermediate position in the supply chain. Structural equation modelling was performed to test the three proposed hypotheses.

Drawing on resource orchestration theory and the relational resource-based view, this study empirically demonstrates the full mediating role of lean supply chain management in the relationship between supply chain 4.0 ambidexterity and the focal firm’s operational performance.

Although recent research has highlighted the pertinence of applying inter-organisational ambidexterity to foster Industry 4.0 (Hofmann et al., 2019), to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies to apply this theoretical framework to explain the transition to supply chain 4.0. In addition, to date, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, no study exists that has developed a measurement scale and used this concept in an empirical analysis to advance theory development.

With support from the dynamic capabilities theory, this paper examines the role of Cloud Computing technology use in logistics (Cloud-Supported Logistics) and its effect on business results in Lean manufacturing management (Lean Production implementation) and Supply Chain Integration contexts.

Using the survey method, a random sample of 260 companies in intermediate positions in their supply chains was gathered from a population of 1,717 Spanish companies and used to test five hypotheses. The data were collected by telephone survey using a computerised system with a response rate of 15.6% (260 valid questionnaires). Structural equation modelling was used to test the five proposed hypotheses.

The findings indicate that Cloud-Supported Logistics use plays an important role in achieving better business results in Lean Production environments. Lean Production has been found to have both a direct effect and an even more powerful indirect effect on performance through the Cloud-Supported Logistics and Supply Chain Integration that these technologies produce. Supply Chain Integration is also found to have a mediating effect in the Cloud-Supported Logistics–performance relationship.

This study is valuable for academics and practitioners as it provides evidence of the relevant role played by Cloud-Supported Logistics in Lean Production implementation contexts. Cloud-Supported Logistics and Lean Production are strategically and operationally linked and their joint use results in Supply Chain Integration and better business performance.

This study aims to analyze the lean supply chain management (LSCM) strategy's role as a mechanism to address technology uncertainty and provide organizations with competitive advantage.

An empirical study was conducted of 276 Spanish focal firms in industrial sectors that occupy an intermediate position in the supply chain to investigate the influence of technology uncertainty on LSCM implementation and the latter's effect on operational performance and competitiveness. A covariance-based structural equation model (CB-SEM) was used to test three hypotheses.

Technological uncertainty encourages progress in the implementation of lean throughout the supply chain and so is a mechanism that not only brings stability to the focal company but also improves its performance and puts it in a better competitive position.

Managers are suggested to consider the strategic integration with supply chain partners and the establishment of long-term relationships based on trust and commitment advocated by LSCM to enhance organizations' capabilities and effectively and flexibly respond to technological changes.

This study focuses on the effects of environmental uncertainty on the supply chain. The past literature has focused on the behavior of individual firms to deal with uncertainty, but this work shifts the level of analysis to the supply chain. Therefore, the strategic change to deal with what is happening in the environment is now switched to the supply chain level.

This paper investigates the relationship between technological uncertainty and the use of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies, and its impact on the implementation of agile and lean supply chain strategies. It also examines the effect of both of these supply chain strategies on focal firm operational performance in terms of efficiency in manufacturing processes and delivery performance.

Survey data were gathered from 256 focal manufacturing companies in Spain using a structured questionnaire. Covariance-based structural equation modeling (CB-SEM) is used to test the conceptual model.

Underpinned by the Contingency Theory and the Resource Orchestration Theory, the results indicate that technology uncertainty has a strong association with I4.0 technology use. Furthermore, the use of I4.0 technologies facilitates the implementation of the lean supply chain strategy and the agile supply chain strategy. Focal firm operational performance was also observed to be affected by the two strategies in different ways.

This study extends the literature on operations management by studying the fit between the external environment and strategy by incorporating an in-between element: the use of I4.0 technologies. This research provides a unique empirical analysis of the role of technology uncertainty and integration between I4.0 technologies and supply chain strategies.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the contribution to improving the efficiency of the focal firm made by lean management at the internal and supply chain levels.

An empirical study was conducted of 285 Spanish focal companies from industrial sectors that occupy an intermediate position in the supply chain. The data gathering method consisted of a telephone survey using computer-assisted telephone interviewing. A structural equation was used to test the hypotheses.

The results indicate that there is an improvement in efficiency of the focal firm when lean management extends throughout the supply chain, in line with the resource-based theory and integrated supply chain management. In addition, lean management at the internal level is observed to impact positively on the focal firm's efficiency only when it contributes to enhancing the implementation of lean supply chain management.

To achieve the best operational performance derived from lean management, managers should pay attention to the transfer to their supply chain members of knowledge, competencies and cultural change linked to the level of internal lean implementation of the focal firm. Moreover, this paper provides a way to assess the operational aspects of lean supply chain strategy implementation and lean supply chain planning.

This study uses a holistic focus on lean supply chain management, to which it applies a validated instrument. It underlines that lean on the internal level should be complemented with lean on the supply chain level to provide a better understanding of the drivers of the efficiency of the focal firm.

The purpose of this paper is to deepen the knowledge about the role of human resources in a lean environment and its impact on operational performance.

For this reason, present work investigates the influence of workforce development on the relationship between lean production and operational performance. To test the hypotheses of the paper, a questionnaire was developed and tested on a sample of first tier suppliers in the Spanish automotive industry.

Results highlight the indispensable role of workforce development in the implementation phase of lean production and draw upon the insight that advancements in implementation of lean production correspond to an increase in knowledgeable employees which in turn facilitates the attainment of improved operational performance outcomes.

The research reaffirm that lean is an integrated socio-technical system oriented to efficiency.

The significant changes that supply chains (SCs) are undergoing and the emergence of disruptive technologies have led to a growing effort to integrate novel and mature technologies into existing SC strategies. Thus, this study investigates the relationships between mature information technologies (ITs), emerging IT and the lean supply chain (LSC) and agile supply chain (ASC) strategies.

An empirical study based on structural equation modeling of survey data from 256 Spanish focal companies has been conducted to test six hypotheses.

Drawing on resource orchestration, our results point to mature IT use being an enabler of both LSC and ASC strategy implementation. The results also show an LSC mediating effect on the relationship between mature IT and ASC when SCs follow both strategies. Also, the implementation of emerging IT requires a process of consolidation over time to be genuinely useful as a facilitating mechanism for developing both the lean and agile strategies along the SC. In this sense, a suitable mix needs to be orchestrated between emerging and mature IT.

This study sheds light on the relevance of the mature IT and emerging IT in the context of two SC strategies (lean/agile) and provides practical and theoretical implications.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the relationships between the different dimensions of supply chain integration (SCI). First, the sequence in which these dimensions should be implemented and some possible mediating effects are investigated. Then, relationships are examined more closely to observe whether they present more complex non-linear forms than those usually analysed.

Required information was gathered from a sample of 477 Spanish industrial companies (23.4 per cent response rate). PLS structural equation modelling was applied to capture non-linear relationships between SCI dimensions.

The results indicate that internal integration leads to external integration and that within external integration, information flow integration provides the basis for financial flow integration and physical flow integration. Thus, the results suggest the existence of a logical sequence to achieve SCI. In addition, clearly different non-linear relationships are observed between the analysed variables.

It seems that a sufficient minimum value has to be reached for internal integration to have a positive effect on external information and financial integration. In addition, a higher degree of information integration appears to facilitate financial and physical integration, although a medium degree of information integration results in a lower degree of financial integration. Therefore, managers should not expect that efforts made to increase one integration dimension will always produce the same effect on the other dimensions.

An empirical contribution is made to knowledge of the logical SCI sequence. This contribution is not only important for academia, but also for managers seeking to improve supply chain performance through integration.