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The purpose of this paper is to propose an assessment approach to evaluate the organizational capabilities to deploy a Lean Six Sigma (LSS) strategy.

Based on a comprehensive literature review, critical success factors required to deploy LSS were defined. These key factors are evaluated by a questionnaire based on maturity grids and structured as a multi-criteria model to compute a potential LSS performance indicator. This approach is illustrated through two case studies.

To promote a successful implementation of LSS in SMEs, it is necessary to consider five main critical factors. The evaluation of these factors could be achieved thanks to a multi-criterion-based maturity indicator for the LSS implementation. The case studies show that this approach allows SMEs to understand their strengths and weaknesses and thus better prepare the implementation of LSS.

The proposed tool identifies characteristics of companies leading to successful LSS implementation; but is not yet able to provide a detailed strategy to improve them. The case studies were applied to manufacturing companies; therefore, there is no evidence of conclusions in the context of services.

The proposed methodology will help managers and practitioners to evaluate the readiness level of a company to implement LSS. Then, they could estimate the effort required to achieve the LSS deployment.

This paper proposes a new metric of the capacity to implement the LSS successfully in SMEs: the Lean Six Sigma Global Index. This indicator is based on a survey completed by managers and supported by observable phenomena to establish a tailored diagnosis before the LSS implementation.

This study aims to propose a novel approach to select and prioritize performance indicators in Lean Manufacturing depending on whether they are influencing or being influenced by others, thereby assisting in the decision-making process for improving overall performance.

The methodology comprises two stages. First, a literature review was conducted to identify the performance indicators, and then their interrelationships were analyzed by means of the decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) method.

The results provide a comprehensive visualization of the performance indicators in Lean Manufacturing, with a total of 50 identified indicators. Among these, 29 were categorized as causal, meaning that their results mainly influence the others, and 21 as influenced, with their results mostly being influenced by others. Among the causal indicators, those related to the human factor (eight indicators) were the most predominant. However, the most-cited performance families in the literature do not stand out as being causal, but rather as mostly influenced.

This study can help managers improve and analyze performance more effectively, while focusing on the importance of choosing causal over influenced indicators.

Performance measurement plays a crucial role for organizations, but because of the increasing number of metrics, there lacks an established framework. This exploratory study thus opens the discussion on relevance to determine a group of coherent and connected indicators that could help measure performance in a more comprehensive manner, rather than in several isolated parts.

Most of the proposed decision aid methods provide the user only with a prescriptive approach (quantitative analysis) without any descriptive approach (qualitative analysis). It is therefore not possible to justify and recommend ways of improvement. The purpose of this paper is to introduce visualization techniques to complement prescriptive approaches.

Visual techniques have been developed for the FlowSort sorting method, namely the FS‐GAIA and stacked bar diagrams.

It is found that with visual techniques, fine details can be captured, e.g. detection of incomparability (with FS‐GAIA) and the composition of a score (with stacked bar diagrams).

In the future, it is expected that other multi‐criteria decision methods will be complemented by prescriptive approaches.

A real case study is introduced in order to illustrate the practicality of the visual techniques. In this paper, the innovation performances of small and medium enterprises from the French Lorraine region are assessed.

It is expected that the quality of the decisions taken are improved because of being better informed.

The paper, using a real case study, provides important new tools to enhance decision quality.

Examines the tenth published year of the ITCRR. Runs the whole gamut of textile innovation, research and testing, some of which investigates hitherto untouched aspects. Subjects discussed include cotton fabric processing, asbestos substitutes, textile adjuncts to cardiovascular surgery, wet textile processes, hand evaluation, nanotechnology, thermoplastic composites, robotic ironing, protective clothing (agricultural and industrial), ecological aspects of fibre properties – to name but a few! There would appear to be no limit to the future potential for textile applications.

The aim is to analyze the armed conflict persistence in Colombia from 2008 to 2018 based on the financial viability hypothesis (rebellion occurs when war net revenue is nonnegative).

The methodology is quantitative. Firstly, a nonparametric Kaplan–Meier functions and survival risk functions are developed as initial approximation. Subsequently, a Probit model with panel data is implemented and the covariates are grouped into three dimensions: opportunity, grievance and institutional-political.

The viability hypothesis boosts the continuity of the armed conflict, which is enhanced and perpetuated by the viability and financial incentives from public revenues and natural resources, while the grievance, political fragmentation and institutional dimensions contribute to the opportunity structure in Collier that makes the conflict militarily and economically viable.

Lack of information for some states in Colombia prevents a much more holistic analysis.

Postulate what is required by the Colombian State to cut off the sources of financing of armed groups and thus, one of the determinants of the continuity of the conflict.

The political fragmentation contributes to rebellion, and that variables representing the dimensions of grievance and institutional presence contribute to the opportunity structure that makes the conflict in Colombia militarily and economically viable.

This research proposes as a novelty to incorporate the viability hypothesis with some factors related to the grievance that explain the persistence of the armed conflict as a consequence of decreasing recruitment costs for the insurgent groups, a situation that contributes to the opportunity structure and financial viability of the conflict.