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Lean Management has been successfully applied in production/manufacturing functions since more than four decades. Recently, the interest to investigate Lean Management also in service functions increased. Therefore, this study aims to (1) Consolidate critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of Lean Management of IT organizations; and (2) Describe a theoretical foundation for these CSFs. With respect to (1) a database-driven search was conducted. CSFs then were extracted and categorized. In total 13 CSF groups were assigned to three dimensions: Mindset and behavior; Organization and skills; and Process facilitation and performance management. To understand underlying mechanisms better, and with respect to (2) we related existing (IS) theory to identified groups of CSFs. Especially, five theoretical concepts are discussed: Absorptive capacity, Agency theory, Cognitive dissonance, Dynamic capabilities, and System dynamics. Future research needs to validate the results of (1) and (2) empirically in IT functions.

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Lean Management of IT Organizations: Implementation Success Factors and Theoretical Foundation

Lean Management has been successfully applied in production/manufacturing functions since more than four decades. Recently, the interest to investigate Lean Management also in service functions increased. Therefore, this study aims to (1) Consolidate critical success factors (CSFs) for the implementation of Lean Management of IT organizations; and (2) Describe a theoretical foundation for these CSFs. With respect to (1) a database-driven search was conducted. CSFs then were extracted and categorized. In total 13 CSF groups were assigned to three dimensions: Mindset and behavior; Organization and skills; and Process facilitation and performance management. To understand underlying mechanisms better, and with respect to (2) we related existing (IS) theory to identified groups of CSFs. Especially, five theoretical concepts are discussed: Absorptive capacity, Agency theory, Cognitive dissonance, Dynamic capabilities, and System dynamics. Future research needs to validate the results of (1) and (2) empirically in IT functions.