CSR and Lean Management integration impact in firms strategy

Abstract

The present paper apprehends the linkage between lean management philosophy and CSR as two main strategic methods of performance improvement. This linkage is the analysis of aspects of concordance and discordance between both methods. Recently, more firms tend to take advantage of the outputs of lean management practices and tools at making process more efficient through cost saving, quality increasing and time reduction putting an emphasis at employees contribution and people’s respect as “the social side” of lean management. This philosophy becomes the main strategy for firms to attain the customer’s satisfaction through a better creation of added value. But today, CSR has become a prominent driver for firm’s market image and competitiveness. Though the main challenge remains the way firms can use CSR as a strategic factor of value creation since the economic and financial profit is the main goal of any firm’s creation.