Embedding lean and green practices into small and medium scale enterprises to achieve sustainable business profile

Lean and green thinking has emerged as a targeted business strategy to reduce waste and improve efficiency. Though lean and green thinking have gained popularity among large-sized enterprises, it is still unclear how to embed lean and green practices into small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) business processes to optimise sustainable business practice. This study uses a systematic literature review and case studies to explore how SMEs could strategically use lean and green tools to achieve sustainable business practice. The review highlights evidence of the co-existence of lean and green practices and the opportunities for synergistic impacts on process excellence and environmental performance. The authors present a context specific paradigm model highlighting the causal conditions, context and intervening conditions, action strategies, and consequences centred around the lean and green phenomenon in SMEs. Our case study findings provide targeted lean and green tools to enable SMEs to strategically use lean and green thinking, to optimise sustainable business practice and maximise the benefits of their expenditure.