Critical Successful Factors (CSFs) for Successful implementation of Lean tools and ERP systems

—Due to market competition and continuous pressure on businesses, there is always a need to adopt innovative tools and techniques, to reduce waste and concentrate on value adding activities. Consequently, the integration of lean tools and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems currently seem to be in high demand for both manufacturing and service organisations. However, the implementation of lean tools and ERP systems can lead to undesirable outcomes if implemented incorrectly and these can adversely affect improvements in the process. This research investigates the critical success factors (CSFs) involved in implementing lean tools and ERP systems with the aim of understanding how these CSFs have changed over time and, so as consider possible future directions. That will enable us to indicate which CSFs have already been addressed as well as indicate which areas may require further research. To achieve this aim, a comprehensive review of the published literature was conducted to identify the CSFs and achieve a depth of understanding of the various CSFs already identified by other researchers. The findings of this work support both manufacturing and service organisations seeking to implement lean tools and ERP systems by determining the CSFs of both ERP systems and lean tools which can be a valuable step toward enhancing chances of implementation of these techniques successfully. Moreover, decision makers will be able to formulate better strategies to enhance lean tools and ERP systems implementation, as well as to identify which elements of the implementation process most emphasis should be placed upon.