In our examination, we define ‘‘work’’ as lean manufacturing; it represents how the daily operations are performed. We view the characteristic of employee
empowerment as ‘‘people.’’ It is not the granting of decision rights, but rather the employee’s belief that they have
the skills and knowledge necessary to take proper actions
and make appropriate decisions (Carroll, 1994). It is only
when employees’ knowledge and skills are congruent with
the knowledge and skills required of their tasks that
empowerment can flourish (Nadler & Tushman, 1980).
The ‘‘formal environment’’ we define as visual performance
information, inventory tracking, simplified strategic
reporting, and VSC. These activities help set the structure
and systems to direct the achievement of organizational
goals. Finally, the ‘‘informal environment’’ is captured in
the extent of top management support for change in production strategies.Nadler and Tushman (1980)point out
that the behavior (rather than the position) of leaders is a
critical component of the informal environment.