Entwicklung eines Modells zur Lean Communication am Beispiel eines mittelständischen Unternehmens der Möbelindustrie im DACH-Raum

The thesis examines issues and approaches in the introduction of lean administration as efficiency and quality improvements are not achieved to the same extent as is the case in lean production. This is partly due to the organization of administrative areas, the type of work and the processes in the administrative areas, which are more customer-oriented, but also to a large extent focused on communication.

As part of this dissertation, the process of implementing and adapting the organization to lean administration was examined using a case study from the furniture industry in Austria. The focus was on communication between managers and employees. The research question was: which communicative means and approaches are required in a lean administration in order to successfully implement lean communication between managers and employees.

The results show that both vertical and horizontal communication channels have problems. One prerequisite for lean communication is the dismantling of hierarchies. This enables vertical permeability in both directions of communication. This ensures that innovation and quality improvement are promoted within the company. From a value creation perspective, this contributes to topic leadership, as innovation potential is developed. The company also becomes more resilient in the face of crises.

With regard to horizontal communication, an improvement in efficiency can be expected if the flow of information takes place across departments. In administrative areas, it is necessary to ensure that communicative standards are developed in the sense of lean communication. Employees should be given as much freedom to make decisions as possible.

With regard to resources, care must be taken to ensure that all departments use the same systems in order to reduce waiting times. It turns out that e-mail and MS Teams are mostly used for internal communication. Building relationships and trust is neglected in communication. From a value creation perspective, the company loses flexibility if the mentioned points are not adhered to.

Implementing lean communication can not only enable economic value creation, but also build other intangible value, for example by increasing employee commitment or incorporating customer preferences.

The model developed takes into account horizontal and vertical communication, shows how this contributes to value creation and makes suggestions for the optimal use of communication tools.