Abstract

The people dimension in the service industry is a critical asset, where companies have the pressure to retain talent and continuously deliver value to their customers. Sharing knowledge among employees is crucial to sustain quality services and incorporate the voice of the customer in their activities. As Lean Service (LS) is the application of Lean principles to service, this research aims to present how LS can develop and enhance a team learning process. Hence, using a mixed methods approach, combining qualitative and quantitative data, and through case study research, two years of investigation were performed. Based on the set up of different and innovative action learning activities, which enrolled a universe of 73 workers, it was possible to perform 27 innovative training sessions, which represented an amount of 114 training hours to 170 participants, where an average of 89% of success was obtained. Additionally, an organised and standard on-job training process was set up with 6 communities of practice (CP), and over one year, 80 on-job training hours were delivered by subject matter experts. Each CP is working on a daily basis as a Lean cell, producing and sharing knowledge within the organisation, and addressing problem-solving. The study highlights the potential of Lean Service in developing and enhancing team learning and provides actionable insights for effective interventions in people’s dimension.