WRITING ASSIGNMENT 2
You will be required to delve into outside research to create a cross-case study analysis of pull
production at lean organizations.
Below are some case examples—however, there are many more. With the examples, choose at least
2 to complete the cross-study analysis:
• You can either use 2 (or more) of the organizations below as part of the analysis.
o Try to steer away from Toyota (unless that is a third case)
• Your goal is to study and provide insights on challenges faced, different strategies, and
outcomes of the two cases—with a focus on pull system production.
• Critically examine the successful implementation of lean production with a pull strategy in
various organizations.
o If you would like to, you can take a different approach and research a case where the
organization was not successful at implementation in comparison to one that was
successful with the lean implementation.
• Requirements:
o 2-3 pages, MLA format | Arial, 12pt
o At least 3 outside reputable sources (no wiki or reddit) – Loyola libraries is a solid start
https://libraries.luc.edu/node
o Includes a cross-analysis between 2 of the cases (cases being organizations below)
o Citations
Response should answer:
Overview of each case example (company overview, industry, lean adaptation
overview)
How has JIT (lean, just-in-time), pull-based strategy, Kanban, etc. improved the
company and potentially industry (or how do you think it can)?
Commonalities and differences among the 2 cases chosen
Any challenges faced with implementation
Based on the 2 cases read, what recommendations would you recommend for a
new company looking to implement lean practices surround pull production—
what would your strategy or approach be to ensure success?
CASE EXAMPLES TO RESEARCH
• Boeing
• Danaher Corporation
• Harley-Davidson
• Hewlett-Packard (HP)
• Zara – Inditex Group