Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to obtain pertinent information pertaining to benefits accomplished, main difficulties felt, and key lessons learned in the implementation of lean Six Sigma (LSS), which are likely to be helpful to financial services organizations wanting to implement the same tool. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reports the results of a case study from a financial services organization which has begun the implementation of LSS methodologies ten years ago, in the pursuit of service excellence. Findings – The benefits derived from LSS implementation, such as lowering the operational costs, improving processes and product quality, increased efficiency, which leads to the increase of productivity, the agility and versatility obtained by the organization, vastly outweigh the costs. At an international level, there are cultural differences pertaining mainly to internal resistance and openness to change. Research limitations/implications – This work focuses on a specific case study. Practical implications – The authors compiled the lessons learned and recommendations for future implementations of this methodology. The paper, therefore, will be of interest to managers of similar companies. Originality/value – The paper presents a successful application of LSS for a financial services company.

The use of big data analytics for forecasting business trends is gaining momentum among professionals. At the same time, supply chain risk management is important for practitioners to consider because it outlines ways through which firms can allay internal and external threats. Predicting and addressing the risks that social issues cause in the supply chain is of paramount importance to the sustainable enterprise. The aim of this research is to explore the application of big data analytics in mitigating supply chain social risk and to demonstrate how such mitigation can help in achieving environmental, economic, and social sustainability. The method involves an expert panel and survey identifying and validating social issues in the supply chain. A case study was used to illustrate the application of big data analytics in identifying and mitigating social issues in the supply chain. Our results show that companies can predict various social problems including workforce safety, fuel consumptions monitoring, workforce health, security, physical condition of vehicles, unethical behavior, theft, speeding and traffic violations through big data analytics, thereby demonstrating how information management actions can mitigate social risks. This paper contributes to the literature by integrating big data analytics with sustainability to explain how to mitigate supply chain risk.

Purpose: – The paper aims to analyse the engagement in sustainability reporting assurance (SRA) by a sample of Portuguese firms between 2008 and 2011.Design/methodology/approach: – Bivariate and multivariate non-parametric statistics is used to analyse some factors that influence the decision to have sustainability reports assured.Findings: – Results indicate that size, leverage, profitability, listing status and industrial affiliation are determinants of SRA, whereas type of ownership is not. A downward trend in sustainability reporting and its assurance was also detected.Research limitations/implications: – The sample is small.Originality/value: – It adds to the scarce research on SRA by providing new empirical data in a context of crisis and extends prior research by analysing the effects of listing status and type of ownership.

The aim of this study is to examine the impacts of board size, gender diversity and independence on ESG performance whilst also examining the impact of country-level social trust on such performance. We perform a panel data analysis and the least squares method for a sample of 75 European banks and a time span of 4 years from 2016 to 2019. We find that ESG performance is positively associated with board gender diversity and independence, and negatively associated with board size. Surprisingly, we find a negative relationship between country-level social trust and ESG performance. This is an important finding that we interpret as being related to the loss of confidence in the banking sector in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. To regain such trust, the banking sector is likely to have suffered higher social pressure to engage in ESG activities in countries where social trust is lower.