The success of lean manufacturing practices in Industry 4.0 is highly dependent on people and technology; therefore, an appropriate leadership style is essential when pursuing the implementation of lean manufacturing. This study explores whether digital leadership has direct and indirect effects on lean manufacturing practices via the mediation of the two dimensions of thriving at work; in parallel, the degree of its importance and respective performance is evaluated. The research design was quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional, and explanatory and was conducted in the Mexican border export manufacturing industry using a non-probabilistic sample of 1,123 people. The statistical techniques used were partial least squares structural equation modelling PLS-SEM and importance–performance mapping IPMA. The results reveal a direct effect of digital leadership on lean manufacturing practices and an indirect effect through the learning dimension of thriving at work; the vitality dimension has no significant effect on lean manufacturing practices. The importance–performance map highlights the significant effect of digital leadership on lean manufacturing; at the indicator level, it reveals that leaders need to improve their performance by seeking out and motivating employees to experience and use new technologies.
Vargas-Salgado et al. (Sun,) studied this question.