How does artificial intelligence impact employees’ engagement in lean organisations?
通过访谈专家和制造业多案例研究，发现人工智能在精益组织中能正向影响员工敬业度的身体、认知和情感维度，并改善员工的心理条件，有助于管理者预见问题。
Driven by the digital transformation currently pursued by organisations, artificial intelligence (AI) applications have become more frequent. Nevertheless, its impact on employees’ behaviors and attitudes is still poorly known. As employees’ engagement (EE) is a key element for a successful Lean Production (LP) implementation, there is the need to understand such AI’s implications on EE in this scenario. This paper aims to investigate the impact of AI on EE in lean organisations. We performed a qualitative-empirical approach in which we first interviewed twelve academic experts to grasp the investigated problem. Then, we conducted a multi-case study in manufacturing organisations undergoing a LP implementation to refine such understanding based on the observation of real-world evidence. Identifying commonalities between these stages allowed the formulation of propositions for future theory testing and validation. Findings indicate that AI may positively impact EE dimensions (physical, cognitive, and emotional) in human-centred work environments, such as lean organisations, although not at the same extent. Results also suggest that employees’ psychological conditions (safety, meaningfulness, and availability) are positively affected by the relationship between AI and EE. The demystification of AI’s effect on EE helps practitioners anticipate potential issues that can impair the LP implementation in the Fourth Industrial Revolution era.