THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT AND SUSTAINABLE PERFORMANCE: BIBLIOMETRIC ANALYSIS AND LITERATURE REVIEW

Abstract

External demand for achieving sustainability goals increases rapidly, nowadays. At the same time, companies face internal and external demands in terms of increasing performance which includes social and environmental questions. Continuous improvement (CI) system seems to be an inexpensive way for companies to achieve incremental improvements and improve overall company performance. Recent papers indicate that CI can be an appropriate concept for achieving companies' sustainable goals. Therefore, the purpose of the paper is to analyse the research field of continuous improvement (CI) and its connection to sustainable performance. A bibliometric analysis and literature review were conducted. The papers were selected from database Scopus using the search phrase ("continuous improvement") AND ("sustainable performance" AND "sustainability"). The aim of this paper is to conduct a literature and bibliometric review and to present an up to date analysis of the research and to provide theoretical attempt to highlight the role of continuous improvement in achieving sustainable performance. There are not many studies that explore the influence of CI on sustainability, so this research contributes to strengthening the awareness of organization about the role of CI in achieving sustainable goals. The results of the analysis indicate that continuous improvement is needed in the practice of companies to achieve sustainable goals. Therefore, this research adds to current understanding of continuous improvement, providing evidence about using CI as a good approach on the path to sustainability.

Keywords

• continuous improvement
• sustainable performance
• sustainability
• bibliometric analysis
• literature review