When Yes is a No: Navigating the Facade of Conformity in Continuous Improvement Receives the Shingo Research Award
June 29, 2026 – the Shingo Institute
Shingo Institute Recognizes Research Advancing Understanding of Behavior in Continuous Improvement
LOGAN, Utah—June 29, 2026—The Shingo Institute, part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, is proud to announce that “When Yes Is a No: Navigating the Façade of Conformity in Continuous Improvement,” published in the Journal of Operations Management and authored by Vijaya Sunder M and Kevin Linderman, has been awarded the Shingo Research Award. This distinguished recognition is awarded to research that advances the global understanding of the principles of enterprise excellence.
“When Yes Is a No” examines a critical yet often overlooked dynamic within continuous improvement environments: while such efforts emphasize employee engagement, open dialogue, and bottom-up problem solving, there is a persistent tension between these ideals and the hierarchical structures in which CI initiatives operate. From this tension emerges what the authors define as a “façade of conformity”—a behavioral pattern in which team members outwardly express agreement while privately withholding dissent.
Drawing on experimental and field-based research and an analysis of hundreds of continuous improvement projects, the study demonstrates that the “façade of conformity” has a measurable and negative impact on operational performance. When individuals suppress their perspectives, teams lose access to critical insights, reducing decision-making effectiveness of and weakening the very foundations of continuous improvement. At the same time, the authors identify collective team identification as a key moderating factor, showing that strong alignment and shared commitment with the team can mitigate these negative effects.
With the introduction of a distinct behavioral failure mode, “When Yes Is a No” deepens the understanding of how culture and behavior influence results—an essential focus of the Shingo Model. The research provides valuable guidance for leaders seeking to create environments where individuals feel empowered to speak openly, challenge assumptions, and fully engage in the pursuit of continuous improvement.
“Vijaya Sunder M and Kevin Linderman’s work highlights a critical tension that exists within many organizations striving for excellence,” said Ken Snyder, Executive Director of the Shingo Institute. “‘When Yes Is a No’ offers an important contribution to our understanding of how behaviors shape outcomes, reinforcing the need for leaders to foster environments where respect, trust, and open dialogue enable individuals to fully participate in improvement efforts.”
Scholars and practitioners alike have highlighted the importance of this research:
As co-Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Operations Management, I’m thrilled to see this paper recognized by the Shingo Prize. This study offers a crucial contribution to our understanding of continuous improvement as it occurs in practice. Specifically, it highlights the specter that the façade of conformity can introduce in realizing the full potential of such improvement efforts. The work bridges traditional discussions of team dynamics (including groupthink) with discretionary empowerment intended to benefit organizational operations. It also offers implied insights for discussions regarding disingenuous adoption and lagged workarounds, undermining and backsliding in operational innovations. I look forward to how this work will inspire future studies.
—Elliot Bendoly, Richard M. Ross Chair in Management and Professor of Operations and Business Analytics at Max M. Fisher College of Business, Ohio State University; Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Operations Management
“When Yes Is a No” represents a landmark contribution to the behavioral dimensions of operational excellence. Sunder and Linderman introduce and rigorously test a construct that names something every practitioner has witnessed but our field had never formally examined: team members outwardly agreeing with CI decisions while privately withholding dissent. Crucially, the authors show that this façade of conformity is not a personality flaw or individual failure—it is structurally induced by the very design of CI systems, where bottom-up empowerment coexists with top-down hierarchical oversight. By demonstrating that this structural tension systematically erodes performance across both lab and field settings, the paper reframes a hidden threat to Lean, Six Sigma, and Kaizen initiatives as a tractable research problem. We are proud to have published this work in the Journal of Operations Management, and we expect it to generate a lasting stream of research on the human side of continuous improvement.
—Rogelio Oliva, Associate Dean for Research and Scholarship and Professor at Mays Business School, Texas A&M University, and Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Operations Management.
Kevin Linderman and Vijaya Sunder M have done it again…that is, they responded to W. Edwards Deming’s challenge to find theory to explain what is observed in the workplace. Strong theoretical underpinnings allow for quality-related improvement to be replicated in firms. Many times, companies espouse a commitment to quality improvement without doing the hard work of ensuring that the people in the company are truly supportive of these efforts. This often happens when management introduces quality programs. The façade of conformity exists everywhere in workplaces. We have all experienced such façades. Collective team identification provides a boundary mechanism for quality improvement efforts to be more successful. Thank you for this major contribution to the quality management field of research!
—Tom Foster, Donald L. Staheli Professor of Marketing and Global Supply Chain at Marriott School of Business, Brigham Young University
Vijaya Sunder M and Kevin Linderman describe the negative effects of “passive resistance” in continuous improvement and suggest approaches to overcoming those deleterious effects. The article provides great practical insight that is based on good social science research using data from both a field study and experiments. In so doing, the work provides careful, research-based guidance to the practice of lean thinking and doing.
—Peter Ward, Richard M. Ross Emeritus Chair in Management, and Academic Director, Center for Operational Excellence at Max M. Fisher College of Business, Ohio State University
“When Yes Is a No: Navigating the Façade of Conformity in Continuous Improvement” is an important look at a specific operational project context where the behaviors of individual team members impact outcomes, showing that surface-level agreement masking private dissent dampens operational performance. This study makes an original contribution by introducing this "façade of conformity" as a distinct behavioral failure mode in continuous improvement, conceptually distinguishing it from related concepts like groupthink. Using both a large field study and laboratory experiments gives the findings strong support. The finding of collective team identification as a practice that buffers against this risk provides managers with an actionable lever. Overall, this paper advances our understanding of operational excellence and behavioral operations management, while offering operations leaders concrete guidance for implementing truly successful CI initiatives.
—Cheryl Druehl, Interim Dean and Professor, Costellow College of Business, George Mason University
I enjoyed reading the paper. It is conceptually creative and theoretically impactful. It advances the CI and behavioral operations literature by revealing how the tension between empowerment and managerial control can generate Façade of Conformity (FC), a hidden behavior that undermines operational performance. It further identifies collective team identification (CTI) as a key condition that reduces these adverse effects. In doing so, the research provides a behavioral explanation for variation in CI success beyond traditional structural and technical factors.
—Rachna Shah, Professor of Supply Chain and Operations, Carlson School of Management, University of Minnesota
The Shingo Research Award recognizes works that are extending the understanding and knowledge of the philosophy, principles, or methods of enterprise excellence, consistent with the Shingo Model. “When Yes Is a No: Navigating the Façade of Conformity in Continuous Improvement” exemplifies this standard by illuminating a critical behavioral dynamic within continuous improvement environments. Vijaya Sunder M and Kevin Linderman contribute meaningful insight into how alignment, trust, and open dialogue shape organizational culture and performance, advancing the global conversation on building principle-based cultures that enable lasting excellence.
The authors will be formally presented with the award at the Shingo Connect Awards Gala in Atlanta, Georgia, USA on March 17, 2027. Shingo Connect includes workshops, site tours, keynotes, and sessions focused on achieving organizational excellence. Learn more at shingo.org/events.
About the Authors
Vijaya Sunder M is an Assistant Professor of Operations Management Practice at the Indian School of Business (ISB), where he also serves as Programme Director for Executive Education in Operational Excellence and Project Management. He holds a PhD in Operational Excellence from IIT Madras and brings more than 18 years of industry experience, including leadership roles at the World Bank Group, Barclays, American Express, and Citi. His research focuses on operational excellence, behavioral operations, human-AI collaboration, and project management, with publications in leading journals including Journal of Operations Management and Production and Operations Management. His articles have also appeared in Harvard Business Review and California Management Review, among others. He has authored three books, produced bestselling Harvard Business Publishing case studies, and received multiple international honors, including ASQ’s Global Crosby Award, IAQ’s Walter E. Masing Award, and is among the top 50 Operational Excellence Thought Leaders worldwide (by PEX Network, IQPC), recognizing his contributions to the field. A TEDx speaker and award-winning educator, Professor Sunder has taught across graduate and executive programs and has trained more than 10,000 professionals worldwide in operational excellence. Known for connecting research to practice blended with pedagogical innovation, he has collaborated with organizations such as Novo Nordisk, Novartis, MG Motor, ABB, Citi, and Walmart.
Kevin Linderman is the Surma Chair of Business at the Smeal College of Business at Penn State. He previously served as the Curtis L. Carlson Professor at the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management and holds a PhD in Operations Management from Case Western Reserve University. His research focuses on process improvement, innovation, and supply chain risk, with publications in leading journals including Management Science, Journal of Operations Management, and Production and Operations Management. Professor Linderman has received numerous scholarly and teaching awards and has been recognized among the most productive and influential scholars in operations management. Known for a problem-driven approach that connects research to practice, he has collaborated with organizations such as 3M, Cargill, Motorola, and Best Buy.
About the Shingo Institute
The Shingo Institute is home to the Shingo Prize, an award recognizing organizations that demonstrate an exceptional culture fostering continuous improvement. Part of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University, the Shingo Institute is named after Japanese industrial engineer and Toyota adviser Shigeo Shingo, one of the world's thought leaders in the Toyota Production System.
Drawing from Dr. Shingo’s teachings and years of experience working with organizations worldwide, the Shingo Institute developed the Shingo Model, the basis for its various educational offerings, including workshops, study tours, and conferences. Workshops are available in multiple languages through the Institute's Licensed Affiliates. For more information on workshops and affiliates or to register to attend an event, please visit https://shingo.org.
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