The implementation of 5S as an organisational development practice: a case study in a property development company in Malaysia

Abstract

Property developers such as government-link companies in the state of Johor, Malaysia faced some difficulties in organising workspaces. This research studies how the implementation of 5S contributed to organisational development. The study adopted a qualitative research and used participant observations and secondary documents as the main source of data and performed a SWOT analysis of the company. The general model of planned change was applied to identify the problems in the organisation using the four stages, which are entering and contracting, diagnosing, planning, and implementing phase. The challenges the company was having disappeared and they no longer affect the company performance. These findings showed that 5S has been implemented to overcome the issues in the company. Limitations of the study involve the inability of the researchers to have access to some confidential documents related to 5S and the inability of the researchers to visit other branches outside the state of Johor.