Tarek Azzi

The integration of Lean manufacturing (LM) with Industry 4.0 (I4.0), often referred to as Lean 4.0, is a vital approach to enhancing industrial performance. We propose and test a Lean 4.0 integration model in which I4.0 technologies enhance Lean practices, with the human factor serving as a key moderator. Using a cross‐sectional survey of 130 industrial professionals in France and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS‐SEM), we find strong evidence supporting all three hypotheses. Lean 4.0 integration positively affects operational performance; the human factor is the strongest predictor of direct performance effects; and real‐time performance measurement (measurability) mediates the relationship between integration and performance. The study emphasizes that Lean 4.0 is not just a technological upgrade but a strategic organizational change that shifts operational systems, human roles, and performance metrics toward digitally driven continuous improvement.

Interactive digital commerce environments increasingly rely on influencers as algorithmically amplified intermediaries between brands and consumers. However, the process through which influencer attributes translate into brand trust remains theoretically underdeveloped. Drawing on Social Influence Theory and Source Credibility Theory, this study develops a process-based model in which consumer engagement operates as a psychological mechanism linking influencer characteristics, namely credibility, brand alignment, interactivity, and authenticity, to brand trust. Using survey data from 400 active social media users in Lebanon and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), the findings reveal that all four influencer attributes significantly enhance consumer engagement, which in turn strongly predicts brand trust. Influencer–brand alignment emerges as the strongest driver of engagement, suggesting that value congruence functions as a heuristic cue in interactive digital commerce contexts. By conceptualizing engagement as a trust-internalization mechanism within platform-mediated environments, this study advances electronic commerce theory and provides context-sensitive insight into digital trust formation in emerging markets.