Poster Preview
This work-in-progress research proposes an Information Processing Framework for Lean intervention design in nonprofit food bank operations. While Lean methods have been shown to improve operational performance, existing literature largely assumes workforce cognition rather than explaining why Lean interventions are effective for first-time volunteers. This study integrates Information Processing Theory, Baddeley's Working Memory Model, and Cognitive Load Theory with Lean operations to propose that visual management tools function as external cognitive scaffolding for volunteers lacking task-specific long-term memory. The framework is informed by Lean process improvements implemented during a 1.5-year operational internship at Feeding Tampa Bay and introduces three testable propositions to guide future empirical research. Planned field data collection will evaluate decision latency, sorting errors, visual reference behavior, and volunteer perceptions.
College
Muma College of Business
Mentor Information
Robert Hooker
Description
Nonprofit food banks rely on rotating, minimally trained volunteers to make complex food sorting decisions, yet lean operations research rarely accounts for the cognitive limits these volunteers face on their first shift. This study proposes a Volunteer Information Processing Framework, grounded in memory and cognitive load theory, arguing that sorting errors stem from an “encoding gap”: volunteers have no prior long-term memory of category or expiration rules and must decide from scratch under working-memory constraints. Combining literature synthesis with field observation at Feeding Tampa Bay, the study evaluates two zero-cost interventions, dedicated group sorting and laminated visual guides, as external cognitive scaffolding that substitutes for missing training. Early evidence suggests these tools function as theoretically grounded design solutions rather than generic fixes.
An Information Processing Framework for Lean Intervention Design in Nonprofit Food Bank Operations
Nonprofit food banks rely on rotating, minimally trained volunteers to make complex food sorting decisions, yet lean operations research rarely accounts for the cognitive limits these volunteers face on their first shift. This study proposes a Volunteer Information Processing Framework, grounded in memory and cognitive load theory, arguing that sorting errors stem from an “encoding gap”: volunteers have no prior long-term memory of category or expiration rules and must decide from scratch under working-memory constraints. Combining literature synthesis with field observation at Feeding Tampa Bay, the study evaluates two zero-cost interventions, dedicated group sorting and laminated visual guides, as external cognitive scaffolding that substitutes for missing training. Early evidence suggests these tools function as theoretically grounded design solutions rather than generic fixes.
