Theoretical perspectives in operations management: an analysis of the literature

Aspiring towards automotive circularity: A critical review and research agenda

The circular economy concept has emerged as an alternative economic paradigm to the established linear economy approach. With emphasis on limiting raw material inputs and generating value from waste outputs, there is growing interest in circular related models. The adoption of circular practices has gained significant traction amongst firms, especially within the automotive industry, which is one of the world's highest polluting industries. The automotive sector is undergoing significant transformation towards environmentally sustainable approaches, with circular economy strategies offering a promising pathway for exploration. This presents new challenges for managers and policymakers, as successful implementation is contingent on contextual factors that play an important role in promoting or preventing the adoption of circular economy strategies/practices. There is an expanding yet fragmented body of literature on circular economy adoption in the automotive industry. Through a systematic literature review, this paper identifies the core circular economy considerations from an automotive industry perspective and provides a comprehensive consolidation of the contextual drivers and barriers of circular economy implementation in the context of the automotive industry. Insights on future automotive business model opportunities embedded within a circular economy approach are presented and future research agendas proposed based on gaps identified from the literature.

How do staff work in NHS hospital operations management meetings to support resilience in everyday service delivery? A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Operations Management meetings in NHS hospitals provide an opportunity for operational and clinical staff to monitor demand and capacity and manage patient flow. These meetings play an important role in the achievement of resilient performance over time. However, little is known about the work that takes place within these meetings in the United Kingdom's National Health Service.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative study observing 29 Operations Management meetings across three English hospitals between June and October 2023. The observations focused on: who was present; how meetings were organised and conducted; what data were used; how decision-making took place; and the types of work that were undertaken. We also conducted 17 semi-structured interviews with divisional leads and meeting chairs. A grounded theory analytic approach involved exploring the data in two sites to identify key themes, and then testing these themes through a third comparator site.

RESULTS

We identified the type and extent of work that took place in these meetings to maintain flow and enable resilient service delivery. Operations Management meetings provided an opportunity for staff to come together to engage in collective sense-making, to develop a shared mental model of the state of the hospital and to build a collective understanding of where action was needed. Review of centralised data, formally encoded and recorded in numerical form, played an important role, but staff also drew on local intelligence to make sense of and adapt to often pressurised situations. We identified three types of work: Sense-making and Interpretation, and Risk work (which together contributed to maintaining organisational function) and Maintaining morale (which supported individual staff resilience).

CONCLUSIONS

The work that went on in Operations Management meetings functioned to support organisational and individual resilience, through staff repeatedly sharing and assessing information on capacity and demand, taking action to address these continually changing pressures, and having their efforts recognised.

Sustainability and affordability of Chinese-funded renewable energy project in sub-Saharan Africa: a hybridized solid oxide fuel cell, temperature sensors, and lithium-based solar system approach

Renewable energy projects are at the crux of all Chinese-funded investment in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounts for some 56% of all Chinese-led investments globally. However, the prevailing problem is that about 568 million people were still without electricity access in 2019 across urban and rural areas in sub-Saharan Africa, which does not commensurate with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG7) of ensuring affordable and clean energy for all. Previous studies have assessed and improved the efficiency of integrated power generation systems often combined on three levels, power plant, solar panel, and fuel cells, and integrated into national grids or off-grid systems for a sustainable supply of power. This study has included a lithium-ion storage system as a key component in a hybridized renewable energy generation system for the first time that has proven to be efficient and investment worthy. The study also examines the operational parameters of Chinese-funded power plant projects in sub-Saharan Africa and their effectiveness in achieving SDG-7. The novelty of this study is evident in the proposed integrated multi-level hybrid technology model of solid oxide fuel cells, temperature point sensors, and lithium batteries powered by a solar system and embedded in thermal power plants as an alternative electrical energy system for domestic and industrial use in sub-Saharan Africa. Performance analysis of the proposed power generation model indicates its complementary capacity of generating additional energy output with thermodynamics energy and exergy efficiencies of 88.2% and 67.0% respectively. The outcome of this study draws the attention of Chinese investors, governments in sub-Saharan African countries, and top industry players to the following: to consider refocusing their energy sector policy initiatives and strategies towards exploring the lithium resource base in Africa, optimizing energy generation cost, recouping optimal profit from their renewable energy technology investments, and making electricity supply clean, sustainable, and affordable for use in sub-Saharan Africa.

Quality functions' use of customer feedback as activation triggers for absorptive capacity and value co-creation

Purpose

The purpose is to understand how the role of quality functions might evolve amidst digitalisation and an increased focus on services. This study focuses on customer feedback and how it can function as activation triggers for developing absorptive capacity, as well as how it relates to the value creation processes.

Design/methodology/approach

Following a qualitative research design, the authors gathered primary data from interviews with quality managers at 17 UK and Swedish firms and triangulated it with secondary information from the firms' web pages.

Findings

The findings show that customer feedback-based activation triggers can support development of absorptive capacity in the quality function if there are established processes for acting on customer feedback. This is often the case for codified feedback, which normally concerns products. However, digitalisation offers new opportunities of engaging in value co-creation, and firms need to develop digital capabilities to manage new technologies and data analytic tools. For personalised feedback (the main category of service-related feedback), established processes are missing.

Originality/value

This study work contributes to knowledge about how quality functions respond to customer feedback on both products and services. It clarifies why the quality function sometimes struggles to contribute to service quality as much as to product quality. From a theory development perspective, the authors contribute to understanding customer feedback-based activation triggers, how they lead to development of absorptive capacity and their relation to value co-creation on a functional level.

Measurement and performance impact of team mental models on process performance

Efficient business process execution is an essential part of an organisation’s success. It depends on good dynamic decision making of process actors that is guided by their mental models of business processes (MMBP). The study investigates the effect of MMBPs on process performance at two levels. At the level of individuals, the impact of MMBP accuracy on performance is analyzed, and at the level of a team, the effect of similarity of MMBPs of all team on performance is researched. At both levels, MMBPs are differentiated in a narrow part that focuses on the mental representations of process steps that precede or follow on the one conducted by the actor and a holistic model that captures the process as a whole. We use laboratory observations with 159 participants in 10 teams from a real effort loan processing role play. We obtain individual MMBP accuracy measures by using a process knowledge test and measure the process performance of teams with the outcome of the role play. Our study contributes in three ways to existing research. First, the measurement approach of individual MMBP accuracy and similarity is extended to the level of teams. Second, the study shows that the accuracy of both narrow and holistic MMBPs as well as similarity of holistic MMBPs positively impact team process performance. Third, by using an observable team process performance measures from a real-effort task, we increase the validity of our findings compared to other research relying on self-assessed performance measures.

Coordination issues in managing the reverse supply chain: a systematic literature review and future research directions

Purpose

Reverse supply chain (RSC) is one of the ways to handle product returns efficiently. Recovery of residual value from product returns also helps in achieving sustainability. Its successful implementation requires coordination among all the channel members involved in the activities, from the acquisition to collection to the disposition of returned products. This article aims to review the literature about coordination issues in the RSC.

Design/methodology/approach

A systematic literature review of 151 articles published during 2004–2021 is carried out. Theory, context and methodology (TCM) framework of the literature review is used to identify the research gaps for future research directions.

Findings

This study identifies the characteristics of RSC coordination. It includes channel structures; coordination mechanisms; performance measuring parameters; the methodology applied and explored industries. The review shows that game-theoretical modeling in RSC coordination is the most commonly used method to coordinate the channels. It was found that issues like disruption, fairness and corporate social responsibility are not explored in-depth and offer much potential for future research.

Originality/value

There are very limited studies on coordination issues in the RSC. The proposed articles add value by considering RSC issues from different strategic, government, consumers' behavior and functionality decision-making point of view.

Performance measurement and management. A literature review focussed on the role played by management theories with a deep dive into the industry 4.0 environment

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to review the theoretical lenses used in performance measurement and management in a traditional and industry 4.0 environment and to contribute to understanding the current state of research in the field and its future development.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper performs a structured review of the existing performance measurement and management literature, with the objective to investigate the current state of research, looking at popular theories in more detail, as well as to propose possible avenues for future consideration for the field to develop further moving forward. Particularly, this paper focusses on and identifies (1) theoretical lenses that are dominating this field, (2) the role played by specific theories and the way different theories are used together and finally, (3) an in-depth dive into relevant theories for performance measurement and management applied in an industry 4.0 environment.

Findings

Key findings highlight the growing number of publications, leading authors and journals where research is published. The findings also include the identification and detailed analysis of the most popular theories leveraged by scholars also in reference to research methodologies. A thorough analysis of Industry 4.0 performance measurement and management is then carried out, as this is one of the identified emerging themes in the research field. Findings here include the identification of relevant research and the suggestion of significant theories that can help build this specific body of knowledge.

Originality/value

This research offers a key contribution by providing a powerful “theoretical toolkit” to researchers and practitioners working in performance measurement and management and industry 4.0 fields.

Empirical and theoretical perspectives in sales and operations planning

This paper’s purpose is to evaluate empirical and theoretical perspectives in Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP). The methodology consists of a systematic literature review, analysing 292 publications from academics and practitioners. The results reveal that the empirical evidence has been initially obtained by practitioners and subsequently acquired by academics with a growing interest in recent years. Three main research streams are identified: S&OP and performance, implementation of S&OP, and contextualisation of S&OP designs. The investigation of theoretical foundations reveals an upward trend in external general theory usage and first signs of internal theory development in S&OP. The research findings call for more exploratory research to enhance the knowledge in the identified research streams and their interrelation. Herein, applying the design science approach is recommended to integrate practitioners into academic research. Further implications embrace a call for more theory-informed empirical S&OP research in a two-prone agenda: applying general theories from other fields and developing internal theories through middle-range theorising. A limitation of this paper is its focus on empirical studies, not embracing conceptual papers. Applications of this paper’s findings can help academics and practitioners to advance their understanding of the S&OP phenomenon. The awareness of study findings in the three main research streams, combined with empirical and theoretical research implications, can support the development of solutions to improve the S&OP effectiveness and evidence-based decisions in real-life settings. This work’s originality lies in the analysis of the S&OP literature with the focus on the evolution of empirical evidence and the theoretical foundations.

Management accounting systems: an organizational competitive performance perspective

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of the characteristics and roles of management accounting systems (MAS) on today’s business organizations and their management, systems, procedures, people, performance and competitive environments.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey-based methodology was utilized in this research to gather organizational information relevant to the different facets of the MAS and their operational and strategic practices impact on organizations operating under increasingly uncertain and competitive environments. A structural equation modeling approach was utilized to uncover relevant relationships and associations among relevant variables.

Findings

The findings of this exploratory research revealed a direct influence of MAS on the managerial and organizational performance through the managers’ performance. The results also suggest that MAS is directly influenced by users’ training, and satisfaction, task uncertainty and decentralization of decisions. It was also indirectly influenced by top management support. In addition, the findings also revealed a direct influence of the decentralization of decisions on the managers’ and on organizational performance.

Research limitations/implications

While this study addressed important issues that have practical management value, it is limited to a sample from one country. Future studies in different businesses and cultural settings are needed to enhance the theoretical and practical contributions of the findings and conclusions of this study.

Practical implications

The issues explored in this study are very much relevant to the utilization and design of MAS and their increasing tactical and strategic roles in the management of today’s business organizations. The findings of this study have relevant practical value for managers as they attempt to cope with increasingly competitive environments through the deployment of their existing capabilities and best practices. In this context, the accounting management system has practical utilities that facilitate the control and management of the operations and strategies of the organization.

Originality/value

This research offers practicing management an integrated approach, as they aspire to utilize their organizational MAS to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their organizations. Integrating the different aspects of management accounting information systems, given their impact on the different aspects of the organization, is needed for the establishment of theoretical research models aiming at the enhancement of the competitive performance of today’s organizations. This study also offers to executives of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) a new multidimensional instrument for assessing the effectiveness of their management information systems, which can help to improve their benchmarking processes.

Managing supply chain uncertainty arising from geopolitical disruptions: evidence from the pharmaceutical industry and brexit

Purpose

This paper examines how firms of different sizes formulate and implement strategies to achieve fit with an external environment disrupted by a geopolitical event. The context of the study is the pharmaceutical industry and how it managed the supply chain uncertainty created by the United Kingdom's decision to leave the European Union, or Brexit.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected longitudinally from the pro-Brexit vote on 23 June 2016, until the UK’s departure from the EU on 31 January 2020. Twenty-seven interviews were conducted in the pharmaceutical sector, including nineteen interviews with senior managers at eight case companies and eight interviews with experts working for trade associations and standards institutes. The interview findings were triangulated with Brexit policy and strategy documentation.

Findings

When formulating strategy, multi-national enterprises (MNEs) used worst case assumptions, while large firms, and small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) gathered knowledge as part of a “wait-and-see” strategy, allowing them to reduce perceptions of heightened supply chain uncertainty. Firms then implemented reactive and/or proactive strategies to mitigate supply chain risks.

Originality/value

The study elaborates on strategic contingency theory by identifying two important conditions for achieving strategic fit: first, companies deploy intangible resources, such as management time, to gather information and reduce perceptions of heightened supply chain uncertainty. Second, companies deploy tangible resources (supply chain redundancies, new supply chain assets) to lessen the negative outcomes of supply chain risks. Managers are provided with an empirical framework for mitigating supply chain uncertainty and risk originating from geopolitical disruptions.

Industry 4.0 adoption as a moderator of the impact of lean production practices on operational performance improvement

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the moderating role of Industry 4.0 technologies on the relationship between lean production (LP) and operational performance improvement within Brazil, a developing economy context.

Design/methodology/approach

One representative from each of the 147 studied manufacturing companies filled in a survey on three internally related lean practice bundles and two Industry 4.0 technology bundles, with safety, delivery, quality, productivity and inventory as performance indicators. As this study was grounded on the contingency theory, multivariate data analyses were performed, controlling for four contingencies.

Findings

Industry 4.0 moderates the effect of LP practices on operational performance improvement, but in different directions. Process-related technologies negatively moderate the effect of low setup practices on performance, whereas product/service-related technologies positively moderate the effect of flow practices on performance.

Originality/value

With the advent of Industry 4.0, companies have been channelling their efforts to achieve superior performance by advancing levels of automation and interconnectivity. Eventually, widespread and proven manufacturing approaches, like LP, will integrate such technologies which may, in turn, impair or favour operational performance. Contrary to previous studies, the contingencies appeared to have a less extensive effect. The authors point to various options for further study across different socio-economic contexts. This study evidenced that purely technological adoption will not lead to distinguished results. LP practices help in the installation of organisational habits and mindsets that favour systemic process improvements, supporting the design and control of manufacturers’ operations management towards the fourth industrial revolution era.

Lean Six Sigma in consumer banking – an empirical inquiry

Purpose

The evolution of Lean Six Sigma (LSS) within the operations management theory has enjoyed significant success in both manufacturing and services. Though the applicability of LSS is evident in the services sector through various publications, academic research on the use of LSS in the Banking and Financial Services (BFS) is limited, and hence deserves greater attention. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the application of LSS in consumer banking in real-time setting.

Design/methodology/approach

A case study method is used to study the application of LSS in two consumer banks with stage 1 featuring identification of appropriate consumer banks where LSS projects could be undertaken, and suitable LSS readiness assessment was performed. In stage 2, LSS project opportunities were identified in the select banks through stakeholder engagement. Finally, in stage 3, LSS projects were executed for process improvements in a real-time setting.

Findings

The case studies provide evidence of the successful application of LSS in consumer banking and the associated multiple benefits. The extent of applicability and appropriate managerial implications in project management context are elaborated. An LSS project selection criterion is recommended as a part of the study. Further, the study explains five important managerial implications in BFS context, with an outlook for future research.

Research limitations/implications

Practitioner research shows that BFS organizations have changed their ways of working by adapting LSS over the last decade. However, the academic research concerning the applicability of LSS in BFS is apparently limited, and none of these are specific to “consumer banking.” This study serves as a strong foundation for future research in this area, which is at its nascence and upcoming in the researchers’ community. However, strong generalizations should not be made as this study is limited to two cases.

Practical implications

Since the cases are executed in the real-time setup of consumer banks, the paper has several practical implications. First, the paper confirms the applicability of LSS in consumer banking and concludes that LSS project management is merely a sub-set of LSS deployment. Second, LSS needs to be understood using a “systems thinking” perspective in order to move away from a narrow project-only approach. An LSS project selection criterion is recommended as a part of the study, which could serve as a managerial resource. Other managerial implications include effective management of stakeholders and change leadership as essential elements of LSS project management in banks.

Originality/value

LSS has been successful in the past few decades in the manufacturing and service sectors. However, its application in BFS is limited. This study illustrates the applicability of LSS in consumer banks, which deals with high volumes of data, customer bases and associated financial transactions.

Practical relevance of theory-driven supply chain management research

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which theory-driven supply chain management (SCM) research is of practical relevance. It does this on the basis of empirical research in China.

Design/methodology/approach

A two-pronged approach was adopted. First, 57 theory-driven SCM studies based in China published in ten leading journals between 2006 and 2015 were surveyed. Second, a questionnaire survey of Chinese managers identified their practical concerns and assessed their alignment with the content of the academic papers.

Findings

Some academic research on SCM does probe industry-relevant problems. From an academic perspective, this confirms that theory-driven SCM research can be of practical value. Overall, however, the survey found that much of the SCM research works do not translate into actionable knowledge for practitioners. Academic research in this field could pursue a more pragmatic path and enhance its practical utility. Two critical components of this path, “practical observation” and “practical verification,” are highlighted.

Research limitations/implications

As the literature review was confined to ten leading journals, relevant papers in other journals were possibly excluded. The research was confined to China and so the results are not necessarily generalizable to other countries.

Practical implications

Chinese academics and practitioners could collaborate in defining research agendas and directions. This would help researchers direct their theory building to issues of relevance to business.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the relevance of theory-driven SCM research from academic and practitioner perspectives in China. It shows how this research might have greater impact on business practice.

“Power to the workers”

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reveal how information and communication technology (ICT) can empower shop floor workers in collaborative manufacturing environments.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors gather data from a mobile maintenance department of a steel manufacturing company and apply the method of a scenario-based design. The authors use data from interviews, observations and company documents to create problem and activity scenarios. The authors also demonstrate the development of a worker-centric digital design in multiple demonstration and evaluation cycles.

Findings

The authors find that ICT can be used to ensure that empowerment is not only a concept, but can sustainably empower daily operations.

Research limitations/implications

The authors contribute to theory by showing how structural empowerment can be used as a guiding theoretical lens to design ICT for shop floor workers in collaborative manufacturing work environments. These implications are limited to findings from a single case study.

Practical implications

The results provide an overview of different empowerment dimensions, namely, the access to information, resources, support and opportunities, that can support employees in collaborative manufacturing environments.

Originality/value

This paper is first in suggesting a framework of how ICT designs can be used to empower shop floor workers in collaborative manufacturing environments.

Four facets of learning in performance measurement

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of the role of learning in performance measurement.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors develop a theoretical framework combining workplace learning theory with purposes of performance measurement. The authors elaborate this framework empirically by identifying critical incidents from a case set within a context containing a broad range of different performance measurement activities. Finally, the authors discuss the results and the possible implications for using the theoretical framework in order to better understand facets of learning regarding the design of performance measurement.

Findings

Workplace learning theory provides a deeper understanding of how the mechanisms of performance measurements support control or improvement purposes. The authors propose a tentative framework for learning as a driver for performance measurement and four facets of learning are identified: reproductive, rule-oriented, goal-oriented and creative learning.

Research limitations/implications

The empirical material is limited to the healthcare context and further studies are needed in order to validate the findings in other settings.

Practical implications

The authors argue that all managers must consider what kind of learning environment and what kind of learning outcomes best serve the interests of their organisation. Purposeful and carefully designed organisational arrangements and learning environments are more likely to induce intended learning outcomes.

Originality/value

Previous connections between the fields of “performance measurement” and “workplace learning” often lack any deeper conceptualisations or problematisations of the concept of learning. In this paper, the authors provide a more nuanced discussion about the process of learning in performance measurement, which may provide a basis for further research and scholarly attention.

Lean leadership in major projects: from “predict and provide” to “predict and prevent”

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the context of major projects and their management from an OM perspective; the authors provide a foundation for exploring how the body of work on lean production (the “old” theory) can contribute to the development of major projects (the “new” context). In doing so, it extends the prevailing economic approach to major projects (best described as “predict and provide”) and posits the development of an alternative approach based on extending the lean production logic to this new context (referred to as “predict and prevent”).

Design/methodology/approach

The paper investigates the scope for adopting lean practices in context of major project. To this effect the authors review the current state of both lean thinking and major project management, and use “Universal Credit” as an exploratory case study to illustrate and verify the arguments in practice.

Findings

Two main findings are proposed: first, the authors demonstrate the inherent performance challenge of major projects in OM terms, which the authors argue presents significant scope for the application of OM concepts to improve major project performance. Second, using lean thinking as framing, the authors identify three distinct process levels and common wastes in major projects, and identify five principles how lean could improve the delivery of major projects.

Research limitations/implications

Major projects present an untapped area for OM research; based on the exploratory case the authors propose ways how OM concepts can be applied to this new context. Further research will be needed to validate and generalise.

Practical implications

Major projects, including organisational transformations, IT-enabled change, major events and large infrastructure projects, constitute a large proportion of economic activity. Despite their prominence, however, they are also commonly associated with low success rates. This paper provides one route for exploring how a successful set of principles could be applied to improving their performance.

Originality/value

This work translates a popular set of ideas from OM to strengthening a relatively neglected context within OM. An agenda for further research is suggested to support the development of this application.

Supply chain strategies in an era of natural resource scarcity

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the implications of natural resource scarcity (NRS) for companies’ supply chain strategies.

Design/methodology/approach

Drawing on the resource dependence theory (RDT), a conceptual model is developed and validated through the means of exploratory research. The empirical work includes the assessment of qualitative data collected via 22 interviews representing six large multinational companies from the manufacturing sector.

Findings

When the resources are scarce and vitally important, companies use buffering strategies. Buffering and bridging strategies are preferred when there are a few alternative suppliers for the specific resource and when there is limited access to scarce natural resources.

Research limitations/implications

The research focuses on large multinational manufacturing companies so results may not be generalised to other sectors and to small- and medium-sized firms. Future research needs to examine the implications of NRS for organisational performance.

Practical implications

This research provides direction to manufacturing companies for adopting the best supply chain strategy to cope with NRS.

Originality/value

This paper adds to the body of knowledge by providing new data and empirical insights into the issue of NRS in supply chains. The RDT has not been previously employed in this context. Past studies are mainly conceptual and, thus, the value of this paper comes from using a qualitative approach on gaining in-depth insights into supply chain-related NRS strategies and its antecedents.

Theoretical developments in empirical quantitative manufacturing strategy literature

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report the extent and trends of theoretical developments in the empirical quantitative manufacturing strategy (MS) literature published between the years 1966 and 2015 and provide research gaps that can be bridged by the future research.

Design/methodology/approach

This content analysis-based literature review analyzes 133 empirical quantitative MS articles published in refereed international journals in the discipline of operations management. These articles are categorized into five article types, namely, reporters, testers, qualifiers, builders, and expanders following the framework of Colquitt and Zapata-Phelan (2007). Analyses are carried out to unearth important trends in theory development in these article types.

Findings

Theory development is progressing in empirical quantitative MS literature. However, the trend is shifting from theory testing to theory building. MS discipline has borrowed theories from other disciplines. Expectancy theory and media richness theory are the micro theories while resource-based view, contingency theory, and trade-off theory are the major macro theories used in this domain. The most impactful constructs include environmental technology portfolio, enterprise resource planning, manufacturing proactiveness, and modularity-based manufacturing practices, and the most dominant article types are qualifiers and expanders.

Research limitations/implications

The findings are based on the empirical quantitative articles published in the MS discipline which provides a partial view of theory development in the MS discipline.

Practical implications

The paper highlights predominant theories, frameworks, and constructs that can be utilized by practitioners to improve their understanding of MS, their ability to predict future scenarios and solve practical problems.

Originality/value

No such study has been conducted to date in the MS discipline, and it is hoped that this study will play a significant role in further developing theory in the MS discipline.

Supply chain agility, adaptability and alignment

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine when and how organizations create agility, adaptability, and alignment as distinct supply chain properties to gain sustainable competitive advantage.

Design/methodology/approach

The current study utilizes the resource-based view (RBV) under the moderating effect of top management commitment (TMC). To test the research hypotheses, the authors gathered 351 usable responses using a pre-tested questionnaire.

Findings

The statistical analyses suggest that information sharing and supply chain connectivity resources influence supply chain visibility capability, which, under the moderating effect of TMC, enhance supply chain agility, adaptability, and alignment (SCAAA).

Originality/value

The contribution lies in: providing a holistic study of the antecedents of agility, adaptability, and alignment; investigating the moderating role of TMC on SCAAA; following the RBV and addressing calls for investigating the role of resources in supply chain management, and for empirical studies with implications for supply chain design.

The role of employee empowerment in the implementation of continuous improvement

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to understand the role of increasing employees’ level of continuous improvement (CI) empowerment, i.e. employees’ knowledge and understanding of CI, the possibility of open communication and support from the work environment regarding CI, in the implementation of CI over time.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the theory of structural empowerment, the authors test the research question using evidence from a case study in a European financial services provider. Data are gathered with questionnaires on a team level and cover a period of 2.5 years including 780 participants.

Findings

The findings show that after conducting a CI programme in the case, there is a significant increase in employees’ CI empowerment over time, which has a positive but time-lagged relationship with the level of CI implementation.

Research limitations/implications

Implications are that CI empowerment can be created sustainably and is an important factor in establishing CI in a company, but that it takes time until empowerment leads to changes in behaviour. However, it has to be considered that these implications are solely derived from empirical results from a single company.

Practical implications

Financial service providers should invest in establishing CI empowerment and consider a delay in realising measurable benefits in terms of the level of CI implementation.

Originality/value

This paper is the first empirical study to examine the relationship between employee CI empowerment and the implementation of CI from a longitudinal perspective.

Global sourcing strategy and structure: towards a conceptual framework

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to develop a synthesised conceptual framework for global sourcing (GS) strategy and structure.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors adopt a systematic literature review method and analyse through content analysis techniques 52 peer-reviewed journal articles focussed on GS strategy and structure. Based on these analyses, a conceptual model is developed.

Findings

A synthesised construct of GS strategy, consisting of three dimensions, i.e., supply internationalisation, internal integration and external integration, is proposed. The GS structure construct is further broken down into structural design and control and coordination, consisting of three dimensions for each. Propositions for GS strategy, GS structure and, in particular, the relationships between them are developed for future empirical validation.

Originality/value

This is the first study which synthesises various dimensions of GS strategy and GS structure and advances/extends the theory of the strategy-structure nexus to a GS context. The conceptual model provides a comprehensive framework for future empirical work and opens avenues of research on this topic.

Mapping the operations and supply chain management field: a journal governance perspective

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to address the following research question: how do the interlocking editorial advisory boards (EABs) of operations and supply chain management (OSCM) journals map out the field’s diverse academic communities and how demographically diverse is the field and its communities?

Design/methodology/approach

The study applies social network analysis (SNA) to web-based EAB data for 38 journals listed under operations management (OM) in the 2010 ABS Academic Journal Quality Guide.

Findings

The members of EABs of the 38 journals are divided into seven distinct communities which are mapped to the field’s knowledge structures and further aggregated into a core and periphery of the network. A burgeoning community of supply chain management academics forms the core along with those with more traditional interests. Male academics affiliated to the US institutions and to business schools predominate in the sample.

Research limitations/implications

A new strand of research is opened up connecting journal governance networks to knowledge structures in the OSCM field. OM is studied separately from its reference and associated disciplines. The use of the ABS list might attract comments that the study has an implicit European perspective – however the authors do not believe this to be the case.

Practical implications

The study addresses the implications of the lack of diversity for the practice of OM as an academic discipline.

Social implications

The confirmation of the dominance of particular characteristics such as male and US-based academics has implications for social diversity of the field.

Originality/value

As the first study of its kind, i.e. SNA of EAB members of OSCM journals, this study marks out a new perspective and acts as a benchmark for the future.

Organisational learning in SMEs: a process improvement perspective

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how organisational learning (OL) can occur through process improvement (PI) activities, leading to sustained improvements over time in the context of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

Design/methodology/approach

The authors study PI practices in six engineering-oriented SMEs via interview-based case studies. The authors draw from a range of literature and use an OL conceptual framework informed by Crossan et al.’s (1999) 4I framework as an analytical lens.

Findings

The OL perspective provides new insights to conceptualise the nature of PI as a multi-level practice in SMEs. Effective PI practices within SMEs are shown to be consistent with OL concepts, enabling firms to translate individually identified improvement opportunities into organisational-level changes that result in sustained benefits. A new conceptual model is presented that explains how SMEs can learn through improvement activities. The key role of management support, both operational and strategic, is highlighted. It is necessary for management to provide sufficient PI opportunities to enable and sustain beneficial learning.

Research limitations/implications

The study is based on a sample of engineering-oriented SMEs located in the UK. Further case-based, longitudinal, and survey-based research studies with firms of different types will enhance the generalisability of the findings, allowing the confirmation and extension of the new conceptual model.

Practical implications

The findings provide a theoretically underpinned framework for achieving OL in engineering-oriented SMEs through PI activities. The new model highlights the key mechanisms that enable learning from improvement activities. The findings highlight the key role played by management in introducing additional learning opportunities in the form of new business that requires exploratory learning. Without this, the reduction in improvement opportunities reduces the benefits that can be realised from PI.

Originality/value

OL provides a multi-level perspective to understanding how smaller firms are able to undergo systematic improvements and the support required to continually improve.

Performance measurement system in the situation of simultaneous vertical and horizontal integration

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to extend the knowledge of the use of performance measurement systems (PMS) in situations where the benefits of both vertical and horizontal integration strategies are sought simultaneously.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a single case study, the purpose of which is to build a contextual theory.

Findings

The main results highlight three competing and partly contradictory tendencies in the development and use of PMS in organizational integration. In addition, the authors have identified features of PMS that may benefit or hinder integration. Grounded on empirical findings the paper presents a more complete theoretical framework of PMS for integration.

Research limitations/implications

The propositions of the framework need to be tested in different contexts with case and field studies or a large sample of data using statistical techniques to improve external validity. The causal relationships explored in this study may be further developed using longitudinal studies.

Practical implications

In acquisition situations there exists the need for vertical integration to control the growing complexity but at the same time for horizontal control to advance customer-centred production. Performance measurement is the key issue to examine the execution and results of such integrations.

Originality/value

Case study findings are used to develop a more comprehensive theory of PMS design and use in situations where both vertical and horizontal integration are sought. Contrary to current understandings, the central statement of this study is that horizontal organization is not an alternative to vertical organizational structure but they can be effectively coupled.