Adoption of web-based order-processing systems: experiences from tier-1 suppliers in the automotive supply chain

This research studies automobile industry suppliers in Thailand, who have implemented VMI using web-based order-processing technology. It examines their motivations and barriers for implementing the technology, and identifies the enabling factors with greatest impact on the outcomes of such implementation. Data was obtained from 70 tier-1 suppliers of the two biggest automobile assemblers in Thailand. Exploratory factor analysis was used to construct motivation, enabling factors, difficulties/barriers and outcomes of web-based order-processing technology implementation. Multiple linear regression was then used to examine the relationships between enabling factors and operational outcomes. The results show that improving customer responsiveness and the need to retain competitive advantage rather than cost-based orientation were the primary drivers of implementation of web-based order processing. This case provides insights to enable successful implementation by organisations that are planning to deploy the technology, particularly in the early stages of technological diffusion in emerging economies

The relationships between firm's strategy, resources and innovation performance: resources-based view perspective

Besides basic competitive priority (quality, cost, delivery and flexibility), innovation has been recognised as one of the primary sources of competitive advantage for manufacturing industry to compete in global markets. This paper, therefore, presents an empirical study on the relationship between firm strategy, resources and innovation performance. Drawing from the grounded theory of resource-based view, and using 218 responses from Thai production/operation managers, this paper shows that differentiation strategy had a positive relationship with both internal capital or internal resources (represented by knowledge and creativity management) and networks capital or external resources (represented by customer and supplier network). The findings also revealed that only internal capital had a positive effect on innovation performance. Finally, contributions to industry practitioner, academia and national agency in supporting and promoting innovation are presented

Deploying business excellence – success factors for high performance

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of how organisations successfully deploy business excellence (BE) by comparing the tools and strategies implemented by organisations at different levels of BE maturity. Design/methodology/approach – The study used a combination of a questionnaire, discussion groups and interviews with respondents including private sector organisations across India, Japan, Republic of China, Singapore and Thailand. These countries were selected due to them being considered as having the most advanced BE organisations in Asia by the Asian Productivity Organisation (APO) that commissioned the study. Once triangulated, the quantitative data were analysed through use of the IBM SPSS Statistical software package. Findings – The study has shown that on average, organisations with higher BE maturity outperform their less mature counterparts. The study also revealed that organisations with a high BE maturity were more likely to use specific tools and were more likely to use some of these tools more effectively. Finally, the study identified differences in strategic approaches to BE between organisations with high and low BE maturity. Research limitations/implications – Only five Asian countries were considered due to resource limitations. However, the study of 74 organisations represents one of the most comprehensive to date with 30 of these organisations being award winners. Practical implications – The findings offer guidance to those organisations wishing to progress from a low level of BE maturity to a more advanced level. The findings have already assisted the APO and its 20 member countries in the development and implementation of strategic interventions at a regional and national level. Originality/value – No other study in Asia has been conducted on such a large sample of BE-orientated organisations. The study was also unique in its focus on the tools and strategies that should be used for successful BE deployment. In addition, the study is one of only a few in Asia that has studied the results of BE on organisational performance

Prioritization of six-sigma project selection: A resource-based view and institutional norms perspective

Purpose – With increasing choice from a range of programs, improvement project selection within broader supply chain context and resource constraints has become a major research challenge. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the different criteria for selecting Six-Sigma (SS) projects based on previous studies. The study is supported by two grounded theories: resource-based view and institutional norms. The criteria include: first, business drivers for improvement and the common performance metrics deployed; second, the organization’s stakeholders needs; and third, process owner’s needs. Design/methodology/approach – To determine the relative importance of influencing factors, opinions were collected from 30 experienced practitioners including SS champions/master black-belts, company directors, consultants, and process owners through a series of interviews in small, medium, and large organizations including multi-national organizations. The evaluation of criteria is based on analytical hierarchy process. Findings – The results show that impact on customer, financial impacts, and impact on operational goals are the most significant factors in selecting SS improvement project. Originality/value – This study is a first attempt to determine the relative weight among SS project selection criteria, which help the practitioner to allocate their limited resources in implementing SS project

Green supply chain management practices and performance

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to examine the deployment of pro-active and re-active practices in the implementation of green supply chain management (GSCM) and analyze their impact on environmental, economic, and intangible performance by considering business strategy as organizational focus. Design/methodology/approach – Data were collected from a sample of 190 ISO 14001 certified manufacturing companies in Thailand and used to test the research hypotheses. Factor analysis was used to examine the construct validity while multivariate linear regression was used to test criteria validity. Findings – The threat of legislation and regulation (re-active practices) was a consideration that resulted in companies enhancing their environmental, economic, and intangible performance. Reverse logistics practices (pro-active practices) had low levels of adoption and do not have a significant impact on GSCM performance. Research limitations/implications – This study did not consider some aspects of organizational culture interaction between key customers and suppliers in the supply chain. Originality/value – The results of this study suggest that organizations need to be aware that pursuing a low-cost strategy may impact negatively on their ability to invest in GSCM

An investigation into business excellence activities and perceptions across Asian organisations

This paper examines the use of business excellence (BE) across Asia. The study investigates the effectiveness of BE in those organisations that adopt it and also the approaches these organisations use in order to adopt BE. 74 organisations were surveyed across India, Japan, Republic of China, Singapore and Thailand and this data was triangulated with the results of 21 discussion groups and 13 interviews with senior executives of organisations that had won BE awards. The findings indicate that BE is seen as an important initiative and that winning BE awards is a key objective for organisations in the Asian region. There are, however, a number of barriers to BE adoption which include a failure to fully educate the majority of staff in BE, a lack of development of a BE culture and a lack of resources

Business improvement tools and techniques: a comparison across sectors and industries

The purpose of this study was to investigate the awareness, usage, perceived effectiveness and potential future use of improvement tools and techniques via two sets of comparisons: between public and private sector organisations, and between manufacturers and service organisations. The need for the study was driven by the current lack of understanding of the extent of improvement tools and techniques adoption on a global scale. A questionnaire survey of 453 respondents from over 20 countries was conducted and the quantitative data were analysed through use of the IBM SPSS software package. The study’s findings indicated that there are no significant differences between both sets of organisations for the majority of improvement tools and techniques. However, this study has shown that public sector organisations are more likely to adopt some improvement tools and techniques in comparison to their private sector counterparts. Similarly, service organisations are also more likely to adopt some improvement tools and techniques than their manufacturing counterparts. These results contradict the conventional perception that improvement tools and techniques are used more often by the private sector and manufacturing organisations

Factors affecting product quality and reliability: A comparison of developed and developing countries

Increasing global competition has led to the need for organisations to continually improve their quality performance. In particular, developing countries such as China are focused on catching up with more developed countries. This study examines the relationships between improvement in three factors (health and safety conditions, worker motivation and satisfaction, work/life balance policies) in increase in product quality and reliability in developed countries. Based on a questionnaire, the study shows that improvement in health and safety conditions have a significant direct impact on increase in product quality and reliability while improvement in work/life balance do not have the same effect

Prioritizing warehouse performance measures in contemporary supply chains

Purpose: Due to the importance of efficiency and responsiveness measures rather than just efficiency measures, this research recognizes both measures when considering overall performance of warehouse operations. Thus, the purpose of this study is to prioritize overall performance measures associated with warehouse operations in manufacturing, third-party logistics (3PL) service provider, and retail industry supply chains. Design/methodology/approach: The study uses an integrated approach that involves the Q-sort method to group measures into four categories. Fuzzy analytical hierarchy process (FAHP) was then used to prioritize individual performance measures within each category and integer liner programming model was used to validate prioritized categories, using the judgement of multiple decision makers across three industries. Findings: The result shows that the financial category is a dominating performance category in managing warehouse operations across all three industries selected. Within the financial category, cost of insurance accounted for 25% of total weight of the category, and is considered to be a powerful measure. The financial category is verified by multiple decision makers across three industries, as the most important performance category. Research Limitations/implications: As part of adopting the proposed methodology in practice, it needs to be guided by overall methodology appropriate for industry-specific contexts. Originality/value: Key novel aspects of this study are to categorize warehouse operations measures and analyze their perspectives in different industries, understand dominant categories of warehouse operations measures in the contemporary supply chain and finally to explore to what extent current practices lead to achieving efficiency and responsiveness in the selected industries

Classifying and selecting e-CRM applications: an analysis-based proposal

The application of technology to customer relationship management (CRM) initiatives (e-CRM) is one of the fastest growing technological developments. However, there is sufficient evidence to show that many CRM initiatives do not achieve the desired result. One of the reasons for this is the lack of clarity that surrounds the classification and selection considerations of CRM applications. Identifies and discusses key factors that need to be considered when electronic CRM solutions are to be implemented. Among other findings, proposes perspectives from which e-CRM implementation may be viewed in addition to identifying three integration dimensions applicable to e-CRM solutions. Concludes that, while e-CRM applications could enhance the delivery of a CRM strategy, such applications should be chosen carefully to fit in with organisational culture, process and legacy IT systems. The financial and human resource cost as well as the amount of time required for implementation of a CRM application should also be key factors in the selection of e-CRM applications