Search results

A perception gap refers to the differences in perception among the stakeholders regarding any aspect of the supply chain relationship. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the perception gap among service supply chain partners relating to the relative importance of key performance indicators (KPIs) and the association of this gap with service performance.

This paper presents an integrative framework that combines statistical methods and data envelopment analysis for computing perception and performance gaps, and for identifying the association between the gaps. The study follows a middle-range theorizing research approach where general inferences are induced from instances, and a theory can be developed from the observation of empirical reality.

Analysis of data from a leading global insurance service supply chain suggests that perception gap exists and can be recognised as a factor associated with performance gaps. The results suggest that the perception gap not only affects performance but can also be tracked as a meta-KPI to improve performance throughout the service supply chain.

The key implication of the presented research is that service companies can identify and resolve the differences in perceptions regarding the importance of the KPIs, by methodologically computing the gaps and tracking them as meta-KPIs.

The study extends the theoretical boundary of supply chain performance management by introducing the perception and performance gaps as novel meta-KPIs. These meta-KPIs can be computed through the integrative framework developed in the study.

This paper aims to investigate whether an employee reports an accurate view of the relative performance level of the organisation for which they work.

Utilizes a survey of 2,517 senior managers, managers and team leaders from 120 different organisations in nine different countries.

There is significant and consistent overestimation of performance with 75 percent of the management team reporting that their organisation is above average, and only 5 percent rating their organisation as below average compared to its competitors. A very significant finding is that where there is likely to be a greater degree of knowledge of competitor's performance estimation improves.

The implication of this misrepresentation of the true position is to make it less likely that an improvement initiative will succeed as managers will not be sufficiently motivated to improve an apparently satisfactory status quo. The paper calls for greater focus both on the activity of benchmarking and in the process of spreading knowledge of the benchmarking activity.

This paper extends issues such as the Lake Wobegon effect and socially desirable reporting which have been investigated in depth in the area of personal self‐assessment and applies them into a different arena, that of the employee's view of the performance of the organisation.

The purpose of this study is to propose an approach to facilitate the allocation of labor resources, which is a complex and fuzzy problem in nature existing in the aircraft maintenance services industry. On the other hand, the shortage of experienced and qualified engineers makes the labor allocation process even more difficult.

Various approaches can be used to solve this personnel‐planning problem: mathematical programming is the common modeling approach; however, it is found to be inappropriate where there are many intangible factors. The other approach is analytical hierarchy process (AHP), a decision support method which can facilitate labor allocation. In this paper, the authors propose a decision support system with fuzzy AHP in weighing the importance of different intangible criteria; an extent analysis approach is used to overcome the uncertainty of subjective perception.

In the allocation of labor resources, the personnel plans have to consider the aviation authority regulations and safety laws, qualification of the employees and customers' requirements, as well as other intangible variables. The analysis results have shown that the fuzzy AHP approach‐based system provides better resource management and higher productivity for the aircraft industry.

Since limited studies have been found to be concentrated on manpower allocation problems in the aircraft maintenance industry, this study can provide important findings and references to the academicians and practitioners in the related areas.

In this paper, the authors propose the application of an intelligent engine to develop a set of computational schedules for the maintenance of vehicles to cover all scheduled flights. The aim of the paper is to maximize the utilization of ground support vehicles and enhance the logistics of aircraft maintenance activities.

A mathematical model is formulated and the solution is obtained using genetic algorithms (GA). Simulation is used to verify the method using an Excel GA generator. The model is illustrated with a numerical case study, and the experience of this project is summarized.

The results indicate that this approach provides an effective and efficient schedule for deploying the maintenance equipment resources of the company, China Aircraft Service Limited.

The proposed model using the GA generator provides an effective and efficient schedule for the aircraft maintenance services industry.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the underlying reasons why providing process improvement training, by itself, may not be sufficient to achieve the desired outcome of improved processes; and to attempt a conceptual framework of management training for more effective improvement.

Two similar units within the same financial service group are studied specifically through online surveys, follow up interviews and a subsequent comparative study focusing on the disparity of outcome following the same training activities.

The research reveals three underlying reasons for the failure of the process improvement training: an un‐sound prerequisite knowledge basis, too short a time span for the feedback dynamics to take effect, and weak cultural commitment in the management population. A training provision framework that put those factors into a structure has been developed.

The study clarifies the relations between many factors and puts emphasis on more fundamental organisational culture change. The developed framework provides direct guidance to process design and implementation to achieve the desired results.

The study represents the original firsthand empirical research over the last three years in a leading edge financial service organisation in the UK, which results in a novel conceptual framework that improves managerial practice.