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A quantitative theoretical model is proposed to measure how productivity performance can be affected by strategic decisions related to specific competitive priorities.

This study proposes the Primary Transformation Model (PTM) and an equation to measure cause-and-effect relationships between productivity and competitive priorities.

The interdependence between productivity and competitive priorities was studied using the PTM and the proposed model indicates that strategies that improve external performance also impact internal productivity. It was also observed that the compatibility between competitive priorities depends on the initial manufacturing conditions and the implementation method adopted.

The proposed model is theoretical and, as such, is an abstraction of reality and does not consider all possible aspects. It consists of a novel approach that still requires further empirical testing. The PTM provides insights about the trade-offs between productivity and strategic objectives, as well, contributes to the ongoing research on manufacturing strategy and can be further developed in future studies.

The main practical implication is to allow companies to relate their strategic decisions to their productivity performance.

This research also contributes to societal issues by enabling firms to better align strategic objectives and operations, which ultimately allows offering products more suited to the needs of customers, thus making better use of the required resources and favoring economic growth.

The model proposed allows objective assessment of actions aiming at operational efficiency and effectiveness, in addition to providing insights into cause-and-effect relationships between productivity and competitive priorities. The model can also be used in empirical investigations on manufacturing strategy.

This study aims at examining the effect of total quality management (TQM) practices on the financial performance ISO 9001:2008 certified manufacturing companies in Ethiopia with a mediating role of operational performance.

A cross-sectional survey research was conducted to meet the purpose. Data used for the study were solely primary data and were collected from the top and middle-level managers of different departments and senior experts working under the production/operation and quality management units of the target organizations. Data were obtained from 302 participants working in 73 companies using a self-administered questionnaire. Structural equation modelling (SEM) technique was applied to test the hypotheses positing the structural link between TQM practices, operational performance and financial performance.

The findings show that TQM practices had a significant direct and positive effect on both operational performance and financial performance and that operational performance significantly affects financial performance. The bootstrapping output of the mediation analysis also established that operational performance partially mediates the causal link between TQM practices and financial performance.

The empirical evidence provided by the present study provides helpful insights and guidance to managers to make a good deal of investment in maintaining enhanced performance outcomes under the operations stream that eventually would lead to better financial outcome.

Being one of the first attempts to empirically examine the structural linkages among TQM practices, operational performance and financial performance in Ethiopian manufacturing organizations, this paper provides strategic insights on the importance of implementing TQM practices in a holistic manner for the achievement of better performance outcomes.

Industry 4.0 has received significant attention in today's competitive business market, necessitating a restructuring of functional domains in nearly every manufacturing organization. A comprehensive strategy to improve performance in preparation for Industry 4.0 implementation necessitates several steps, one of which is the establishment of performance outcomes (POs). The aim of this paper is to identify and rank the POs realized due to the adoption of Industry 4.0 enablers.

Based on an extensive literature review and inputs received from experts, a comprehensive list of enablers and the POs was prepared and finalized. This paper proposes a framework based on hybrid solution methodology, namely Neutrosophic Analytical Hierarchy Process (N-AHP) and Neutrosophic Combined Compromise Solution (N-CoCoSo), to rank the POs realized due to the adoption of Industry 4.0 enablers. The N-AHP methodology has been adopted to calculate the relative weights of the Industry 4.0 enablers. In comparison, the N-CoCoSo method has been adopted to rank the POs of Industry 4.0.

The proposed framework is applied to an Indian manufacturing organization to test the organization's practical applicability. Additionally, sensitivity analysis is also carried out to check the steadiness of the proposed framework. The findings of this study revealed that “Improved responsiveness to market conditions in today's competitive business environment” is the top-ranked PO of Industry 4.0, followed by “Enhanced competitiveness and better market share”, “Better product quality, through smart management of production process” and “Reduction in manufacturing waste and environmental sustainability” which could be realized due to adoption of its enablers.

This research would aid practitioners by enhancing the practitioners' capacity to understand and prioritize the various POs resulting from implementing Industry 4.0 enablers. Embracing a clear strategic plan will further assist practitioners in improving the efficiency of Industry 4.0 implementation.

Previous literature has only addressed the relationship between Industry 4.0 enablers and POs in a limited way. This paper attempts to compile a comprehensive list of Industry 4.0 enablers relevant to manufacturing organizations in order to fill this knowledge and research gap.

This paper aims to investigate the impact of acquisition and organic growth on the operating efficiency and total factor productivity change of retailing networks.

The assessment uses low-frequency data of newly opened stores and acquired stores of a large supermarket (S/M) network in Athens, for a period (financial year 2014) where the network began to refocus on its organic growth after a two-year period of deep recession (financial years 2012–2013). To evaluate the performance effects of both strategies, the authors employ the innovative benchmarking tool of bootstrap data envelopment analysis (DEA) for measuring operational efficiency and the Malmquist productivity index DEA approach for measuring productivity change over time.

The short-run evidence indicates that compared to organic growth, acquisitions lead to lower operating efficiency. However, this difference gradually converges over time as acquired stores show a higher rate of productivity compared to newly opened stores. The authors interpret this as a result of the smooth integration of the acquired chain store into the organizational structure of the existing store network given their significant similarities in terms of products and customers.

The authors inform managers of store chains that during the process of organic growth, a general improvement in efficiency takes place while in the case of acquisitions, the required post-acquisition streamlining actions cause a short delay on the realization of efficiency gains. Therefore, managers should not take it for granted that acquisitions cause a long-term decrease in efficiency.

The study contributes to the literature on growth strategies and retailing performance in general, by offering new evidence regarding the comparative effect of the horizontal growth modes on the efficiency of store chains.

This empirical study aims to explore how actors in specific human resource practices (HRPs) such as line managers (LMs) impact employee productivity measures in the context of financial institutions (FI) banks.

This cross-country study adopted a qualitative methodology. It employed semi-structured interviews to collect data from purposefully selected 12 business facing directors (BFDs) working in the top 10 banks in Nigeria and the UK. The data collected were analysed with the help of the trans-positional cognition approach (TPCA) phenomenological method.

The findings of a TPCA analytical process imply that in the UK and Nigeria’s FIs, the BFDs line managers’ human resources practices (LMHRPs) resulted in a highly regulated workplace, knowledge gap, service operations challenges and subjective quantitatively driven key performance indicators, considered service productivity paradoxical elements. Although the practices in the UK and Nigerian FIs had similar labels, their aggregates were underpinned by different contextual issues.

To support LMs in better understanding and managing FIs BFDs productivity measures and outcomes, we propose the Managerial Employee Productivity Operational Definition framework as part of their toolkit. This study will be helpful for banking sectors, their regulators, policymakers, other FIs’ industry stakeholders and future researchers in the field.

Within the context of the UK and Nigeria’s FIs, this study is the first attempt to understand how LMHRPs impact BFDs productivity in this manner. It confirms that LMHRPs result in service productivity paradoxical elements with perceived or lost productivity implications.

The productivity of a port is a measure that is important to different stakeholders: port administrators (port authority), third-party logistics providers, manufacturers and consumers, among others. This study analyses productivity in terms of vessel movement efficiencies (loading/unloading of cargo) and container release from port facilities. Both factors add to the overall productivity in any port.

A comparative analysis of the productivity of three ports is measured using a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and benchmarking analysis to help establish strategies that will help improve productivity. Considering the information confidentially the authors will call the ports according to their geographic location. The ports under study are the USA Southeast Port (Port of America), Central Asian Port (Port of Asia) and Central Europe Port (Port of Europe).

This study has established an analysis strategy that allows seeing points of sale in the ports. This study will compare three different continents, only to demonstrate the applicability of QFD and benchmarking. Still, the strategy can be used in ports that compete due to their proximity and location. Identifying the variables to be analyzed made it possible to establish a strategy to increase productivity.

There are many studies that analyze port productivity, but none try to standardize the variables to be compared in different scenarios. This study has compared three ports from three different geographical areas, using the same variables in all three cases. The study critically analyses the performance of three ports and proposes a strategy based on QFD and benchmarking research.

The purpose of this study is to advance the understanding of resource orchestration in inter-firm partnerships that appropriately configure and align strategic cross-firm supply chain resources and capabilities generating synergies to deliver superior performance.

Applying the resource orchestration logic, supported by the relational view of competitive advantage, the study draws from an empirical analysis of survey data from 152 top-level executives of US manufacturing firms to investigate the effect of leveraging and coherently combining cross-firm supply chain resources with capabilities on operational performance.

The study underscores the view that appropriately orchestrated combinations of key partnership resources and capabilities as mechanisms for marketing strategy implementation, enhance performance. Specifically, research results suggest that complementary inter-firm resources and lean align, and similarly idiosyncratic resources and agility align synergistically to deliver superior operational performance outcomes. The results also accent partnership responses to intense competition, enabling enhanced operational performance. The findings thus enrich the understanding of the resource orchestration logic and strategy, making important theoretical contributions.

As is typical in marketing and strategy research, the study research design has a cross-sectional framework, thus limiting insights on the resource orchestration dynamics that can otherwise be generated using a longitudinal design. Also, the resource orchestration stream is still nascent. Further research is needed to delineate the orchestration mechanisms that deliver on performance outcomes, especially in supply chains.

A key insight for supply chain and marketing managers is that close-knit inter-firm partnerships are critical for accessing idiosyncratic and complementary resources that can be configured and symbiotically aligned with market-facing agility and lean capabilities, respectively, to deliver market value. Proactive partnerships, especially in highly competitive and disruptive environments, enable mobilizing cross-firm resources and building appropriate matching combinations with capabilities to deliver on operational performance.

The study, guided by theory, advances the understanding of how key cross-firm resources and capabilities deliver performance gains. The key to competitive advantage and enhanced performance outcomes may lie in acquiring, leveraging and deploying appropriately matched resource-capability combinations. The present study investigates this proposition within the context of supply chain partnerships, focusing on cross-firm resources and capabilities.

This study aims to investigate the relationship between all three dimensions of perceived strategic value of m-commerce (operational support, managerial productivity and strategic decision aids), antecedents of m-commerce (organizational readiness, external context and m-commerce competence) and m-commerce adoption. The present study will further examine a mediation model in which all three dimensions of perceived strategic value of m-commerce affect m-commerce adoption through IT investment.

An online survey questionnaire was adopted to test the validity of this research and hypotheses. Data were collected from 178 Chinese family businesses via snowball sampling.

The results show that all three dimensions of perceived strategic value of m-commerce (operational support, managerial productivity and strategic decision aids) are positively connected to m-commerce adoption. Also, it was found that IT investment partially or fully mediates the relationship between all these dimensions of perceived strategic value of m-commerce and m-commerce adoption.

This study would enhance owners' and managers' understanding of the relationship between perceived strategic value of m-commerce, IT investment, antecedents of m-commerce and m-commerce adoption, thus contributing to their future adoption.

The study proposes to determine the impending challenges to lean integration with Industry 4.0 (I4.0) in manufacturing that aims at achieving desired operational performance. Integrating lean and Industry 4.0 as the two industrial approaches is synergetic in providing operational benefits such as increasing flexibility, improving productivity, reducing cost, reducing delivery time, improving quality and value stream mapping (VSM). There is an urgent need to understand the integrated potential of OPEX strategies like lean manufacturing and also to determine the challenges for manufacturing SMEs and further suggest a strategic roadmap for the future.

The current work has used a combined approach on interpretative structural modeling (ISM) and fuzzy Matrice d'impacts croisés multiplication appliquée á un classment (MICMAC) approach to structure the multiple level analysis for the implementation challenges to integrate OPEX strategies with Industry 4.0.

The research has found that the indulgence of various implementation issues like lack of standardization, lack of vision and lack of trained support, all are the major challenges that inhibit the integration of OPEX strategies with I4.0 technologies in manufacturing.

The research has investigated the internal factors acting as a roadblock to lean and Industry 4.0 adoption. Further studies may consider external factors to lean and Industry 4.0 implementation. Also, further research may consider other operational excellence approaches and extend further to relevant sectors.

This study provides the analysis of barriers that is useful for the managers to take strategic actions for implementing OPEX strategies with I4.0 in smart manufacturing.

The research determines the adoption challenges towards the integrated framework. This is the first study to explore challenges in integrating OPEX strategies with I4.0 technologies in manufacturing SMEs.

The view that dynamic capabilities theory can help explain how lean organizations improve has been put forward by scholars. However, there is still a lack of research on the matching relationship between the application of lean practice and the internal elements of enterprise organization from the perspective of dynamic capabilities. The purpose of this study is to validate the moderating effect of dynamic capabilities on the relationship between lean practices and operational performance.

This study used the method of survey and empirical research to collect sample data from 263 enterprises in China. Through literature review, this study put forward the moderating hypotheses around dynamic capabilities, lean practices and operation performance and used the method of regression analysis to validate these hypotheses.

The results showed that dynamic capabilities have a partially moderating effect on the application of lean practices. Specifically, dynamic capabilities have a significant moderating effect on the relationship between just-in-time, total quality management, total preventive maintenance and operational performance, while dynamic capabilities have no significant moderating effect on the relationship between human resource management and operational performance.

The research conclusion complements and enriches the lean practices literature from the perspective of dynamic capabilities. Existing studies mainly focus on the moderating role of external environmental factors, while there is a lack of empirical research on the role of dynamic capabilities in lean practices literature. The research results will help enterprises further understand the matching relationship between lean practices and dynamic capabilities and then improve the success of lean practices application.