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The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between implementation of quality management systems (QMS) and business performance, through mediating factors (operating performance, information quality, product quality, design performance, environmental performance and competitive priorities). Most of the published literature examines the direct impact of implementation of QMS on business performance, and on some of the above stated factors. However, the impact of implementation of QMS on business performance, through these mediating factors has not received much attention. Accordingly, the authors develop a theoretical framework depicting impact of implementation of QMS on business performance through the above stated factors.

The paper proposes several hypotheses linking implementation of QMS, mediating factors and business performance. The hypothesized model is empirically tested using data collected from 120 professionals working in quality engineering/management in India and North America. The collected data are analyzed with the aid of structural equation modeling (SEM) technique.

Information quality and design performance have emerged as the important factors in the research. Information quality directly effects design performance, operating performance and environmental performance. The model indicates that besides a well-designed product, managers need to focus on the operating performance to improve overall product quality. Empirical evidence is found regarding direct and indirect effect of implementation of QMS on above stated mediating factors and on business performance.

The research fills a gap in the literature by considering several mediating factors that aid in improving business performance with implementation of QMS.

Managing quality is a vital aspect in software development world, especially in the current business competition for the fast delivery of feature rich products with high quality. For an organization to meet its intended level of excellence in order to ensure its success, a culture of quality should be built where every individual is responsible of quality and not just the software testing team. However, delivering software products with very few bugs is a challenging constraint that is usually sacrificed in order for a company to meet other management constraints such as cost, scope and scheduling. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

In this paper, the authors present a Six Sigma DMAIC-based framework for improving software quality. Different phases of DMAIC methodology are applied for quality improvement in one of the largest software applications for “RK” company (name anonymized) in Canada where critical to quality aspects are identified, production bugs classified and measured, the causes of the large number of production bugs were specified leading to different improvement suggestions. Several metrics were proposed to help “RK” company control its software development process to ensure the success of the project under study.

This paper shows how companies can use a systematic approach such as DMAIC to eliminate errors and improve efficiency. It helps them to identify and implement improvements that leads to an increased confidence in the quality of the product produced at all levels.

By applying DMAIC at “RK” company the authors were able to demonstrate how DMAIC can help organizations improve the quality of their software products. As a result, reduce cost and cycle times, achieve customer satisfaction and improve profit margin.

Management of information technology (IT) will continue to be an essential endeavour for organisations as we experience the increasing advancement of technology across different spectres of life. Managers will need to understand how technology is changing their business operations and the emergence of digital consumers who demand more innovative and technologically driven experiences. This book was conceptualised to provide theoretical insight for managers and researchers to understand where we are and where technology is taking us. This book has presented different chapters, highlighting management and practical implications across other technology, sector and countries. These selected chapters provide a wide variety of stimulating insights into the varying challenges and perspectives of management and IT in the digital era. Significantly, we recognise the growing prospects of Artificial intelligence (AI) and how it is revolutionising different sectors, further presenting critical challenges for managers on how to harness the opportunities of this technology for their business prospects.

Digital transformation allows organisations to increase the efficiency of their operations, respond faster and make more accurate decisions, adapt quickly to a new reality, and improve the customer experience; however, many companies still face several obstacles and challenges on its path to digital transformation, including organisational culture, a lack of IT resources and management, a lack of a clear budget for digital transformation, a challenge with digital security and artificial intelligence (AI). This chapter concludes the edited book focusing on management and information technology in the digital era. We acknowledge there are still many areas that need to be explored regarding technological adoption. However, we hope we have captured some theoretical insights that are available at this point. We hope readers will find the chapters in this book both enriching and thought-provoking and that the insights provided in the collection of research materials will enhance the understanding in this area, inspire further interest in management and information technology in the digital era, and provide a basis for sound management decisions and stimulate new ideas for future research.

This paper presents a systems based approach for the city logistics decision making. Using this approach, we present the layout of a simulation model called CILOSIM (CITY‐LOGISTICS‐SIMULATION). CILOSIM encapsulates three sub‐models namely Goods to Vehicle Assignment model, Goods movement model and Impact assessment model. The Goods to vehicle assignment model allocates commodities to vehicles. The Goods movement model performs the scheduling and routing of goods vehicles from the source of origin to source of destination. The routing and scheduling decisions for vehicles are done taking into account the latest traffic conditions existing on the network. Finally, Impact assessment model evaluates the impact of goods movement on city environment and society. The advantage of using the systems approach is that it explains the dynamic and complex nature of city logistics in terms of cause and effect variables. Another advantage is that it permits the user to have a global view of city logistics problems and provides possible solutions in terms of few system variables.

Decision‐making processes can be thought of as the brain and nervous system of an organization. In the rapidly changing world nowadays, information technology has become an indispensable part of every organization. The extent to which the information technology affects the decision making process remains an open question. The present paper presents an instrument to study the influence of information technology on decision making. This instrument is developed using extensive literature review and is validated by case studies and questionnaire administration in an IT based organization. The organization chosen for our study is a manufacturing company in India which has implemented the latest enterprise resoruce planning software package (SAP R/3) for facilitating decision making in the organization. The study is conducted at the executive and the non‐executive level to study the impact of information technology on the decision making process at different levels of the organization.

Digital technologies have changed the way we work and live since their advent; they affect individuals, businesses and society, especially the business world. Digital transformation has become a significant concern for all companies now, and it is hard to find a company that has not embarked on a digital transformation project. The main question of our study is to understand the most significant digital transformation challenges companies are facing and how they can overcome these challenges.

The research contains an analytical study of some recent studies on this topic. Findings indicate that technology is not a huge barrier to companies, but digital skills, digital culture and digital strategy are the biggest. Furthermore, we present several practical solutions to overcome these challenges at the end of this research.

The last few years have witnessed massive artificial intelligence (AI) and gaming adoption that has navigated the emerging markets. Moreover, according to the WOG summit (world government summit report, by Nielsen) 2020 reports, AI with gaming mechanisms are expected to enrich marketing services in the coming future in the emerging markets. Countries such as India, China and South Korea contribute significantly to this area, and recent forecasting allows the need to increase in emerging markets. Similarly, these countries have a maximum number of youth gamers and AI-driven technology adopters. The adoption of AI-driven technologies and amplification of gamification in marketing services are new phenomena. Moreover, gaming and AI dynamics are relatively new in emerging countries and need greater attention. Thus, this book chapter proposes a dyad model that would explain users' and companies' perspectives to understand the role of AI and gamification for the emerging markets. The chapter will explain how AI-driven gamification helps the users of emerging markets. The chapter will also illustrate how companies in emerging markets use AI for gamification. Therefore, the dyad model would also comprehend the gap, opportunities and challenges in this area and the subsequent strategies to help all the stakeholders.