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Article
Publication date: 6 September 2011

Xingxing Zu, Huaming Zhou, Xiaowei Zhu and Dongqing Yao

The purpose of this study is to investigate the underlying characteristics that influence quality management implementation at manufacturing companies operating in China.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate the underlying characteristics that influence quality management implementation at manufacturing companies operating in China.

Design/methodology/approach

The data of this study were based on 199 manufacturing companies collected from a cross‐sectional survey in China. The cultural profiles of these companies were identified through cluster analysis. Multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to identify the effects of operating characteristics and cultural profile on the implementation level of quality management practices.

Findings

The results show that in general, there is no significant difference in implementing quality management practices among companies of different operating characteristics in terms of company size, industry, ownership, and production process. This study reveals that cultural profile is a distinguishing factor to explain the difference in quality management implementation among the companies.

Originality/value

As China is becoming an important supplier of products to the global market, it is necessary to understand how product quality is controlled and managed in China. This study examines the effects of operating and cultural characteristics of companies in China on their implementation of quality management practices. The results contribute to a deeper understanding of how to build an effective quality system at companies in China.

Details

International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, vol. 28 no. 8
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0265-671X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 15 November 2022

Muzzammil Wasim Syed, Huaming Song and Muhammad Junaid

Drawing upon information processing theory (IPT) and natural resource-based view (NRBV), this study analyses the role of social media technologies (SMT) on internal and external…

Abstract

Purpose

Drawing upon information processing theory (IPT) and natural resource-based view (NRBV), this study analyses the role of social media technologies (SMT) on internal and external environmental collaboration and green innovation (green product, process and managerial innovation).

Design/methodology/approach

This study took in-depth empirical research by developing a survey questionnaire to identify the relationship between SMTs, environmental collaboration and green innovation. The respondents of the questionnaire were supply chain professionals working in the manufacturing industry of Pakistan. The survey collected 475 responses, which were tested through PLS-SEM using Smart-PLS.

Findings

The study results indicate that SMTs positively influence both internal and external environmental collaboration. Furthermore, internal environmental collaboration (IEC) fosters green products and green managerial innovation. In contrast, external environmental collaboration (EEC) fosters green processes and green managerial innovation. This study has also tested the mediation of IEC and EEC, which shows that both IEC and EEC mediate all the relationships except green process and green product innovation. The results also revealed that innovation capabilities moderate the relationship between environmental collaboration and green innovation.

Research limitations/implications

Though this study has various practical implications, it is not free of limitations. First, the data were collected from Pakistan, and the results may only be compared with other developing countries. Second, few social media platforms have been considered, but they are increasing in numbers and could be used in upcoming studies. Third, green innovation in the context of products, processes and management is considered, but the concept is evolving, and its other indicators can be taken in upcoming studies.

Practical implications

This study addresses the implication of SMTs, environmental collaboration, innovation capabilities and green innovation, which are helpful for managers and policymakers to design policies.

Originality/value

This study provides the seminal operationalization of SMTs in environmental collaboration and green innovation. This study emphasizes innovation capabilities that firms should adopt.

Article
Publication date: 26 January 2022

Halima Begum, Kashif Abbas, A.S.A. Ferdous Alam, Huaming Song, Mohammad Tayub Chowdhury and Ahmad Bashawir Abdul Ghani

The purpose of this study is to address the global COVID-19 pandemic related to its sustainability, such as environmental, economic and social concerns. The short study also…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to address the global COVID-19 pandemic related to its sustainability, such as environmental, economic and social concerns. The short study also examined how various innovative approaches can help promote sustainable production.

Design/methodology/approach

The methodology examines hypothetical scenarios of the current pandemic and tries to describe the quality of evidence to facilitate careful, critical engagement by readers. Secondary data is used to identify sustainability challenges, such as environmental, social and economic viability challenges. The information in this report was gathered from numerous media outlets, research agencies, policy papers, newspapers and other sources to gain a better knowledge of the issue.

Findings

As a result, most industry executives and policymakers are looking for appropriate strategies and policies to improve their practices and meet consumer demand. The outcomes explore that the COVID-19 pandemic is a central factor in changes in people’s behavior, reflecting sustainability such as environmental, social and economic responsibility. The COVID-19 outbreak, surprisingly, had a bigger effect on sustainable consumption, accompanied by environmental sustainability, and, to a lesser extent, social and economic viability.

Research limitations/implications

Limited secondary evidence and data could not scrutinize the study’s actual problem statements. Hence, it is recommended that the gap in research be fulfilled by conducting a primary survey among various groups of economists, environmentalists and industrialists using the cluster sampling technique by validating the questionnaire of the total sustainable production system. Proposing frameworks for improving the resilience of production and a systematic possible upgraded manufacturing system by using the Industry 4.0 technology during operational processes could advance market demand.

Practical implications

The COVID-19 scenario has compelled manufacturing firms to put their production systems on hold for an extended period while they seek long-term solutions to assure simple delivery and cooperation from both business and consumer standpoints. Various aspects of supply and demand are discussed in the referendum, as well as production and consumption challenges during the COVID-19 era. There is a need to restore the production system and find the right source of raw materials. This work focuses on commodity inventory management systems due to mass production, but due to pandemics, it is not in demand and vice versa. The researcher made comprehensible remarks on the use of digitization in the pandemic, which improves social distancing and social well-being and promotes the production system as well. Besides, manufacturing plants should switch to digital manufacturing to reduce the number of workplaces and hence the risk of an outbreak. Therefore, a better supply chain network is needed to supply more manufacturing units.

Social implications

There is a bright side of coronavirus that the public health crisis raised worldwide has brought many opportunities for governments and society to make eternal reforms in the public health sector door. During restricted movements for fulfilling market demand, the Industry 4.0 technologies for automation, mechanization and digitalization can help significantly advance a company. This technological advancement and computer digitization for the perspective people may improve the environment, economic and social sustainability also increase social media adoption, which can be crucial for agri-businesses to evaluate customers’ behavior and consumption trends.

Originality/value

The paper also instructed to identify critical success factors, barriers and drivers for dealing with the pandemic situation and to develop a strategic policy framework to improve production and process flexibility through the remarkable introduction of digital manufacturing. Before it is too late to stop the spread, producers and consumers must grasp the limits to which suppliers might drive nature.

Details

foresight, vol. 24 no. 3/4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-6689

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 8 May 2017

Kening Liu and Huaming Song

This paper focuses on how the producer inspires his cooperative research partner to reduce carbon emission, by developing a menu of incentive contracts both in research and…

2019

Abstract

Purpose

This paper focuses on how the producer inspires his cooperative research partner to reduce carbon emission, by developing a menu of incentive contracts both in research and development (R&D) stage and recycling stage.

Design/methodology/approach

The proposed mechanism combines the researcher with the producer in a two-staged closed-loop system. Based on the concept that the producer takes the environmental responsibility, this paper designs a dynamically updating contract for the producer to encourage low-carbon efforts. Meanwhile, the producer offers a menu of contracts against the asymmetric information, that is, the R&D partner owns private information on his low-carbon R&D capability. According to incentive mechanism, the researcher decides whether to tell the truth and how much effort she would exert in R&D and recycling stages.

Findings

Discriminating between different types of researchers hurts the producer’s profit. But the updated screening contract can inspire researchers to tell the truth and is beneficial in reducing carbon emissions in the two stages. The results give the optimal solutions of the incentive mechanism. The low-type researcher only obtains reservation profit, whereas the high-type is given more to induce the information.

Originality/value

This paper proposes a strategy of updating the contract factors for avoiding adverse selection and moral hazard. Considering the environmental responsibility of waste products, the producer would like to encourage low-carbon designs among the R&D partners in a closed-loop supply chain.

Article
Publication date: 20 September 2021

Kashif Abbass, Abdul Aziz Khan Niazi, Tehmina Fiaz Qazi, Abdul Basit and Huaming Song

The study aims to investigate the barriers in implementing social distancing at the workplace as an aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic period.

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Abstract

Purpose

The study aims to investigate the barriers in implementing social distancing at the workplace as an aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic period.

Design/methodology/approach

Study design consists of a review of literature, data collection and analysis. It encompasses identification, verification and analysis of the relationships among the barriers. Data have been collected from a panel of experts on matrix-type questionnaires from workplaces. Interpretive structural modeling (ISM) augmented with “Matrice d' Impacts Croise's Multiplication Appliquée a UN Classement (Cross Impact Matrix Multiplication Applied to Classification)” (MICMAC) for structural analysis.

Findings

The literature has identified twenty major barriers to implementing social distancing at the workplace. The research findings reveal/show that the barrier “matter of disrespect” occupies the bottom level in the ISM model. Therefore, it is the most critical barrier; whereas, employees with disabilities and “herding culture” are crucial as they occupy the next lowest level, therefore, are crucial. Moreover, there are ten barriers positioned in the middle of the model having moderate-severe effects, and seven falls on the top level of the model having relatively less severe effects. Results of MICMAC affirm and avow the results of ISM.

Research limitations/implications

The study will have profound theoretical and practical implications for stakeholders since it provides lot of new useful and valuable information, gives relational insights and determines priorities subject to usual limitations of survey research.

Originality/value

It is an original attempt to make some sense of practicability of social distancing for stakeholders including policymakers, frontline health workers and public at large.

Details

Library Hi Tech, vol. 40 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0737-8831

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 24 November 2023

Kaihan Yang, Ai Chin Thoo, Mohamed Syazwan Ab Talib and Hon Tat Huam

This research attempts to explore how reverse logistics (RL) and sustainable supply chain initiatives (SSCI) affect sustainability performance (SP) in the manufacturing industry…

Abstract

Purpose

This research attempts to explore how reverse logistics (RL) and sustainable supply chain initiatives (SSCI) affect sustainability performance (SP) in the manufacturing industry under the moderating effects of organisational learning capability (OLC). At the same time, this study is expected to allow manufacturers to advance towards a high level of model generation in the green economy.

Design/methodology/approach

The data for this study was obtained from 451 manufacturing companies in the Hebei Province, China. This study develops a model and tests all hypothesised relationships using partial least square–structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) with two-step analytical procedures.

Findings

The results indicate that SSCI and RL have a positive relationship with SP, and SSCI is positively related to RL. Moreover, the OLC moderates the relationship between RL and SP as well as the relationship between SSCI and SP.

Research limitations/implications

The findings of the study yield valuable managerial insights on how the effective implementation of green practices, coupled with the utilisation of learning capabilities, can contribute to improving the sustainability of manufacturing firms. The study has certain limitations that suggest potential avenues for future research, the most significant of which is our reliance on data from a single country, which may impede the generalisability of the findings.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the existing literature on SP by considering RL and SSCI and offers a unique theoretical argument that describes the relationships by considering the moderating effect of OLC, which has not been empirically explored.

Details

Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, vol. 35 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1741-038X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 April 2023

Suyuan Wang, Huaming Song, Hongfu Huang and Qiang Huang

This paper explores how the manufacturer’s strategic choice (acquisition or investment) impacts product quality in a supply chain comprising two complementary suppliers and a…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper explores how the manufacturer’s strategic choice (acquisition or investment) impacts product quality in a supply chain comprising two complementary suppliers and a common manufacturer.

Design/methodology/approach

The manufacturer faces six strategic choices to improve product quality: acquiring or investing in the high-capable supplier, the low-capable supplier, or both. As the Stackelberg leader, the manufacturer determines which strategy is adopted, while suppliers are separately responsible for components’ quality and wholesale prices. The authors use game theory and calculate the model with Mathematica.

Findings

The authors develop analytical models to analyze how acquisition costs, investment proportions, component importance and quality improvement coefficients influence decision-makers. The results show that the highest quality may not benefit the manufacturer. Investing in or acquiring a low-capable supplier is better than a high-capable supplier under certain conditions. If the gaps between two suppliers’ quality improvement coefficients and the importance of two components are dramatic, the manufacturer should choose an investment strategy.

Originality/value

This study contributes to the complementary supply chain management by comparing two kinds of strategies-acquisition and investment, with a high-capable supplier and a low-capable supplier.

Details

The TQM Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1754-2731

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 30 October 2023

Fei Xu, XinZhu Liu, Qian Liu, XiaoYang Zhu and DuanMing Zhou

Considering the greenwashing risk of symbolic environmental management, this study aims to distinguish the motivation for environmental investment growth (EIG) from the corporate…

Abstract

Purpose

Considering the greenwashing risk of symbolic environmental management, this study aims to distinguish the motivation for environmental investment growth (EIG) from the corporate cost stickiness and anti-stickiness perspectives.

Design/methodology/approach

This study analyzes the impact of substantive and symbolic environmental management on cost stickiness. Subsequently, competing hypotheses are proposed. Finally, empirical tests are conducted on Chinese A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2019.

Findings

EIG significantly improves enterprises’ cost stickiness. The cost of high EIG enterprises does not decrease significantly with a decline in income compared to other enterprises, which is consistent with the motivation for substantive environmental management. Enterprises with high asset specificity and optimistic management expectations show more obvious substantive environmental management. Government and public environmental concerns cause more pronounced substantive environmental management.

Practical implications

An evaluation of corporate environmental responsibility should take into account both what the company has disclosed and what it has actually done.

Social implications

Governments and the public should have a comprehensive understanding of corporate environmental management. They need to strengthen their ability to recognize symbolic environmental management and support substantive environmental management.

Originality/value

Fundamental to the evaluation of corporate environmental responsibility, this study distinguishes the motivations for corporate EIG disclosures from the cost stickiness perspective to avoid the risk of greenwashing. Hypotheses on the impact of substantive and symbolic environmental management on cost stickiness are presented. This study verifies the substantive environmental management characteristics of listed Chinese companies.

Details

Sustainability Accounting, Management and Policy Journal, vol. 15 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-8021

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 31 May 2021

Lijie Zhou and Fei Xue

This paper aims to examine the effects of visual themes and view perspectives on users’ visual attention to brand posts on Instagram. The impact of visual attention on brand…

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Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the effects of visual themes and view perspectives on users’ visual attention to brand posts on Instagram. The impact of visual attention on brand attitude and recognition is also explored.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a 4 (visual themes: customer-centric, employee-centric, product-centric and symbolic visuals) × 2 (view perspectives: first-person view vs third-person view) between-subject factorial eye-tracking experiment to explore their effects on viewers’ visual attention (fixation frequency and fixation duration), attitude toward the brand and brand recognition.

Findings

Results showed that, under a first-person view, participants spent the longest time viewing customer-centric images and paid the most attention to product-centric and customer-centric images. For images in the third-person view, product-centric images received the longest fixation duration and highest fixation frequency. Customer-centric image and product-centric image generated significantly higher amount of fixation duration and fixation frequency than the symbolic image, regardless of view perspective. Brand recognition was positively influenced by fixation frequency but not by fixation duration.

Originality/value

This study is an extended application of Aaker’s (1996) brand identity planning model in visual branding on Instagram. As the findings indicated, the effective use of visual strategies could lead to more positive responses toward the brand. By understanding how optical elements stimulate visual branding processing, marketing professionals will be able to improve information designing skills in visual-based social media platforms (such as Instagram).

Details

Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, vol. 15 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2040-7122

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 January 2013

Sifeng Liu, Yingjie Yang, Ying Cao and Naiming Xie

The purpose of this paper is to review systematically the research of grey relation analysis (GRA) models.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to review systematically the research of grey relation analysis (GRA) models.

Design/methodology/approach

Three different approaches, the springboard to build a GRA model, the angle of view in modelling, and the dimension of objects, are analysed, respectively.

Findings

The GRA models developed from the models based on relation coefficients of each point in the sequences in early days to the generalized GRA models based on integral or overall perspective. It evolved from the GRA models which measure similarity based on nearness, into the models which consider similarity and nearness, respectively. The objects of the research advanced from the analysis of relationship among curves to that among curved surfaces, and further to the analysis of relationship in three‐dimensional space and even the relationship among super surfaces in n‐dimensional space.

Originality/value

The further research on GRA models is proposed. One is about the property of GRA model. An in‐depth knowledge about the properties of GRA model will help people to understand its function, applicable area and requirements for modelling. The other one is about the extension of research object system. The object to be analysed should be extended from the common sequence of real numbers to grey numbers, vectors, matrices, and even multi‐dimensional matrices, etc.

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