Search results
1 – 10 of over 1000In times of open and distributed innovation, many innovation activities that are important for firms' products and services take place beyond the boundaries of the firm and thus…
Abstract
Purpose
In times of open and distributed innovation, many innovation activities that are important for firms' products and services take place beyond the boundaries of the firm and thus beyond firms' direct control. A prime example for this phenomenon is open source software (OSS) development, where multiple actors contribute to a public good, which is also integrated into company-owned software products. Despite the importance of aligning community work on the public good with own in-house development efforts, firms have limited options to directly control the OSS project or the project's outcome. This research reflects on resource deployment control, a control mode in which firms assign own developers to work for an OSS project to influence the OSS project, and tests hypotheses on individual developer levels.
Design/methodology/approach
This research tests the effect of perceived resource deployment control on opinion leadership by analyzing employed Linux kernel developers.
Findings
The findings show that developers who perceive being assigned to an OSS project to enact control also exhibit opinion leadership. This research also investigates boundary conditions such as the OSS business model a firm operates and the reputation developers assign to the developers' employer.
Originality/value
This research is the first that is devoted to resource deployment control, and the research closes with a discussion of implications for control theory and the management of innovation beyond firm boundaries.
Details
Keywords
Qiong Wu, Qiwei Zhou and Kathryn Cormican
Shared leadership is an effective mechanism for managing project teams. Its performance-enhancing benefits have been demonstrated in many studies. Nonetheless, there is an obvious…
Abstract
Purpose
Shared leadership is an effective mechanism for managing project teams. Its performance-enhancing benefits have been demonstrated in many studies. Nonetheless, there is an obvious silence about how to promote shared leadership in Lean Six Sigma (LSS) project teams. To address this deficit, the purposes of this study are to investigate the influence of shared leadership on LSS project success and to explore how team psychological safety, project task complexity and project task interdependence influence shared leadership.
Design/methodology/approach
A multi-source, time-lagged survey design with a four-month interval was conducted. To do this, the authors collected data from 71 project teams (comprising 71 project managers and 352 project members) using LSS approaches in the manufacturing and service industries.
Findings
The findings show that shared leadership positively influences LSS project success. The authors also found that team psychological safety fosters the development of shared leadership and, more importantly, these effects are stronger when the tasks are more complex and more interdependent.
Practical implications
These findings advance our understanding of the factors that enable shared leadership and equip LSS project managers with practical techniques to improve shared leadership for the success of their projects.
Originality/value
This study extends the theory of shared leadership to the context of LSS project management and is among the first, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, to theoretically propose and empirically validate how to promote shared leadership in LSS project teams.
Details
Keywords
Alessandro Laureani, Jiju Antony, Mariam Ali Ramadan, Maha Khalifa Al Dhaheri, Anders Fundin and Lars Sörqvist
This qualitative study aims to explore the concept of organisational leadership in the context of Quality Management deployments across a variety of business organisations…
Abstract
Purpose
This qualitative study aims to explore the concept of organisational leadership in the context of Quality Management deployments across a variety of business organisations, particularly focusing on the possible relationships between leadership approaches during the implementation and sustaining phases of Quality Management.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is based on one-to-one semi-structured virtual interviews with leaders in the quality field.
Findings
Four themes (Customers, Leadership, Quality Culture and Sustainability of Quality) emerged from the post-interview data analysis, illustrating the critical role of Leadership in the successful deployment and sustainment of Quality Management and identifying the leadership traits that are most conducive to successful organisational deployments.
Originality/value
Although some of these leadership traits are described in the wider leadership literature as belonging to one or more different leadership styles, there is no existing style of leadership that comprehends all the characteristics; thus, the need for a new leadership paradigm is this paper's theoretical contribution to the literature.
Details
Keywords
Anthony Bagherian, Mark Gershon and Sunil Kumar
Numerous attempts at installing six sigma (SS) have faced challenges and fallen short of the desired success. Thus, it becomes vital to identify the critical factors and…
Abstract
Purpose
Numerous attempts at installing six sigma (SS) have faced challenges and fallen short of the desired success. Thus, it becomes vital to identify the critical factors and characteristics that play a pivotal role in achieving successful adoption. In this study the research has aimed to highlight that a considerable number of corporate SS initiatives, around 60%, fail primarily due to the improper incorporation of essential elements and flawed assumptions.
Design/methodology/approach
To validate the influence of critical success factors (CSFs) on SS accomplishment, the study employed a research design combining exploratory and mixed-methods approaches. A Likert-scale questionnaire was utilized, and a simple random sampling method was employed to gather data. Out of the 2,325 potential participants approached, 573 responses were received, primarily from Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden. The analysis focused on 260 completed questionnaires and statistical methods including structural equation modeling (SEM), exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were utilized for data analysis.
Findings
The study acknowledged four essential components of CSFs that are imperative for sustaining the success of SS: (1) Competence of belt System employees; (2) Project management skills; (3) Organizational economic capability and (4) Leadership commitment and engagement. These factors were identified as significant contributors to the maintenance of SS’s success.
Practical implications
The practical implications of this research imply that institutions, practitioners, and researchers can utilize the four identified factors to foster the sustainable deployment of SS initiatives. By incorporating these factors, organizations can enhance the effectiveness and longevity of their SS practices.
Originality/value
The investigation's originality lies in its contribution to assessing CSFs in SS deployment within the European automobile industry, utilizing a mixed-methods research design supplemented by descriptive statistics.
Details
Keywords
Kamalpreet Kaur Paposa, Prachi Thakur, Jiju Antony, Olivia McDermott and Jose Arturo Garza-Reyes
The current research aims to map and investigate how human resource management and lean practices can be integrated. This investigation will help identify the HRM aspects critical…
Abstract
Purpose
The current research aims to map and investigate how human resource management and lean practices can be integrated. This investigation will help identify the HRM aspects critical in the success of lean initiatives while exploring the research gaps in the existing literature. The review also aims to delineate the benefits and challenges of integrating lean with HRM systems to discuss further research and practice areas.
Design/methodology/approach
This study utilizes a systematic literature review method to identify and synthesize the existing literature. As part of the process, a protocol that provided a plan for the review was followed, including the research questions and the data to be extracted.
Findings
The study results indicate that aspects of HRM practice and policies such as training and development, teamwork, motivation, communication, leadership, are key enablers of lean initiative deployment and success. The benefits of the integration of human resources with lean can help in lean training and development, communication of lean initiatives and successes, allocating and hiring continuous improvement personnel, and supporting leadership in lean deployment. Challenges to integrating lean and HRM practices included lack of integration and collaboration between disciplines. Further exploration areas in successful lean deployment would be practical longitudinal case studies on lean deployments with human resource (HR) partnerships and involvement.
Practical implications
This review paper has crucial implications for practice relating to, integration of lean with HRM structures and tailoring HRM initiatives to ensure the success of lean deployment and reduce risks of failure.
Originality/value
The systematic literature review study conducted in this paper is the first of its kind to integrate and map the HRM concepts that can be integrated with Lean to deploy the initiative successfully. This mapping is critical for ensuring the success of lean methodologies within an organization and paves the way for future research. In addition, managers and organizations can find support and guidance from this study to focus on vital areas of partnership between their lean and HR programs.
Details
Keywords
Anthony Bagherian, Mark Gershon and Sunil Kumar
Some Six Sigma (SS) efforts have not been entirely successful. This research paper aims to investigate the leadership style and the elements of it that positively influence the…
Abstract
Purpose
Some Six Sigma (SS) efforts have not been entirely successful. This research paper aims to investigate the leadership style and the elements of it that positively influence the attainment of Six Sigma programs within the automobile industry.
Design/methodology/approach
The study used a Likert-scale questionnaire and a simple random sampling method. 2,325 potential participants were approached, resulting in 573 responses, primarily from Germany, the United Kingdom and Sweden. 260 completed questionnaires were included in the analysis, utilizing an exploratory and mixed-methods research design to examine the impact of leadership style on Six Sigma success. Statistical methods such as SEM, EFA and CFA were used for data analysis.
Findings
The study utilized numerous SEM methods, including Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and identified three key elements of leadership traits: (1) leadership support for long-term improvement strategies; (2) leadership commit to the supplier's organization to maintain quality and supply defect-free products.
Research limitations/implications
Due to limited participants, the outcome of the research could lead to inadequacies in data interpretation regarding the contextual predispostions, and the research could develop weaknesses in the form of cross-sectional instead of longitudinal data and design.
Practical implications
The practical implications of this study suggest that institutions, practitioners and researchers can incorporate these two identified factors into leadership traits to promote the sustainable implementation of Six Sigma (SS) initiatives.
Originality/value
This study makes an original contribution to the assessment of leadership style and its elements in the European automobile industry, utilizing a mixed-methods research design along with descriptive statistics to provide valuable insights.
Details
Keywords
Kari Lepistö, Minna Saunila and Juhani Ukko
This study investigates the effect of total quality management (TQM) on customer satisfaction, personnel satisfaction and company reputation.
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the effect of total quality management (TQM) on customer satisfaction, personnel satisfaction and company reputation.
Design/methodology/approach
The study results rely on a structured survey conducted among an extensive sample of Finnish SMEs. In addition to the examination of the relationship between TQM and company performance in terms of customer satisfaction, personnel satisfaction and company reputation, the study takes a view on the possible effects of the industry, the company size and the certified quality system.
Findings
The results reveal that two TQM dimensions, namely Customer Focus and Product Management, were related to companies' customer satisfaction, whereas four TQM dimensions, namely Management/leadership, Customer Focus, Personnel Management and Risk Management, were related to personnel satisfaction. None of the TQM dimensions were related to company reputation. The control variables – the industry, the company size and the certified quality system – were not found to affect customer satisfaction, personnel satisfaction or company reputation.
Originality/value
Most previous studies have been based on traditional TQM classification and have not shown the effects of the latest TQM-related dimensions. Compared to previous studies, this work integrates risk management, digitization, system deployment efficiency and stakeholder management into TQM, which has not been implemented in any previous study. The roles of hard and soft TQM factors have been carefully considered in this study; thus, the study does not place too much emphasis on either direction but provides a balanced picture of the performance of the management systems studied. Although there are studies on the effects of TQM on personnel satisfaction, customer satisfaction and reputation, they are based on a much narrower definition of TQM than that in this study. The business environment is constantly changing, but only a few studies have been conducted to extend the TQM approach. This has led to duplication of studies, and the effects of performance-relevant procedures have not been extensively studied in the past as part of TQM. Therefore, the concept of this study brings significant added value to TQM research and returns the TQM concept to the overall level while considering the requirements of the ISO 9001: 2015 and EFQM 2019 quality standards. The study also considers the effects of ISO 9001 certification and EFQM requirements.
Details
Keywords
Vikas Swarnakar, Olivia McDermott, Michael Sony, Shreeranga Bhat and Jiju Antony
This study investigates the challenges and opportunities that organisations face in implementing Quality 4.0 as an approach to quality management and investigate the current state…
Abstract
Purpose
This study investigates the challenges and opportunities that organisations face in implementing Quality 4.0 as an approach to quality management and investigate the current state of Quality 4.0 implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses a qualitative research methodology to interview senior managers from globally based manufacturing and service industries.
Findings
The study explicates that most organisations implemented Quality 4.0 to improve their flexibility, efficiency, transparency and productivity while focusing on improving service quality, customer satisfaction and reducing cost. In terms of sustainability of Quality 4.0 the key factors found were a consistent effort from the top management, continuous training to employees, building leadership quality and creating a habit of using Quality 4.0.
Practical implications
The findings of this study offer useful guidance to organisations desirous of implementing Quality 4.0. In addition, the findings have identified key sustainability factors, helping organisations ensure a successful implementation and long-term returns from Quality 4.0.
Originality/value
The findings of this study contribute to the body of knowledge related to Quality 4.0 and help organisations in their digital transformation journey. In addition, it is one of the first studies to investigate the key factors for Quality 4.0 sustainability.
Details
Keywords
Julianita Maria Scaranello Simões, José Carlos de Toledo and Fabiane Letícia Lizarelli
Front-line lean leadership is critical for implementing and sustaining lean production systems (LPS). The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationships between front-line…
Abstract
Purpose
Front-line lean leadership is critical for implementing and sustaining lean production systems (LPS). The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationships between front-line lean leader (FLL) capacities (cognitive, social, motivational, knowledge and experience), lean leader practices (developing people and supporting daily kaizen) and the degree of implementation of lean tools (pull system, involvement of employees and process control) in manufacturing companies.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey was conducted with FLLs from large Brazilian manufacturing companies. The survey collected 103 responses, 99 of which were validated. Data were analyzed using partial least squares structural equation modeling.
Findings
There was a positive, significant and direct relationship between FLL capacities, leadership practices and a degree of implementation of LPS tools on the shop floor. The validated model is a reference base for planning FLL capacities and practices that result in more effectively implementing LPS on the shop floor.
Practical implications
The findings provide managers with a new perspective on the importance of the development and training of FLLs focusing on leadership capacities. As decisions about developing lean capabilities impact the application of Lean leadership practices and the use of lean tools, they are also related to day-to-day lean activities and improved operational results. Additionally, the proposed model can be used by managers as a basis to diagnose, develop and select lean leaders.
Originality/value
This study seeks to fill a theoretical gap of knowledge on front-line lean leadership as it jointly addresses and empirically analyzes the existing relationships between lean leadership capacities, encompassing the perspective of psychology, lean practices and tools on the shop floor.
Details
Keywords
With increasing globalization, the importance of referring to cross-cultural contexts is also amplifying in the contemporary era. The models, framework and dimensions devoted to…
Abstract
Purpose
With increasing globalization, the importance of referring to cross-cultural contexts is also amplifying in the contemporary era. The models, framework and dimensions devoted to such situations are increasingly mannered in practice today. With due consideration derivation to the input manner, an organization’s performance is also taken aside for its increasing marginality. The following study aims to examine the American multinational oil and gas company operating in Kuwait's oil sector to evaluate the respect. The branch has a total of 600 employees, which were all included in the data collection phase. Hence, the results derived with cumulative aspects of leadership, power distance and organizational value as their impact on human resource management (HRM) functions.
Design/methodology/approach
Through the quantitative approach of a self-adapted questionnaire, 101 responses were collected, and through SPSS Version 22, results were discreet.
Findings
The results reverted with the manual that the cultural dimension of Hofstede, i.e. power distance, did not have an apparent impact on the HRM functions. Whilst leadership and organizational values had their dissolved set of effects on HRM functions of the chosen firm. However, HRM functions were apparent enough to have its impact upon leadership, power distance (PD) and organizational value accumulated. Opening to the opportunities where in the future studies, a greater extent of population as well as variables could be considered for a better impact.
Research limitations/implications
The Major limitation of the study is related to the number of respondents as the research was conducted solely for the chosen branch of this private oil and gas firm in Kuwait, which makes its results limited and narrowed in the analysis phase. Moreover, the methodology selection did not do justice to the resulting research’s agenda, which was restricted due to the pandemic’s situation. Where with a better and respective methodology approach, better results could be attached.
Originality/value
The rationale of research refers to the gap concerning theoretical aspects within a field of business. As for the resulting study, in a cross-cultural management setting, the relevancy and implication of HRM functions concerning their transparency have not been explored. Globally, in different industries, the, study of similar nature has been conducted but has not examined, the fossil fuel industry particularly, which would be the focal point of this research.
Details