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As an operating philosophy, TQM has crossed departmental and disciplinary boundaries as a way to increase productivity and improve quality. Information Systems Managers, particularly those supporting legacy systems,face substantial challenges in an organization implementing TQM. A principle philosophy of TQM is that of continuous improvement resulting in a continuous stream of change requests for the IS department. IS managers must understand this as a source of the increase in change requests and seek ways to successfully manage them. In the short run, one method is active participation on the quality teams suggesting such changes. The long run, however, requires a proactive stance by the IS department that includes implementation of the TQM philosophy throughout its own ranks. Otherwise, the IS department will continue to be stressed by an avalanche of change requests and viewed as a roadblock to successful TQM implementation.

Maintains that, although service industries would benefit from research concerning the implementation of just‐in‐time (JIT) techniques, most research has focused on JIT only in manufacturing firms. A review of applied journals and articles, however, revealed JIT concepts migrating to non‐manufacturing environments. These articles describe JIT techniques successfully moving from the factory floor to other environments and suggest a potentially rich research opportunity. Summarizes these articles using Benson′s guidelines for applying JIT in service. Illustrates various JIT applications within each of the JIT categories.

Effective supply chain management requires sharing information between nodes of the chain. In consumer chains, this demand communication often results in a bullwhip effect as demand information becomes distorted back through the chain. Building on the work of Towill et al. and Towill and McCullen, this study evaluates the impact of consumer promotions and wholesale trade deals on the performance of a supply chain. Marketing actions alone are shown to have a significant impact on supply chains.

This paper presents an integrated conceptual model of supply chain flexibility. It examines flexibility classification schemes and the commonalities of flexibility typologies published in the literature to create a theoretical foundation for analyzing the components of supply chain flexibility. Even though there has been a tremendous amount of research on the topic of flexibility, most of it has been confined to intra‐firm flexibility concerns. As supply chain management goes beyond a firm’s boundaries, the flexibility strategies must also extend beyond the firm. This paper identifies the cross‐enterprise nature of supply chain flexibility and the need to improve flexibility measures across firms. Opportunities are identified for future cross‐functional research that builds on this theoretical foundation and leads to more effective formulation of supply chain strategies.

This special issue of Facilities on “Strategic Issues for Facilities Managers” is very different in style from the editor‐generated issues of this journal, but it has been designed to achieve a particular purpose. It focuses on the business issues about which facilities managers need to be aware in order to plan the most effective deployment of corporate physical assets. In order that readers can acquire a good understanding of a wide variety of topics in a short period of time, the material is presented in the form of précis and short articles.

In the present scenario of global competition and economic recession, most of the organizations are facing tough challenge to survive in the market because of shortening product life cycle and reducing profit margin. Customers are seeking better design, production and delivery, which have made firms to concentrate on flexibility in supply chains. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify major factors and develop a suitable framework for flexibility in supply chains.

Based on literature review, about 14 factors have been identified. To develop relationship among these factors, a team of five experts from industry and academia was formed. Based on inputs from experts, different relationships are developed among factors to form structural self-interaction matrix (SSIM). Based on this matrix, a flexibility framework is developed by interpretive structural modelling approach.

Top management commitment, strategy development for flexible SC, application of advance technology and IT tools, information sharing in SC members, trust development among supply chain members have emerged as major driving factors. Logistics and warehouse management, suppliers flexibility, distribution flexibility and manufacturing flexibility have emerged as dependent factors.

Framework developed in this study is based on interpretive structural modelling. This framework can be further validated with some case analysis and empirical findings.

Findings of the study can be useful for industry professionals to develop strategies for flexible supply chains. It will help them in taking new initiatives for making supply chains more responsive and proactive for customers demand.

Knight's Industrial Law Reports goes into a new style and format as Managerial Law This issue of KILR is restyled Managerial Law and it now appears on a continuous updating basis rather than as a monthly routine affair.

IT would be quite impossible adequately to report a Dublin conference of any kind in purely professional terms. The warm friendliness of its people demands an equally personal reaction from its visitors and for public librarians certainly this is as it should be, because we are ourselves, above all, involved with people. So professional affairs at this conference were kept in their proper place—as only a part of the whole and merely providing a framework round which the business of renewing contacts and making friends could take place.