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The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of soft and hard quality management (QM) practices on innovation performance, considering innovation practices as a contextual variable mediating this relationship.

Using data from 132 Brazilian manufacturing companies, partial least square–structural equation modeling (PLS–SEM) is employed to test if soft and hard QM practices, directly, affect innovation practices and, indirectly, innovation performance. This investigation also aims to identify whether the relationships are maintained regardless of the size of the company.

The results suggest that soft QM has a positive effect on hard QM. However, only soft QM, not hard QM, has a significant effect on innovation practices. Additionally, soft QM has a significant positive effect on innovation performance through innovation practices. Company size does not influence the relationships.

The findings can help managers to adjust their managerial practices to enhance the effective impact of QM on innovation performance.

The previous literature presents conflicting results on the relationship between QM and innovation performance. Most studies have proposed a direct relationship between both constructs. This study considers innovation practices as a mediator in this relationship. Furthermore, this paper adds to the scarce literature reporting related studies conducted in developing countries.

This paper investigates whether adopting continuous improvement (CI) behaviors is related to better radical and incremental product and process innovation performance and identifies whether CI behaviors positively affect respondent perceptions on CI contributions to innovation performance.

Data were collected from 139 firms in Brazil, and cluster analysis was used to identify groups with different CI adoption levels. The nonparametric Wilcoxon–Mann–Whitney test was used to verify differences in innovation performance at companies via manager perceptions on CI and innovation.

Data show that more CI behavior implementation was associated with better product and process innovation performance. Furthermore, companies with more mature CI behavior levels innovate more, which may reinforce CI investments.

Organizational managers focused on innovation should dedicate time to evaluating and developing CI behaviors, and maturing CI philosophies to improve performance. This study can contribute to the literature by offering insights for developing public policies, especially for emerging economies, or for companies seeking to become more competitive, since CI can foster and promote a culture of long-term innovation.

Despite the fact that a relationship between CI and operational performance has already been established, there is still a lack of research that identifies the impacts of CI behavior on innovation. Focusing on CI behavior is important because it can be fostered by various programs and improvement initiatives, highlighting paths for managerial practices and academia. This study was conducted for an emerging economy.

There is increasing interest in the connection between Industry 4.0 (I4.0) and operational excellence approaches; however, studies on the integration between Six Sigma (SS) and I4.0 have been absent from the literature. Integration with I4.0 technologies can maximize the positive effects of SS. The purpose of this study is to understand what types of relationships exist between SS and I4.0 and with I4.0's technologies, as well as the benefits derived from this integration and future directions for this field of study.

A Systematic Literature Review (SLR) was carried out to analyze studies about connections between I4.0 technologies and SS. SLR analyzed 59 articles from 2013 to 2021 extracted from the Web of Science and Scopus databases, including documents from journals and conferences.

The SLR identified relationships between SS and several I4.0 technologies, the most cited and with the greatest possibilities of relationships being Big Data/Big Data Analytics (BDA) and Internet of Things (IoT). Three main types of relationships were identified: (1) support of I4.0 technologies to SS; (2) assistance from the SS to the introduction of I4.0 technologies, and, to a lesser extent; (3) incompatibilities between SS and I4.0 technologies. The benefits are mainly related to availability of large data sets and real-time information, enabling better decision-making in less time.

In addition, the study can help managers to understand the integration relationships, which may encourage companies to adopt SS/Lean Six Sigma (LSS) in conjunction with I4.0 technologies. The results also drew attention to the incompatibilities between SS and I4.0 to anticipate potential barriers to implementation.

The study focuses on three previously unexplored subjects: the connection between SS and I4.0, the existing relationships with different technologies and the benefits resulting from the relationships. In addition, the study compiled and structured different types of relationships for SS and I4.0 and I4.0's technologies, identifying patterns and presenting evidence on how these relationships occur. Finally, exposes current trends and possible research directions.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the evolution of the literature on technology transfer and culture, identifying the main contents of the current body of knowledge encompassing culture and technology transfer (TT), thus contributing to a better understanding of the relationship between TT and culture based on bibliometric and multivariate statistical analyses of the relevant body of literature.

Data for this study were collected from the Web of Science (WoS) Core Collection database. Based on a bibliometric analysis and in-depth empirical review of major TT subjects, supported by multivariate statistical analyses, over 200 articles were systematically reviewed. The use of these methods decreases biases since it adds rigor to the subjective evaluation of the relevant literature base.

The exploratory analysis of the articles shows that first, culture is an important topic for TT in the literature; second, the publication data demonstrate a great dynamism regarding the different contexts in which culture is covered in the TT literature and third, in the last couple of years the interest of stimulating a TT culture in the context of universities has continuously grown.

This study focuses on culture in the context of TT and identifies the main contents of the body of knowledge in the area. Based on this first insight, obtained through more detailed bibliometric and multivariate analyses, it is now important to develop and validate a theory on TT culture, emphasizing the dimensions of organizational culture, entrepreneurial culture and a culture of openness that fosters economic and societal spillovers, and to link those dimensions to the performance of TT activities.

From the practical point of view, managers in companies and universities should be aware of the importance of identifying those dimensions of culture that contribute most to the success of their TT activities.

Despite several literature reviews on the TT topic, no studies focusing specifically on culture in the context of TT have been developed. Therefore, given the multifaceted nature of the research field, this study aims to expand and to deepen the analysis of the TT literature by focusing on culture as an important and commonly cited element influencing TT performance.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate if a firm’s organizational culture affects the set of quality techniques it uses, and if these quality techniques affect the relationship between organizational culture and operational performance.

Based on data collected from 250 firms in Brazil and Denmark, structural equation modeling is used to investigate the relationship between organizational culture and the use of quality techniques, and its impact on operational performance. Four quality technique groups, four cultural profiles adopted from the Competing Values Framework and a set of operational performance indicators are used to operationalize the study.

Culture does not appear to be an unequivocal predictor of the use of quality techniques. Furthermore, while most quality technique groups contribute indirectly to the total effect on operational performance in the developmental, group and hierarchical cultures, the performance effects are insignificant for all four groups in the rational culture.

Managers need to be actively aware of the cultural characteristics of their organization before adopting quality techniques, in order to benefit most from the use of these techniques.

Most previous studies address the relationships between culture, quality management and performance at the level of quality practices. This study takes the unitarist-pluralist discussion to the level of quality techniques and extends that discussion to what should be its core, namely, the influence of quality techniques on the performance impact of culture.