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The purpose of this paper is to propose a maturity model to improve warehouse performance.

This paper will follow De Bruin et al’s (2005) suggested six relevant phases: scope, design, populate, test, deploy and maintain in developing the proposed maturity model. This study concentrates on the first five phases.

The proposed warehouse maturity model can be used as descriptive, benchmarking and a prescriptive with a road map for improvement.

The warehouse maturity model was proposed to let warehouse managers evaluate their practices and assess them by maturity level. Then, the proposed warehouse maturity model can be utilized to develop a set of plans for conducting projects to improve the warehouse practices, techniques and tools.

The proposed warehouse maturity model contributes to fill the shortages of maturity model addressing the warehouse environment. In particular, it provides a useful tool to establish the overall maturity level of a warehouse system. The proposed maturity model supports strategic decisions oriented toward improvement capabilities of the warehouse and to compete based on service level provided.

The aim of this study is to investigate and examine the impact of strategic purchasing practices (SPP) on strategic-fit (SF) by analyzing the influence of SPP on purchasing involvement in business strategy formulation with path-goal theory leadership styles as moderators.

Using survey data from 320 respondents representing 64 manufacturing firms in the Middle East, the authors measure SPP, purchasing involvement, leadership styles and SF of the purchasing function with business strategy.

Building on the path-goal approach to leadership, results suggest that participative, supportive and achievement-oriented leadership (AOL) styles are pure moderators, while directive leadership style (DLS) is a quasi-moderator in boosting the relationship between SPP and strategic purchasing involvement (SPI).

Limitations of the sampling methodology and sample size restricts the scope for generalizing the hypotheses. Further, data were collected only from manufacturing companies. The paper provides managerial implications on purchasing involvement in business strategy formulation and the different roles of leadership styles.

This is the first scholarly work to examine the different leadership styles as a moderator that affects the strategic involvement and status of strategic purchasing.

Recent literature recognizes the role of warehouses in enhancing the overall logistics performance. Thus, lean thinking has recently found its way in supporting warehouse and distribution centre operations. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships among warehouse waste reduction practices, warehouse operational performance, distribution performance and business performance.

A two-stage study was conducted. First, a Delphi technique was adopted to develop a relevant questionnaire. Second, this questionnaire was used to measure the degree of waste reduction in the different warehouse activities and to test the developed research hypotheses. The authors test the hypotheses with a sample of Middle Eastern warehouse operators.

There exists a positive relationship between warehouse waste reduction level and both warehouse operational performance and distribution performance. There was no direct relationship between warehouse waste reduction level and business performance. However, results revealed that the relationship between warehouse waste reduction level and business performance was mediated by warehouse operational performance and distribution performance.

The developed instrument provides a guide for logistics managers as to understand how to reduce waste in each warehousing activity. The results also inform logistics managers of how distribution performance can be improved through lean warehousing. The resulting performance improvements in the distribution operations will ultimately be reflected in the logistics performance of downstream retailers.

The study develops an original instrument for measuring waste reduction in warehouses, and provides insights into the evolving lean warehousing research area. This is the first scholarly work to uncover the relationships among warehouse waste reduction practices, warehouse operational performance, distribution performance and business performance.

Although recent research acknowledges the importance of reducing the inefficient activities from road transportation, there is still a missing link in literature of how transportation extended wastes impact road haulers efficiency. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between waste reduction practices (WRP) and fleet operational efficiency (FOE) in road hauler firms.

A theoretical model was developed to assess this relationship. The authors test the model with a sample from logistics companies providing road haulage services in the Middle East, providing a contribution to extant literature from a different setting.

Results suggest that WRP have a positive and significant impact on FOE. A valuable scale for the measurement of operational efficiency was developed and validated, representing an index toward the most efficient organization.

The findings of this study serves as a tool for shippers to benchmark the efficiency levels of their motor carrier service providers against each other, considering that segmentation is a relevant issue to understand the choice in favor of a given provider to the detriment of another. Furthermore, road haulers can use the efficiency measurements as a basis for establishing future action plans to adopt waste reduction practices.

The research deals with a newly emerging stream of research on linking waste practices to road transport. The authors contribute to this developing body of research through filling a gap in the link between waste and road transport operational performance. The research is also different from recent literature in that the authors provide insights from a larger population, unlike other similar studies who used VSM and studied only a particular case. Thus, the work is important to generalize the findings, especially that the authors provide a perspective from a non-western perspective.

Organizations have varied levels of success with Lean implementation and many did not see tangible results. Some scholars believe the reason has to do with weak Lean culture or Lean values (LVs). The purpose of this paper is to study the relationship between Lean implementation practices and LVs. The research goes further to study the nature of this relationship; does LVs affect Lean practices only or do they affect each other in a reciprocal manner?

Literature regarding Lean implementation in various sectors was reviewed. Representatives from several organizations were surveyed. Results from both approaches are compared and presented to highlight the key challenges and drivers facing Lean implementation.

Lean works well on enhancing organization performance (OP) but the implementation has to be preceded by careful nourishment of the proper Lean culture and LVs. The relationship between Lean implementation and LVs is of a complex nature and driven by OP.

The study has important managerial implications that is if Lean is going to be sustained, continuous efforts has to be exerted by Lean professionals to engage leaders and decision makers in the organization and ensure proper values are nurtured.

This is the first study to examine the reciprocal relationship between Lean implementation practices and LVs while focusing on OP by employing a structural statistical model.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the benefits of integrating IT tracking and routing systems into last-mile distribution operations. The paper also demonstrates the role of field experiments as a valid approach for improving the rigour of logistics research.

The study employs a field experiment approach. Data were collected before and after the experimental treatment from 16 participating vehicles, which were used as inputs and outputs to calculate vehicles' efficiencies using data envelopment analysis.

Through employing manipulation and random assignment to investigate causality in naturally occurring contexts, the study results show statistical evidence for the role of vehicle tracking and routing systems in enhancing fleet efficiency. Furthermore, results show that field experiment is an appropriate method for capital budgeting of deploying IT systems in the distribution function.

Distribution managers can use a field experiment setup to assess the potential impact of installing IT solutions prior to large-scale implementation or prior to purchasing.

The study fills a gap in the literature through the application of a field experiment approach to establish causality relationships in distribution and logistics research. This study should encourage new research on the role of field experimentation in evaluating the benefits gained from, and the capital budgeting of, the modern disruptive technologies in supply chains.

This paper focuses on quantifying and ranking the “7-Deadly” Wastes in the warehouse environment. The purpose of this paper is to develop a prioritized road map that would guide the implementation of the “7-Deadly” Wastes and their related waste-reduction practices in a warehouse environment for improving warehouse operational performance.

A four-stage approach was used to achieve the objectives of the study. A Delphi technique was employed to develop indicators of waste-reduction practices at the warehouse activities level and categorize them according to the “7-Deadly” wastes. Whereas categories ranked based on statistical analysis, a regression analysis was used to explore the impacts of this ranking.

The results of the regression analysis showed a significant influence of the ranked “7-Deadly” wastes on warehouse operational performance. The paper develops a road map for implementing waste-reduction practices in the warehouse.

The paper proposes a road map comprising warehouse waste categories. It develops an integrated approach to quantify, rank and prioritize initiatives to adopt the categories of the “7-Deadly” Wastes that would (not) affect warehouse operational performance.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between total quality management (TQM) practices and banks’ technical efficiency.

A survey questionnaire was constructed to measure TQM practices and quantitative data were collected to measure banks’ technical efficiency. The respondents were required to indicate their degree of implementation of quality management practices in the survey instrument. Organizational performance was indicated by quantitatively measuring banks’ technical efficiency using data envelopment methodology.

The study found that there is a relationship between TQM practices and organizational performance, as measured by banks’ technical efficiency. Furthermore, the TQM practices of human resources management and technical systems would appear to be important practices in impacting banks’ technical efficiency.

This study only considered commercial banks registered in the first market of Amman Stock Exchange due to quantitative data availability. Also, due to data envelopment analysis methodology of homogeneous, Islamic banks were excluded from the study. It can be argued, however, that the surrogating of different organizational performance in one measurement such as technical efficiency and which TQM practices have the strongest impact on such a measure can offer possibly different facets of a single phenomena such as TQM.

Although research on the relationship was investigated by relating TQM practices and a single organizational performance, but no research have surrogated many organizational performance in one measurement such as technical efficiency.

This paper proposes a policy analysis framework for a University system that incorporates benchmarking technique to design effective policies for closing the gaps in performance. Once a university adopts a policy, decision‐makers must evaluate the effectiveness of the policy in achieving desired performances. Incorporating benchmarking techniques into the developed dynamic framework can identify the gaps in performance and a feedback mechanism to develop effective policies for closing the gaps. In this paper benchmarking is utilized as an indicator and a change agent to design effective policies. The proposed dynamic framework is developed using a system dynamics approach.

The purpose of this paper is to propose and validate a framework that can be used for assessing the level of banks' readiness for providing e‐banking services in Jordan.

A questionnaire‐based data‐gathering technique, descriptive, and analytical analyses are used.

This study has used three constructs to propose a framework that can assess e‐banking readiness: perceptions of bankers, perceptions of customers, and IT infrastructure in banks. However, there is evidence in this paper to support that e‐banking has achieved a degree of strategic and operational importance among bank managers. Also, customers are positive about embracing new banking channels. But it seems that technological aspects and IT employees' skills are paramount concerns.

This paper proposes a comprehensive framework to gauge banks' readiness to offer e‐banking services. Also, it suggests that future work could entail investigating the readiness from financial aspects, and the effect of marketing campaigns on customer's acceptance of using e‐banking services.

The findings presented in this paper can be used by banks to evaluate their readiness to provide e‐banking services to their customers. Also, banks can create a readiness profile, in order to pinpoint strengths and weaknesses of their e‐banking services.

This paper adds to readiness studies by providing a framework to assess e‐banking services. It is of interest to researchers to add to this framework and of interest to banks to evaluate services provided to customers.