Search results

The main thrust of this article is to discuss a survey of 60 companies, predominantly from the user’s perspective, that use the Internet currently; and to examine the effectiveness of their current Internet Web sites. The results of an online survey were subjected to statistical analysis and this revealed some interesting findings. It was found that 30 percent of the companies had facilities for conducting transactions online and only 7 percent charged users for Web site access. Overall, the Web sites rated highly in terms of ease of access, content and structure but scored poorly for their number of unique features. Of the six industry sectors surveyed (electronic commerce, entertainment and leisure, financial and banking services, information services, retailing and travel and tourism), it was the retailing sector that showed the best overall performance. The best individual Web site in the survey was the Financial Times (http://www.ft.com). It is suggested that this initial survey work could be advanced by extending the sample size and by devising a programme of more extensive statistical analysis.

Small and medium‐sized firms (SMFs) can make valuable economic and social contributions through their distinctive capabilities for innovation. However, SMFs rarely possess adequate R&D resources and are therefore dependent upon external technological information. We believe that collaboration between higher education institutions (HEIs) and SMFs has considerable potential for strengthening innovatory activity in the UK. However, very little detailed information is available about the process of technology transfer from the perspectives of HEIs and SMFs. This paper examines ways in which HEIs establish links with SMFs as a means of commercializing their scientific and technological research. A questionnaire was used to obtain data from 37 HEIs on technological alliances with SMFs. In addition, a number of interviews were carried out with individuals responsible for marketing HEI science and technology.

The rapid changes in the environment have exerted significant pressures on healthcare providers to reassess their strategies. Furthermore, it is a paradox that the best clinicians are, themselves, not the best managers in running the healthcare services. Hence, a management model is set up using quality function deployment (QFD) where strategies are developed through a partnership between managers and clinicians for the provision of total quality healthcare in the light of dramatic changes in the health‐care environment. The QFD‐led model consists of seven parts, which includes service planning, operational planning and new concepts deployment. The power of the QFD‐led model comes from the detailed discussions with customers about their expectations, comparisons with competitors and considerations of how the healthcare provider can meet the customers’ expectations most effectively. The application of QFD in a restructured regional acute‐care hospital is discussed.

Today, hospitals not only have to contend with the dynamics of regulation and market forces but most importantly “service quality”. Service quality is a measure of how well the total service package meets customers’ expectations. The abilities to identify and prioritize customers’ expectations and to perform existing process assessment are important elements of a successful quality improvement strategy. The inherent characteristics of services complicate the efforts for quality improvement. Quality function deployment (QFD) is a systematic technique for designing services or products that are based on customers’ expectations. Given the proven success of QFD in manufacturing, this paper explores the applicability of QFD in health care. It describes the QFD technique and how it leads to a better understanding of customers’ expectations. It presents recommendations and a generic framework that is supported by empirical findings as a reference model for hospitals.

Evaluates a simulation approach to measuring supply chain performance which incorporates order release theory. Within manufacturing a number of order release mechanisms have been developed. The importance of order release is first examined and its applicability to monitoring the performance of the supply chain is proposed. A simulation model of a typical, single channel logistics network was developed. Using the simulation model, each of the order release mechanisms was assessed and close agreement was obtained with the work of previous researchers. A new order release approach is proposed which is found to be superior to those analysed previously and should lead to improved supply chain performance.

Reviews the wide range of perspectives on the nature, scope and implications of computer integrated manufacturing (CIM). Presents the main deliverable of a three‐year programme of research conducted by the Keele Advanced Manufacturing Group. Entitled CIMple (Computer Integrated Manufacturing Programmed Learning Environment), it comprises a hypermedia‐based and business‐oriented design methodology to assist the user in the analysis, design and implementation of CIM systems. Presents both the underlying models within the methodology and information on how CIMple is used in practice.

In the past few years a considerable amount of research knowledge regarding organizational change and concurrent engineering (CE) has been accumulated. Suggests that organizational growth provides a framework for the emergence of CE techniques. Organizational growth demands CE and it is important to consider how changes to the organizational structure can best enhance the implementation of CE principles.

In today’s highly competitive healthcare environment, hospitals increasingly realise the need to focus on service quality as a means to improve their competitive position. Customer‐based determinants and perceptions of service quality therefore play an important role when choosing a hospital. This paper attempts to determine the expectations and perceptions of patients through the use of a generic, internationally used market research technique called SERVQUAL. An analysis covering 252 patients revealed that there was an overall service quality gap between patients’ expectations and perceptions. Thus, improvements are required across all the six dimensions, namely, tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy and accessibility and affordability.

Singapore's electronics manufacturers are facing many questions. In the computer hard‐drive industry, where the problem of obsolescence is common and where a product's lifecycle may be only six months, manufacturers are anxious to know what the next order‐winning criteria will be. Since low labour costs are no longer a key factor, many organisations are developing their competencies in research and development, sales and marketing, logistics and supply chain management in order to maintain competitiveness. This paper illustrates how Seagate has envisaged a climate of cooperation and collaboration to better serve its customers in the areas of technology, cost and delivery. The paper is based on observations and findings following a longitudinal case study approach at the Seagate Storage Product Group (SPG) in Singapore. The seven‐stage implementation framework adopted by Seagate in their SCM project is discussed, together with the process of how Seagate has created a paradigm shift towards a new culture of teamwork‐based collaboration.