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21 – 30 of over 266000Examines the ninth published year of the ITCRR. Runs the whole gamut of textile innovation, research and testing, some of which investigates hitherto untouched aspects. Subjects…
Abstract
Examines the ninth published year of the ITCRR. Runs the whole gamut of textile innovation, research and testing, some of which investigates hitherto untouched aspects. Subjects discussed include cotton fabric processing, asbestos substitutes, textile adjuncts to cardiovascular surgery, wet textile processes, hand evaluation, nanotechnology, thermoplastic composites, robotic ironing, protective clothing (agricultural and industrial), ecological aspects of fibre properties – to name but a few! There would appear to be no limit to the future potential for textile applications.
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Peter E. Johansson, Jessica Bruch, Koteshwar Chirumalla, Christer Osterman and Lina Stålberg
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of paradoxes, underlying tensions and potential management strategies when integrating digital technologies into existing…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to advance the understanding of paradoxes, underlying tensions and potential management strategies when integrating digital technologies into existing lean-based production systems (LPSs), with the aim of achieving synergies and fostering the development of production systems.
Design/methodology/approach
This study adopts a collaborative management research (CMR) approach to identify patterns of organisational tensions and paradoxes and explore management strategies to overcome them. The data were collected through interviews and focus group interviews with experts on lean and/or digital technologies from the companies, from documents and from workshops with the in-case researchers.
Findings
The findings of this paper provide insights into the salient organisational paradoxes embraced in the integration of digital technologies in LPS by identifying different aspects of the performing, organising, learning and belonging paradoxes. Furthermore, the findings demonstrate the intricacies and relatedness between different paradoxes and their resolutions, and more specifically, how a resolution strategy adopted to manage one paradox might unintentionally generate new tensions. This, in turn, calls for either re-contextualising actions to counteract the drift or the adoption of new resolution strategies.
Originality/value
This paper adds perspective to operations management (OM) research through the use of paradox theory, and we (1) provide a fine-grained perspective on why integration sometimes “fails” and label the forces of internal drift as mechanisms of imbalances and (2) provide detailed insights into how different management and resolution strategies are adopted, especially by identifying re-contextualising actions as a key to rebalancing organisational paradoxes in favour of the integration of digital technologies in LPSs.
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Rupak Rauniar, Greg Rawski, Qing Ray Cao and Samhita Shah
Drawing upon a systematic literature review in new technology, innovation transfer and diffusion theories, and from interviews with technology leaders in digital transformation…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing upon a systematic literature review in new technology, innovation transfer and diffusion theories, and from interviews with technology leaders in digital transformation programs in the US Oil & Gas (O&G) industry, the authors explore the relationships among O&G industry dynamics, organization's absorptive capacity and resource commitment for new digital technology adoption-implementation process.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors employed the empirical survey method to gather the data (a sample size of 172) in the US O&G industry and used structural equation modeling (SEM) to test the measurement model for validity and reliability and the conceptual model for hypothesized structural relationships.
Findings
The results provide support for the study’s causal model of adoption and implementation with positive and direct relationships between the initiation and trial stages, between the trial stages and the evaluation of effective outcomes and between the effective outcomes and the effective implementation stages of digital technologies. The results also reveal partial mediating relationships of industry dynamics, absorptive capacity and resource commitment between respective stages.
Practical implications
Based on the current study's findings, managers are recommended to pay attention to the evolving industry dynamics during the initiation stage of new digital technology adoption, to utilize the organization's knowledge-based absorptive capacity during digital technology trial and selection stages and to support the digital technology implementation project when the adoption decision of a particular digital technology has been made.
Originality/value
The empirical research contributes literature on digital technology adoption and implementation by identifying and demonstrating the importance of industry dynamics, absorptive capacity and resource commitment factors as mediating variables at various stages of the adoption-implementation process and empirically validating a process-based causal model of digital technology adoption and a successful implementation project that has been missing in the current body of literature on digital transformation.
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Astrid Heidemann Lassen and Brian Vejrum Waehrens
The purpose of this paper is to determine how companies develop and acquire competences to capture the benefits of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies. The authors argue that this is…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to determine how companies develop and acquire competences to capture the benefits of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies. The authors argue that this is a fundamental and often overlooked prerequisite for industrial transformation.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conduct a process study of 33 small- and medium-sized companies engaged in the transformation of a manufacturing industry from the different perspectives of manufacturers or manufacturing solution providers.
Findings
Key findings indicate a strong link between the specific competence development approach, the specific intricacies of the application domain and the process outcomes. On this basis, a competence development framework is proposed.
Research limitations/implications
The conclusions are drawn from a Danish population of companies in the manufacturing industry and are based on particular contingencies, such as low volume/high mix, high skill, low tech and high cost. However, the findings are believed to be applicable across different sets of contingencies where the need to combine legacy and emerging technologies is present, and where the human factor is central to leveraging technology beyond predefined supplier specifications.
Practical implications
In a time of extraordinary investments in the manufacturing of technologies in support of digital transformation, the development of strategic and operational competences to support these investments is lagging behind. This paper develops a conceptual outset for closing this gap.
Originality/value
The research is based on the fundamental argument that to efficiently apply new technology, a strategic approach to the acquisition of new knowledge and skills is required. The empirical research demonstrates that new skills and knowledge are often assumed to follow automatically from the use of new technologies. However, we demonstrate that this perspective in fact limits the ability to capture the potential benefits ascribed to I4.0 technologies. The authors propose that the competence strategy needs to be expansive and cover not only the technological competences but also the organizational- and individual-level competences. These results add to our understanding of how the digital transformation of manufacturing companies unfolds.
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New technologies are revolutionising the world of work. They have already become an integral part of organisations throughout the world, driving the growth of the two most…
Abstract
New technologies are revolutionising the world of work. They have already become an integral part of organisations throughout the world, driving the growth of the two most powerful new forces in the global economy – cyberspace and computing power. In turn, these are creating formidable new challenges for all organisations. This article describes these new and emergent technologies. It then looks at their effects on traditional “second‐wave” organisations and management practices in recent years and their potential impact over the next 20 years. It goes on to examine some ways that leaders of organisations can deal with the impact of new technologies on their organisations and employees. It concludes by leaving the reader with some, as yet, unanswered questions about these new technologies and their possible effects on organisations in the near future.
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Paweł Mielcarek and Adam Dymitrowski
The purpose of this paper is to analyse the significance and impact of different resource types and their features on the operation of business model innovation (BMI) based on new…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to analyse the significance and impact of different resource types and their features on the operation of business model innovation (BMI) based on new technologies and their effects. Specifically, the relationships of nine different types of resources, as well as their features in terms of VRIO and VARIM concepts, and 10 BMI effects of operation were examined. The significance and impact of resources on the operation of BMI are pretty well established in the literature. However, when the analysis is narrowed down to BMI based on new technologies, there is very little research in this field. This is partly because of the subject’s novelty and the wide range and complexity of this phenomenon.
Design/methodology/approach
The research covers 483 Polish companies that implement BMI based on new technology. For gathering data, the computer-assisted telephone interview method was used. Analysis is based on Spearman correlation. Results meet the requirement of p-value = 0.01 and are statistically significant and representative.
Findings
The main findings of this paper is that there is a need for building interdependency and synergy between individual types and features of resources and thus properly arrange and orchestrate them to succeed. Moreover, there are several patterns that stand out from the analysis, with the leading role of employees, technology, dynamic capabilities and know-how being the key enablers of BMI transformation.
Practical implications
The paper presents several compounds and relationships that shed light on the application and effects of BMI based on new technologies in terms of resource utilization, which can help business owners and senior managers to make consistent decisions in matching and orchestrating resources.
Originality/value
This study clarifies theoretical concepts building a resource-based view (VRIO, VARIM, dynamic capabilities, etc.) and their impact on BMI based on new technology. The results expand and complement existing research by shedding new light on resource utilization and orchestration.
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Khaldoon Al-Htaybat, Khaled Hutaibat and Larissa von Alberti-Alhtaybat
The purpose of this paper is to explore the intersection of accounting practices and new technologies in the age of agility as a form of intellectual capital, through sharing the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore the intersection of accounting practices and new technologies in the age of agility as a form of intellectual capital, through sharing the conceptualization and real implications of accounting and accountability ideas in exploring and deploying new technologies, such as big data analytics, blockchain and augmented accounting practices and expounding how they constitute new forms of intellectual capital to support value creation and realise Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Design/methodology/approach
The adopted methodology is cyber-ethnography, which investigates online practices through observation and discourse analysis, reflecting on new business models and practices, and how accounting relates to these developments. The global brain sets the conceptual context, which reflects the distributed network intelligence that is created through the internet.
Findings
The main findings focus on various developments of accounting practice that reflect, utilise or support digital companies and new technologies, including augmentation, big data analytics and blockchain technology, as new forms of intellectual capital, that is knowledge and skills within organisations, that have the potential to support value creation and realise SDGs. These relate to and originate from the global brain, which constitutes the umbrella of tech-related intellectual capital.
Originality/value
This paper determines new developments in accounting practices in relation to new technologies, due to the continuous expansion and influence of the intelligence of the collective network, the global brain, as forms of intellectual capital, contributing to value creation, sustainable development and the realisation of SDGs.
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Arne Isaksen, Michaela Trippl, Nina Kyllingstad and Jan Ole Rypestøl
This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for analysing wide-ranging digital transformation processes of industries in regional contexts.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for analysing wide-ranging digital transformation processes of industries in regional contexts.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper includes theoretical work to create a conceptual framework. The paper illustrates and advances the framework by analysing examples from two clusters, one focused on the production of digital products and services and one centred on applying digital tools to make firms’ existing activities more efficient.
Findings
The paper distinguishes between three main and interlinked categories of digitalisation; development of scientific principles that form the basis for developing digital technologies; making of digital products and services; and application of these in production and work processes. Digital transformation of industries located in particular regions relate to changes of (regional) innovation systems. The authors interpret this as processes of asset modification, distinguishing between re-use of existing assets, creation of new assets and (strategic) destruction of outdated assets. Digital transformation may lead to various forms of innovation and path development activities in regional economies.
Practical implications
The paper highlights the importance of modification of assets in organisations and at the level of regional innovation systems to support digitalisation. Organisations need to build absorptive capacity for digitalisation. Regional innovation systems face the challenge to build relevant common assets.
Originality/value
The paper advocates a comprehensive framework to better understand how digital transformation unfolds. It challenges established economic geography approaches, which propagate firm-based views and centre stage skill and technological relatedness. An alternative conceptual framework for scrutinising digital transformation processes in industries in regional contexts is presented.
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Riccardo Rialti, Anna Marrucci, Lamberto Zollo and Cristiano Ciappei
The aim of this research was to explore the mechanisms underpinning open innovation (OI) success and its sustainability in agrifood businesses. First, the authors explored the…
Abstract
Purpose
The aim of this research was to explore the mechanisms underpinning open innovation (OI) success and its sustainability in agrifood businesses. First, the authors explored the importance of 4.0 technologies in data collection from crowds, subsequently examining how new technologies might drive forward the development of collaborative strategies with suppliers. Reductions in resource wasting were observed. The role of 4.0 technologies in increasing supply chain sustainability overall was the main focus of the study.
Design/methodology/approach
This research builds on a single inductive case study method. The authors performed an in-depth analysis of data from an Italian agritech distributor. Data – aside from multiple semi-structured interviews – were collected via several different sources. The results have been summarized in an integrated holistic conceptual framework.
Findings
The findings show that 4.0 technologies allow for swift information exchanges between consumers, the agritech business and suppliers. As a result, consumers might demand new products and, consequently, the agritech business can arrange new offerings with suppliers, completing the OI and shared value creation circle. Likewise, the possibility of adopting a just-in-time approach of sorts may reduce the wasting of resources. The absorptive capacities and knowledge management capabilities of the agritech business play a fundamental role in OI performance, sustainability and success.
Originality/value
This research seminally explores how 4.0 technologies and knowledge management techniques can enable OI in agrifood businesses. Additionally, the ways in which OI may foster the development of sustainability-orientated supply chain strategies have been conceptualized.
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