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21 – 30 of over 233000
Article
Publication date: 22 November 2022

Sven Januszek, Julian Macuvele, Thomas Friedli and Torbjørn H. Netland

The purpose of this study is to investigate how soft lean practices moderate the performance effects of hard lean practices. The authors provide new evidence from the…

1117

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate how soft lean practices moderate the performance effects of hard lean practices. The authors provide new evidence from the pharmaceutical industry, which is characterized by a highly regulated and technical environment and has been largely uncharted in the lean literature.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a review of the literature, the authors define a set of soft and hard lean practices. The authors test the hypotheses using factor analysis and moderated hierarchical linear regression on a unique dataset containing survey data and real performance measures of 351 pharmaceutical plants.

Findings

The results show that soft lean practices can be both enabling and constraining. When management engages in performance measurement, visualisation and employee empowerment the relationship between hard lean practices and performance is positively moderated. On the other hand, when managers emphasise goal setting and work standardisation the performance outcomes are reduced.

Practical implications

Effective lean managers build organisational commitment by motivating other employees to implement lean. They use performance measurement, visualisation and employee empowerment to focus on the “why”. Less effective managers engage in commanding and micro-management. Such managers focus on the “what” by using practices like goal setting and work standardisation.

Originality/value

This article contributes to the literature on lean management by empirically testing the moderator-variable interaction effects between soft and hard lean practices. In addition, it adds new evidence from the important pharmaceutical industry.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 43 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2006

Ching‐Chow Yang

The perceived advantages of the implementation of TQM are generating improved quality and efficiency, increasing customer satisfaction, thus improving competitiveness. However…

9989

Abstract

Purpose

The perceived advantages of the implementation of TQM are generating improved quality and efficiency, increasing customer satisfaction, thus improving competitiveness. However, there is a high failure rate in the implementation of TQM. The key issue in this regard is that companies have devoted relatively little attention to human resources management (HRM). Several academics and practitioners have asserted that synergy and congruence among HRM practices are critical to the implementation of TQM. However, there is relatively little empirical evidence to support this contention. The purpose of this research is to conduct an empirical study on high‐tech firms, in order to analyse the impacts of HRM practices on the implementation of TQM.

Design/methodology/approach

In this study, a research framework related to HRM practices, TQM practices, and quality performances was developed. Based on the framework, a questionnaire was designed and sent to the HR managers or chief executive officers (CEOs) of high‐tech companies in Taiwan to investigate the effect of HRM practices on the implementation and practice of TQM.

Findings

The study confirms that HRM significantly affects TQM practices. The study concluded that HRM practices have a significantly positive effect on the implementation of TQM. Implementing HRM practices can also have a significant effect on employee and customer satisfaction. It also positively affected “employees' quality awareness” and “corporate image”. The quality performances were also significantly affected by the implementation of TQM.

Research limitations/implications

The research limitation is that the empirical study was on high‐tech firms in Taiwan only. However, the framework can be easily extended to other industries if survey results are available.

Practical implications

Overall, successful implementation of TQM can lead to an increase in customer satisfaction, and then benefit corporate image. It can also improve the satisfaction and quality awareness of employees. Enterprises that devote themselves to the implementation of TQM also need to perform HRM aggressively, if they are to increase the firm's performance significantly.

Originality/value

In this research, a conceptual framework related to HRM practices and TQM practices was developed, which is a valuable reference for future research. This study confirms the impacts of HRM practices on the implementation of TQM, and several key practices can be investigated.

Details

The TQM Magazine, vol. 18 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0954-478X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 20 June 2016

Lorena Ronda, Andrea Ollo-López and Salomé Goñi-Legaz

This paper aims to establish to what extent family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices are positively related to work–family balance and to identify the role…

3533

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to establish to what extent family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices are positively related to work–family balance and to identify the role played by job satisfaction and working hours as mediators of this relationship

Design/methodology/approach

We use data for a representative sample of almost 17,000 employees of dual-earner couples from European countries. To test the mediation mechanism implied by our hypotheses, we follow the procedure outlined in Baron and Kenny (1986). Given the nature of the dependent variables, ordered probit and regression models were estimated in the analysis.

Findings

The results show that, in general, family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices increase work–family balance and that these positive relationships are partially mediated by job satisfaction and working hours. While both family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices increase job satisfaction, only the first increase working hours. Moreover, job satisfaction increases work–family balance, while working hours reduces it. The net effect of these opposing forces on work–family balance is positive.

Research limitations/implications

The use of secondary data posits some constraints, such as the type of measures and the failure to control for a higher number of family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices. Additionally, the non-longitudinal nature of the data set implies that some relationships cannot be considered causal in the intended direction.

Practical implications

Managers should implement family-friendly practices and high-performance work practices, as, in general, they increase work–family balance. A significant portion of this positive effect is channeled through job satisfaction and working hours.

Originality/value

The paper contributes to understanding the relationship between different subsets of human-resources management practices and work–family balance, proposing a model that aims to disentangle the mediating mechanisms through which this relationship occurs.

Details

Management Research: The Journal of the Iberoamerican Academy of Management, vol. 14 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1536-5433

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 15 July 2014

Clemente J. Navarro Yáñez and María Jesús Rodríguez-García

The analysis of cultural consumption centers on the influence of individual characteristics (mainly social class). However, this chapter proposes that this relationship is…

Abstract

The analysis of cultural consumption centers on the influence of individual characteristics (mainly social class). However, this chapter proposes that this relationship is contextual. More specifically, this relationship varies according to the nature of local cultural scenes where people live. In order to show the contextual impact of cultural scenes, we analyze a representative survey among a Spanish population. Three main conclusions are drawn. First, two main dimensions explain the patterns of cultural consumption by the Spanish population: the classical distinction between popular and high culture, and the distinction between conventional and unconventional cultural practices. Second, other characteristics, beside social class, are important to explain the implication of population in different patterns of cultural consumption, for instance, age; young people are oriented toward more unconventional practices regardless of their social class. Third, local cultural scenes matter: the difference between cultural practices of different groups (for instance, young and old people) is reduced in municipalities oriented toward unconventionality, showing an “assimilation contextual effect.” This contextual effect also has some impact upon local cultural policies that we mention briefly.

The analysis of lifestyles and cultural consumption has focused mainly on determining the impact of individual attributes on the types of practices developed by individuals. However, the effect of the access or exposure to certain opportunities of cultural consumption is less frequently analyzed, or even whether this exposure has different effects according to different social groups. The analysis of this issue is one of the objectives of the “Cultural Scene” research program, which is being developed under the project “Cultural Dynamics of Cities.” In this chapter, we try to determine whether existing cultural scenes in different municipalities influence how Spanish residents develop their cultural practices, with data from a nationally representative survey.

Details

Can Tocqueville Karaoke? Global Contrasts of Citizen Participation, the Arts and Development
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-78190-737-5

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 16 October 2017

Lin Xiu, Xin Liang, Zhao Chen and Wei Xu

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of innovative HR practices as an important mechanism through which strategic flexibility affects firm performance as well as the…

24813

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the role of innovative HR practices as an important mechanism through which strategic flexibility affects firm performance as well as the role of female leadership in this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were gathered from a sample of 113 firms in China. The authors collected information on organizational strategy, HR practices, CEO information, corporate social responsibility and other firm characteristics in terms of firm age, location, and financial performance. Conditional procedural analysis was conducted to test the model.

Findings

The authors found strong evidence in support of the mediation relationship in which organizations with a strong focus on strategic flexibility are more likely to adopt Innovative HR Practices. Furthermore, the authors found that the extent to which firms have adopted innovative HR practices has a strong effect on employee productivity. In addition, the authors found that female leadership enhances strategic flexibility-performance relationship.

Research limitations/implications

Information on strategic flexibility, HR practices and firm performance was collected at the same time. Future studies based on panel data would be helpful to establish the causal relationships in the model.

Practical implications

The authors’ findings suggest that practitioners should put more emphasis on developing innovative HR practices, as they are required by strategic flexibility.

Social implications

Firms pursuing strategic flexibility should feel more confident when appointing a female CEO, because the results show that female leadership may enhance the positive impact of strategic flexibility on firm performance.

Originality/value

This research study is the first empirical examination of the mediating influence of innovative HR practices on the relationship between strategic flexibility and firm performance. The study also shows that female leadership benefits an organization in implementing strategic flexibility. The results are of value to researchers, human resource management managers, employees, and executives who are seeking to develop practices that are flexible and innovative in order to stay competitive in dynamic environments.

Details

Personnel Review, vol. 46 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0048-3486

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 August 2020

Mulugeta Kebede Adem and Sandeep Singh Virdi

This study is aimed at examining the effect of Total Quality Management (TQM) practices on the operational performance of ISO 9001:2008 certified manufacturing companies in…

1973

Abstract

Purpose

This study is aimed at examining the effect of Total Quality Management (TQM) practices on the operational performance of ISO 9001:2008 certified manufacturing companies in Ethiopia.

Design/methodology/approach

A cross-sectional survey was conducted to meet the purpose. Primary data was collected from the managers and senior experts working under the production and quality management units of the surveyed firms. Data was obtained from a survey of 302 participants found in 73 ISO 9001:2008 certified manufacturing organizations. Both EFA and CFA were applied to validate and confirm the instrument, and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The results revealed that among the practices of TQM used in the model only supplier quality management, continuous improvement and process management were found to have significant and positive effect on the operational performance of the ISO 9001:2008 certified manufacturing organizations in Ethiopia.

Research limitations/implications

Future studies are suggested to consider some contextual variables such as firm age, scope of operation, firm size and firm strategy while addressing the objective.

Practical implications

The study will encourage managers of manufacturing companies in Ethiopia to utilize a reliable and valid framework of TQM practices for better operational performance results.

Originality/value

The fact that Ethiopian manufacturing organizations are required to improve their product's quality in order to improve their productivity and enhance their competitiveness in a global market is the rationale of this study. Even though several studies have evolved to scrutinize the link between TQM and operational performance across the world, nearly nothing, is known about this linkage in Ethiopia. Thus, the study represents one of the first attempts to empirically investigate this linkage in Ethiopian context.

Details

The TQM Journal, vol. 33 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1754-2731

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 December 2020

Lin-Yang Yue and Wei-de Huang

This paper aims to examine the J-shaped relationship between age and job-specific skill obsolescence (JSSO), and the differential moderating effects of development and maintenance…

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to examine the J-shaped relationship between age and job-specific skill obsolescence (JSSO), and the differential moderating effects of development and maintenance HR practices on this relationship.

Design/methodology/approach

Regression models of survey data obtained from a sample of 722 Chinese knowledge workers were used to test the hypotheses.

Findings

The results show that among women age and JSSO are J-shaped related and the relationship weakens under high development HR practices; while among men the J-shaped age-JSSO relation is significant only under low maintenance HR practices.

Research limitations/implications

This research is subject to the cross-sectional design, and the sample is restricted to knowledge workers.

Originality/value

This study advances previous studies that hold a linear (positive or negative) age-JSSO relationship by theorizing and testing a J-shaped one. The differentiated moderating effects of two bundles of HR practices proved improves our knowledge about how to use HR practices appropriately to sustain employee work competency in the context of workforce aging.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 9 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 26 November 2019

Bo Chen, Sayed Saghaian and Mark Tyler

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between US farmers’ adoption of organic farming and direct marketing, both of which are increasingly important practices

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between US farmers’ adoption of organic farming and direct marketing, both of which are increasingly important practices in the US agricultural and food sector. In addition, the effects of the two practices on farm income are evaluated.

Design/methodology/approach

The research uses the Agricultural and Resource Management Survey from the US Department of Agriculture. Farmers’ adoption of the two practices is modeled with a simultaneous linear probability model, which accounts for the possible linkage between the adoption of the two practices in farmers’ decision-making process. Farm income is modeled with a linear regression model, accounting for the possible endogeneity of the adoption of the two practices.

Findings

The main finding is that farmers’ adoption of organic farming decreases their probability of adopting direct marketing, whereas the reverse effect is insignificant. In addition, organic farming helps to improve gross farm income, whereas the effect of direct marketing is insignificant.

Practical implications

These results facilitate better coordination among numerous government programs aimed at promoting organic farming or direct marketing in the US.

Originality/value

This paper extends previous literature by specifically accounting for the possible linkage between farmers’ adoption of organic farming and direct marketing, and demonstrates that farmers do not make the decision to adopt one particular practice in isolation.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 122 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 29 November 2022

Ronaldo Gomes Dultra-de-Lima and Luiz Artur Ledur Brito

The absorptive capacity (AC) leads to firm performance and influences the development and evolution of capabilities and routines, but the influence of AC in projects remains…

Abstract

Purpose

The absorptive capacity (AC) leads to firm performance and influences the development and evolution of capabilities and routines, but the influence of AC in projects remains unclear. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the effect of AC on project performance (PP) in the construction industry of Sao Paulo State, Brazil.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors conducted a survey questionnaire with project managers and collected 157 responses in the construction sector. They also used confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and multiple linear regression techniques to assess the data.

Findings

The study provides empirical evidence that realized absorptive capacity (RAC) has a direct and indirect positive effect on PP. Conversely, the potential absorptive capacity (PAC) only indirectly impacts PP through project management practices (PMPs). PAC and RAC positively influence PMPs that in turn positively influence PP. The findings reinforce the relevance of AC to the development of internal knowledge for processes and routines, thereby enhancing PP.

Practical implications

The findings provide practical implications: the AC influences PP by refining and adapting routines. Moreover, the consistent application of accepted practices is not enough for PP, but the ability to adapt, adjust and transform the relevant knowledge into routines.

Originality/value

This paper provides empirical evidence that the knowledge application of PMPs improves organizational performance through PP. However, despite what the literature has discussed, this paper proved that AC has no effect as a moderating factor between PMPs and performance; however, AC's role significantly impacts PP through PMPs.

Details

International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, vol. 16 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8378

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 February 2023

Anna Sutton and Carol Atkinson

While the potential for HR practices (HRPs) to improve organisational performance is well-established, the mechanisms by which this occurs are complex. Individual HRPs may affect…

Abstract

Purpose

While the potential for HR practices (HRPs) to improve organisational performance is well-established, the mechanisms by which this occurs are complex. Individual HRPs may affect organisational performance either by mutual gains (improving both organisational performance and employee well-being) or by conflicting outcomes (organisational performance is improved at the expense of employee well-being). Models which combine HRPs may mask these differences and this study therefore tests pathways for four individual HRPs.

Design/methodology/approach

HRPs (employee involvement, pay, performance management and training) were hypothesised to influence organisational performance directly and indirectly via employee experiences of work (communication, autonomy) and employee well-being. The study used a large secondary dataset, the UK Workplace Employee Relations Survey 2011, to test these relationships in a multi-level model.

Findings

Employee experiences of work strongly predicted well-being. In addition, three different pathways from HRP to organisational performance were identified. Pay showed indirect negative effects, involvement had direct positive effects and performance management had a mixture of both positive direct and negative indirect effects on performance.

Originality/value

Using a disaggregated analysis of HRP and demonstrating their differing effects, this study questions the feasibility of a universal model of HRP effects. By using multi-level modelling (MLM), the study develops understanding of employee perspectives and integrates these into organisational-level models, demonstrating that performance effects are partially mediated by both employee experiences of work and employee well-being. Finally, the study highlights the complexity of performance effects achieved via both employee benefits and an intensification of employee experiences.

Details

Evidence-based HRM: a Global Forum for Empirical Scholarship, vol. 11 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2049-3983

Keywords

21 – 30 of over 233000