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Strategic flexibility (SF) has become increasingly important for firms because of the fast changes in the external environment. In line with the practical importance of SF, an emerging research field has developed around it that has attempted to understand the nature of SF and the key relationships. The aim of this study is to unveil the semantic structure of the recent literature on SF and to suggest new promising areas for future research.

The authors conduct a systematic literature review with a bibliographic analysis technique, which allows authors to identify the main recent streams in the literature, as well as offer reflections and suggestions for future research.

The authors uncover three main emerging areas in the research on SF, namely SF as a dynamic capability, the role of knowledge management for SF and the relationship between a firm SF and the external environment. The authors put forward three avenues for future research on SF: Avenue 1. SF, business model innovation (BMI) and other dynamic capabilities (DC), Avenue 2. Digital technologies and SF/organizational agility and Avenue 3. SF and sustainability. Articles included in the special issue entitled “A strategic perspective on flexibility, agility and adaptability in the digital era” contribute to Avenue 2, thus paving the way for filling some of the identified gaps regarding the relationship between SF and digitalization.

To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is the first literature review on SF that uses a bibliometric approach to draw conclusions on the findings in the literature. The review contributes to the theoretical understanding of SF by illustrating and explicating core topics that have persisted over time, as well as by presenting three main avenues for further developing authors’ knowledge around SF.

The main aim of this study is to explore the relationship between information system flexibility and dynamic capabilities to build sustainable and net zero supply chains under the influence of environmental dynamism.

We have formulated a self-administered survey, with 359 participants contributing responses. Prior to delving into foundational assumptions, such as homoscedasticity and normality, a nonresponse bias analysis was executed. The integrity of the data, in terms of reliability and construct validity, was gauged using confirmatory factor analysis. Subsequent regression outputs corroborated all the proposed assumptions, fortifying the extant scholarly literature.

The empirical findings of this research underscore a positive correlation between Information system flexibility, dynamic capabilities and a net zero supply chain, especially in the context of environmental dynamism. Data sourced from the cement manufacturing sector support these observations. We also found that environmental dynamism moderates the relationship between data analytics capability and sustainable supply chain flexibility but does not moderate the relationship between Resource flexibility and sustainable supply chain flexibility. Additionally, this research strengthens the foundational principles of the dynamic capability theory.

The conceptual framework elucidates the interplay between information system flexibility, dynamic capabilities, and sustainable supply chain flexibility, emphasizing their collective contribution towards achieving sustainable chain net zero, introducing environmental dynamics as a moderating variable that augments the scholarly discourse with a nuanced layer of analytical depth.

To develop a fuzzy causal model of enterprise flexibility dimensions in a case study of Indian pharmaceutical industry.

The eight dimensions of enterprise flexibility were identified based on literature review. Fermatean fuzzy decision-making trail and evaluation laboratory (FF-DEMATEL) technique is applied to develop the cause-and-effect interrelationship model among various enterprise flexibility dimensions.

The information technology flexibility, supply chain flexibility, technical flexibility and marketing flexibility are found to be causing/influencing other flexibilities and contributing to overall enterprise flexibilities. Therefore, more attention needs to be paid to develop and sustain them for competitive advantage.

Fermatean fuzzy sets offer more flexibility and more accurate handling complex uncertain group decision making. FF-DEMATEL is a more accurate method to develop inter-dependencies and causal model than ISM, TISM. Ratings from the limited number of decision experts (DEs) from few pharmaceutical firms were done. Future study should take bigger sample of firms and more number of DEs to generalize the findings.

The model will help managers in pharmaceutical industry to prioritize the dimensions of enterprise flexibility to achieve agility, responsiveness, resilience and competitive advantage.

To the best knowledge of the authors, causal modeling enterprise flexibility dimensions using FF-DEMATEL has been studied for the first time in a developing economy context.

This study aims to investigate and test the impact of competitive priorities, in terms of quality, speed, dependability, flexibility, cost and patient engagement, on patient satisfaction with healthcare services. It considers patients’ rather than managers’ points of view to collect responses about competitive priorities.

This research employed a cross-sectional survey design to analyze a sample of customers through an empirical study of 488 patients in Qatar’s healthcare service context.

The confirmatory factor analysis results show that competitive priorities and engagement positively and significantly impact patient satisfaction.

Researchers can use this methodology to explore the role of competitive priorities in different service contexts and sectors. The researchers conducted the study in Qatar; therefore, the results are not generalizable to all healthcare sectors. However, regardless of geographic location, the research approach can be used in healthcare.

Managers can employ the developed scales to diagnose competitive priorities and improve customer service experiences.

The paper is original as it suggests using competitive priorities as a measurement tool for predicting patient satisfaction compared to prior research that mostly measured competitive priorities based on internal perspectives (managers’ perspectives). Further, this paper is original because it depends on the external perspective (customers’ perspective) for the competitive priorities for measuring patient satisfaction.

Supply chain disruptions have a significant impact on overall project delivery. This study aims to identify the supply chain disruptive factors and develop a framework to mitigate the disruptive effects on the supply chain. Covid-19 and Brexit disruption and their longevity effects in the short, medium and long term on the supply chain are relied upon to develop the framework.

The study adopted a mixed-method approach with a sequential explanatory design. The main disruptive factors were identified through a literature review, and key factors were selected through a focus group exercise. A questionnaire survey was carried out to sample opinions from the practitioners; 41 questionnaires were received and analysed using the relative importance index (RII) method for ranking the factors and percentage frequency distribution to determine the longevity effects. Five follow-up semi-structured interviews were conducted over the telephone and later transcribed.

The results of Covid-19 disruption indicate that material cost increase ranked first (RII: 0.863), logistics cost increase and supply chain interaction ranked second and third, respectively. They have long-term, medium-term and short-term longevity effects, respectively. The lowest-rated factors were communication (RII: 0.561), staff shortages (RII: 0.629) and impact on relationships (RII: 0.639). The three most ranked Brexit disruptive factors are supply chain interaction (RII: 0.775), material cost increase (RII: 0.766) and logistic and haulage delay (RII: 0.717). The first two factors have long-term effects, and the logistics and haulage delays have a medium-term impact. The mitigating solutions suggested in the framework are collaborative working, stronger resilience to external forces and better transparency and communication that will lead to good relationships among the supply chain members.

The scope of the study was limited to the UK construction industry; however, the pandemic effect on supply chain can serve as critical learning curve in other developed and developing countries.

The study will help the government and construction firms to understand the focal areas of importance in solving the supply chain disruption problems based on the effects of Brexit and Covid-19. The research would be useful in ensuring the proactive involvement of the government and contracting firms in their preparedness for similar events in the future. The results could be interpreted for critical learning in other developed/developing countries.

Identifying and ranking the supply chain disruptive factors affecting the small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK construction industry has been the focal point of this study. The study also proposes a simple but effective framework comprising the highly ranked factors, their longevity effects and mitigating measures. This will help the SMEs manage future/similar external events affecting the supply chain.

The study aims to examine the impact of three types of supply chain integration (SCI) on supply chain flexibility (SCF), investigate the impact of SCF on supply chain performance (SCP) and analyse the indirect impact of SCI on SCP by considering the mediating role of SCF within the manufacturing sector of Jordan.

This study used a quantitative approach to validate the study model. An online self-completed questionnaire was used to gather data from 219 participants from managers in various Jordanian manufacturing firms. SmartPLS software was used to perform structural equation modelling to test the formulated hypotheses.

Based on the findings of the study, firms in Jordan's manufacturing sector would benefit from developing an integrative and flexible supply chain to boost SCP in the present volatile, uncertain, complex and speculative market. In addition, SCP was significantly influenced by investments in supply chain management practices related to SCI and SCF. Moreover, SCF significantly moderated the relationship between SCI and SCP. Thus, SCI and SCF assisted firms in reaching their highest potential performance through increased productivity, decreased expenses and increased satisfaction of their customers.

The study employed a cross-sectional design using SCF as a single construct. Future research should look into the specific type of SCFs that have an immense effect on SCP and how these types are affected by the three types of SCI. Furthermore, future research ought to employ probability sampling techniques to improve the generalizability of results or using a longitudinal data-collection design. Finally, additional research should be conducted to validate the findings of this study by replicating it in other specific industries or countries.

The study fills an identified gap based on previous studies by exploring the linkages between SCI, SCF and SCP in the context of manufacturing sector. Moreover, based on the relational view theory, the study proposed an assessment mechanism for SCP for firms based on the link between three types of SCI and SCF.

This research aims to investigate how manufacturing flexibility can address the challenges of an ever-changing and unpredictable business environment in Bangladesh’s labor-intensive ready-made garment (RMG) industry, which is underserved and situated in a developing country.

Using Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling, this study empirically evaluated the relationships between manufacturing flexibility, environmental uncertainty and firm performance. The analysis utilized 320 survey responses from potential RMG experts, representing 95 organizations.

The study achieved a decision-making model for implementing manufacturing flexibility in the RMG industry of Bangladesh with acceptable model fit criterion. The research pinpointed that workforce flexibility plays the maximum mediating among different types of manufacturing in coping with demand and supply uncertainty in the RMG sector.

The study made valuable contributions to theoretical and practical knowledge in the context of manufacturing flexibility in Bangladesh’s RMG and other underserved labor-intensive sectors in developing economies. It suggests that managers should shift from defensive and risky business strategies to more aggressive and proactive approaches by utilizing workforce flexibility resources adaptively to enhance manufacturing capabilities and align with dynamic market demand. Additionally, the study offers recommendations for future research to build upon its findings.

This study is unique in its approach because it presents a decision model for implementing manufacturing flexibility in a labor-intensive industry in a developing economy, specifically the RMG industry in Bangladesh, whereas previous research has primarily focused on high-tech industries in developed economies.

This study examines the relationship between multi-layer supply chain flexibility (MSCF) and Supply chain resilience (SCR). Further, it looks at the moderating effect of environmental dynamism (ED) and supply chain risks (SCRI) on the relationship between MSCF and SCR.

Executives from the pharmaceutical, agri-food, electronics, automobile and textile industries were invited to complete a self-administered questionnaire. We received feedback from a total of 302 participants. Prior to conducting the primary analysis, we addressed the potential for nonresponse bias and verified the assumptions of homoscedasticity and normal distribution of the data. The reliability and validity of the constructs were established through confirmatory factor analysis. Structural equation modelling is employed for the purpose of conducting hypothesis testing.

The results demonstrate a notable influence of MSCF on SCR, particularly in settings characterized by high levels of ED and SCRI. The study highlights the importance of flexibility in multiple aspects of the supply chain to build resilience against a range of disruptions and uncertainties.

The study presents the fundamental role of Multi-Layer Flexibility in building up SCR. The results of this study reinforce the existing literature and offers empirical evidence for how ED, SCRI moderates the influence between MSCF to SCR. These results offer valuable information to both supply chain specialists and researchers for building comprehensive strategy to bring resilience in supply chains.

This study aims to explore the relationship between institutional and macroeconomic factors and corporate financial flexibility while also investigating the moderating impact of selected board governance mechanisms on this relationship.

The sample of the study comprises 174 firms listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange for a period of eight years, from 2014 to 2021. Data were collected from secondary sources, and both descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were used for analyses.

Corporate financial flexibility is notably affected by profitability as an institutional factor and by gross domestic product growth rate and banking sector development as macroeconomic factors. Furthermore, the relationship between a company’s profitability and corporate financial flexibility is found to be moderated by selected board governance mechanisms. However, these governance mechanisms do not influence the relationship between corporate financial flexibility and other institutional factors (i.e. other than profitability) and macroeconomic factors considered in this study.

This study adds a fresh perspective to the existing body of knowledge in the field of corporate finance by emphasizing the interaction effect of board governance mechanisms on the association between macroeconomic and institutional variables and financial flexibility of firms. The findings are expected to be useful for business decision-makers in managing their corporate financial flexibility effectively and maximizing the use of their financial resources.

This study aims to develop a framework that explains how and when telework is related to emotional exhaustion and task performance, by conceiving work overload as a mediator and self-leadership as a moderator. For this purpose, two studies were conducted. Study 1 aims to understand whether telework would be related to emotional exhaustion and task performance and if work overload would mediate such relationships. Study 2 aims to analyze whether self-leadership was a significant moderator of the mediated relations found in Study 1.

The hypotheses were tested in a sample of 207 (in Study 1) and 272 (in Study 2) participants, which were exclusively teleworking. The results were analyzed using PROCESS macro in SPSS.

The results of Study 1 showed that telework dimensions were negatively related to work overload, which consequently decreased emotional exhaustion and increased task performance. In Study 2, self-leadership moderated the indirect effect of work overload on the relationship between telework and emotional exhaustion, such that the indirect effect was stronger for those who scored higher in self-leadership. However, it was not significant for task performance.

This paper adds to research on telework by focusing on the employee's mental health and performance, in the context of mandatory confinement. The authors identified telework dimensions that may act as resources to cope with the increased work overload inherent to telework, as well as the importance of personal resources in these relationships.