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Noting moves towards just‐in‐time production methods in the UK passenger vehicle industry, the impact of such moves at the retail and distribution end of the supply chain is considered. Based on interviews with a number of vehicle retailers selling cars manufactured both in the UK and overseas, it appears as if little progress towards true just‐in‐time (as practised by Toyota in Japan) is occurring.

Noting moves towards just‐in‐time production methods in the UK passenger vehicle industry, this article considers the impact of such moves at the retail and distribution end of the supply chain. Based on interviews with a number of vehicle retailers selling cars manufactured both in the UK and overseas, it appears as if little progress towards true just‐in‐time (as practised by Toyota in Japan) is occurring.

The findings of a pilot study into contemporary developments in the UK car retailing sector are reported. Two trends were particularly apparent: a mounting concern with the quality of customer service and a rise in the number of multi‐franchise retail groups. Such groups appear to be more advanced than the volume manufacturers in their thinking about quality of service. Overall there was evidence of a limited shift in the nature of the relationship between the vehicle manufacturers and their retailers.

Benchmarking is a topic which is currently attracting considerable interest among both academics and practitioners in the manufacturing community. Yet little has been written about the assumptions which lie behind benchmarking. As a process, benchmarking remains poorly understood. Describes a benchmarking study in the auto components industry, and makes a preliminary attempt to identify the principles of good practice in benchmarking.

We explore the role of workplace friendships as a lens for understanding the emotional element and relational context for personal engagement (Kahn, 1990). The review of engagement theory differentiates personal engagement, recognizing the role of emotions play in enabling individuals’ “preferred selves.” Workplace relationships and friendship provide a conceptual discussion of individuals in social and workplace roles in engagement, drawing on friendship, emotion, attachment theories, particularly Kahn’s work. A case study drawn from recent research illustrates our discussion before concluding with ideas for the development of a future research agenda in answer to recent calls for work on the social context of engagement.

A library management system is a significant investment for libraries, but the procurement of a system is an infrequent activity with little opportunity for librarians to build on their experience. The procurement process is also difficult for potential system suppliers who must respond to specifications which are variable in content, format and quality. The HARMONISE project aimed to determine the feasibility of developing a model system specification which could be used to assist libraries in the procurement of library management systems. Specifications collected from libraries which had recently acquired a library management system were analysed. The results demonstrate that the functional requirements specified for each of the core modules had strong similarities both within and across library sectors. A survey of UK system suppliers was also undertaken to determine their views on the specification as a procurement tool. Suppliers expressed frustration with the tendency for specifications to be dominated by lists of functional requirements which were present in all library management systems on the market today. In conclusion, a model specification incorporating basic functions, which can be expected in all library management systems, should be developed.

Wonders whether companies actually have employees best interests at heart across physical, mental and spiritual spheres. Posits that most organizations ignore their workforce – not even, in many cases, describing workers as assets! Describes many studies to back up this claim in theis work based on the 2002 Employment Research Unit Annual Conference, in Cardiff, Wales.

In contrast to the largely functionalist and apolitical literature which dominates organisational scholarship on exploitation and exploration after March, this paper seeks to complement this view of exploitation and exploration with a Marxist reading which is unwittingly implied by these terms. More specifically, we combine neo-Marxist and paleo-Marxist arguments to more fully understand the conflictual relations that underpin exploitation and exploration in the management of firms. This enables us to address both the objective and subjective dimensions of exploitation and exploration which firms and workers are involved in through the contemporary capitalist labour process. We illustrate this by drawing on a case study of a large Swedish manufacturing firm which sought to improve lean production by systematically helping employees to explore their own lifestyles and possibilities for a healthier and happier life.

Based on stakeholder theory, human resource management literature, and the main research streams on engagement, this study aims to develop and validate a scale of stakeholder engagement specifically suitable for the social enterprise domain. Despite the evidence that stakeholder management is crucial and specific for the social enterprise domain, there is not yet an established measure of stakeholder engagement that can be used to foster the design of the effective organizational practices to manage the specific stakeholder relationship in the social enterprise context.

A survey among 328 social enterprise stakeholders working in a variety of enterprises, roles, jobs (i.e., employees, social entrepreneurs, and volunteers) enables us to validate a comprehensive and multidimensional scale of stakeholder engagement.

The new measure includes dimensions of job, enterprise, organizational formula, professional, and social engagement. Results advance some practical and theoretical considerations both for the social enterprise research and for the engagement literature.