Search results

This study aims to discover a practical and effective way to apply the quality cost concept in Strategic Cost Management (SCM) framework. The interaction of preventive, appraisal and failure (PAF) activities in a company's internal value chain will be the starting point of SCM implementation.

This study begins by establishing value chain and quality costs as the scope of conceptual analysis. Discussions on the interrelationships between activities, quality and costs were gathered to clarify conceptual and practical gaps in the scope of the study. The PAF quality cost model is applied to find viable, practical solutions. The costs of activities will serve as performance indicators.

The PAF quality cost model depicts opportunities to lower costs and increase profit in a business simultaneously; current poor quality costs are the benchmark. Identifying PAF activities and costs in the business value chain and linking it with others is crucial in evaluating SCM applications. These linkages will generate a Quality Cost Chain (QCC). The leading indicator of improvement is a higher ratio between new possible failure costs (FC) and the combination of prevention and appraisal costs (PAC) than the current value, followed by a lower total quality cost (TQC). The subsequent attention is a lower ratio between the appraisal cost (AC) and prevention cost (PC). Mathematically, for assessing the operability of new quality-related activities, ΔPAC_new < ΔFC_new, TQC_new < TQC_current, (FC/PC)_new>(FC/PC)_current and (AC/PC)_new<(AC/PC)_current are proposed as feasible conditional-quantitative improvement criteria.

This study only discusses the relationship between quality costs and activities related to quality management in the PAF quality cost model, not cost behavior. This limitation opens up opportunities for future research that intends to link QCC with cost behavior in the context of managerial accounting and Strategic Cost Management. The use of QCC in certain industrial areas is the next research opportunity. The variety of PAF activities this study addresses originates from a wide range of industrial sectors; QCC research by sector may produce unique industrial quality cost phenomena.

QCC will make it easier for managers to evaluate how strategically their departments or activities contribute to quality costs at the departmental or organizational level, as well as to effectively and efficiently improve quality cost performance.

The quality-related activity and quality cost issues are still rarely treated as subjects of research studies in the field of Strategic Cost Management. Even so, the discussion tends to be very broad, complex and difficult to apply. This study combines a simple diagrammatic and mathematical approach to simplify the discussion and, at the same time, manage the value of strategic quality management.

The study aims to identify organizational variables of quality 4.0 for an Indian manufacturing company in the case of digital transformation. Furthermore, the organization enhances its quality 4.0 performances to its success based on the degree of relevance of these variables, insight into these variables and sub-factors to prioritize them.

Initially, two rounds of the survey were conducted with 11 decision-makers from the company made to receive organizational variables scores and prioritize the factors and sub-factors. Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) based research methodology has been proposed to assign the criterion weights and prioritize the identified variables.

The results of this AHP model demonstrate that “Committed Leadership” is recognized as the top positioned variable and most significant organizational variable, followed by Collaboration and Quality culture, which are developed at the next level. These essential organizational variables with their sub-categories' priorities are identified as contributing attributes.

The findings facilitate quality 4.0 in the digitalization era, which take into contemplating the current state of the business. Furthermore, the understanding of variables provides insightful guidance to analyze, solve complex problems and assess the efficacy of quality 4.0 in digital transformation.

The novelty of this study is to pinpoint, and evaluate the responsible organizational variables and prioritize them that lead to high productivity and competitive advantage considering the AHP method.

The purpose of this research is to provide an introduction into Hoshin Kanri and how it has been used with other methodologies and frameworks. Additionally, factors that impact successful Hoshin Kanri implementation and future research opportunities are explored.

A systematic literature review was conducted to determine the methodologies and frameworks that have previously been explored and identify factors that lead to successful Hoshin Kanri implementation as it relates in the Western world.

Even though Hoshin Kanri has been used to a limited extent for decades in the West, there is still relatively little published research on the topic. In the period reviewed most published research was performed in the UK or USA. In addition, most years had less than two publications (the exception being five in 2020).

This literature review was primarily focused on the manufacturing sector, publications from 1990–2021, and available in English.

Current practitioners may use the research in this review to improve their current Hoshin Kanri practices using the techniques mentioned as a means of continuous improvement or to build a new framework for their own needs.

This paper makes an important contribution to the study of Hoshin Kanri as it provides: (1) an updated literature review regarding the study and application of Hoshin Kanri, (2) a qualitative analysis of alternative methodologies and frameworks to traditional Hoshin Kanri and (3) success factors when considering implementation of Hoshin Kanri within an organization and researchers with potential ideas for future research.

This paper analyzes how quality management in Ecuador’s national parks is explained through the quality practices contained in Deming’s quality principles from the point of view of employees.

Quantitative research was conducted with the participation of 254 employees from all national parks in Ecuador who rated the quality management practices (leadership, talent management, work climate and training) in their respective parks.

The results show that leadership, talent management, work climate and training significantly explain the service quality in the national parks. This study contributes to the adaptation of Deming’s quality principles to national parks via individual and joint analysis of the relationship between leadership, talent management, work climate and training with service quality in order to highlight which practices are the most important to service quality.

The paper provides a comprehensive overview of the key factors that influence service quality in the National Parks of Ecuador. Its multidisciplinary approach and exhaustive research make this work an invaluable tool for understanding and improving the preservation of natural resources and the tourism experience in these protected areas.

Este trabajo analiza cómo la gestión de la calidad en los parques nacionales del Ecuador se explica a través de las prácticas de calidad recogidas en los principios de la calidad de Deming desde el punto de vista de los empleados.

Se realizó una investigación cuantitativa en la que participaron 254 empleados de todos los parques nacionales del Ecuador quienes valoraron las prácticas de gestión de la calidad (liderazgo, gestión de talento, clima laboral y formación) en sus respectivos parques.

Los resultados muestran que el liderazgo, la gestión del talento, el clima laboral y la formación explican significativamente la calidad de servicio en los parques nacionales. Este estudio contribuye en la adaptación de los principios de calidad de Deming a parques nacionales a través del análisis individual y conjunto de la relación entre liderazgo, gestión de talento, clima laboral y formación con la calidad del servicio para destacar qué prácticas son las más importantes para la calidad del servicio ofrecido.

The main objective of this study is to investigate the 7 new quality control or the 7 new management tools and their use in manufacturing organisations. This research investigates the understanding, knowledge of the tools and the level of application of the tools within the manufacturing sector. In addition, this paper aims to identify the benefits, challenges and critical success factors (CSFs) for the application of the 7 new quality control (QC) tools.

An online survey instrument was developed, and data collection was performed utilising a stratified random sampling strategy. The primary strata/clusters were formed by quality professionals working in all aspects of manufacturing organisations and functions. A total of 86 participants from different countries responded to the survey.

The main finding of this study is that 10% of participants within the manufacturing sector perceived that the 7 new QC tools could solve above 80% of organisational problems. Another relevant finding presented in this paper is that tree diagrams were the most utilised of the 7 new QC tools within the manufacturing sector. The least utilised tools are arrow diagrams. The common benefits of using 7 new QC tools in the manufacturing sector are helping people define, measure and analyse the problem areas or even prioritises them and providing some form of structure to the problem-solving efforts. This paper also revealed that the 7 new QC tools were most used in the manufacturing area but least utilised in the new products and research and development (R&D) functions. This work also presents a list of CSFs and challenges required to properly apply the 7 new QC tools in the manufacturing sector.

This study was just carried out in manufacturing organisations. It would be interesting to try and expand to services sectors and compare use within the services sector.

Authors understand that this is the very first empirical study analysing the use and understanding of the 7 new QC or management tools within the manufacturing sector. The results of this study represent an important first step towards a complete understanding of the applicability of these tools in continuous improvement programs on a global scale and the context in which they can be utilized.

This study aims to structure a model for integrating social value into strategic management based on identifying the critical success factors (CSF) for such integration in the investigated companies.

This research was based on the actor–network theory. Through a rigorous approach to the case study methodology in a two-stage process lasting 21 months, we carried out this study.

Companies that use the polyhedral social accounting model in their strategic management processes do so without a reference model. We identified CSF for integrating social value, which was incorporated into a protocol model based on stakeholder theory and the use of social accounting.

Practitioners can use the proposed model to maintain the alignment of strategic performance and purpose. Using social accounting based on indicators and financial proxies allows managers to incorporate social value into strategic management in terms of financial value.

The institutional demand for social information is based on the growing sensitivity of companies. Aligning social values with business strategies contributes to social sustainability.

This study focuses on an unresearched emerging phenomenon. Since the first approach to stakeholder theory, the development of a stakeholder-oriented strategy has faced the lack of a stakeholder accounting system. The polyhedral model of social accounting could help overcome this problem as it provides information that allows a novel and innovative method to make a stakeholder-oriented strategy effective.

Utilizing the expectation states theory in sociology, this study probes into the influence of the board's informal hierarchy on the quality of enterprise innovation, originating from the perspective of internal directorial interactions, while analyzing the boundary effects exhibited by the nature of property rights and the intensity of geo-culture.

The study selects China's A-share listed companies from 2008 to 2021 as the research sample, employing the Tobit regression analysis method to scrutinize the hypotheses presented in the text.

The regression results demonstrate a positive correlation between the board's informal hierarchy and the enterprise innovation quality (EIQ). Upon introducing variables specific to property rights and geographical culture, the authors found that in comparison to non-state-owned enterprises (non-SOEs), the influence of the board's informal hierarchy on the quality of corporate innovation is diminished in SOEs. Conversely, the intensity of geo-culture across Chinese provinces enhances their mutual positive influence. In the additional analysis, the authors also found that the elevation of corporate risk tolerance is a significant pathway for the positive effect of the board's informal hierarchy on EIQ. Moreover, this positive influence is more profound in high-tech enterprises, businesses implementing equity incentive plans and companies that have subscribed to director and officer liability insurance.

The findings not only deepen the understanding of how the board's internal status characteristics influence corporate decision-making but also enrich the application scope of expectation states theory. Furthermore, this study offers valuable guidance for optimizing innovation decision-making by adjusting the personnel structures of corporate boards.

Lean Six Sigma (LSS) implementation follows a structured approach called define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC). Earlier research about its application in emergency healthcare services shows that it requires organizational transformation, which many healthcare setups find difficult. The Kotter change management model facilitates organizational transformation but has not been attempted in LSS settings till now. This study aims to integrate the LSS framework with the Kotter change management model to come up with an integrated framework that will facilitate LSS deployment in emergency health services.

Two-stage Delphi method was conducted by using a literature review. First, the success factors and barriers of LSS are investigated, especially from an emergency healthcare point of view. The features and benefits of Kotter's change management models are then reviewed. Subsequently, they are integrated to form a framework specific to LSS deployment in an emergency healthcare set-up. The elements of this framework are analyzed using expert opinion ratings. A new framework for LSS deployment in emergency healthcare has been developed, which can prevent failures due to challenges faced by organizations in overcoming resistance to changes.

The eight steps of the Kotter model such as establishing a sense of urgency, forming a powerful guiding coalition, creating a vision, communicating the vision, empowering others to act on the vision, planning for and creating short-term wins, consolidating improvements and producing still more change, institutionalizing new approaches are derived from the eight common errors that managers make while implementing change in the institution. The study integrated LSS principles and Kotter’s change management model to apply in emergency care units in order to reduce waste and raise the level of service quality provided by healthcare companies.

The present study could contribute knowledge to the literature by providing a framework to integrate lean management and Kotter's change management model for the emergency care unit of the healthcare organization. This framework guides decision-makers and organizations as proper strategies are required for applying lean management practices in any system.

The proposed framework is unique and no other study has prescribed any integrated framework for LSS implementation in emergency healthcare that overcomes resistance to change.

This study aims to explore the serendipitous discovery of integrated reporting (IR) by Alpha, an Italian small and medium-sized enterprise (SME). Alpha piqued the curiosity when the authors discovered that it experimented with IR alongside other management accounting practices, such as the Balanced Scorecard. As the authors reflected on Alpha’s experiences, the authors had to opportunistically develop a new framework to understand the change that was taking place at Alpha fully. Thus, the authors developed the serendipitous drift framework. This study contributes to addressing the gap between management accounting research that sees change as a planned, ordered process versus research that sees it as an unmanageable drift.

The authors ground the research on a qualitative methodology based on a single case study. This methodology allows us to focus on understanding what has happened at Alpha to discover new themes and provide theoretical generalisations. The authors developed the framework using middle-range thinking and fleshed it out using empirical findings from the case study. Middle-range thinking implies going back and forth between the theory and the empirical material. Therefore, the authors develop the serendipitous drift framework from prior theories and use it to inform the empirical study. In turn, the empirical material collected in Alpha helps refine and flesh out the serendipitous drift framework. The framework explains how Alpha leveraged serendipity to steer change towards favourable outcomes for them.

The authors find that the search for change undertaken by Alpha’s managers was non-specific but purposeful. Their dispositions were sagacious enough to recognise the potential value found in management accounting practices, such as IR and the Balanced Scorecard. They chanced upon new and unforeseen practices through trial and error, iteration, internal engagement and networking.

Overall, the results indicate that Alpha’s managers shaped the disorder of management accounting changes, even though it followed unexpected, uncertain and messy paths. Indeed, appropriate informal controls can act as a frame of reference for choosing, adapting and implementing new management accounting practices to shape the disorder. Informal controls can both guide and bound the experimentation process towards desirable outcomes.

The authors contribute to management accounting change theory by developing a framework rooted in serendipity and drifting theories. The framework identifies how searching, sagacity and chance are essential for making positive, unexpected discoveries. Therefore, the authors provide novel insights on how and why IR and other management accounting practices are eventually translated and adopted in the case company. Moreover, the serendipitous drift framework has the potential to help managers frame cultural controls to actively seek opportunities for valuable serendipitous eureka moments through networking and experimentation.

Effective total quality management (TQM) practices rely on the accurate classification of critical success factors (CSFs). The impact matrix cross-reference multiplication technique for classification (MICMAC) or/and fuzzy MICMAC (FMICMAC) can be used to identify key factors in the complex set. However, TQM includes both “hard” and “soft” factors, limiting application of the traditional MICMAC/FMICMAC method.

Previous literature on TQM was reviewed, CSFs were identified, and factors were sorted into soft and hard categories. The combined fuzzy integration and dual-aspect MICMAC (fuzzy dual-aspect MICMAC approach) was then applied to identify, cluster and prioritize the CSFs of TQM.

A total of 20 factors (10 soft and 10 hard) were identified and isolated to assess the manufacturing- and service-related TQM practices of the Pearl River Delta Region of China. Seven driver factors and one linkage factor emerged as the key CSFs that managers should prioritize.

A major limitation of this study is the dependency of the results on the definitions of linguistic labels. If the linguistic definitions of TQM CSFs do not closely correspond to the expert opinion data, then the analysis results may be inaccurate. Additionally, although expert opinions are utilized in the proposed method for comprehensive assessments, these opinions may influence the final results due to their inherent subjectivity.

A novel fuzzy dual-aspect MICMAC approach was developed to identify and classify CSFs for optimal TQM practices. This approach allows clustering of CSFs so that decision-makers can prioritize factors according to their dependence and driving powers. Practitioners should concentrate on the CSFs with higher driving powers for successful TQM.