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The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the contribution of significant factors in the success of supply chain management (SCM) implementation and in synergistic approach (SCM-TQM) terms of business performance of Indian medium- and large-scale manufacturing industry.

This research paper deploys the fuzzy inference system (fuzzy logic tool box) to evaluate the success of SCM and synergistic approach’s implementation. For this purpose, significant factors for each SCM approach as well as synergistic approach are identified from relevant literature and validated by industry experts.

The results of fuzzy rule viewer and surface view tool of fuzzy tool box in MATLAB have highlighted that synergistic approach is better as compared to SCM approach. Furthermore, top management support and leadership role, SCM issues and total quality management (TQM) issues have emerged as significant predictor variables for successful synergistic implementation of TQM-SCM in Indian industries.

TQM and SCM are considered as performance improvement techniques by the manufacturing organizations. The present research work establishes that combined (TQM-SCM) initiatives have contributed more as compared to only SCM approach in the business performance of Indian manufacturing industry. So, the study stresses upon the need for improving coordination between various manufacturing parameters as well as competitive dimensions of TQM and SCM paradigms to enjoy higher potential of business performance.

The COVID-19 pandemic was an eye-opening experience that put to the test our crisis management competencies across many institutions, including those offered by institutions of higher education. This study aims to review the literature on international business (IB) risks and IB education (IBE) to question whether business graduates are equipped to make decisions in today’s volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) marketplace.

While the IB literature has discussed the importance of various sources of risks on global business operations, IBE did not effectively adopt an integrative approach to building the needed risk management competencies related to those risks into our education. The authors argue that this integrative approach to teaching IB is critically needed to prepare future global managers for addressing crises, like that of the pandemic and others. Specifically, this study proposes that this integrated risk management competency can be developed through the building of “synergistic mindsets”.

This study presents a conceptual framework for the components of the synergistic mindset, with intelligence that directly links to present IB risks. These components are cultural intelligence (CQ), emotional intelligence (EQ), public policy intelligence (PPQ), digital intelligence (DQ) and orchestration intelligence (OQ).

Insights related to IBE effectiveness in addressing today’s VUCA market demands and IB risks are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to design a synergetic controller to precisely and quickly track reference signals in robot manipulators. Having smooth control signal this controller enables the nonlinear robot system to track desired references in presence of disturbances in a finite time.

A new synergetic manifold is introduced here, followed by adding a nonlinear exponential term to it have a precise tracking within a finite time of the desired references with disturbances. Previously the nonlinear term was inserted in the main synergetic equation which makes it complicated due to its hard mathematical approach. Using Lyapunov function, the stability of the system in the presence of disturbances is proved. The validity of the resulted system is confirmed by simulating it in Simulink.

Using a terminal synergetic controller with new manifold proposed in this work enables system’s state variables to track desired reference signal in the presence of disturbances from any initial condition with proper precision and rate. Simulation results show that compared to similar methods it provides a more proper speed and a finite time convergence with high precision and speed.

Providing fast and precise convergence, the proposed controller can be used in robot manipulator systems which need fast response and also have a precise performance such as in printing 3D objects and any industrial process.

Discusses diversity in the South African library and information work environment recognising major theories of diversity, and describing diversity provisions in the Constitution, policies and legislation of South Africa. Observes that diversity is not a focus issue in the library and information work environment and speculates that such insignificant attention to diversity could arise from the assumption that existing policies and legislation are sufficient to manage diversity interests. There is also a fear that making an issue on diversity can divide people rather than unite. Recommends that a major research project be conducted on diversity in the library and information workplace to provide insight into the true situation and help in strategizing, planning and intervention.

A number of entropy models of social systems have been developed recently. Unfortunately, the complementarity of these approaches remains largely unanalysed, due to terminological and conceptual differences among them. There is an urgent need for a meta‐theoretical framework that will facilitate the analysis and comparison of all social entropy models. System entropy analysis (SEA), as presented here, is designed to fill this need. It is a second‐order, meta‐analytic tool which analyses each approach in terms of its major concepts, its basic units of analysis, its definition and measurement of entropy, and its specification of microstates and macrostates. First discusses the need for SEA, and then specifies its structure. Concludes with an application of SEA to the comparison and integration of three entropy approaches: synergetics, complexity theory and social entropy theory (SET).

The study aims at finding out major barriers for synergistic adoption of TQM-SCM in the medium- and large-scale manufacturing organizations in India. All these barriers create hurdles for the organizations as well as supply chain partners in improving their business performance. The study is a blend of theoretical and practical frameworks, which will focus on key barriers leading to interrupt the successful synergistic implementation of TQM-SCM in manufacturing organization.

Firstly, survey of 116 Indian organizations has been carried out to identify barriers that hinder successful implementation of TQM-SCM. Afterward, VIKOR approach was proposed to rank the major barriers of TQM-SCM implementation in Indian manufacturing organizations.

Identification of barriers to synergistic implementation of TQM-SCM in the manufacturing industry of India, ranking of these barriers in terms of their severity.

The adoption of TQM-SCM on synergistic basis is still in its early stages in India. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that is designed to prioritize barriers responsible for hindering successful synergistic implementation of (TQM-SCM) in Indian manufacturing industry. Further, the results of the study will be helpful for managers in order to prepare action plans to overcome the hurdles to TQM-SCM implementation.

Quality management (QM) practices have long been suggested as a package to improve the quality performance of a company. Yet, empirical studies offered little support of this perspective as only a small set of QM practices were found to be conductive to quality improvement. By taking a new approach, the purpose of this paper is simultaneously evaluate the individual and synergistic effects of several key quality practices on operations performance.

Survey data were collected and used to test the proposed hypotheses. Hierarchical regression analyses were performed to assess the magnitude of synergistic effects and individual effects.

It is found in this study that the synergistic effects across QM practices are substantial in enhancing all operations performance dimensions whereas individual effect varies for different performance goals.

This study makes theoretical contributes to the field of QM by providing empirical support of the interdependence assumption of QM practices and resolving the inconsistent findings. Practically, the results suggest that in-depth implementation of various QM practices simultaneously can be highly effective to achieve performance improvement on all accounts. In addition, the positive additional individual effects also open up a firm’s strategic choices of where to focus the resource investment in the adoption process as long as the strategic focus can justify its contribution toward the desired performance goals.

This study aims to develop a comprehensive green supplier governance (GSG) concept and explore whether specific GSG approaches (green supplier assessment, green supplier assistance and green strategic partnership with suppliers (GSPS)) bring environmental and economic performance. Moreover, this study aims to reveal a synergistic effect of three GSG approaches on performance improvement.

Using data collected from 200 Chinese manufacturing firms, regression analysis was employed to reveal the relationship between specific GSG approaches and firm performance. Further, cluster analysis was used to identify groupings of firms regarding implementation levels of three GSG approaches and compare the performance of the firm groups.

Green supplier assessment (GSA) can bring environmental performance, but GSA is not associated with economic performance. Green supplier assistance is positively associated with economic performance, while green supplier assistance cannot improve environmental performance. Only GSPS leads to improvement for both environmental and economic performance. Furthermore, firms with high implementation levels of GSA and GSPS (whether with high or low implementation levels of GSAS) can achieve the best environmental and financial performance.

This study provides implications for firms to more strategically and comprehensively implement GSG approaches, which can be more effective in bringing environmental and economic performance.

The authors' study extends the GSG concept with two approaches by subdividing the collaborative approach into green supplier assistance and GSPS based on the collaboration levels. This study also sheds light on how to improve firm performance by different GSG approaches and reveals a synergistic effect of three GSG approaches on performance.

As Adler points out in International Dimension of Organizational Behavior (1997), global leaders tend to recognize the value of cultural differences but the synergistic approach is still much less practised than the parochial or the ethnocentric approach which is based on the assumption that our way is the only way. By synergistic approach, Adler means the approach to incorporate the values of all cultures involved within an organization. Why is there such a dilemma? What has hindered global managers from practicing what they believe in?

The purpose of this paper is to explore the synergistic lubrication of MoS₂ particles with different morphologies.

The synergistic lubrication of MoS₂ particles with different morphologies is evaluated using a four‐fall tribometer in liquid paraffin.

Results show that the morphology of MoS₂ has an influence on the tribological properties of MoS₂. Both MoS₂ nano‐balls and nano‐platelets function as lubrication additives in liquid paraffin better than MoS₂ micro‐platelets do. It is also found that there is a synergistic lubrication between two different morphologies of MoS₂. The composite MoS₂ additives with different morphologies can improve the wear resistance and friction reduction of liquid paraffin more than each of them singly does. The synergistic lubrication between two different MoS₂ morphologies results from the cooperation of their different lubrication mechanism.

The paper reveals a synergistic lubrication between two different MoS₂ structures. It is very advantageous and practical to partly displace nano‐MoS₂ with micro‐MoS₂.