Search results

Our paper is intended to show that System Dynamics can be a priceless tool for realizing long‐term models which will help to choose the appropriate policies in socioeconomic systems. According to this idea, and by using System Dynamics, we have built and experimented with a model of the Spanish Financial System. So far, the results have been quite satisfactory.

When acquiring advanced manufacturing technologies (AMT), the greatest caution should be taken regarding the performance measurement system to be used: the decision regarding new investments should not be conditioned by the excessive use of financial indicators to the detriment of the strategic objectives that motivated the investments. It is intended to analyze the aeronautical sector, for which the purchase of AMT is qualifying criteria, with two intentions: first, to identify the performance measurement systems that are used, and second, to test their correspondence with the objectives that motivated the investments.

A survey of the 20 plants in the population was conducted via a postal questionnaire plus a structured interview. The unit of analysis has been maintained through the triangulation of data sources.

The findings suggest that both financial and non‐financial indicators are used, with the latter gaining predominance over the former on some occasions, even though there is no clear correspondence between strategy and the measurement of performance. In the light of the findings, the question of what inspires a company's performance measurement system is still open, especially in those cases where there is no explicit strategy. With regard to practical implications, what seems to be indispensable is an improvement in the determination of the critical variables that should be used to measure performance.

Being valuable for academics and practitioners, this contribution relies, rather, on the possibility of a logical extrapolation to circumstances where the findings might apply, and researchers can judge whether the particular findings would be valid.

Provides new evidence on the adaptation of the make‐up and combination of the type of performance measures currently used by plants in the aeronautical industry, one of the sectors in which technological innovation is of the utmost importance.

In order for production strategy to develop its role in the creative activity of value it is necessary to have the information that will facilitate decision making and to guide its performance. The aim of this study is to present the basic ideas of how a scorecard, adapted for use in production‐operations should be. More specifically it will present the key factors and indicators which it should contain, these being different depending on the production strategy used and on whether the information is directed at upper management levels or at levels with fewer responsibilities.

Production/operations management (POM) is today a key element for the competitivity of companies, and the demand by Spanish companies for university graduates qualified in this area is significant. Therefore, in this discipline, the correct education and training of future business managers is an evident need to be addressed; however, little is known about the current situation of POM teaching in Spanish universities. Hence, to obtain reliable and useful data, a comprehensive empirical study of the total population of university teachers of this discipline in Spain has been undertaken. The present paper concentrates first on the analysis of the characteristics of the POM faculty in Spanish universities, then considers the teaching and assessment methods and the didactic material employed in the teaching of this discipline. In both cases, a critical analysis has been made of the various problems observed, and alternative solutions have been proposed. The analysis of the content of POM programs is the subject of another article published in this journal.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the continuous identification of tangible and intangible strategic resources needed to achieve competitive advantages in uncertain times in Spanish wineries, highlighting the critical value of human capital.

By means of a case study of a Spanish Sherry winery theoretically based on the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm, the paper focuses on the influence of environmental uncertainty on firms’ strategic resources and the need for in-depth knowledge. Direct participation and experience in the business have allowed access to data for longitudinal exploratory analysis.

Human capital, especially managers’ knowledge and experience, has been the key to the survival and success of the company analysed, throughout its history.

The paper guides managers, especially in microenterprises and SMEs, on the inclusion among the firm’s strategic resources of a part of their own human capital that is generally not considered.

This paper contributes to the RBV and self-reflection theory by demonstrating the value of human capital in a small family business under extremely uncertain times.

The change that occurred in the last years in the manufacturing environment of the clothing industry has motivated the redesign, in many cases, of its organizational and productive structures. For the companies in this sector, every time it becomes more necessary to reach satisfactory levels of competitiveness, as it is the only way of remaining in the market. For this, the adoption and implementation of different strategies that act on several links of the supply chain are required. One of these key links is the production function. In this paper, the advantages of the “just‐in‐time” philosophy for the clothing industry are mentioned, and more specifically the ones of modular manufacturing. This is based on the authors experience in relation to its use in the clothing industry, showing its superiority over the traditional in‐line manufacturing.

Firms are increasingly aware of environmental degradation and this has led many of them to include “quality, safety and protecting the environment” among their competitive priorities. This also involves large capital investments aimed at reducing the environmental impact of their manufacturing activities. This study suggests a method for estimating the return of manufacturing investments with environmental effects (costs and benefits). It considers the value of the asset being preserved as a consequence of a firm’s social responsibility. The practical case studied is Huelva’s industrial area.

Studies the evolution of the operations management (OM) contents in the last decades. For this purpose, a sample of 84 OM textbooks has been analysed. First, we identify the main approaches and frameworks used to organise the OM contents in the different textbooks. Thereafter, we proceed to analyse the trends in the orientation of the textbooks’ contents according to the qualitative/quantitative and long‐/short‐term dimensions of every topic. From this survey, we conclude that in this period (1960‐1998) a shift in the OM approach has emerged, modifying the consideration rendered by the textbooks to the different topics, not affecting the orientation of the contents.

Prior research into the manufacturing function's contribution to business performance demonstrates two seemingly incompatible approaches: strategic alignment or the identification of best practices. In the former, practices are useful only if they are consistent with the strategy to be implemented; in the latter, better performance derives from certain practices, regardless of the strategic context. The purpose of this paper is to propose a theoretical framework to integrate these approaches according to two types of manufacturing alignment, external and internal, such that organizational performance depends on their interaction.

The framework was tested over the information provided on a questionnaire by 148 Spanish companies in three industrial sectors: industrial and commercial machinery, electronic and other electrical equipment, and transportation equipment.

The level of internal alignment depends on the manufacturing practices; some facilitate alignment under any competitive circumstances, whereas others only do so for specific competitive priorities.

This study reinforces the idea that alignment between manufacturing capabilities and business strategy is fundamental, but it also recognizes some best practices that facilitate alignment in any circumstances. Therefore, it demonstrates that both, the approach based on strategic alignment and that based on the existence of best practices, can be combined to fully explain the potential of the manufacturing function.

The main purpose of examining innovation development (ID), technology management (TM) and big data analytics capability (BDAC) from the perspective of information technology companies is to help these companies optimize their business strategies and increase their competitiveness. When these concepts are considered together, it is aimed to present suggestions that information technology companies can increase their innovation capacities, optimize their technology portfolios and develop their big data analytics capacities.

Data were collected from information technology companies working on big data analytics in technoparks in Istanbul. In the research, the Marmara region of Turkey was preferred because it is the region where the information technology sector is most common. In total, 503 questionnaires were collected. SmartPLS (4.0.8.4) licensed software was used in the research, and the results are presented with tables and figures.

As a result of the analysis of the data, it is supported by hypotheses that ID and TM have positive effects as independent variables and BDAC has positive effects as both independent and mediation variables.

In terms of the limitations of the research, since the data were collected only from the information technology companies in the technoparks in Istanbul, it would not be correct to generalize the analysis results. For this reason, it is recommended to develop a research model and contribute to the literature by considering this limited situation for similar studies to be conducted in the future.

By focusing on ID, it is important for companies to analyze their innovation processes and increase their ID capacity. On the subject of TM, analyses help companies identify their current technological infrastructure and development needs and optimize their technology portfolios. Big data analytics is an important tool that companies can use in their decision-making processes. Therefore, analyses of big data analytics can evaluate companies' current data analytics capacities and offer improvement suggestions.

So why are ID, TM and BDAC important? Why should a research model be developed to examine the effects of these variables? This situation can be understood by looking at the investments made by two world-class companies with headquarters in Istanbul/Turkey. L'Oréal Turkey integrates big data, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and digital platforms into its business processes by investing in new technologies and also makes a difference with innovation in environmental sustainability and social responsibility. PepsiCo, on the other hand, placed a great emphasis on innovation by opening its third Design and Innovation Center in Turkey and Europe in Istanbul. For this reason, examining the effects of ID, TM and big data analytics together in the research is important for the originality of the research. Examining these variables by focusing on their interactions and effects increases the originality of the subject.