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The aim of this research is to investigate the adoption and implementation of SCM practices by small retail firms. Past research has established the benefits of SCM practices on performance of large enterprises, but the impact of these practices on small retailers merits attention due to the importance of this sector in the economy and organizational difference due to scale.

A survey instrument based on existing scales is developed and distributed to small retailers in Upstate New York. A total of 79 valid responses were received. A theoretical model is developed relating implementation of supply chain management practices to performance at both retail and supplier levels. The theoretical model was tested using partial least squares (PLS) methods.

This research suggests that supply chain management practices are positively related to performance at both the retail and suppler levels. Moderate implementation levels of supply chain management practices are reported among the small retailers studied.

This research employed perceptual performance measures. Future studies can expand on this research by examining objective data on performance metrics at both the retail and supplier level to better quantify costs and benefits of supply chain management in this context.

This research is the first paper to attempt to empirically test supply chain management practices among small retailers, thus generalizing our understanding of the supply chain management practices in a context not previously studied. Implications for suppliers and retailers are discussed.

The purpose of this paper is to determine the performance impact for small, local retailers by the means of category management (CM) practice and implementation. The authors utilized survey methodology to investigate both the immediate and cumulative impact of CM on several regional retailers.

The results suggest CM practices have a positive impact on the performance of small, local retailers. category captain (CC) and minor supplier (MS) performances are also positively related to CM execution. CM practices, however, do not have a direct significant influence on MS performance, but rather have a cumulative impact through CC and CM performances.

Small retailers should implement CM principles informally to match with their specific limited resources and management structures. Additionally, results from this study also suggest that local retailers may benefit from leveraging suppliers through tighter relationships encompassed within CM.

This research is the first to empirically test the immediate and cumulative impacts of CM practices on small, local retailers, and to determine their implications. Cumulatively, small retailers have a large impact on developed economies with a particularly large impact on employment, therefore major retail initiatives such as CM merit scholarly attention.

The purpose of this paper is, first, to utilize institutional theory to assess motivation for the adoption of Six Sigma. Second, to examine the role of an organization's innovation implementation climate and the fit between the innovation considered and the values of the organization's members on the implementation of Six Sigma. Third, to study the impact that the adoption and implementation of Six Sigma has on organizational performance.

Methods advocated in case study research were employed in the conduct of seven case studies. The research protocol consisted of identifying organizations in a variety of manufacturing industries, and conducting focused interviews with a minimum of three respondents in each company in order to improve validity.

This paper suggests that institutional theory proves to be an effective means by which to examine the adoption of Six Sigma. In addition, support for innovation implementation model suggested by Klein and Sorra is found. Each of the studied firms reported performance improvements as a result of the adoption and implementation of Six Sigma.

This paper contributes to a better understanding of Six Sigma adoption, implementation, and implementation effectiveness of Six Sigma by exploring how it is applied in different manufacturing contexts.

This study aims to understand the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on small retailers, and their response to it, using the crisis management model. The research documents the impact and responses and attempts to identify the factors contributing to and hindering retailers’ attempts to achieve resilience.

Semi-structured interviews were used to collect qualitative data from small retailers. The interview transcripts were analysed using MAXQDA 2020 Analytics Pro data analysis software. The heterogeneity in responses to the challenges posed by the pandemic is explained using self-determination theory and diffusion of innovation theory.

One of the most significant impacts of the crisis was the disruption in the regular supply chain network on which the studied retailers relied for their traditional buying. The retailers increased customer services such as free home delivery and enhanced the use of technology in their shops. However, and worryingly, although the retailers faced two waves of the pandemic, the urge to plan and prepare was missing. The overall crisis can, therefore, be seen as an opportunity for small retailers to improve their responses when facing similar situations.

Small retailers are part of the social fabric in many emerging economies and function as a source of employment. They have been facing challenges from organised retail and e-commerce. The Covid-19 crisis pushed them to respond, and the authors hope that they will take some cues from this disruption and become more efficient and competitive in the future.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is among the first studies to map the impact of the crisis on small retailers and their response to it, drawing implications for retailers and companies and analysing the efforts made by small retailers to achieve resilience.

This paper aims to expand the literature on financial and operational performance by analyzing the effects of undergoing through Six Sigma training.

The effects of implementing Six Sigma trainings is analyzed for 108 Fortune 500 companies. The authors estimate long-term stock returns and 14 financial ratios of Six Sigma companies, both pre- and post-adoption periods. Furthermore, The authors match the 108 companies by size and industry to 108 non-Six Sigma companies also within the Fortune 500.

Looking at long-term stock returns, the evidence shows that Six Sigma firms need at least four years before they start to outperform the controlling sample. Furthermore, looking at operational performance, unlike prior reported results, the authors find supporting, and more importantly, persisting statistical evidence that Six Sigma firms are less liquid and have a negative growth in staff levels in comparison to the matching firms.

The findings of this suggest that if Six Sigma provides any value to the company, it comes at the expense of overloaded staff levels, as evidenced by the fact that Six Sigma firms have less growth in staff levels than the matching firms.

It is one of the first paper to thoroughly investigate the effects on both financial performance and operational performance of spending, sometimes billions of dollars, in Six Sigma training.

The purpose of this paper is to point out the potential for further theorizing of the concept of mindfulness, by extending and nuancing present accounts of East‐West dichotomies in relation to the concept.

The paper takes the form of a literature review.

Dichotomies of Western and Eastern approaches to mindfulness can be extended by analyzing key elements of their respective philosophies, notably through their different views on permanence versus impermanence, uni‐directional versus mutual causality and conceptual versus non‐conceptual knowledge. Through these key elements, a more nuanced picture of Eastern and Western elements can be identified in relation to quality management research and practice. The dual roots in Eastern and Western contexts point at the potential for further theorizing inherent in the concept of mindfulness.

This paper takes a broad and nuancing view on present dichotomies of Eastern and Western accounts on mindfulness and points at the concept's future potential.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between two major constructs (supply chain management practices (SCMP) and supply chain performance measures), which determines the efficiency and efficacy of retail-supply chain management, using a rigorous empirical method to validate the instrument scale for measuring the validity and reliability of the identified constructs. Additionally, the paper further tests the relationship between SCMP and supply chain performance measures using structural equation modeling (SEM).

Data were compiled and collected from 213 operations and supply chain (SC) heads from leading retail stores in India. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the validity of the proposed measurement scale and the relationship is tested using SEM.

The results of the research will help the decision makers in the SC/procurement field to understand the importance of the association between SCMP and supply chain performance measures. Statistical tests show that the implementation of SCMP are associated with supply chain performance measures, which leads to overall improvements; moreover, there is a statistically significant association between the five SCMP and eight SCPM.

This research is also needed to provide more understanding about the SCMP along with the supply chain performance measures and the positive association among them. Overall, this research provides an additional insight into the growing field of the relationships between SCMP and SCPM. Clearly, the field has ample space to grow in terms of research and practice.

This research paper contributes to the literature on supply chain performance measurement.

In light of the recent changes in the internal audit (IA) landscape, the role of auditors has undergone a significant transformation. This paper aims to investigate the effects of applying Lean Six Sigma (LSS) techniques on the effectiveness and efficiency of IA.

The study used a quantitative approach, surveying Iranian internal auditors with a sample size of 384 participants. Data analysis involved confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

The analyses demonstrate a significant association between LSS application and IA effectiveness and efficiency. In addition, an exploratory analysis indicates that the application of LSS techniques by less experienced internal auditors had a reverse effect on IA function quality as a component of IA competency. However, IA motivation factors, including education and position, did not mediate the impact of LSS on IA effectiveness and efficiency.

This study was conducted with Iranian internal auditors, which may limit the generalizability of the findings to other countries. However, the primary academic implication of this research lies in its novel perspective on emphasizing the concept of continuous improvement in IA through the use of LSS techniques. By focusing on the need for internal auditors to add value to the business in new ways, this research contributes to the literature on IA quality.

This study has significant implications for the effective management of IA departments. By promoting the application of LSS techniques in IA, lean auditing is enhanced, and IA can create value by improving the quality of its functions. Moreover, IA regulators can benefit from this study as it emphasizes providing guidance and training on LSS techniques to enhance IA skills.

This research is pioneering in applying LSS methodology to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of internal auditing. It also considers the integration of lean thinking into current audit practices, making it unique and valuable in internal auditing research.

Once the operational benefits of Six Sigma are well-recognized in the literature, this research advances the strategic advantages of this initiative. Thus, this paper aims to analyze how dynamic capabilities (DCs) mediates the relationship between Six Sigma implementation and organizational flexibility, not discussed in the literature yet.

Data from 66 Six Sigma European firms are used for a structural equation modeling and additional tests –Baron and Kenny’s test and Preacher and Hayes’s test – to analyze the mediating role of DCs. Following the scholars’ recommendations, the authors have created a second-order factor explained by knowledge absorption, organizational learning and knowledge integration to measure DCs. Flexibility, understood as the capacity for organizational adaptation, is measured through its operational and strategic dimensions.

The results show a significant relationship between Six Sigma practices – team management and statistical metrics – and DCs. In addition, the authors find support for a significant relationship between DCs and the operational and strategic dimensions of flexibility. Finally, the results confirm that DCs act as a mediating variable in the relationship between Six Sigma practices and flexibility.

The study contributes to literature that supports the decision to implement Six Sigma. In particular, key Six Sigma practices are identified for those managers who wish to foster DCs generation and organizational flexibility inside their companies.

This research analyzes the relationship between Six Sigma and strategic variables, answering the call for research about Six Sigma influence on long-term organizational success.