Madjid Tavana, Akram Shaabani and Naser Valaei
Delivering premium services and quality products are critical strategies for success in manufacturing. Continuous improvement (CI), as an underlying foundation for quality…
Abstract
Purpose
Delivering premium services and quality products are critical strategies for success in manufacturing. Continuous improvement (CI), as an underlying foundation for quality management, is an ongoing effort allowing manufacturing companies to see beyond the present to create a bright future. We propose a novel integrated fuzzy framework for analyzing the barriers to the implementation of CI in manufacturing companies.
Design/methodology/approach
We use the fuzzy failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA) and a fuzzy Shannon's entropy to identify and weigh the most significant barriers. We then use fuzzy multi-objective optimization based on ratio analysis (MOORA), the fuzzy technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) and fuzzy simple additive weighting (SAW) methods for prioritizing and ranking the barriers with each method. Finally, we aggregate these results with Copeland's method and extract the main CI implementation barriers in manufacturing.
Findings
We show “low cooperation and integration of the team in CI activities” is the most important barrier in CI implementation. Other important barriers are “limited management support in CI activities,” “low employee involvement in CI activities,” “weak communication system in the organization,” and “lack of knowledge in the organization to implement CI projects.”
Originality/value
We initially identify the barriers to the implementation of CI through rigorous literature review and then apply a unique integrated fuzzy approach to identify the most important barriers based on the opinions of industry experts and academics.
Details
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Shiva Rani and Elangbam Binodini Devi
The purpose of the current study is to investigate the impact of collective knowledge on individual research competence. Further, the study investigates the mediation effect of…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the current study is to investigate the impact of collective knowledge on individual research competence. Further, the study investigates the mediation effect of the knowledge management process (KMP).
Design/methodology/approach
The cross-sectional study adopts a quantitative conclusive research design. The study collects data specifically from academicians of Uttarakhand higher education institutions (HEIs). The study uses random sampling because the list of faculty members is uploaded on the website of the university portal. The author directly sends the questionnaire to the email of the respondents and uses social media platforms. For the data analysis, the study used SMART-PLS 4.0.
Findings
The findings of the study reveal that KM infrastructure (KMI) and KM strategy directly impact KMP. The study also reveals that the KMP significantly impacts individual research competence. The current study also finds partial mediation support among KMI, KMP and individual research competence, and between KM strategy, KMP and individual research competence.
Research limitations/implications
The current study uses a cross-sectional research design, future studies may include the longitudinal design to measure the effect of KM elements on individual research competence. The current study includes the data from the Uttarakhand region only, and it is difficult to generalize the results specifically to other states.
Practical implications
The study emphasizes the importance of KM system development, a supportive KMI and a balanced KM strategy in HEIs.
Originality/value
Investigating collective knowledge’s impact on individual research competence, this study unveils mediation in KMP. Future research can broaden horizons by using the model.