Alex Hill

Manufacturing operations strategy

International Comparisons Developing a Manufacturing Strategy: Principles and Concepts Order: Winners and Qualifiers Developing a Manufacturing Strategy: Methodology Process Choice Product Profiling Focused Manufacturing: Principles and Concepts Focus: Methodology Make or Buy and Managing the Supply Chain Manufacturing Infrastructure Development Accounting, Finance and Manufacturing Strategy Case Studies

Strategic profiling: a visual representation of internal strategic fit in service organisations

Purpose – The purpose of this exploratory research paper is to present a strategic profiling managerial framework that enables businesses to show visually the level of internal strategic fit in their organisation. Using this framework, service operations managers are able to understand the level of fit that exists, how it is created and identify actions for improving it. Design/methodology/approach – Case‐based research was conducted in eight service organisations to investigate their level of internal fit and the corresponding characteristics of their market, operating strategy and service delivery system. Based on these findings, a strategic profiling framework was developed. Findings – The strategic profiling framework allows a service organisation to compare the characteristics of its market, operating strategy and service delivery system and determine the level of internal strategic fit. This enables it to see more clearly where conflicts exist and to start to understand the steps required to improve the level of fit in its organisation. Research limitations/implications – The research used the Heskett strategic service vision and Hills order‐winner and qualifier technique to investigate the level of internal fit. It looked at how they can be applied and the insights they reveal rather than whether the elements they contain are correct. The research focused on developing and presenting a method of visualizing internal fit, rather than investigating the link between fit and performance. The strategic profiling framework developed needs to be tested on a wider sample of organisations to see whether high‐fit profiles have high performance and whether the insights it reveals are true for other businesses. Practical implications – Service organisations can use the strategic profiling framework to understand their level of internal strategic fit, and why it exists, in order to understand how to improve it. Originality/value – The strategic profiling framework presented in this paper starts to address the gap in the literature around research into the field of internal strategic fit. It also meets the need for more management tools to help businesses develop strategies and understand the level of fit they create.

Supplier relationship impacts on postponement strategies

The main purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the supplier relationship on postponement implementation in the buying firm. The links between three supplier relationship constructs and three postponement constructs are hypothesised and tested through structural modelling. These hypotheses are then tested using empirical data of a sample of 219 manufacturing firms. The findings suggest that the ability of the buying firm to delay product design decisions (postponement in product design) is positively related to the level of supplier commitment, supplier expectation of a continuing relationship with the buyer, and level of joint buyer and supplier actions. However, the buying firm’s ability to delay purchasing decisions about which items to order or how many to order (postponement in purchasing operations) was only positively related to the level of joint buyer and supplier actions. By contrast, the buying firm’s ability to delay the final product configuration (postponement in production operations) was not directly affected by those aspects of the supplier relationship investigated. These findings give greater insight into how different aspects of supplier relationship impact different types of postponement than previous research and have significant implications for practice.

A review of modular strategies and architecture within manufacturing operations

Abstract This paper reviews existing modularity and modularization literature within manufacturing operations. Its purpose is to examine the tools, techniques, and concepts relating to modular production, to draw together key issues currently dominating the literature, to assess managerial implications associated with the emerging modular paradigm, and to present an agenda for future research directions. The review is based on journal papers included in the ABI/Inform electronic database and other noteworthy research published as part of significant research programmes. The research methodology concerns reviewing existing literature to identify key modular concepts, to determine modular developments, and to present a review of significant contributions to the field. The findings indicate that the modular paradigm is being adopted in a number of manufacturing organizations. As a result a range of conceptual tools, techniques, and frameworks has emerged and the field of modular enquiry is in the process of codifying the modular lexicon and developing appropriate modular strategies commensurate with the needs of manufacturers. Modular strategies and modular architecture were identified as two key issues currently dominating the modular landscape. Based on this review, the present authors suggest that future research areas need to focus on the development and subsequent standardization of interface protocols, cross-brand module use, supply chain power, transparency, and trust. This is the first review of the modular landscape and as such provides insights into, first, the development of modularization and, second, issues relating to designing modular products and modular supply chains.

Fitness map: a classification of internal strategic fit in service organisations

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between internal strategic fit and business performance, propose six classifications of internal fit using the “strategic map” managerial framework and identify how firms should best move from one classification to another and the impact that these changes will have on business performance. Design/methodology/approach – Empirical research was conducted in 12 service organisations. Based on these findings, two fit-performance relationships were identified and the “fitness map” framework was developed showing six classifications of fit. Findings – The alignment of operations strategy within an organisation is significantly and positively related to market share, whereas, the alignment of the service delivery system is significantly and positively related to return on sales. However, neither the alignment of the operations strategy nor the service delivery system appears to have a relationship with return on investment. Six classifications of internal strategic fit emerged: poorly aligned organisations are either “understanding processes” or “understanding markets”, medium-fit companies are “managing processes” or “developing service offerings” and well-aligned firms are “leveraging services and process capabilities” or “leveraging markets and design capabilities”. Practical implications – The fit-performance relationships show how changes in the alignment of operations strategy and delivery system impact business performance differently. Using this knowledge, practitioners can use the “strategic map” framework to identify their classification of fit and understand how it has been created, benchmark their level of fit against other businesses, understand how to move from one level of fit to another and how these decisions will impact business performance. Originality/value – The papers findings start to address the gap in the literature on internal strategic fit within service organisations and meet the need for more management tools to help businesses develop strategies, understand the level of fit they create and how they can impact business performance.

Service fitness ladders : improving business performance in low cost or differentiated markets

The purpose of this paper is to present 13 propositions about how internal strategic fit (often referred to as fit) impacts the business performance of low cost and differentiated services. It then uses these relationships to develop two “fitness ladder” frameworks to help practitioners understand how to improve fit given their business strategy (low cost or differentiation) and performance objectives (operational, financial or competitiveness).,In total, 11 strategic business units were studied that perform differently and provide a range of low cost and differentiated services to understand how changes in internal strategic fit impacted business performance over a 7 year period.,The findings suggest aligning systems with market needs does not improve performance. Instead, firms serving low cost markets should first focus managers’ attention on processes and centralise resources around key processes, before reducing process flexibility and automate as many steps as possible to develop a low cost capability that is difficult to imitate. By contrast, firms serving differentiated markets should first focus managers’ attention on customers and then locate resources near them, before increasing customer contact with their processes and making them more flexible so they can develop customer knowledge, relationships and services that are difficult to imitate.,Some significant factors may not have been considered as the study only looked at the impact of 14 internal strategic fit variables on 7 performance variables. Also, the performance changes may not be a direct result of the strategic fit improvements identified and may not generalise to other service organisations, settings and environments.,The strategic fit-performance relationships identified and the “fitness ladder” frameworks developed can be used by organisations to make decisions about how best to improve fit given their different market needs, business strategies and performance objectives.,The findings offer more clarity than previous research about how internal fit impacts business performance for low cost and differentiated services.

Operations Management Teaching Establishing Content and Relevance to Practitioners

This paper explores the relevance to industrys needs of operations management (OM) teaching in higher education, by researching the content of OM modules delivered by UK academics and comparing the results of this research with the views of business practitioners having had first-hand experience of OM teaching on MBA programmes. To determine whether a gap exists in terms of the importance placed on key content areas, the views of OM academics and practitioners were empirically tested using an online survey instrument. The findings indicate that although there is a broad degree of cohesion among academics relating to module content there are gaps between academics and practitioners in terms of the relative importance of key content areas. Such differences are most evident with regard to supply chain management, capacity management, inventory control and lean production tools and techniques. In this regard, the results provide a backdrop for the development of this important subject discipline to ensure that what is taught in the lecture theatre is valued in the business environment.