István Jenei

The internationalization process in companies located at the borders of emerging and developed countries

Purpose – Despite geographical proximity, major economic differences exist between Western European countries and the formerly socialist Eastern European countries. The main objective of this study is to develop a better understanding of internationalization decision processes in this specific context.Design/methodology/approach – By means of multiple case study research, six Austrian and five Hungarian companies in order to extend and refine existing theory on internationalization decisions given the current situation in Central Europe are analyzed. In particular, the paper uses extant literature to build a conceptual framework from which we derive propositions as a basis and a guide for data collection and analysis.Findings – In addition to cost considerations, process and product innovations are becoming increasingly important dimensions in explaining the reasons for internationalization projects. The reasons for internalization and solutions (relocated products and processes, entry mode and location) ...

The Impact of Lean Management on Business Level Performance and Competitiveness

In this paper we describe a model that investigates the impact of lean management on business competitiveness. We hypothesize that business competitiveness depends on organizational competences (including both the static level of operational capability and the dynamic capabilities of improving and adapting to changing internal and external conditions) and business performance. The lean literature provides an unbalanced picture of the elements of business competitiveness: while several researches discuss the impact of lean on static operational measures, there are much less studies about the relationship between lean and 1) organizational changes and responsiveness, and between lean and 2) business performance. In the empirical part of our paper we focus on the latter issues using both case studies and questionnaires. With our case based research (using two original cases and relying on several ECCH cases) we can clearly highlight how lean affects, through employees, organizational responsiveness and how it leads towards higher business competitiveness. Our analysis is unique in the sense that we could relate the casebased analysis to the perspective of employees, since in our original cases several employees (83 and 97) filled in a questionnaire that showed the impact of lean tools and methods on them, as well as their opinion about the improvements both at operational and business levels.

The impact of shop floor culture and subculture on lean production practices

Purpose The purpose of this paper to examine the impact of shop floor (SF) culture (organizational culture (OC) perceived by workers) and SF subcultures assessed by the competing values framework (CVF) on the perceived use of lean production (LP) practices. Design/methodology/approach The authors analyse questionnaires completed by workers at the single case company undergoing a commonplace lean transformation. The survey items cover both LP items and CVF statements. The propositions are analysed applying cluster analysis and regression. Findings At the case company, the multidimensionality of SF culture only partially exists, and the perceived use of LP practices shows little connection to OC. The considerable differences between SF culture and SF subcultures on the one hand and among SF subcultures on the other hand indicate the existence of a special multidimensional SF culture. Altogether, SF culture’s impact on LP is weak. Practical implications Managers should rethink the usual lean implementation pathways and understand how values pervade SF culture and how culture types impact the perceived use of LP practices at the SF. Managers could face a trade-off: smoother lean transition by engaging in SF subculture-specific transitions and reinforcing it or by developing a homogenous lean SF culture. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first empirical attempt to understand the impact of SF culture on the perceived use of LP practices by adopting a validated OC measurement tool. Furthermore, the study provides insight into workers’ subcultures.

Competence Based Taxonomy of Supplier Firms in the Automotive Industry

In the last 15-20 years companies went through a series of heavy economic blows in Hungary: first, the paternalistic state disappeared and they had to start to manage themselves and their own capital. Second, the collapse of the Russian industry forced most of them to find new markets for their products in order to survive. Third, the accession to EU brought competition much closer to them than ever before. Although a lot of companies disappeared during these years and even more were founded, we can say, that they have to improve themselves continuously to adapt to the changing conditions in order to remain competitive. Thus competitiveness is and was a focal issue in the Hungarian economy. Today, with the accession to EU, the key to competitiveness for Hungarian companies is to what extent they are able to join European or even global supply chains. How can they discover the requirements of various customers and how can they improve their internal operations to fit these requirements? These are very general questions, but the answers are different company by company. We believe, however, that there must be some general patterns behind the scene, which might be useful for companies to know how to position themselves in the supply chain. Several OEMs have started business in the automotive industry in Hungary and in the neighbouring transition economies providing chance for Hungarian suppliers to join their supply chains. Furthermore, due to the intense global competition and the matured stage in the life cycle in automotive companies supply chain management practices are vital. That is why we selected this industry as the basis of our research. We believe that similarly to portfolio models which segment suppliers, we can build taxonomy on various customer values and supplier competences. Our paper discusses this focal question by using a general model of competitiveness for a series of interviews from the Hungarian automotive industry. In this paper we concentrate on the competence side of the model and use interviews as an empirical base. The structure of our paper is the following: first we go through the relevant literature. Next the model of competitiveness and our research method is introduced. Then we describe the cases shortly and analyze the information we got. Finally our taxonomy is developed and conclusions are drawn.