Jack R. Meredith

Building operations management theory through case and field research

Abstract Case and field research studies continue to be rarely published in operations management journals, in spite of increased interest in reporting such types of studies and results. This paper documents the advantages and rigor of case/field research and argues that these methods are preferred to the more traditional rationalist methods of optimization, simulation, and statistical modeling for building new operations management theories. In the process of describing the constructs of inference and generalizability with reference to case research, we find the existing definitions inadequate and thus extend and refine them to better discriminate between alternate research methodologies. We also elaborate on methods for increasing the generalizability of both rationalist and case/field research studies. A major conclusion is that these alternate research methods are not mutually exclusive and, if combined, can offer greater potential for enhancing new theories than either method alone.

Conducting case study research in operations management

Abstract Recently, there have been numerous calls for more empirical field-based research to be conducted in operations management (OM). Knowledge of how operations systems work can be enhanced significantly through contact with the “real-world” conditions that OM models seek to describe. Case study research is a primary means of exploring field conditions but is an unfamiliar methodology for many in OM. Moreover, the case study method is viewed with scepticism by those who consider it to be a weak form of research, one that lacks rigor and objectivity. Here, we offer an introduction to the case study method for OM researchers who may have little background in field based research. We provide an outline of the procedure and cite some excellent sources that cover case study design, data analysis and the philosophical rationale for the methodology. We also identify some recent examples of OM case studies that illustrate our points. We then contrast the various uses for case study research and their different design and theory requirements. An appendix provides a listing of case studies that have appeared in some OM journals in recent years, classifying the studies by their research purpose. However, regardless of their purposes, case study research need to be conducted in a manner that assures maximum measurement reliability and theory validity. We describe some of the steps that must be taken to ensure that a study is as rigorous as possible. We also argue that, properly conducted, a case study is a truly scientific research approach. We conclude by pointing out some areas of OM research where case studies might be particularly valuable.

Theory Building through Conceptual Methods

Identifies the significant role of conceptual research methods in theory building and contrasts it with the theory‐testing research currently prevalent in operations management. The research stages of description, explanation and testing are used to distinguish between theory building and theory testing. Short‐circuiting any one of these stages results in dysfunctional research activities which produce war stories, black boxes, or ivory‐tower prescriptions. Defines some terms relevant to conceptual research methods and describes different conceptual classification schemes. Finally, discusses the differences between conceptual models, frameworks, and theories and illustrates each method with examples from the literature.

Suppliers' contributions to product development: an exploratory study

Many managers are trying to leverage the skills and resources of key component suppliers to develop high-quality new products faster and at a lower cost. In this exploratory study, we surveyed product-development engineers in 79 small- to medium-sized firms to determine if three techniques commonly used to integrate suppliers into product development increase the suppliers perceived contributions to product development in the eyes of its customer. The techniques studied are: (1) timing of a suppliers involvement; (2) suppliers design responsibility; and (3) communication frequency. Of these, only early supplier involvement was significantly related to the perception of an increased contribution by the supplier. In addition, we found that the suppliers contributions to product development had little practical influence on the overall project technical success. The findings suggest that more research is needed to understand how to use suppliers effectively to improve product-development outcomes.

Justifying multimachine systems: An integrated strategic approach

Abstract Current problems in justifying multimachine systems are analyzed and an integrated framework is developed in which both strategic and tactical considerations are included. At the strategic level the tools for project selection are reviewed, followed by the economic analysis normally required for these systems. Special tools, notably simulation, are illustrated through an example situation.

The operations management research agenda: An update

Abstract An agenda for operations management (OM) research was first proposed by Miller et al. in 1981. However, until Hill et al. examined recent Ph.D. dissertations in 1987, no other work on the agenda had been done. We take another look at the status of the OM research agenda from a slightly different perspective. The state of OM research in the United States is examined through a survey of published journal articles by OM researchers in the period 1982–1987. Overall, 362 journal articles were reviewed and classified into 17 categories. The topical areas of technology and innovation, service operations, productivity, and manufacturing strategy suggested in the OM agenda for future research are now receiving some attention from OM researchers. We also compared our findings to the results of Chases 1980 study and notice that, though statistically, OM research has changed since the time of Chases study, the overall emphasis and orientation still appear to be the same. To account for the publication time lag suffered by most journal articles, we also examined papers from the Decision Sciences Institute (DSI) proceedings for 1986 and 1987. The DSI proceedings were used as a surrogate measure of pipeline research. Statistically, the DSI proceedings appear to be different from contemporary OM research as published in the journals; the directions of the pipeline papers are more in agreement with the directions suggested in the OM agenda. The final part of this study examined the types of research approaches used in the journal publications and compared them to those used in the DSI proceedings. There was no statistically significant difference between the research approaches used in the published and pipeline research. Our conclusion is that, though the OM agenda had suggested broadening the research strategies used in studying OM issues, the dominant strategies continue to be model and laboratory (primarily simulation) based.

A Longitudinal Study of the Role of Manufacturing Technology in Business Strategy

Reports on a study of the use of flexible manufacturing systems in three strategic business units over a period of six years. Describes each SBU′s manufacturing technology strategy and contrasts it with tactical measures of actual operations to gain insight into the role of manufacturing technology in the SBU′s business strategy and its evolution. Presents study results in ten propositions which question our knowledge of how strategy truly evolves in organizations.

Operations management research: evolution and alternative future paths

Purpose – This paper aims to investigate the evolution of operations management (OM) research along two major dimensions from 1977 to 2003 and discusses possible paths for research progression in the future.Design/methodology/approach – To identify OM research papers, a careful definition of OM research was constructed based initially on earlier work and then more precisely extended through empirical analysis. The research on OM builds on a previous study that took snapshots of OM research in 1977 and 1987. It then extends and updates it through a content analysis of 593 articles published in 1995 and 2003 in five journals recognized for publishing OM research.Findings – The overall results illustrate that OM has evolved from heavily rationalistic, axiomatic analyses based on artificial reconstructions of reality toward more interpretive analyses based on natural observations of reality.Research limitations/implications – As the OM field continues to evolve, it is important to monitor and reassess publish...

An analysis of process industry production and inventory management systems

Abstract The process industries — those firms that add value by mixing, separating, forming and/or chemical reactions by either batch or continuous mode — continue to lag behind the discrete industries in the identification and implementation of effective production and inventory management (P&IM) techniques. A contributing factor is that the process industries have traditionally been lumped together and contrasted from the discrete industries as a whole, thus leading to misunderstandings regarding individual process industries. From site interviews and the literature, we identified four critical dimensions — planning resource requirements (for materials and capacity), tracking resource consumption, control of work-in-process (WIP), and degree of computerization — represented by seven variables by which to contrast and analyze process industries. Based on in-depth field studies of 19 diverse process plants, we find that there exist at least four distinct types of process industry P&IM systems: (1) simple, (2) common, (3) WIP-controlled, and (4) computerized.

A comparison of selected manufacturing cell formation techniques

SUMMARY Cellular manufacturing is gaining increasing popularity as a way to quickly improve productivity and competitiveness. As a result, much research has been devoted to the development of cell formation techniques. Unfortunately, very little research has been aimed at comparing the numerous cell formation techniques available. Thus, the focus of this research is to compare selected cell formation procedures. To carry out this research, data was collected from three actual manufacturing plants. Next, the selected cell formation procedures were applied to the plants. Finally, simulation models were developed based on the cell formation procedures and evaluated on a number of performance measures.