Juan A. Marin-Garcia

Integrating human resource management into lean production and their impact on organizational performance

Purpose - The first goal of this research is to analyse the effects of lean production (LP) on the policy of human resource management (HRM). The second is to determine whether or not implementation of HRM practices associated with LP explains the differences in organizational performance between manufacturing plants. Design/methodology/approach - The paper developed a questionnaire for data collection. Findings are presented from 76 establishments (79.17 per cent of the total sample) that specialise in single-firing ceramic tiles in Spain. Findings - Companies that make the most of LP practices are also those that take care to train workers in using these practices as well as improving their employment security. However, the same is not true for the pay for performance system. The combination of LP with HRM practices reduces inventory and boosts productivity but does not appear to affect the other performance variables analysed. Research limitations/implications - For certain variables very little variation was found between the plants in the samples. The data are cross-sectional, so causality cannot be definitively determined. Practical implications - This paper indicates the HRM practices associated with the LP and the results obtained. It can thus be used to help human resource and production departments in improving organizational performance. Originality/value - The paper extends the work of other researchers by focusing on a sector and a country that have been very little studied to date. The sample consists of a set of plants that are fairly homogeneous, which facilitates the analysis of the relationships between the selected variables, while keeping other variables controlled.

Longitudinal study of the results of continuous improvement in an industrial company

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to show a real experience of how a scheme of continuous improvement has been gradually transformed, from a very unsuccessful start, passing through different phases and finally delivering results for the firm.Design/methodology/approach – The authors analyse the evolution of the formal programs of continuous improvement of a firm in a traditional sector (food). The data for the research were gathered by means of participatory observation over the course of 18 months spent in the firm attending the meetings of the improvement teams.Findings – Both programs (individual and group) have proved to be very profitable for the company. However, there is no magic formula for the correct operation of the system of continuous improvement. The existing system has to be continually improved, correcting faults and trying always to contribute something new to re‐launch the system regularly.Practical implications – This study has also permitted the authors to highlight the importanc...

The impact of Kaizen Events on improving the performance of automotive components' first-tier suppliers

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to explore the possibility of improving production indicators by implementing Kaizen Events. The teams are composed of both managers and operators with the aim of developing and/or implementing improvements in three to five days. Methodology – The empirical research will consists of the description of the results obtained in 11 industrial companies from the automotive components industry. In each company, we have followed up different interventions over a 9-12-month period. Findings – We shall present the initial situation, the activities carried out by the companies and the evolution of manufacturing performance approximately three months after the activities were finished and qualitative conclusions on the carrying out of Kaizen Events. Value – There has been little empirical research to establish the degree of improvement of the production indicators in companies advancing towards lean production. The paper tries to fill this gap.

Relationship between employee involvement and lean manufacturing and its effect on performance in a rigid continuous process industry

This research aims to empirically test the effect of employee involvement on lean manufacturing (LM), and the effect of LM on production outcomes. Employee involvement is operationalised through four related variables: empowerment, training, contingent remuneration and communication. The effects are tested by recording management perceptions in a different industrial sector from those usually studied in previous research – ceramic manufacturers, a highly competitive and internationally successful sector. We obtained data from 101 ceramic tile plants (64% of response rate) in the Valencia region of Spain. This approach is developed using a statistical method called partial least squares. All paths are significant except for contingent remuneration; specifically, relationships were found between empowerment, training, communication and LM, and between LM and performance.

The use of employee participation in the USA and Spanish companies

Abstract This article presents a description of employee participation in Spain. The number of published papers in English about Spain regarding this subject is very low, and even lower by Spanish authors. In short, we can say that there is hardly any knowledge regarding employee participation in Spain in both the European and American settings. This paper summarized the results of a research project we carried out whose objective was to compare employee participation using samples from large American and Spanish companies following the works of Edward E. Lawler and his team. Our aim is to have professionals and researchers throughout the world better understand the actual situation in our country.

Exploring working conditions as determinants of job satisfaction: an empirical test among Catalonia service workers

Job satisfaction is particularly important in the service industries since it involves direct contact with customers and thus has a direct influence on company performance. This paper analyses the impact of 10 working conditions on job satisfaction by means of structural equation modeling in a representative stratified random sample of 1553 service sector employees in Catalonia, Spain. Significant effects in social aspects (recognition of a job well done and social support) were found, followed by psychological loads (emotional demands and job insecurity) and by task contents (development and meaning, and predictability). These variables explained 50% of the variance in job satisfaction.

Towards a path dependence approach to study management innovation

Purpose – Scholars in social sciences tend to use the term of path dependence without explaining exactly what they mean by it. Path dependence is a useful approach to understand the success or otherwise of the implementation of management innovation. The aim of this paper is to identify under which conditions it makes sense to talk about path dependence, and the relevance of using path dependence to the analysis of management innovation.Design/methodology/approach – The path dependence literature in different contexts and knowledge areas within social science is reviewed using a narrative approach.Findings – The concept of path dependence can be used to study management innovation, particularly when analyzing the introduction of new management practices. The authors argue that the order in which management practices are introduced has a profound effect on the outcomes for the organization. When the appropriate practices are introduced first, these create enhanced capabilities for the implementation of sub...

Universal design of workplaces through the use of Poka-Yokes: Case study and implications

Purpose: Employment plays an important part in many people’s lives beyond merely providing income, since continued participation in work can have many therapeutic benefits for workers defined as disabled. However, disabled workers face a range of barriers to employment, despite legislation intended to improve workplace accessibility emphasizing adaptations to the workplace, which many employers often find difficult and expensive. The Poka-Yoke approach was developed in the manufacturing industry as a way of improving productivity by reducing errors using often very simple adaptations. This paper argues that, as Poka-Yokes are designed to make life easier and improve the performance of workers without impairments, they are closer to the philosophy of Universal Design than to Accessible Design, and offer an easy and inclusive way of making work more accessible for all kind of workers. Design/methodology/approach: This paper provides a case study demonstrating the use of the Poka-Yoke approach in a sheltered work centre for disabled; highlighting how they served to improve accessibility to work by fulfilling Universal Design principles. Findings: Our research allows us to demonstrate the great potential of Poka-yokes for gaining accessibility to the workplace. The real application of this approach, Journal of Industrial Engineering and Management http://dx.doi.org/10.3926/jiem.2011.v4n3.p436-452 437 both in sheltered work centres and ordinary companies, can contribute to improve the high unemployment rates of disabled people. Research limitations/implications: The proposal is innovative and was applied in one specific company. Thus, a range of customized Poka-yokes would be desirable for different industrial sectors. Practical implications: Managers of sheltered work centres, and also of ordinary companies, can realize about the great potential of Poka-Yokes as an easy means of gaining flexibility and accessibility. Originality/value: There are very few papers relating lean manufacturing tools and disability. Our approach analyzes the benefits of this approach for the labour integration of disabled people.

Questionnaire validation to measure the application degree of alternative tools to mass production

Abstract The most popular alternative systems to mass production at an academic level (lean manufacturing, agile manufacturing, flexible customization, mass customization...) share many characteristics. Our article identifies an extensive set of alternative practices to mass production; analyzes the classification of practices in categories (bundles); creates a questionnaire to measure the degree of use, from the items in a questionnaire validated in other researches; and verifies the adjusted goodness of the proposed scales. In order to achieve these objectives, the questionnaire was provided to 128 Spanish companies. The results allow us to identify 81 sets of practices already compared in published researches and to verify the adjusted goodness of the scales (14 in total), leaving for a future research any detailed analyses of the factorial structure of the scales with worse adjustment.

Coordinating a cooperative automotive manufacturing network: an agent-based model

One of the problems to be solved in manufacturing networks, with several production centers, is the selection of a suitable manufacturer for each component in order to obtain competitive costs while making full use of the networks capacity. A solution is to own redundant information channels which, despite offering the network greater resilience, generate high costs. The coordination of the nodes in the manufacturing network could lower materials and information flows, thus cutting lead times and total costs, and regulating the systems total productive capacity. This work proposes a coordination model that centralizes materials and information flows, and cuts the costs and overall lead times. It also makes the self-adjustment of productive capacity possible.