Enabling strategic transformations with enterprise systems : beyond operational efficiency

The last few decades have seen the widespread adoption of large-scale, integrated, packaged software suites collectively called Enterprise Systems. However, most studies done so far have largely focused on the operational efficiency achieved by using these systems. This paper reports on research-in-progress that seeks to explore the strategic potential of Enterprise Systems to enable business transformations. In doing so, a new model is proposed that places the emphasis on the potential of Enterprise Systems to achieve innovation and reshape business strategy, rather than merely focusing on operational benefits. This model proposes that Enterprise Systems, when used to integrate, optimise and informate, can help firms achieve alliance innovation, process innovation and reshaped business strategy. The paper also provides preliminary empirical evidence that supports the propositions. This model will be tested further through primary case studies and a survey. This research, once completed, will assess the strategic role of Enterprise Systems in enabling business transformations beyond operational benefits.

Enterprise systems for innovation in products and processes : beyond operational efficiency

It has been widely accepted now in industry and academia that Enterprise Systems (ES) can create value for adopting organizations by enabling operational efficiency. However, given the enormous investments they warrant, the potential of such systems to deliver more than improving operations is emerging as a popular area of investigation. This paper reports a research-in-progress that proposes innovation as a means of creating business value with Enterprise Systems. The primary contribution of this paper is a process model that proposes that Enterprise Systems can enable innovation - in products and processes, and supports it with empirical evidence using three case studies. The intention is to test this model further with more case studies and a survey.

Lean management and innovation in operational efficiency: the EGR project implemented by Pirelli Tyre Brazil in Santo André plant

O trabalho tem como objetivo avaliar e descrever analiticamente a implementação de práticas de manufatura enxuta pela Pirelli Pneus no seu complexo industrial da América Latina. Além de uma descrição estruturada e ampla dos princípios de produção de Toyota e fundamentos teóricos do Lean thinking, uma ênfase especial será dedicada ao projeto EGR (Especialistas em Gestão da Rotina), como uma ferramenta estratégica para ser usada pela empresa multinacional italiana no futuro próximo, de modo a alcançar um resultado mais eficaz e eficiente na gestão da rotina diária. Este projeto, que representa um componente significativo do Pirelli Manufacturing System (PMS) e, principalmente, voltado para supervisores e gestores de plantas, consiste principalmente em ajudar a empresa a desenvolver a capacidade empresarial para avaliar corretamente o gap potencial existente entre os resultados atuais e os esperados, para tanto entender os desvios, bem como as causas subjacentes, e melhorar continuamente o desempenho da empresa por meio da padronização de processos e redução de desperdicios. Esses objetivos podem ser perseguidos, atuando em dois meios essenciais: habilidades técnicas e comportamentais de liderança para apoiar cada equipe de projeto; uma maior eficácia na gestão de indicadores de desempenho nas diferentes unidades de fábrica, de acordo com KPIs estabelecidos no nível central pelo Head Quarter. Além disso, a investigação será focada na experiência peculiar da planta de Santo André, onde o EGR começou como piloto, com o objetivo de captar as alterações relevantes (no lado organizacional e econômico) que este projeto trouxe para a empresa, através da realização de pesquisa de campo e entrevistas, que são orientados a recolher provas, considerações e opiniões de todos os principais atores envolvidos.

El efecto de los subsidios, la reglamentación y las diversas formas de propiedad en la calidad y eficacia operativa de los servicios del transporte urbano en América Latina = The impacts of subsidies, regulation, and different forms of ownership on the service quality and operational efficiency of urban bus systems in Latin America

Incluye Bibliografía

Integrated traffic simulation model - phase I. Volume 4: revisions to the UTCS-1 traffic simulation model to enhance operational efficiency. Final report.

Federal Highway Administration, Washington, D.C.

Traffic reviews for operational efficiency /

"August 1982."

New insights on measuring bank branches efficiency through DEA:transactional, operational, and profit assessments

This thesis presents a number of methodological developments that were raised by a real life application to measuring the efficiency of bank branches. The advent of internet banking and phone banking is changing the role of bank branches from a predominantly transaction-based one to a sales-oriented role. This fact requires the development of new forms of assessing and comparing branches of a bank. In addition, performance assessment models must also take into account the fact that bank branches are service and for-profit organisations to which providing adequate service quality as well as being profitable are crucial objectives. This study analyses bank branches performance in their new roles in three different areas: their effectiveness in fostering the use of new transaction channels such as the internet and the telephone (transactional efficiency); their effectiveness in increasing sales and their customer base (operational efficiency); and their effectiveness in generating profits without compromising the quality of service (profit efficiency). The chosen methodology for the overall analysis is Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). The application attempted here required some adaptations to existing DEA models and indeed some new models so that some specialities of our data could be handled. These concern the development of models that can account for negative data, the development of models to measure profit efficiency, and the development of models that yield production units with targets that are nearer to their observed levels than targets yielded by traditional DEA models. The application of the developed models to a sample of Portuguese bank branches allowed their classification according to the three performance dimensions (transactional, operational and profit efficiency). It also provided useful insights to bank managers regarding how bank branches compare between themselves in terms of their performance, and how, in general, the three performance dimensions are connected between themselves.

Liberalization, Ownership, and Efficiency in Indian Banking: A Nonparametric Approach

This paper empirically estimates and analyzes various efficiency scores of Indian banks during 1997-2003 using data envelopment analysis (DEA). During the 1990s India's financial sector underwent a process of gradual liberalization aimed at strengthening and improving the operational efficiency of the financial system. It is observed, none the less, that Indian banks are still not much differentiated in terms of input or output oriented technical efficiency and cost efficiency. However, they differ sharply in respect of revenue and profit efficiencies. The results provide interesting insight into the empirical correlates of efficiency scores of Indian banks. Bank size, ownership, and the fact of its being listed on the stock exchange are some of the factors that are found to have positive impact on the average profit efficiency and to some extent revenue efficiency scores are. Finally, we observe that the median efficiency scores of Indian banks in general and of bigger banks in particular have improved considerably during the post-reform period.

Operational capabilities’ typology: an evolution from operational practices

Operational capabilities são caracterizadas como um recurso interno da firma e fonte de vantagem competitiva. Porém, a literatura de estratégia de operações fornece uma definição constitutiva inadequada para as operational capabilities, desconsiderando a relativização dos diferentes contextos, a limitação da base empírica, e não explorando adequadamente a extensa literatura sobre práticas operacionais. Quando as práticas operacionais são operacionalizadas no ambiente interno da firma, elas podem ser incorporadas as rotinas organizacionais, e através do conhecimento tácito da produção se transformar em operational capabilities, criando assim barreiras à imitação. Apesar disso, poucos são os pesquisadores que exploram as práticas operacionais como antecedentes das operational capabilities. Baseado na revisão da literatura, nós investigamos a natureza das operational capabilities; a relação entre práticas operacionais e operational capabilities; os tipos de operational capabilities que são caracterizadas no ambiente interno da firma; e o impacto das operational capabilities no desempenho operacional. Nós conduzimos uma pesquisa de método misto. Na etapa qualitativa, nós conduzimos estudos de casos múltiplos com quatro firmas, duas multinacionais americanas que operam no Brasil, e duas firmas brasileiras. Nós coletamos os dados através de entrevistas semi-estruturadas com questões semi-abertas. Elas foram baseadas na revisão da literatura sobre práticas operacionais e operational capabilities. As entrevistas foram conduzidas pessoalmente. No total 73 entrevistas foram realizadas (21 no primeiro caso, 18 no segundo caso, 18 no terceiro caso, e 16 no quarto caso). Todas as entrevistas foram gravadas e transcritas literalmente. Nós usamos o sotware NVivo. Na etapa quantitativa, nossa amostra foi composta por 206 firmas. O questionário foi criado a partir de uma extensa revisão da literatura e também a partir dos resultados da fase qualitativa. O método Q-sort foi realizado. Um pré-teste foi conduzido com gerentes de produção. Foram realizadas medidas para reduzir Variância de Método Comum. No total dez escalas foram utilizadas. 1) Melhoria Contínua; 2) Gerenciamento da Informação; 3) Aprendizagem; 4) Suporte ao Cliente; 5) Inovação; 6) Eficiência Operacional; 7) Flexibilidade; 8) Customização; 9) Gerenciamento dos Fornecedores; e 10) Desempenho Operacional. Nós usamos análise fatorial confirmatória para confirmar a validade de confiabilidade, conteúdo, convergente, e discriminante. Os dados foram analisados com o uso de regressões múltiplas. Nossos principais resultados foram: Primeiro, a relação das práticas operacionais como antecedentes das operational capabilities. Segundo, a criação de uma tipologia dividida em dois construtos. O primeiro construto foi chamado de Standalone Capabilities. O grupo consiste de zero order capabilities tais como Suporte ao Cliente, Inovação, Eficiência Operacional, Flexibilidade, e Gerenciamento dos Fornecedores. Estas operational capabilities têm por objetivo melhorar os processos da firma. Elas têm uma relação direta com desempenho operacional. O segundo construto foi chamado de Across-the-Board Capabilities. Ele é composto por first order capabilities tais como Aprendizagem Contínua e Gerenciamento da Informação. Estas operational capabilities são consideradas dinâmicas e possuem o papel de reconfigurar as Standalone Capabilities.

Comparative efficiency analysis of Portuguese bank branches

The advent of Internet banking and phone banking is changing the role of bank branches from a predominantly transaction-based one to a sales-oriented role. This paper reports on an assessment of the branches of a Portuguese bank in terms of their performance in their new roles in three different areas: Their efficiency in fostering the use of new transaction channels, their efficiency in increasing sales and their customer base, and their efficiency in generating profits. Service quality is also a major issue in service organisations like bank branches, and therefore we analyse the way this dimension of performance has been accounted for in the literature and take it into account in our empirical application. We have used data envelopment analysis (DEA) for the different performance assessments, but we depart from traditional DEA models in some cases. Performance comparisons on each dimension allowed us to identify benchmark bank branches and also problematic bank branches. In addition, we found positive links between operational and profit efficiency and also between transactional and operational efficiency. Service quality is positively related with operational and profit efficiency. © 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Hospital performance:efficiency or quality? Can we have both with IT?

The influence of IT investment on hospital efficiency and quality are of great interest to healthcare executives as well as insurers. Few studies have examined how IT investments influence both efficiency and quality or whether there is an optimal IT investment level that influences both in the desired direction. Decision makers in healthcare wonder if there are tradeoffs between their pursuit of hospital operational efficiency and quality. Our study involving a 2-stage double bootstrap DEA analysis of 187 US hospitals over 2. years found direct effects of IT investment upon service quality and a moderating effect of quality upon operational efficiency. Further, our findings indicate a U-shaped relationship between IT investments and operational efficiency suggesting that IT investments have diminishing returns beyond a certain point.

Maximising the efficiency of logistics operations with radio frequency identification technology

Radio frequency identification (RFID) technology has gained increasing popularity in businesses to improve operational efficiency and maximise costs saving. However, there is a gap in the literature exploring the enhanced use of RFID to substantially add values to the supply chain operations, especially beyond what the RFID vendors could offer. This paper presents a multi-agent system, incorporating RFID technology, aimed at fulfilling the gap. The system is developed to model supply chain activities (in particular, logistics operations) and is comprised of autonomous and intelligent agents representing the key entities in the supply chain. With the advanced characteristics of RFID incorporated, the agent system examines ways logistics operations (i.e. distribution network) particular) can be efficiently reconfigured and optimised in response to dynamic changes in the market, production and at any stage in the supply chain. © 2012 IEEE.

Determinants and consequences of information sharing with key suppliers

The economic environment of today can be characterized as highly dynamic and competitive if not being in a constant flux. Globalization and the Information Technology (IT) revolution are perhaps the main contributing factors to this observation. While companies have to some extent adapted to the current business environment, new pressures such as the recent increase in environmental awareness and its likely effects on regulations are underway. Hence, in the light of market and competitive pressures, companies must constantly evaluate and if necessary update their strategies to sustain and increase the value they create for shareholders (Hunt and Morgan, 1995; Christopher and Towill, 2002). One way to create greater value is to become more efficient in producing and delivering goods and services to customers, which can lead to a strategy known as cost leadership (Porter, 1980). Even though Porter (1996) notes that in the long run cost leadership may not be a sufficient strategy for competitive advantage, operational efficiency is certainly necessary and should therefore be on the agenda of every company. ----- ----- ----- Better workflow management, technology, and resource utilization can lead to greater internal operational efficiency, which explains why, for example, many companies have recently adopted Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems: integrated softwares that streamline business processes. However, as today more and more companies are approaching internal operational excellence, the focus for finding inefficiencies and cost saving opportunities is moving beyond the boundaries of the firm. Today many firms in the supply chain are engaging in collaborative relationships with customers, suppliers, and third parties (services) in an attempt to cut down on costs related to for example, inventory, production, as well as to facilitate synergies. Thus, recent years have witnessed fluidity and blurring regarding organizational boundaries (Coad and Cullen, 2006). ----- ----- ----- The Information Technology (IT) revolution of the late 1990’s has played an important role in bringing organizations closer together. In their efforts to become more efficient, companies first integrated their information systems to speed up transactions such as ordering and billing. Later collaboration on a multidimensional scale including logistics, production, and Research & Development became evident as companies expected substantial benefits from collaboration. However, one could also argue that the recent popularity of the concepts falling under Supply Chain Management (SCM) such as Vendor Managed Inventory, Collaborative Planning, Replenishment, and Forecasting owe to the marketing efforts of software vendors and consultants who provide these solutions. Nevertheless, reports from professional organizations as well as academia indicate that the trend towards interorganizational collaboration is gaining wider ground. For example, the ARC Advisory Group, a research organization on supply chain solutions, estimated that the market for SCM, which includes various kinds of collaboration tools and related services, is going to grow at an annual rate of 7.4% during the years 2004-2008, reaching to $7.4 billion in 2008 (Engineeringtalk 2004).

Business process management : an introduction to the special focus issue

The management and improvement of business processes are a core topic of the information systems discipline. The persistent demand in corporations within all industry sectors for increased operational efficiency and innovation, an emerging set of established and evaluated methods, tools, and techniques as well as the quickly growing body of academic and professional knowledge are indicative for the standing that Business Process Management (BPM) has nowadays. During the last decades, intensive research has been conducted with respect to the design, implementation, execution, and monitoring of business processes. Comparatively low attention, however, has been paid to questions related to organizational issues such as the adoption, usage, implications, and overall success of BPM approaches, technologies, and initiatives. This research gap motivated us to edit a corresponding special focus issue for the journal BISE/WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK. We are happy that we are able to present a selection of three research papers and a state-of-the-art paper in the scientific section of the issue at hand. As these papers differ in the topics they investigate, the research method they apply, and the theoretical foundations they build on, the diversity within the BPM field becomes evident. The academic papers are complemented by an interview with Phil Gilbert, IBM’s Vice President for Business Process and Decision Management, who reflects on the relationship between business processes and the data flowing through them, the need to establish a process context for decision making, and the calibration of BPM efforts toward executives who see processes as a means to an end, rather than a first-order concept in its own right.