Involving individuals in the manufacturing strategy formation : Strategic consensus among workers and managers

Decisions made and actions taken by individuals in the operations function impact the formation of a company’s manufacturing strategy (MS). Therefore, it is important that the MS is understood and agreed on by all employees, that is, strategic consensus among the individuals in the operations function is essential. This research contributes to the current body of knowledge by including a workers’ perspective on MS formation. It is the workers on the shop floor who bring the MS to life in the actual operations through their daily decisions and actions. The MS falls short if the priorities outlined do not materialise in practice as intended. The purpose of this research is to investigate how the individuals in the operations function perceive the MS in order to understand how these individuals are involved in the MS formation. The research is based on five studies, differing by evidence, as follows: one theoretical, three qualitative in the setting of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and one quantitative at a large company. Based on the findings presented in the six appended papers, the results show that empirically and conceptually, workers have been overlooked or given a passive role in the MS formation. Empirically, it is seen that workers and managers do not have a shared understanding of the underlying reasons for strategic priorities; hence, the level of strategic consensus is low. Furthermore, the level of strategic consensus varies among the different MS dimensions depending on their organisational level. Moreover, the empirical findings reveal that internal contextual factors influence the individuals’ perceptions of the MS and the possibilities for strategic consensus. Regarding the external context, the results show that major customers’ strategies influence the subcontractor SMEs’ MS formation. The usage of means of communication in the operations function has also shown to be of importance for how the MS is perceived. Conceptually, the findings indicate that the MS literature tends to treat individuals in the operations function in a deterministic manner; individuals on the shop floor are regarded as manufacturing resources. To ensure a successful MS formation process, where the patterns of the decisions made by the individuals in the operations function forms the MS, the view on human nature within the MS requires a more voluntaristic approach. This research suggests to view the MS formation as an iterative “patterning process” which builds on a reciprocal relationship between workers and managers. The introduction of the patterning process contributes to the research on MS formation by explaining the perception range within the hierarchical levels, by re-defining the hierarchical levels included in the MS formation and by detailing the activities in the MS formation.

The International <IR> Framework’s impact on the social and relationship disclosures in the healthcare industry

Abstract Background and Problem: The altering business world and the growing requests from stakeholders have resulted in the establishment of new reports. These are among others Sustainability reports and Integrated Reporting. On the contrary, traditional financial reports do not consider the significance of intangible assets in modern entities. The social and relationship capital has further shown to be important for firms, especially healthcare companies and pharmaceuticals, but is not as developed as other capitals within the <IR> framework and therefore not always included in annual reports. However too few disclosures within this area could lead to high liabilities. The IIRC launched the <IR> framework year 2013 as a solution, as it gives a more comprehensive view of the reporting entity. Within this framework there are six capitals: manufactured, human, financial, natural, intellectual and social and relationship.   Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to find out how the International <IR> Framework has influenced the reporting of the social and relationship disclosures within the healthcare industry, to compare the reporting of the six medical firms chosen and to examine how the social concerns have been developed over time. Delimitations: This study is conducted over a period of three years, from year 2012 to year 2014. It only examines healthcare companies which use the International <IR> framework and it has solely focus on the social and relationship capital. All other capitals within the <IR> framework are excluded from the study. Method: This study has a qualitative research strategy and is based on information collected from published documents in form of annual reports. The annual reports from year 2010, 2011 and 2012 are used to find social and relationship disclosures and a disclosure scoreboard is used to find similarities, differences and patterns. Empirical Results and Conclusion: It has been found that the aggregated social and relationship disclosures have been reduced over time. The year followed by the release of the <IR> framework was seen to have the least disclosures and therefore conclusion was drawn that the <IR> framework had a negative influence on the social and relationship disclosures. There were also differences among the companies studied both in extent and content. The former could be linked to factors such as size and nationality and the latter could be linked to reputation preservation and legitimacy interests.