Building a competitive advantage through sustainable operations strategy

This paper addresses an important gap in sustainability and technology management studies: the strategies for sustainable operations. Based on analysis of cases from automotive, textile, chemical, and food processing industries, the authors discuss the responses companies take to environmental and social pressures when aiming at increasing profitability. Our findings show that adaptations of traditional operations strategy frameworks can be useful when developing and assessing sustainability strategy for operations. Lastly, we also offer definitions for ‘sustainable operations strategy’ and ‘sustainable technology’ as those are not yet established in the literature. We consider the contribution of this article to be linked to the development and evaluation of sustainable operations strategies, which will invariably include the choice and use of technologies.

Surviving the global economic crisis in the automotive industry through sustainable supplier management

This chapter looks at how the current global economic crisis has impacted upon the global automotive industry from an operations and supply chain perspective. It presents an empirical and theoretical background to help long and short term planning for organisations experiencing adverse trading conditions. The empirical research study (conducted between 2004-07 primarily in Germany) revealed that organisations are able to make short term improvements to performance by reducing costs and making process and structural improvements, but in the long term the deeper rooted causes of the industry can in part only be dealt with by improving interfirm R&D collaborations based upon competencies rather than cost related issues. A new approach known as Collaborative Enterprise Governance is presented which supports the design and management of competitive sustainable enterprises; it consists of a data capture tool, a body of knowledge and a dynamic reference grid to show how many part-to-part company relationships can exist simultaneously to make up productprocess focused enterprises. Examples from the German automotive industry are given, impact upon the overall product development lifecycle and the implications for organisational strategists are discussed. © 2010 Nova Science Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.

'If you had only listened carefully...':the discursive construction of emerging leadership in a UK all-women management team

Increasingly, feminist linguistic research has adopted a discursive perspective to learn how women and men 'do' leadership in gendered ways. 'Women' as a social category is made relevant to this study by virtue of the lack of female senior leaders in UK businesses (Sealy and Vinnicombe, 2013). Much previous research has analysed leadership discourse in mixed gender groups, relying on theories that imply comparisons between men and women. Using an Interactional Sociolinguistic approach, this study aims to learn more about how women perform leadership in the absence of men by analysing the spoken interactions of a women-only team who were engaged in a competitive leadership task. The analysis reveals that the women accomplish leadership in multiple and complex ways that defy binary gendered classifications. Nonetheless, there is a distinctive gendered dynamic to the team's interactions which, it is argued, might be disadvantageous to women aspiring to senior positions. © The Author(s) 2013.

Supply chain innovation for competing in highly competitive markets:challenges and solutions

Rapid changes in technological development are forcing businesses to continuously innovate to improve their competitiveness, which is particularly evident in logistics and supply chain management (SCM), where innovation impacts both the strategic and operational levels. Supply Chain Innovation for Competing in Highly Dynamic Markets: Challenges and Solutions investigates the role of innovation in the management of supply chains of today. This book focuses on supply chain integration from both strategic and operational perspectives and the impact of information technology-related innovation in supply chain and logistics service industries. It also analyzes how environmental innovation affects logistical decisions throughout the supply chain and the strategies employed in managing logistics-related environmental impacts. Finally, the book explores theoretical and practical implications of innovation in the management of supply systems.

Towards a unified definition of supply chain management:the four fundamentals

A wide range of definitions of supply chain management (SCM) have been developed over the last three decades. The philosophy of SCM is based firmly on a recognition that it is only by working in a more integrated manner that competitive advantage can be maximised. However, for this to become a reality the development of common definitions and understandings between supply chain partners is a critical success factor. The corollary of this is that a lack of definitional consistency and a common understanding is an inhibitor to the successful adoption of SCM thinking in practice. This paper reviews a number of definitions of SCM, as well as discussions and analyses of such definitions. This leads to the central point posited in the paper – the need for a ‘unified definition’. Such a definitional construct, labelled the Four Fundamentals of SCM, is proposed with the core of the paper providing a narrative description of this construct based on a wide range of literature.

Gaining competitive advantage through your supply chain

Supply chain management in the pharmaceutical industry is the key to further enhancing shareholder value

An Investigation into Outsourcing Practice in Ireland:A New Direction in Logistics and Supply Chain Management

Companies are increasingly focusing on the development of core competencies as an integral part of their overall strategy development and implementation. The corollary of this is that functions regarded as being non-core are being outsourced. This paper investigates the case for and against outsourcing and in addition what is happening in Ireland regards outsourcing. Furthermore to analysis of current literature in the field, an Irish-wide postal and e-mail survey, as well as three case studies revealed many interesting facts. The key findings of the work are manufacturing outsourcing is now the most popular function to be outsourced for both small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs) and large enterprises. Large enterprises (LEs) do not prepare or examine hidden costs more than SMEs, nor do they differ much in relation to the use of consultants. Furthermore, the importance of time spent on preparing or producing contract, and the impact the contract can have on the supplier-buyer relation do not differ significantly. It was found that most companies outsourced within Ireland, which led to further investigation in that area. In relation to logistics outsourcing specifically, this has become very important in the supply chain over the last 20 years as an activity that was traditionally handled by firms as a support function. At that time logistics activities such as warehousing, distribution, transportation and inventory management were given low priority compared with other business functions within the organisation. However, since the customer has become more demanding, the logistics function has now become a source of competitive advantage and there has been a growing emphasis on providing good customer service.

Promoting competitive markets:the role of public procurement

The study presented here examines how public procurement agencies address establishing and maintaining competitive markets; a topic still in its academic infancy. Cases are used to address impediments and improve understanding of strategic priorities in managing for competitive markets. Public policy academics have observed many competing policies in the wider public sector. Specifically, this paper identifies a need for research on supplier incentives at a market level, on the post contract management of suppliers and as an important sub-set, key supplier relationship management, along with professional development.

Evaluating the use of IT by the third party logistics in South East Asia to achieve competitive advantage and its future trend

As the number of using 3PL providers are increasing rapidly in recent years, 3PL providers play a major role in the logistics industry. Due to customers demands are raising and changing, it has facilitated 3PL providers to invest IT systems that could meet customer requirements and create competitive advantage. The use of IT systems could assist 3PL providers to achieve supply chain visibility and enhance supply chain collaboration with business partners. In this paper, it is mainly focus on the Europe and Far East 3PL providers in terms of current and future IT systems, IT motivators and barriers, as well as the future supply chain demands that address by IT systems. The common IT system that implemented in both regions is information technology, which is mainly used to collaborate and share information with supply chain partners. Some of the common motivations and barriers were existed and 3PL providers need to be understood. Given the future demands of IT implementation and supply chain collaboration, IT systems such as RFID and integration systems would be strongly focus in the future. The suggestion about the advanced integration system such as business process management (BPM) could be the next key IT systems in the future logistics industry. © 2012 AICIT.

Integrated project management in Indian petroleum industry

The Indian Petroleum Industry is passing through a very dynamic business environment due to liberalization. Effective project management for developing new infrastructures and maintaining the existing facilities has been considered as one of the means for remaining competitive but these practices suffer from many shortcomings, as time, cost and quality non-achievements are part and parcel of almost every project. This study focuses on identifying the specific causes of project failure by demonstrating first the characteristics of projects in Indian Petroleum industry and suggests some remedial measures for resolving these issues. The suggested project management model is integrated through information management system and demonstrated through a case study.

Purchasing consortia and electronic markets:a procurement direction in integrated supply chain management

In supply chain management literature, there has been little empirical research investigation on purchasing consortium issues focusing on a detailed analysis of information and communication (ICT) based procurement strategies. Based on the exploration of academic literature and two surveys among purchasing organisations as well as e-Marketplaces / procurement service providers (PSPs) in the automotive and electronics industry sectors, the research methodology follows a positivistic approach in order to assess the overall statement: ‘Effective participation in electronic purchasing consortia (EPC) can have the potential to enhance competitive advantage. Implementation therefore requires a clear and detailed understanding of the major process structures and drivers, based upon thetechnology-organisation-environment framework.’ Key factors and structures that affect the adoption and diffusion of EPC and the performance impact of adoption are investigated. The empirically derived model for EPC can be a valuable starting point to EPC research.

The role of supply chain management in Irish enterprise strategy development:a three-dimensional approach

The Irish economy has grown strongly in recent years. This, combined with other factors in the international trading environment, has sharpened the focus on the need for innovative strategies at a national level which can contribute positively from an enterprise strategy development perspective. As traditional manufacturing activity has migrated to lower labour cost economies questions have been raised concerning the role of supply chain management (SCM) in the evolving Irish business environment. This paper describes some of the main drivers in terms of both SCM and the changing economic and business environment. It goes on to propose a three-dimensional approach to understanding the potential role of SCM in the new scenario. This in turn informs the logistics and SCM research agenda from a national policy point of view.

Project management system for a concurrent engineering framework

Completing projects faster than normal is always a challenge as it often demands many paradigm shifts. Globalization opportunities and competition from private sectors and multinationals are forcing the management of public sector organizations in India's petroleum industry to take various aggressive strategies to maintain profitability. These projects are required to be completed sooner than with a typical schedule to remain competitive, get faster return on investment and give longer project life.

Enhancing competitive advantage with radio-frequency identification (RFID) enabled returnable transport equipment (RTE)

Fierce competition within the third party logistics (3PL) market has developed as providers compete to win customers and enhance their competitive advantage through cost reduction plans and creating service differentiation. 3PL providers are expected to develop advanced technological and logistical service applications that can support cost reduction while increasing service innovation. To enhance competitiveness, this paper proposes the implementation of radio-frequency identification (RFID) enabled returnable transport equipment (RTE) in combination with the consolidation of network assets and cross-docking. RFID enabled RTE can significantly improve network visibility of all assets with continuous real-time data updates. A four-level cyclic model aiding 3PL providers to achieve competitive advantage has been developed. The focus is to reduce assets, increase asset utilisation, reduce RTE cycle time and introduce real-time data in the 3PL network. Furthermore, this paper highlights the need for further research from the 3PL perspective. Copyright © 2013 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

Systemological Bases of Management Consulting

The problem of management consulting for sustainable development organization support is discussed. The problem is formally described by means of systemological terms. The mathematical problem solving is considered. Practical use of the obtained results is outlined.