An examination of the strategic and operational impact of global sourcing on UK small firms

This paper presents three in-depth case studies of UK small manufacturers from the electronics manufacturing industry with global supply chains. There is no overlap in products, suppliers or customers and over time, each has developed a distinct and different strategy for managing an extended supply chain. The outcomes and experiences though are not markedly different. The operational challenges they encounter around quality and delivery, as well as the strategic dimensions of information asymmetry and capability fit are discussed. The study identifies the financial risks the firms are exposed to, the constraints to innovation and the wider strategic implications for long-term business performance.     

Using vulnerability performance indicators to attain food supply chain robustness

High effectiveness and leanness of modern supply chains (SCs) increase their vulnerability, i.e. susceptibility to disturbances reflected in non-robust SC performances. Both the SC management literature and SC professionals indicate the need for the development of SC vulnerability assessment tools. In this article, a new method for vulnerability assessment, the VULA method, is presented. The VULA method helps to identify how much a company would underperform on a specific Key Performance Indicator in the case of a disturbance, how often this would happen and how long it would last. It ultimately informs the decision about whether process redesign is appropriate and what kind of redesign strategies should be used in order to increase the SC's robustness. The applicability of the VULA method is demonstrated in the context of a meat SC using discrete-event simulation to conduct the performance analysis.     

Performance indicators for collaborative networks based on collaboration benefits

Collaborative networks are typically assumed to bring clear benefits and competitive advantage to the participating members. However, the identification and characterisation of objective and measurable collaboration benefits is an important element for the wide adoption of this paradigm. Departing from a brief categorisation of the intuitive advantages of collaboration, this paper introduces an approach for the analysis of benefits in collaborative processes, introducing a number of performance indicators. The potential application of the indicators derived from this analysis is then discussed in the context of a virtual organisation's breeding environment. Finally, experimental results based on data from two existing collaborative networks are presented and discussed.     

Judicious order acceptance and order release in make-to-order manufacturing systems

This paper explores a two-stage input control system for fixed capacity make-to-order manufacturing systems (with heavy job tardiness penalties), that selectively accepts incoming orders and holds the accepted ones in a pre-shop queue prior to releasing them to the shop floor. Single-stage input control systems that only allow orders to be delayed in a pre-shop queue (i.e. they do not allow some orders to be rejected) have been previously investigated and found to negatively impact overall due-date performance. The hypothesis motivating this research is that judiciously rejecting a subset of incoming orders can prevent the order release queue from being overloaded when a surge of demand occurs. The input control system is evaluated via experiments using a discrete-event simulation model of a fixed capacity manufacturing system. The experiments reported here suggest that holding orders in the pre-shop queue does not improve due date performance, and that judiciously rejecting orders on its own is a viable alternative mechanism of input control that can deliver improved performance.     

Quality management and performance: a comparison between the UK and Turkey

Purpose: The aim of this article is to detail the correlation between quality management, specifically its tools and critical success factors, and performance in terms of primary operational and secondary organisational performances.

Design/methodology/approach: Survey data from the UK and Turkey were analysed using exploratory factor analyses, structural equation modelling and regression analysis.

Findings: The results show that quality management has a significant and positive impact on both primary and secondary performances; that Turkish and UK attitudes to quality management are similar; and that quality management is widely practised in manufacturing and service industries but has more statistical emphasis in the manufacturing sector. The main challenge for making quality management practice more effective lies in an appropriate balanced use of the different sorts of the tools and critical success factors.

Originality/value: This study takes a novel approach by: (i) exploring the relationship between primary operational and secondary organisational performances, (ii) using service and manufacturing data and (iii) making a cross-country comparison between the UK (a developed economy) and Turkey (a developing economy).

Limitations: Detailed contrast provided between only two countries.     

惯性因子跟踪策略的有效性：来自中国股票市场的证据

基于惯性/反转效应普遍存在的现象以及中国股票市场上不能直接实施惯性/反转投资策略的事实,提出能灵活抓住惯性/反转效应的惯性因子跟踪策略。通过建立和求解惯性因子跟踪策略模型,我们发现,在允许卖空的条件下,最优惯性因子跟踪组合满足两基金分离定理,两基金分别是惯性因子模仿组合和最小方差组合。选择沪深300十大行业指数作为风险资产的代表,实证考察惯性因子跟踪组合的业绩,并与等权组合和最小方差组合的业绩进行比较。结果发现：惯性因子跟踪组合可以在保持和等权组合、最小方差组合风险水平相当的情况下带来更高的收益水平和夏普比率,平均而言,惯性因子跟踪组合的年化超额收益率(8.88%)比等权组合的年化超额收益率高出3.7%,夏普比率(0.42)高出0.18;即便在考虑交易成本的情况下,惯性因子跟踪组合的净夏普比率仍然高出等权组合0.16;综合上方获利和下方风险控制两个方面看,惯性因子跟踪组合优于等权组合。惯性因子跟踪策略的有效性相对于惯性因子的计算方法和样本数据选择区间具有稳健性。     

CEO proactiveness,innovation, and firm performance

Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) are essential in driving firm innovation. However, despite existing research on CEO personality characteristics and firm innovation and performance, we know relatively little about how personality characteristics reflecting anticipatory action and strong outcome-oriented components, such as proactiveness, shape firm innovation and performance. We explore the relationship between CEO proactiveness and three facets of organizational innovation, as well as its impact on firm performance. We suggest that CEO proactiveness is manifested in different network-building, problem-solving, and feedback-seeking behaviors with different implications for exploratory innovation, exploitative innovation, and organizational ambidexterity, and that its effect on firm performance is partially mediated by organizational ambidexterity. By examining the influence of this important CEO personality characteristic on key firm strategic choices and performance, we extend research on strategic leadership and firm innovation and performance.     

基于博弈论的企业绩效考核评价模型研究

博弈论是近年来在管理实践中广泛研究和应用探索的学科。企业绩效考核评价问题中存在大量考核与被考核双方的博弈现象,将博弈论方法应用于企业绩效考核评价分析,构建基于博弈论的绩效考核评价模型,能显著提高企业绩效考核评价的科学性和有效性。     

高校思想政治理论课教学绩效探究

社会生活各个方面对高校思想政治理论课教学绩效研究提出了迫切需要。提高高校思想政治理论课教学绩效应更新教学理念;充实教学内容改革教学方法;注重人文资源的开发和运用;加强教师队伍建设;实施绩效考核等势在必行。     

价值管理视角下的政府绩效评估

我国政府绩效评估体系相对落后,尚未有一套规范、完善的绩效评估制度,所以评估结果很难做到客观、公正,难以取得预期的效果。廓清价值管理、绩效评估的内涵,评析国内外政府绩效评估的发展现状,针对我国政府绩效评估实践中出现的问题,借鉴西方政府绩效评估改革积累的理论和经验,旨在为完善我国政府绩效评估制度提供政策参考,并有利于加强对政府行为的监督。