Purpose While anecdotal evidence suggests that performance-based contracts (PBCs) may foster innovation in buyer-supplier relationships, the understanding of the underlying mechanisms is limited to date. The purpose of this paper is to draw on transaction cost economics and agency theory to...

Since the mid‐1980s, the subject of information systems (IS) integration and its role in business process improvement (BPI) has been of considerable interest to business managers and researchers. The present study examines the effects of IS integration on BPI. The moderating effects of...

Purpose – Although prior research has found that employee participation is key to successfully implementing quality management initiatives (Baird et al ., 2011; de Menezes, 2012; Lagrosen and Lagrosen, 2005), little research in operations management exists that investigates which management actions...

Increasingly, organisations are interested in managing corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability as part of their operations management (OM). OM practices and research must respond to demands to address sustainability. This response is triggered by climate change and other...

The aim of the special issue.The purpose of this special issue of the International Journal of Operations &Production Management (IJOPM) is to contribute to the standards of researchin the field of operations management (OM). A statement regarding the aim ofthe special issue may explain more

Describes results of research at the University of Liverpool into the level of quality culture development in UK manufacturing industries. The study identified the important factors that influence the development of a culture that complements total quality implementation. These factors are the...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how organisational learning (OL) can occur through process improvement (PI) activities, leading to sustained improvements over time in the context of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Design/methodology/approach The authors study PI...

Purpose – This paper investigates the challenges encountered by manufacturing companies in managing sustainability in new product development (NPD). It describes six case studies of manufacturers aiming for sustainability improvements but experiencing difficulties in implementing them....

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the European Regions for Innovative Productivity project that established Innovative Productivity Centres (IPCs) to assist SMEs in the North Sea Region of Europe to develop a process improvement capability. A conceptual framework explains how a...