Drawing on institutional theory, this paper discusses the transformation of vertical <italic>keiretsu</italic> in the Japanese automotive industry from 1991 to 2011. By investigating the cases of Toyota, Nissan, and Honda, the paper empirically contributes to the debate on whither the Japanese economy is...

Providing customization of products is an important way of attracting customers, but it can increase the complexity of planning and scheduling processes in the order fulfilment system. Thus the question arises, how product variety, manufacturing conditions and managerial practices interact with...

The aim of this paper is to provide a better understanding of monozukuri capability as a way to address the increasing product variety in industrial firms. To this effect, we conducted a comparative case study at Japanese and German automakers with more than 40 interviews and 30 factory visits...