Building Strategic Competency for Six-Sigma Implementation: A Model for Saudi Arabia

Ever since Saudi Arabia became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2002, Saudi companies had to take quality seriously because of increased international competition. In recent years six-sigma approach is being gradually adopted in some companies to improve quality and competitiveness. In this paper we develop a model that addresses the organizational and workforce competency of the six-sigma adopters in Saudi Arabia and provide a roadmap for its successful adoption. Our qualitative study reveals that leadership support for strategy and sustainable promotion of six-sigma implementation in Saudi Arabia is lacking, expatriate quality professionals have to convince management about any six-sigma project they want to initiate. From design perspective management needs to focus on SIPOC, training programs, reward system, internal marketing, and building the IT infrastructure for sixsigma. However, there are many positives in support six-sigma in Saudi Arabia, such as, Saudi government’s Vision 2030 for general economic development, availability of trained expatriate quality professionals, Saudi managements proclivity for immediate results which is a hallmark of six-sigma, strong national IT infrastructure, just to name a few. The paper concludes with a prescription on building competency for six-sigma in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Food Industry Value: Profile Disclosure, Profitability, and Sustainable Supply Chain Effects

The purpose of the current research is to examine the impact of industry profile, profitability, and sustainable supply chain on the value of the firm. The firms success is directly related to the efficiency of its supply chain. This research was conducted on firms that typically trade on the Saudi Stock Exchange as belonging to the food industry. Purposive sampling was used in this study to show the sample. In addition, the data collected in this study from the annual report for 20 firms, for three years (2019-2021). This study finds that the Profitability, and Reports of Sustainable supply chain of the firm affect the firm value, and these results are consistent with the perspective of Stakeholder and Agency Theories. However, the firms value is unaffected by the industry profile

Harnessing Cultural Competency to Implement Lean Six-Sigma (LSS): Lessons From Saudi Arabia

Both six-sigma and Lean focuses on a company culture characterized by increased customer satisfaction through continuous improvement, however, the path they follow to achieve that is not the same. Both the approaches, i. e., Lean and six sigma via Total Quality Management (TQM), sprang from the same root; however, the approaches they follow in harnessing strategy, system, processes, and employees are different --- Lean uses a people system, while six-sigma is a technology driven system. Literature suggests that sixsigma should be a sub-set of the overall umbrella of lean practices adopted by a company. In this study the cultural aspects of LSS implementation are studied for Saudi Arabia. For successful implementation of LSS Saudi Management should assess their competencies. If LSS is adopted, management needs to form LSS teams both at the company level and at the process level, there needs to be a LSS champion who will work as the liaison between the process teams and the executive team for successful implementation

Exploring the link between sustainable development practices, institutional pressures, and green innovation

Academics, business leaders, and policymakers are paying more and more attention to sustainable development. The influence of external forces on sustainable development practices, which could predict green innovation, is, however, still unexplored. This paper seeks to explore the role of external pressures on sustainable development practices in the driving of green innovation in Saudi Arabia. We took a quantitative approach through an online survey to collect the required data from manufacturing companies in Saudi Arabia. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse the data. The results revealed that institutional pressures (i.e., governance pressure, customer pressures, and competitive pressure) are key drivers of sustainable development practices and green innovation. They also indicated that sustainable development practices (i.e., environmental sustainability, social sustainability, and economic environmental sustainability) have a significant influence on green innovation. Our findings lead us to propose that green innovation is influenced by external pressures and sustainable development practices

Synergies of firms' innovation dynamic capabilities and information technology: a study of Saudi firms’ innovation performance and practices

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University.The ability of firms to innovate has become a cornerstone in the economy of many developed and developing countries. The performance of firms is not exclusively linked to their internal capability. Other external factors, such as technology, globalisation of the market, knowledge, and evolving approaches to value offering, force them to constantly change their approaches to wealth creation. Innovation is vital for firms’ competitive advantage. Hence, a firm with higher innovation prosperity compared to its rivals has a crucial advantage that enables it to compete in local and global markets. However, innovation is a complex phenomenon, and a holistic view is required for a deep understanding of the factors that influence firms’ innovation performance. Day after day, markets are becoming more dynamic, increasing the necessity to understand how such momentum affects innovation performance. With a focus on how they develop strategic routines that enhance their assessment of opportunities and resource-configuration capabilities, firms may better align their products and services with market demands. Using state-of-the-art dynamic-capability theory, this research highlights the routines of firms that influence their abilities to acquire and multiply knowledge and technology consistent with market status, leading to more novel and successful innovative products and processes as well as better economic advantage. This research aims to provide a framework that comprises factors that may influence Saudi firms’ innovation performance. Furthermore, the research aim attempts to understand the impact of information technology on firms’ innovation performance. The research is based on survey data from 203 Saudi firms registered at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The empirical results suggest that firms may enhance their ability to acquire, assimilate, transform, and exploit knowledge by increasing their breadth of knowledge sources and by internationalizing their searching activities for knowledge and skills. Moreover, both explorative and exploitative innovation strategies, although paradoxes, are significant to increasing firms’ overall innovative performance. Mutually, information technology (IT) plays a critical role in complementing firms’ dynamic capabilities through better provision of IT infrastructure, while IT effectiveness and IT flexibility are vital to increasing firms’ abilities to maintain both long-term and short-term competitiveness

Impact of Quality Management Techniques and System Effectiveness on the Green Supply Chain Management Practices

Nowadays organizations are facing multiple challenges such as survival in competitive dynamic and competitive environment, meet the customer needs and the impact of their action on the environment are the few ones to name. Sustainability has triggered the need for the companies to revisit their supply chains to cope up with the environmental needs and one of the major demand from the customers as well. In this regard the present study has examined the impact of quality management techniques and system on the green supply chain management practices. The study has explored the JIT, TQM and quality management system effectiveness as a potential driver for the green supply chain management practices. The data were collected from the procurement managers which were working in the auto parts manufacturing industry. Smart PLS was used for the data analysis. Results of the study revealed a significant link between all the independents (TQM, JIT and quality management system) and dependent variable (green supply chain management practices). The direction of all the relationships was positive. However, according to the results TQM was the strongest predictor for the green supply chain management practices

Essential Micro-foundations for Contemporary Business Operations: Top Management Tangible Competencies, Relationship-based Business Networks and Environmental Sustainability

Although various studies have emphasized linkages between firm competencies, networks and sustainability at organizational level, the links between top management tangible competencies (e.g., contemporary relevant quantitative-focused education such as big data analytics and data-driven applications linked with the internet of things, relevant experience and analytical business applications), relationship-based business networks (RBNs) and environmental sustainability have not been well established at micro-level, and there is a literature gap in terms of investigating these relationships. This study examines these links based on the unique data collected from 175 top management representatives (chief executive officers and managing directors) working in food import and export firms headquartered in the UK and New Zealand. Our results from structural equation modelling indicate that top management tangible competencies (TMTCs) are the key determinants for building RBNs, mediating the correlation between TMTCs and environmental sustainability. Directly, the competencies also play a vital role towards environmental practices. The findings further depict that relationship-oriented firms perform better compared to those which focus less on such networks. Consequently, our findings provide a deeper understanding of the micro-foundations of environmental sustainability based on TMTCs rooted in the resource-based view and RBNs entrenched in the social network theory. We discuss the theoretical and practical implications of our findings, and we provide suggestions for future research

Sustainable Coffee Empowerment in Saudi Arabia: Unleashing Potential Through Comprehensive Cupping Sessions

This paper describes a study that used coffee cupping sessions to evaluate various coffee samples from green coffee merchants in Saudi Arabia. The study focuses on attaining quality assurance, assessing suppliers, empowering people, encouraging sustainability, and differentiating the firm in the market. The study integrates theories such as Expectancy Disconfirmation Theory, Resource-Based View, Self-Determination Theory, Triple Bottom Line, and Differentiation Strategy. Qualitative and quantitative elements were blended in a mixed methods approach. Randomly chosen single origin coffee samples were procured from trustworthy vendors in Jeddah, Riyadh, and Dammam. Cupping sessions were held in accordance with the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) standard cupping methodology, and experienced participants rated the samples. The results and analysis included an overview of the cupping sessions, sensory evaluation data analysis, a comparison of samples from various suppliers, and the identification of important taste profiles and attributes. Employee empowerment was also stressed in the study through coffee evaluation, which included training and educational activities, the impact on participants' knowledge and abilities, and their feedback and reflections. Furthermore, the study looked at the consequences of sustainability, focusing on supporting sustainable practices, strengthening partnerships with suppliers, and improving quality to increase market competitiveness. The cupping session technique was described in depth in the professional report, which included randomization and sample division, roasting and resting methods, standardized roasting procedures, calibration and perception sessions, blind cupping, transparency measures, and post-cupping session communicatio