Operations capability, productivity and business performance: the moderating effect of environmental dynamism

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between operations capability, productivity and business performance in the context of environmental dynamism. Design/methodology/approach – A proposed conceptual framework grounded in the resourcebased view (RBV) and dynamic capability view (DCV) is analysed using archival data from 193 automakers in the UK. Findings – The results show that operations capability, as an important dynamic capability, has a significant positive effect on productivity, which in turn leads to improved business performance. The results also suggest that productivity fully mediates the relationship between operations capability and business performance, and that environmental dynamism significantly moderates the relationship between operations capability and productivity. Practical implications – The research findings provide practical insights that will help managers develop operations capability to gain greater productivity and business performance in a dynamic environment

From Measurement to Management: the Influence of IT on Service Operations

The state of service management practice and the developments in IT-efficiency research prompt the call for managerial relevance, normative theory building and the conceptualization and measurement of the impact of Information Technology (IT) on service efficiency. Drawing on theoretical insights from economic and behavioral literature, this article deduces a work system centered model of the service outlet and proposes a measurement methodology (ITIMPACT) geared towards the development of a business intelligence tool. The measurement follows a two-step methodology that first assesses compared-to-best efficiency, using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA), and subsequently explains efficiency differences using a regression framework. An inter-disciplinary approach bases the first step on econometric logic, while the second takes its foundation in behavioral sciences, and information system research.Service industry;

The use of supply chain DEA models in operations management: A survey

Standard Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach is used to evaluate the efficiency of DMUs and treats its internal structures as a “black box”. The aim of this paper is twofold. The first task is to survey and classify supply chain DEA models which investigate these internal structures. The second aim is to point out the significance of these models for the decision maker of a supply chain. We analyze the simple case of these models which is the two-stage models and a few more general models such as network DEA models. Furthermore, we study some variations of these models such as models with only intermediate measures between first and second stage and models with exogenous inputs in the second stage. We define four categories: typical, relational, network and game theoretic DEA models. We present each category along with its mathematical formulations, main applications and possible connections with other categories. Finally, we present some concluding remarks and opportunities for future research.Supply chain; Data envelopment analysis; Two-stage structures; Network structures

Monitoring bank performance in the presence of risk

This paper proposes a managerial control tool that integrates risk in efficiency measures. Building on existing efficiency specifications, our proposal reflects the real banking technology and accurately models the relationship between desirable and undesirable outputs. Specifically, the undesirable output is defined as nonperforming loans to capture credit risk, and is linked only to the relevant dimension of the output set. We empirically illustrate how our efficiency measure functions for managerial control purposes. The application considers a unique dataset of Costa Rican banks during 1998–2012. Results’ implications are mostly discussed at bank-level, and their interpretations are enhanced by using accounting ratios. We also show the usefulness of our tool for corporate governance by examining performance changes around executive turnover. Our findings confirm that appointing CEOs from outside the bank is associated with significantly higher performance ex post executive turnover, thus suggesting the potential benefits of new organisational practices.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author’s final draft

Efficiency Measurement in the Local Public Sector: Econometric and Mathematical Programming Frontier Techniques

Local government in advanced economies is undergoing a period of rapid reform aimed at enhancing its efficiency and effectiveness. Accordingly, the definition, measurement and improvement of organisational performance is crucial. Despite the importance of efficiency measurement in local government it is only relatively recently that econometric and mathematical frontier techniques have been applied to local public services. This paper attempts to provide a synoptic survey of the comparatively few empirical analyses of efficiency measurement in local government. We examine both the measurement of inefficiency in local public services and the determinants of local public sector efficiency. The implications of efficiency measurement for practitioners in local government are examined by way of conclusion.

Efficiency of Indian Banking Industry in the Post-Reform Era

One of the major objectives of Indian banking sector reforms was to encourage operational self-sufficiency, flexibility and competition in the system and to increase the banking standards in India to the international best practices. The second phase of reforms began in 1997 with aim to reorganization measures, human capital development, technological up-gradation, structural development which helped them for achieving universal benchmarks in terms of prudential norms and pre-eminent practices. This paper seeks to determine the impact of various market and regulatory initiatives on efficiency improvements of Indian banks. Efficiency of firm is measured in terms of its relative performance that is, efficiency of a firm relative to the efficiencies of firms in a sample. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) has used to identify banks that are on the output frontier given the various inputs at their disposal. The present study is confined only to the Constant-Return-to-Scale (CRS) assumption of decision making units (DMUs). Variable returns to scale (VRS) assumption for estimating the efficiency was not attempted. It was found from the results that national banks, new private banks and foreign banks have showed high efficiency over a period time than remaining banks.

Management characteristics, collaboration and innovative efficiency: evidence from UK survey data

This paper explores the impact of management characteristics and patterns of collaboration on a firmÕs innovation performance in transforming innovation resources into commercially successful outputs. These questions are investigated using a recent firm level survey database for 465 innovative British small and medium enterprises (SMEs) over the years 1998-2001. Both Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) and Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) are employed to benchmark a firmÕs innovative efficiency against best practice. Quality and the variety of innovations are taken into account by combining Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with DEA. We find evidence suggesting that the innovative efficiency of SMEs is significantly affected by their management characteristics and collaboration behaviour. Collaboration, organisational flexibility, formality in management systems and incentive schemes are found to contribute significantly to a firmÕs innovative efficiency. Managerial share-ownership also shows some positive effect. The importance of these effects, however, varies across different sectors. WE find that innovative efficiency in high-tech SMEs is significantly enhanced by collaboration, formal management structure and training; and that in medium- and low-tech SMEs is significantly associated with managerial ownership, incentive schemes and organisational flexibility.management characteristics, collaboration, innovative efficiency

The Effectiveness of University Technology Transfer: Lessons Learned from Qualitative and Quantitative Research in the U.S. and U.K.

In recent years, there have been numerous studies of the effectiveness of university technology transfer. Such technology transfer mechanisms include licensing agreements between the university and private firms, science parks, incubators, and university-based startups. We review and synthesize these papers and present some pointed recommendations on how to enhance effectiveness. Implementation of these recommendations will depend on the mechanisms that universities choose to stress, based on their technology transfer "strategy." For example, institutions that emphasize the entrepreneurial dimension of technology transfer must address skill deficiencies in technology transfer offices, reward systems that are inconsistent with enhanced entrepreneurial activity and the lack of training for faculty members, post-docs, and graduate students in starting new ventures or interacting with entrepreneurs. We conjecture that business schools are best positioned to address these skill and educational deficiencies through the delivery of targeted programs to technology licensing officers and members of the campus community wishing to launch startup firms.

Regulation and efficiency incentives: evidence from the England and Wales water and sewerage industry

This paper evaluates the impact of the tightening in price cap by OFWAT and of other operational factors on the efficiency of water and sewerage companies in England and Wales using a mixture of data envelopment analysis and stochastic frontier analysis. Previous empirical results suggest that the regulatory system introduced at privatization was lax. The 1999 price review signaled a tightening in regulation which is shown to have led to a significant reduction in technical inefficiency. The new economic environment set by price-cap regulation acted to bring inputs closer to their cost-minimizing levels from both a technical and allocative perspective

Disentangling Within- and Between-Country Efficiency Differences of Bank Branches

In this paper we propose a framework to assess the efficiency of bank branch networks operating in different financial environments. The framework can be used to disentangle within- from between-country performance differences. The framework is constructive in that it identifies operational aspects responsible for superior performance and suggests guidelines for branch improvement. We report results from three bank branch networks in the U.K., Greece and Cyprus, and demonstrate how branch networks can benefit from such international comparisons.Bank Branch Efficiency, International Benchmarks, Data Envelopment Analysis.