Influence of Culture and Management Systems on PMS

Purpose: The aim of this study is to find and explore the relationships between organizational culture, management Systems and the implementation and Operationalisation aspects of Performance Measurement Systems (PMS). Design/methodology/approach: The relevant literature on organizational culture, Organizational behavior, Strategic management and management accounting, in the context of performance measurement systems, will be examined. A structured questionnaire will be used to survey the views of the top management teams of a suitable sample of organizations. The survey implementation process will follow four steps: pre-­‐notification, initial mailing, first follow up and, second follow up. Findings: As this is a developmental paper, it is not possible to provide definite findings at this point. However, it is anticipated to find out relationship between Culture, Management systems and PMS. Practical implications: The findings of this study will provide managers with better understanding of the relationship between organizational culture, management systems and PMS. This will in turn help them to provide a successful PMS. Originality/value: No research has been done to find out the relationship between organizational culture, management systems and two aspects of PMS, namely implementation and operationalisation aspects, using a large-­‐scale sample approach. The findings of this research therefore will provide useful insights and methods for future researchers in this area

Value co-creation in the delivery of outcome-based contracts for business-to-business service

Working paperThis study introduces the concept of outcome-based contracting (OBC) as the mechanism for firms to focus on delivering value-in-use, and as the driver for value co-creation as the firm would need to jointly deliver outcomes with the customer. The paper analyses two OBC-type contracts between the UK Ministry of Defence and two of its industrial partners. We find that in delivering to outcomes and achieving value-in-use, the state-dependent nature of value in usage „pushes back‟ into the organization, requiring the firm to re-evaluate the way they are structured to receive changes from customer state-dependencies so as to deliver a better service. Our analysis presents seven generic attributes of value co-creation (AVCs) essential for the capability to deliver value-in-use. These are behavioral alignment, process alignment, congruence in customer expectations, congruence in firm expectations, empowerment and perceived control, behavioral transformation, and complementary competencies. The attributes discovered through qualitative data were matched with previous academic literature and operationalized and a measurement instrument was developed. The instrument was then validated by performing an exploratory and second order confirmatory factor analysis.This research was made possible through the joint funding of the Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (UK) and BAE Systems on the Support Service Solutions: Strategy & Transition (S4T) project consortium led by the University of Cambridge. The authors gratefully acknowledge the staff of BAE Systems and MBDA as well as members of the ADAPT IPT, 16th Regiment, ATTAC IPT, MoD and the RAF who have all contributed substantially towards this research

Predicting Performance - A Dynamic Capability View

Emerald has removed the embargo period across all journals. The full text of the article may therefore become visible within your IR as soon as the final version has been published in the journal.Production planning and resource allocation are ongoing issues that organisations face on a day-to-day basis. The study addresses these issues by developing a dynamic performance measurement system (DPMS) to effectively re-deploy manufacturing resources, thus enhancing the decision-making process in optimising performance output. The study also explores the development of dynamic capabilities through exploitation of the organisational tacit knowledge. The study was conducted using 6-stage action research for developing DPMS with real-time control of independent variables on the production lines to study the impact. The DPMS was developed using a hybrid approach of discrete event simulation (DES) and system dynamics (SD) by using the historical as well as live data from the action case organisation. Through the development of DPMS and by combining the explicit and tacit knowledge, this study demonstrated an understanding of using cause and effect analysis in manufacturing systems to predict performance. Such a DPMS creates agility in decision making and significantly enhances the decision-making process under uncertainty. The research also explored how the resources can be developed and maintained into dynamic capabilities to sustain competitive advantage. The present study provides a starting-point for further research in other manufacturing organisations to generalise findings. The originality of the DPMS model comes from the approach used to build the cause and effect analysis by exploiting the tacit knowledge and making it dynamic by adding modelling capabilities. Originality also comes from the hybrid approach used in developing the DPMS

Understanding the Impact of Culture on Performance Measurement System: Evidence From Bangladesh

While it is important to understand performance measurement (PM) in developing nations, only little research is focussed in this area. The overall aim of this research is to understand the relationships between PM and organizational culture in the context of Bangladesh. Case study approach was adopted to achieve the overall aim. The findings suggest that adopting authoritative management style at these organisations enabled successful implementation of PMS, which is fuelled by highly motivated employees with performance related reward system.However, lack of expertise, trained workforce and holistic implementation are acting as significant barriers and preventing themfrom full potential benefits

Key Sustainable Supply Chain Management Processes - A conceptual framework grounded in network theory.

The purpose of this paper is to outline a conceptual framework of the key processes that integrate sustainability across the supply chain strategically. This has not been done to date due to several factors including the nascent nature of sustainable supply chain management (SCM) research; increased complexities in SCM such as a proliferation of perspectives given various foci of disciplines, theoretical lenses and stakeholder perspectives; and ever more complex strategies given the added sustainable components. With the maturation of this field, the business case as to why sustainability criteria should be integrated in to core business operations has been well established. Piloted sustainable supply chains are coming of age and are exemplified as flagship business practices in company sustainability reports. Practitioners and academics are now turning to the problem of scaling up processes, not only across the whole supply chain, but across the network too. There is no research that systematically maps processes that integrate sustainability dimensions across the supply chain. This presented an opportunity to develop a conceptual framework, outlining the content from themes and issues in SCM and sustainability processes. Through the literature reviewed, key issues in sustainable SCM and its key processes were identified. Furthermore, key findings indicate that there are divergent interests in sustainability agendas across all disciplines and stakeholders that affect how these processes are integrated. This suggests how sustainability is perceived and integrated, requires further attention. To help frame the understanding of how these processes are managed, given the factors at play, the framework is built upon the theoretical proposition of Network Theory (NT), and the influence of power and decision-making. The aim is to develop a theoretical understanding of sustainable SCM with the intention of making an original contribution to the supply chain discipline

Critical evaluation of epistemology in supply chain research - Qualitative case study research in operations and supply chain management.

The purpose of this paper is to offer a critical evaluation of epistemology in supply chain research. The two approaches, the positivist and post-positivist critical realism research traditions, are the primary philosophical foundations for case study research design. These are discussed in relation to the research project: ‘exploring sustainable supply chain strategy’. Key concepts in the literature present characteristics of the research problem in relation to the methodological paradigm and theory development from which a summary that underpins the research strategy is outlined in the ‘Research method’ section. Finally, the research questions leading from the findings are presented

Key sustainable supply chain processes: a conceptual framework

The purpose of this paper is to outline a conceptual framework of the key processes that integrate sustainability across the supply chain strategically. This has not been done to date due to several factors including the nascent nature of sustainable supply chain management (SCM) research; increased complexities in SCM such as a proliferation of perspectives given various foci of disciplines, theoretical lenses and stakeholder perspectives; and ever more complex strategies given the added sustainable components. With the maturation of this field, the business case as to why sustainability criteria should be integrated in to core business operations has been well established. Piloted sustainable supply chains are coming of age and are exemplified as flagship business practices in company sustainability reports. Practitioners and academics are now turning to the problem of scaling up processes, not only across the whole supply chain, but across the network too. There is no research that systematically maps processes that integrate sustainability dimensions across the supply chain. This presented an opportunity to develop a conceptual framework, outlining the content from themes and issues in SCM and sustainability processes. Through the literature reviewed, key issues in sustainable SCM and its key processes were identified. Furthermore, key findings indicate that there are divergent interests in sustainability agendas across all disciplines and stakeholders that affect how these processes are integrated. This suggests how sustainability is perceived and integrated, requires further attention. To help frame the understanding of how these processes are managed, given the factors at play, the framework is built upon the theoretical proposition of Network Theory (NT), and the influence of power and decision-making. The aim is to develop a theoretical understanding of sustainable SCM with the intention of making an original contribution to the supply chain discipline

FEDSM2008-55248 Self-assembly of Particles into 2D Lattices with Adaptable Spacing

ABSTRACT It was recently shown i

Molecular-like hierarchical self-assembly of monolayers of mixtures of particles

We present a technique that uses an externally applied electric field to self-assemble monolayers of mixtures of particles into molecular-like hierarchical arrangements on fluid-liquid interfaces. The arrangements consist of composite particles (analogous to molecules) which are arranged in a pattern. The structure of a composite particle depends on factors such as the relative sizes of the particles and their polarizabilities, and the electric field intensity. If the particles sizes differ by a factor of two or more, the composite particle has a larger particle at its core and several smaller particles form a ring around it. The number of particles in the ring and the spacing between the composite particles depend on their polarizabilities and the electric field intensity. Approximately same sized particles form chains (analogous to polymeric molecules) in which positively and negatively polarized particles alternate