The Relative Efficiency in the Blending of Strategic Dimensions Utilized in the Generation of Customer Satisfaction in the LTL Motor Carrier Industry

This preliminary study utilizes a data envelopment methodology to assess the strategic orientations of LTL motor carriers and their impact on customer satisfaction and firm profitability. Strategic orientations are described in terms of seven dimensions previously identified in the motor carrier literature. The study demonstrates that there are "best practice" configurations of the intensities of these strategic dimensions that most efficiently generate the maximum levels of customer satisfaction and perceived levels of service quality. It is shown how the data envelopment methodology provides motor carriers with a means of benchmarking their strategic orientations as well as identifying the competitors against whom such benchmarking should occur

The relative efficiency in the blending of strategic dimensions utilized in the generation of customer satisfaction in the LTL motor carrier industry

This preliminary study utilizes a data envelopment methodology to assess the strategic orientations of LTL motor carriers and their impact on customer satisfaction and fi rm profi tability. Strategic orientations are described in terms of seven dimensions previously identifi ed in the motor carrier literature. The study demonstrates that there are “best practice” confi gurations of the intensities of these strategic dimensions that most effi ciently generate the maximum levels of customer satisfaction and perceived levels of service quality. It is shown how the data envelopment methodology provides motor carriers with a means of benchmarking their strategic orientations as well as identifying the competitors against whom such benchmarking should occur

The operational impacts of governmental restructuring of the airline industry in China

In July 2000, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) called for the consolidation of the 10 state-owned air carriers into three groups, headed by Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern. A few months later in November 2000, the State Council of China mandated that this consolidation be accomplished by the third quarter of 2001. As part of this mandate, the CAAC yielded its management control of air carriers with its focus now being on safety and regulatory issues. Furthermore, the CAAC was required to divest itself of assets held in many of the state-owned airlines and its interests in more than 120 airports around China, except Beijing Capital Airport. Utilizing data from the International Civil Aviation Organization for 2003 and 2004, this study investigates the operational impacts of this industry restructuring. The relative operational efficiency of Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern is compared to a sample of Asian, European and United States flag carriers. Data envelopment analysis is utilized to derive efficiency scores for individual airlines. The operational efficiency model used in this study is derived from that utilized by Schefczyk (1993). The underlying structural drivers of efficiency are then investigated via a tobit analysis with implications for managerial policy discussed

The Relative Efficiency in the Blending of Strategic Dimensions Utilized in the Generation of Customer Satisfaction in the LTL Motor Carrier Industry

This preliminary study utilizes a data envelopment methodology to assess the strategic orientations of LTL motor carriers and their impact on customer satisfaction and firm profitability. Strategic orientations are described in terms of seven dimensions previously identified in the motor carrier literature. The study demonstrates that there are "best practice" configurations of the intensities of these strategic dimensions that most efficiently generate the maximum levels of customer satisfaction and perceived levels of service quality. It is shown how the data envelopment methodology provides motor carriers with a means of benchmarking their strategic orientations as well as identifying the competitors against whom such benchmarking should occur

Cross-Cultural Factors and Corporate Governance Transparency in Global Airline Strategic Alliances

This paper argues that a critical dimension in understanding the factors that inhibit the effectiveness and benefits of airline alliances is corporate transparency. Specifically, the issue of transparency in corporate governance is considered. Corporate governance is the set of institutional arrangements affecting corporate decision making, and deals with the relationship among various participants in determining the direction and performance of corporations. However, airline strategic alliances span an array of national cultures which influence the development of such relationships. The impact of national culture as a determinant of governance transparency is also investigated in this paper. This study draws on the literature which examines the impact of national culture on international joint ventures and governance systems. National cultures are described by Hofstede’s five dimensions of power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism, masculinity, and temporal orientation. Governance transparency is investigated by the examination of corporate annual reports. Thus, this study investigates not only the level of corporate governance transparency demonstrated by participants in each of the three major airline alliances, but the relationship between said governance transparency and the cultural identity of each of the participants

A Strategic Variance Analysis of the Profitability of U.S. Network Air Carriers

Airlines, as part of their strategic planning process, articulate positions with regard to cost leadership, product differentiation, and growth. Decisions implemented are dynamic and inter-temporal in nature. Therefore, it is often difficult to assess the effectiveness of changes in strategies, particularly since such effectiveness is often a function of the confounding forces of organizational strategy and market conditions. Managers thus need a multi-period methodology to evaluate the implementation of strategic positions. One such approach is the strategic variance analysis of operating income. Horngren et al. (2000, 2006, 2012) demonstrate a methodological template for decomposing operating income into three components: (1) growth, (2) price recovery, and (3) productivity. It is suggested that the price recovery component assesses a firm’s product differentiation strategy and that the productivity component assesses a firm’s low-cost strategy. Thus, this framework is very much in the spirit of Porter’s (1980) seminal work.This study examines U.S. network airlines in the post-9/11 environment. Utilizing the above methodology, it first identifies comparative strategic positions across airlines and then assesses the implementation efficacy of these positions

Assessing the strategic evolution of U.S. low cost airlines in the post-9/11 environment

It has been suggested in the literature that low-cost airlines have, in varying degrees, departed from the original low-cost model introduced by Southwest Airlines. This study provides a multi-year analysis in the post-9/11 time period, for the years 2004-2009, of the demonstrated strategic positioning choices of U. S. low-cost airlines. The sample utilized is restricted to U. S. low-cost carriers so as not to conflate operating environments. Furthermore, a quantitative methodology is employed to measure effectively these choices and to facilitate inter-airline comparisons. Airlines, as part of their strategic planning process, articulate positions with regard to cost leadership, product differentiation, and growth. Decisions implemented are dynamic and inter-temporal in nature. Managers thus need a multi-period methodology to evaluate the implementation of strategic positions. One such approach is the strategic analysis of operating income utilized in this study