Why doesn't operations management research deliver?

The web site of EPSRC states: “Manufacturing operations management research is a key component for successful portfolio in Manufacturing Research; however, this area needs attention to ensure that it is delivering.” Indeed, problems regarding industrial relevance and theoretical progress of operations management have been widely observe

What Triggers Management Innovation?

There is a popular tendency in management science towards what could be called “theory denial”: the denial of the significance of theory for the development of management thought and action. We contend that this theory denial is just wrong, in the light of empirical evidence, and that is a damaging idea, because it diverts the attention of the scholarly community away from the core issues of the field. In this paper, we consider two variants of this theory denial, purporting to reveal the serious problems in their justification. First, the approach stressing the importance of studying how ideas are translated into solutions by organizations is considered. It is shown that there two unsubstantiated assumptions, first about the relative lack of importance of the (solution) idea, and second about the prior existence of such ideas. Second, a recent influential view on management innovation and the process through which it emerges is examined. This view focuses on the individuals (from inside and outside the organisation) who drive the innovation process and on the phases of the innovation process itself. The motivation for change is represented as coming solely from a perceived shortfall between the organization’s current and potential performance. Ideas, it would seem, arise spontaneously to fill this gap. We present historical examples to argue that the genesis of innovative management thinking can be much more closely accounted for and that ideas can themselves have a role in motivating change. Through exemplary cases, we contend that new concepts of production have operated in a way resembling the role of a scientific paradigm, as defined by Kuhn. A leading aspect of such a paradigm is that it defines criteria for choosing problems. The concept precedes and drives the innovation, functioning as a paradigm which guides the development of detailed solutions to problems which otherwise would not be visible. Indeed, the developments of new concepts of production seem to have triggered a long-standing stream of interrelated management innovations. Thus, rather than arising spontaneously in response to organisational need, “management ideas” have arisen in the context of an emerging theory of production. Thus, we contend that the role of management scholars is not only to come up with creative ideas or to address the translation of ideas, as held in the mainstream view, but rather they should develop new concepts and theories on phenomena relevant for management (such as production), based also on a critical scrutiny of present ones, clarify and make explicit concepts in use that are implicit, and codevelop new methods based on proven or promising concepts

Accounting for knowledge embedded in artefacts within healthcare settings: Defining the direction of the research

This research takes place within the framework of the Knowledge and Information Management (KIM) is an EPSRC funded Grand Challenge Project which brings together expertise from management and engineering disciplines. The project recognises that, 'in response to customers‟ changing needs, organisations across all sectors are increasingly being asked not only to provide products in the first instance, but also to support them throughout their service life' (KIM 2006).Thus, the need to consider ways in which knowledge can be preserved in practices, records and artefacts is considered. The aim of this research, which is in its earliest stages, is to explore multi-disciplinary contributions to this problem from the knowledge management and production management perspectives. The focus is on the role of artefacts in preserving and communicating knowledge. An ethnomethodological approach will be used to produce uniquely adequate (UA) accounts of the situated meaning of artefacts within social processes. The proposed settings for research are healthcare facilities where the researcher will adopt an ethnographic approach to achieve a UA understanding of how patients, staff and visitors in chosen healthcare settings make sense of their built environments

Seeking evidence for the role of ontological assumptions in the thinking of managers and professionals

Shingo's (1988) seminal innovation in the theory of production management can be seen as a re-conceptualization of production as flow rather than transformation (Koskela 1992). These alternatives can in turn be regarded as reflections of opposing ontological positions which have dominated Western philosophy, holding respectively that reality is constituted of either temporal process, or atemporal substance (Roochnik 2004). Koskela & Kagioglou (2005) suggest that lean production philosophy is based in a process ontology, radically different from the atemporal metaphysics underlying conventional methods and theories. Chi (1992) has argued that the disjunction between ontological categories such as 'substance' and 'process' can constitute a particularly acute barrier to understanding. Studies such as Itza-Ortiz, Rebello & Zollman (2003) have demonstrated the possibility of specifying and classifying learners' mental models as an aid to learning. We examine procedures typically adopted in Quantity Surveying, Structural Engineering Design and Project Planning, in order to specify the mental models involved. We find evidence of an underlying substance ontology. Methods of measurement used in Quantity Surveying are designed to account for physical, rather than temporal properties. In design, the emphasis is on representing the properties of the finished structure, rather than the processes by which it is constructed. More subtly, the temporal dimensions of the construction process are represented in project planning as 'lumps' of time, thus ignoring important facets of their nature as events. We conclude that attention to the role of ontological categories in industry thinking will facilitate the teaching of process oriented approaches to construction project management

An improvement strategy for the defects and rework management process within an SME: An action research

Irish construction reported strong growth towards the end of 2013, after years of industry recession. Following a property led economic collapse which started in 2007 construction output fell by circa eighty percent. Many construction companies went out of business; those remaining are strongly focused on their bottom line and increasing efficiency to ensure survival. Defects and rework, common in construction, are both wasteful and a cost that can be avoided, thus presenting an obvious target for improvement. A regional SME main contractor collaborated on a project to improve the efficiency of their current processes for the identification, management and elimination of defects and rework in their supply chain. An action research strategy was employed on several field projects, to investigate the problems faced by the company in this area and to develop an improvement plan. Action research involves a five stage problem solving cycle (1) problem diagnosing; (2) action planning; (3) action taking; (4) evaluation of results; (5) specification of learning. Action planning elements emerging from the cycle (at stage 2) are presented here. They are very wide ranging and include; process standardisation; sign off procedures; use of ICT as a collaborative platform; freeware information repository; cost modelling; benchmarks for improvement; planning workshops; root cause analysis of defects and subsequent development of learning materials. Preliminary results indicate a sophisticated understanding of the defects and rework process across the supply-chain, but a general lack of forum and opportunity to contribute to improvement. The results indicate a wide diversity of abilities and resources in SMEs, including human, capital and technological, meaning one size fits all solutions to efficiency improvements are difficult to attain. Prescriptions thus need to be both simple to implement and flexible. The results here offer detailed reflective insight into best practice in designing improvement plans of this natur

Position paper on theory in through life management

The objective of this position paper is to review, from a theoretical point of view, the practice of and research on through life management. It is argued that the rationale of TLM is elusive and its theoretical basis insufficient. Regarding information systems for through life management, an approach based on ethnomethodology is provided. Regarding learning from use, the embedded nature of effective learning is discussed. Regarding governance and management, the common denial to acknowledge production as a fundamental ingredient in TLM is considered. It is concluded that through life management is an under theorized domain, and further progress requires increased research efforts

On a road to promises that work

This research into the applicability of ―Promise Based Management‖ in the UK construction sector examines the business side of construction as to where and how client and customer interact. A research opportunity to attend meetings and conduct interviews with clients and contractors on a major construction project in the North West of England gave first hand access to the various issues involved and enabled the researchers to draw some conclusions as to how promises are both a key to success in a construction project and indeed an enabling factor in how things get done in construction. Our focus is ―speech act theory‖ or the ―language action perspective‖ and its analysis of the way social cohesion is produced. Meetings were attended which were concerned with the planning and implementation of a contract and interviews were conducted with members of the client, main contractor and subcontractor teams. The initial findings point towards the necessary resilience of the sector and how successful project managers deal with the contingencies that arise and even on occasion work them to the advantage of the project and, of course, the company

Through-Life Management of Built Facilities: Towards a Framework for Analysis

Although built facilities are required to cater to changing requirements over time, effective through life management is absent as an in-process activity from most large scale procurements. Through a review of key literature, several approaches which address aspects relevant to through-life management are discussed, and an attempt is made to create a unified view framework of understanding of what constitutes through-life management. Furthermore, an initial diagnostic style checklist is provided as a way of identifying the absence of through-life managemen

A brief history of the concept of waste in production

Purpose: The concept of waste has been used in relation to production since the beginning of the 20th century. As it is well-known, it is a foundational notion for the Toyota Production System and its derivatives, like lean production. However, waste is not a prevalent concept in the mainstream literature on economics, operations management, construction management or management. The reasons for this apparent aversion to the concept of waste are not well-understood. In view of this, we present an overview on the historical development and diffusion of the concept of waste. It is anticipated that such a long-term view would contribute to the current discussion of the place of this concept in the theory and practice of production. Method: The historical method is followed. Findings: The history of the concept of waste can naturally be divided into a number of periods: nascence up to the end of the 18th century, emergence of the classical notion in the 19th century, flourishing during scientific management, decline starting in the second quarter of the 20th century, and re-emergence in last quarter of that century. From these, especially the emergence of the classical notion of waste as well as its decline have been poorly understood. It is also an important insight that across the different periods, waste has been understood in two dimensions: instrumentally and intrinsically (morally). Implications: Through an historical account, the relevance and texture of the concept of waste can be better appreciated. The focus can be directed to critically assessing the justification of the arguments that led to the decline of waste. All in all, the need for the revival of waste as a basic concept in managerial discourse is illuminate

A Conceptual Framework for the Prescriptive Causal Analysis of Construction Waste

An initial step towards a prescriptive theory (a set of concepts) to inform the elimination of waste on construction projects. The ultimate intention is to identify the most important types and causes of waste in construction and outline the principal causal relations between them. This is not a straightforward process: the relationships form a complex network of chains and cycles of waste. Waste is defined as the use of more resources than needed, or an unwanted output from production. A conceptual schema of Previous Production Stage > Production Waste > Effect Waste is proposed and applied to the causal analysis of two major types of waste: material waste and making do