Manufacturing Strategy: An Analysis of the Saudi Manufacturing Private Sector

Abstract

This study is motivated by the desire to develop an understanding of the manufacturing strategy concept within the Saudi business environment. More specifically the objectives of the study are to detect the existing type of manufacturing strategies in Saudi plants in the last two years (i.e., 1987 and 1988) as well as in the next two years (i.e., 1990 and 1991); to use SWOT analysis to find out strengths and weaknesses within the plants surveyed as well as opportunities and threats in the environment; and finally to test six hypotheses of the model of manufacturing strategy. The model consists of eight factors: organisational environment, corporate and business strategies, manufacturing task statement, manufacturing task, the role of the production manager, structural category of decisions, infrastructural category of decisions, and finally organisational performance