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A strategic model of operational performance improvement
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Alher, Fabio (1998) A strategic model of operational performance improvement. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.
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Official URL: http://webcat.warwick.ac.uk/record=b1365208~S15
Abstract
Performance improvement is the natural objective of any intervention in the organisation.
Performance improvement in operational terms is particularly interesting when it is able
to influence the competitive position of the firm. By being able to deliver superior value
and/or offer prices through lower costs a firm will increase customer satisfaction and
loyalty and potentially increase its market share and profitability. This research explores
the determinants of strategic operational performance improvement, the particular
questions we address are: 1) What characterise the process in which the firm achieves
operational performance that is strategically significant?, and 2) Why once advantage is
achieved, it is not automatically replicated?
The manufacturing strategy model and the literature associated with the resource-based
theory provide the theoretical foundations of this work, although the link between the two
literatures is problematic because their fundamentals are usually at odds. Because the
nature of the work is exploratory, and its purpose is one of theory building, we build a
model of strategic operational improvement through grounded research. Four case studies
are studied and analysed in order to test and improve the model.
The results provide a number of insights on the role of managerial rationality, managerial
behaviour, and the relationship between managerial and workers behaviour. We are also
able to address a number of questions on the nature of strategy in operations. The final
product of this thesis is model that relates the processes in the organisation to the firm's
initial conditions to explain the evolution of performance. Empirical evidences suggest
that the strategic improvement of operational performance depends on the sequence
evolution of initial conditions, managerial behaviour, and organisational behaviour. It is
argued that by understanding the relationships in this model it is possible to develop more
effective operations processes which are able to deliver superior value and or lower costs.
Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) | ||||
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Subjects: | H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor | ||||
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): | Strategic planning, Organizational change | ||||
Official Date: | 1998 | ||||
Dates: |
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Institution: | University of Warwick | ||||
Theses Department: | Warwick Business School | ||||
Thesis Type: | PhD | ||||
Publication Status: | Unpublished | ||||
Supervisor(s)/Advisor: | Slack, Nigel | ||||
Sponsors: | Brazil. Coordenação do Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) | ||||
Extent: | x, 357 leaves | ||||
Language: | eng |
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