Reports a series of action projects in UK manufacturing companies which found that formal planning and control activity was less evident than the management of priorities. The reasons for this were found in the innate instability of these companies′ operations. This finding provokes a fresh...

The continuing debate on production and operations management (POM) research has led to a new emphasis on empirical methods. Claims that, while surveys and case research are increasingly recommended to POM researchers, action research has been relatively neglected. The distinct characteristic of...

Investigates what approaches to quality lead to best quality and financial performance across different regions of the world. Reports a survey of 977 firms in Asia/South Pacific, Europe, and North America. Fifty‐two items that suggest how a firm might improve quality were factor analysed and...

There has been a growing call from within the operations management (OM) academic community for research of more managerial relevance. This has implied a greater emphasis on empirical research: surveys, cases, and action research. But in fact these types are quite different. However, the great...

This paper reports the results of a survey conducted to explore issues surrounding mass customization and in particular its implications for operations management. The findings cover the market changes driving customization, the methods used to provide customized goods, the positive and negative...