مطالعه اکتشافی ماهیت قابلیت های انباشت

This research sets out to test some yet unanswered questions from the literature on cumulative capabilities, as well as addressing some of the shortcomings in prior research on cumulative capabilities. Multiple regression analysis is used to test hypotheses using an existing data set of 165 plants in five countries and three industries. The findings indicate substantial differences in patterns of cumulative capabilities between countries and limited evidence of industry differences. Cumulative capabilities were found to be related to plant performance, with no difference in this relationship by industry. Support for sequential progression of cumulative capabilities was not evident, leading to the notion that development of cumulative capabilities is a complex endeavor, affected by many interrelated contingencies, not limited to sequence of development. A sequence of strategic initiative development was proposed and tested, finding support for a common foundation of practices related to cumulative capabilities, with limited support for the relationship between specific strategic initiatives and higher-level cumulative capabilities.

The relationship between manufacturing capabilities is an important element of operations strategy. Although traditional thinking has been that high performance in one capability is necessarily traded off for low performance in others, recent evidence renders the trade-off perspective less than universal, due to the necessities of global competition and development and dissemination of advanced manufacturing technologies. The focus of this paper is on those manufacturing capabilities that are cumulative, existing simultaneously in a mutually reinforcing fashion, rather than being traded off. This paper explores several important research questions, building on previous research that has supported the existence of cumulative capabilities. For example, are there environmental contingencies that favor or necessitate cumulative capabilities? Industry maturity and country may be important contingency factors. What is the relationship between cumulative capabilities and plant performance? Although the assumption underlying the literature on cumulative capabilities is that they are related to plant performance, there is little empirical support. Third, are there optimal sequences of development of cumulative capabilities? There is a large body of literature indicating that certain capabilities lay the foundation for developing other capabilities. Although widely cited, this literature has little empirical support. Finally, are there particular strategic initiatives which support the development of cumulative capabilities? A sequential progression of strategic initiatives is proposed and tested.

The results indicated that there were environmental contingencies in the pattern of cumulative capabilities. Differences by country were readily apparent and can be explained by a number of factors. The German plants had most of their cumulative capabilities with dependability and speed. German plants have traditionally emphasized efficiency and effectiveness, only recently beginning to focus on quality management, simultaneous engineering and supplier relationships (Milling et al., 2001). Because of Germany’s high labor costs, low cost manufacturing is not viewed as a strength in Germany. Thus, Germany’s pattern of cumulative capabilities is consistent with local manufacturing conditions. Manufacturing in Italy is dominated by small-to-medium sized enterprises (deToni et al., 2001), whose size allows them to excel in developing innovations demanded by the market, flexibility and adaptability to market conditions. Italian quality management has a strong emphasis on customer satisfaction and continuous improvement, with other aspects such as work groups, empowerment, etc., viewed as unimportant (deToni et al., 2001). The pattern of cumulative capabilities in Italy is consistent with Italian plants’ focus on continuous improvement and traditional deemphasis of cost. The Italian plants had more cumulative capabilities with quality than the German plants, which may be due to the recent emphasis on ISO certification in Italy. However, ISO certification tends to be pursued as an end itself in Italy, rather than as part of a comprehensive quality management initiative, providing an explanation for why there were not more cumulative capabilities with quality (deToni et al., 2001).