Effect of Industry 4.0 on the relationship between socio-technical practices and workers' performance

Abstract

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the moderating effect of Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies on the relationship between socio-technical (ST) practices and workers' health, quality and productivity performance.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, 192 practitioners from different manufacturing firms adopting I4.0 technologies were surveyed, analyzed the collected data using multivariate techniques and discussed the results in light of ST theory.FindingsFindings indicate that I4.0 moderates the relationship between ST practices and performance, to an extent and direction that varied according to the focus of the technologies and practices adopted.Originality/valueThe I4.0 movement has triggered changes in the work organization at unprecedented rates, impacting firms' social and technical aspects. This study bridges a gap in the literature concerning the integration of I4.0 technologies into manufacturing firms adopting ST practices, enabling the verification of the moderating effects on workers' performance. Although previous studies have investigated that relationship, the moderating effect of I4.0 on performance is still underexplored, characterizing an important contribution of this research.

The mechanism of knowledge management process toward minimizing technical risks under green implementation network: a direct and configurational approach

“…The study's first set of outcomes demonstrated that the knowledge process significantly minimizes technical risk via particular dimensions of GIN. These findings align with prior literature (Tortorella et al ., 2023), suggesting a collaborative socio-technical system with adequate measurement can facilitate by the KM process. The study further suggests that using a green network can strengthen the KM process, improve employee knowledge and adjust KM strategies to enhance ecological performance in the manufacturing context (Abbas and Sağsan, 2019; Kaswan et al ., 2023).…”

The contradictory effect of lean and industry 4.0 synergy on firm performance: a meta-analysis

“…Notably, several studies, including those by Suleiman et al . (2021), Tortorella et al . (2023a), and Pu et al .…”

“…Accordingly, considering the significant industry-specific variations, we propose the following hypothesis: The size of companies included in the studies is an important factor that can significantly influence performance outcomes. Some studies solely focus on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) (Waqas et al, 2021;Jang et al, 2022;Marodin et al, 2023), while others exclusively examine large enterprises (Dubey et al, 2019;Tortorella et al, 2023a;Rehman et al, 2022). Additionally, many studies encompass a mixture of company sizes, referred to as "mixed".…”

“…Conversely, customer performance encompasses customer satisfaction and needs, including meeting customer expectations and fostering customer retention (Benitez et al, 2022;Bag et al, 2023). Finally, workers' performance concerns the performance of employees within an organisation, measured by their productivity, autonomy, collaboration, flexibility, and work quality (Waqas et al, 2021;Tortorella et al, 2023a). Therefore, we propose:…”

“…This finding underscores the significance of considering other contextual factors, such as individuals, organisational aspects, and external influences, which may influence firm performance when Lean and I4.0 are integrated. Notably, several studies, including those by Suleiman et al (2021), Tortorella et al (2023a), andPu et al (2021), reinforce this assumption by incorporating considerations of worker aspects, organisational practices, and external factors like natural disasters as contingent conditions that shape the integration of Lean practices and I4.0 technologies to pursue superior performance.…”