Integration, uncertainty and information: how do they affect planning performance?

Abstract

PurposeEffective planning requires the participation of different functions and may be hampered by lack of integration and information quality (IQ). This paper aims to investigate the relationships among integration, uncertainty, IQ and performance, in the context of the production planning and control function. The literature lacks in-depth studies that consider these factors altogether, showing how they interact and how they contribute to improve business performance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors introduce the variable of planning performance, which represents the quality of the production plans/planning process and is related to the frequency and causes of modifications to these plans. The relationships among the mentioned constructs are investigated by means of multiple case studies.FindingsThe results illustrate that integration is positively related to planning performance, and this relationship is mediated by IQ and moderated by uncertainty.Originality/valueThe presented analysis may help practitioners to foster interfunctional integration, better cope with uncertainty and improve information management, aiming to achieve better planning performance. The managers can choose integration and IQ improvement mechanisms that better fit to their environment/reality, using the four different cases as a benchmark. Moreover, this research contributes to the literature exploring this contingency perspective by means of in-depth case studies, considering that most of the existing research adopting this perspective is survey-based.

Exogenous shock: hierarchical effect of the industrial entrepreneur confidence in the mist of the COVID-19 pandemic

“…The organizations are complex chains, which are susceptible to various crises, most of the time, deriving from the unpredictability of their environment (F€ orster et al, 2022). Sagawa and Nagano (2021) show how the uncertainty factors affect planning. Giones et al (2020) point out that the pandemic was an unpredictable event, and thus, it was not considered in the decision-making processes or even in the results projected by the strategical planning of the organizations.…”

“…The organizations are complex chains, which are susceptible to various crises, most of the time, deriving from the unpredictability of their environment (Förster et al ., 2022). Sagawa and Nagano (2021) show how the uncertainty factors affect planning. Giones et al .…”

Sales and operations planning for new products: a parallel process?

“…Previous studies have discussed that the S&OP process should embrace new products’ production planning (Thomé et al , 2012; Noroozi and Wikner, 2017), applying S&OP’s primary function of aligning plans and actions of the different functional areas of the organization (Sagawa and Nagano, 2015, 2021; Kristensen and Jonsson, 2018; Bagni and Marçola, 2019). Moreover, the availability of new products in the point of sale, especially in the period of introduction of new products in the market, hereafter named market fulfillment, is a critical factor to gain market share and customers’ loyalty (Robertson, 1993; Goh and Eldridge, 2015).…”