Qualitative middle-range research in operations management

Abstract

Access to this document was granted through an Emerald subscription provided by emerald-srm:198285 [] For AuthorsIf you would like to write for this, or any other Emerald publication, then please use our Emerald for Authors service information about how to choose which publication to write for and submission guidelines are available for all. Please visit www.emeraldinsight.com/authors for more information. About Emerald www.emeraldinsight.comEmerald is a global publisher linking research and practice to the benefit of society. The company manages a portfolio of more than 290 journals and over 2,350 books and book series volumes, as well as providing an extensive range of online products and additional customer resources and services.Emerald is both COUNTER 4 and TRANSFER compliant. The organization is a partner of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and also works with Portico and the LOCKSS initiative for digital archive preservation. AbstractPurpose -The purpose of this paper is to highlight the potential of a qualitative middle-range research approach to contribute to the advancement of operations management (OM) field. Design/methodology/approach -To better signify such contribution, it takes insight from Merton's (1968) notion of middle-range theory as a means to create pathways of propositions that link substantive concepts and practices of OM in both context-specific and context-free operational environments. Findings -The paper brings to the fore the argument that achieving the primary objective of filling the "theory-methods" void in OM can be achieved through adoption of a qualitative middle-range approach. Originality/value -The originality of this paper hinges on the premise that theory-oriented qualitative field research that is able to incorporate experiences of different stakeholders of the OM intervention is highly likely to benefit OM theory advancement as well as OM practice.

Values and behaviors of effective lean managers: Mixed-methods exploratory research

“…"continuous improvement," "information sharing," (Dean & Bowen, 1994;Lakshman, 2006;Liker & Convis, 2012;Sosik & Dionne, 1997;Waldman, 1993;Waldman et al, 1998). We consider these values as part of lean's knowledge set that would typically be reflected in specific behaviors which we report next.…”

“…Both transformational and transactional leadership have been associated with lean or organizational process renewal, including higher efficiency (e.g., Doeleman, Ten Have, & Ahaus, 2012; Jung, Chow, & Wu, 2003;Kanji & S a, 2001;Laohavichien, Fredendall, & Cantrell, 2011;Llor ens-Montes & Molina, 2006;Northouse, 2010;Poksinska, Swartling, & Drotz, 2013;Sosik & Dionne, 1997;Waldman, 1993;Waldman et al, 1998). Effective managers tend to show behavioral flexibility across a broad spectrum of three behavioral domains, as specified Table 1 Specific values and behaviors of lean managers, based on a systematic literature review.…”

“…2 follows a 'convergent parallel design' (see, also, Stentz, Plano Clark, & Matkin, 2012), and also responds to calls for triangulated, inductive research(Avolio, Bass, & Jung, 1999;Bhamu & Sangwan, 2014;Edmondson & McManus, 2007;Gardner, Lowe, Moss, Mahoney, & Cogliser, 2010;L€ onnqvist, Verkasalo, Wichardt, & Walkowitz, 2013;Soltani, Ahmed, Liao, & Anosike, 2014;Yammarino, 2013;Yukl, 2012).…”

Supply chain integration configurations: process structure and product newness

“…We argue that this has led to an inevitable loss of multidimensionality, overlooking some of the context needed to identify the dimensions that determine the configuration of supply chain integration. As a result we opted for a qualitative method that helps us capture both its contextual and multidimensional nature (Soltani et al 2014), while we accept that this may limit the generalizability of the findings.…”

Internal Integration in Supply Chain Integration: A Systematic Literature Review

“…In this scenario, the first suggestion for further research is the development of studies about SCI using of qualitative methods, especially those focused on the nuances of human nature. According to Soltani et al (2014), due to its predominantly behavioral nature, the human factor is best analyzed and interpreted in the organizational context by qualitative procedures. The studies that insert the human factor as a variable to be analyzed (including for external integration) are configured as a second proposal for further research.…”