Journal of Enterprise Information Management

Teng, Teng; Tsinopoulos, Christos

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-08-2020-0321

The purpose of this study is to explore the link between information systems (IS) capabilities, supplier integration and cost performance in the service context. Specifically, it empirically investigates how supplier integration meditates the relationship between three dimensions of IS capabilities and cost performance in service firms.Design/methodology/approachA survey of 156 UK service firms was conducted and the data analyzed to determine the role of supplier integration in mediating the effects of IS capabilities on firms' cost performance. The research model was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM), and the neural network model was used to rank the relative influence of significant predictors obtained from SEM.FindingsThe results confirmed that supplier integration fully mediates the effects of information technology (IT) for supply chain activities and flexible IT infrastructure on cost performance and partially mediates the effect of operations manager's IT knowledge on cost performance. The results showed that operations manager's IT knowledge is the strongest predictor of supplier integration.Originality/valueThis study takes a step toward quelling concerns about the business value of IS, contributing to the development and validation of the measurement of IS capabilities in the service operations context. Additionally, it adds to the emerging body of literature linking supplier integration to the operational performance of service firms.

Chen, Wenting; Liu, Caihua; Xing, Fei; Peng, Guochao; Yang, Xi

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-10-2020-0397

The benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) related technologies for manufacturing firms are well recognized, however, there is a lack of industrial AI (I-AI) maturity models to enable companies to understand where they are and plan where they should go. The purpose of this study is to propose a comprehensive maturity model in order to help manufacturing firms assess their performance in the I-AI journey, shed lights on future improvement, and eventually realize their smart manufacturing visions.Design/methodology/approachThis study is based on (1) a systematic review of literature on assessing I-AI-related technologies to identify relevant measured indicators in the maturity model, and (2) semi-structured interviews with domain experts to determine maturity levels of the established model.FindingsThe I-AI maturity model developed in this study includes two main dimensions, namely “Industry” and “Artificial Intelligence”, together with 12 first-level indicators and 35 second-level indicators under these dimensions. The maturity levels are divided into five types: planning level, specification level, integration level, optimization level, and leading level.Originality/valueThe maturity model integrates indicators that can be used to assess AI-related technologies and extend the existing maturity models of smart manufacturing by adding specific technical and nontechnical capabilities of these technologies applied in the industrial context. The integration of the industry and artificial intelligence dimensions with the maturity levels shows a road map to improve the capability of applying AI-related technologies throughout the product lifecycle for achieving smart manufacturing.

Sahibzada, Umar Farooq; Latif, Khawaja Fawad; Xu, Yan

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-08-2020-0346

This research examines how knowledge management (KM) enablers, i.e. trust, knowledge-oriented leadership, environmental uncertainty and KM processes will impact knowledge worker productivity (KWP). Various formations of the KM enablers and KM processes are also examined within terms of their abilities to enhance KWP.Design/methodology/approachThe research sample is taken from 248 faculty and administrators of Pakistan Higher Educational Institutes (HEIs). The relationships are tested via SmartPLS and fsQCA 3.0.FindingsThe results show that there are significant impacts of the KM enablers on KM processes and KWP. Constructed upon fuzzy qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA), the outcomes exposed various combinations, which can be identified to enhance KWP.Originality/valueThe research supports to methodology by merging two methods to advance the understanding of institutional concerns about workers' productivity. The asymmetric method assists to distinguish the connections that might not be directly clear via traditional symmetric approaches. By uncovering asymmetric relationships, the study identifies a variety of approaches that can be used by HEIs to improve their KWP.

Leukel, Joerg; Sugumaran, Vijayan

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-11-2020-0478

Process models specific to the supply chain domain are an important tool for the analysis of interorganizational interfaces and requirements of information technology (IT) systems supporting supply chain decision-making. The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of supply chain process models for novice analysts in conveying domain semantics compared to alternative textual representations.Design/methodology/approachA laboratory experiment with graduate students as proxies for novice analysts was conducted. Participants were randomly assigned to either the diagram group, which worked with “thread diagrams” created from the modeling grammar “Supply Chain Operation Reference (SCOR) model”, or the text group, which worked with semantically equivalent textual representations. Domain understanding was measured using cognitively demanding information acquisition for two different domains.FindingsDiagram users were more accurate in identifying product-related information and organizing this information in a graph compared to those using the textual representation. The authors found considerable improvements in domain understanding, and using the diagrams was perceived as easy as using the texts.Originality/valueThe study's findings are unique in providing empirical evidence for supply chain process models being an effective representation for novice analysts. Such evidence is lacking in prior research because of the evaluation methods used, which are limited to scenario, case study and informed argument. This study adds the diagram user's perspective to that literature and provides a rigorous empirical evaluation by contrasting diagrammatic and textual representations.

Guo, Yuanyuan; Wang, Xin; Wang, Chaoyou

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-12-2020-0481

This study examines how the different dimensions of a privacy policy separately influence perceived effectiveness of privacy policy, as well as the mediating mechanisms behind these effects (i.e. vulnerability, benevolence). In addition, this study considers privacy concern as a significant moderator in the research model, to examine if the relative influences of privacy policy content are contingent upon levels of users' privacy concern.Design/methodology/approachThe survey experiment was conducted to empirically validate the model. Specifically, three survey experiments and six scenarios were designed to manipulate high and low levels of the three privacy policy dimensions (i.e. transparency, control and protection). The authors totally distributed 450 copies of the questionnaire, of which 407 were valid.FindingsThis paper found that (1) all the three privacy policy dimensions directly influence perceived effectiveness of privacy policy; (2) all the three privacy policy dimensions indirectly influence perceived effectiveness of privacy policy by enhancing perceived corporate benevolence, whereas control also affects perceived effectiveness of privacy policy by reducing perceived vulnerability; and (3) individuals with high-privacy concern are much more impacted by privacy policy contents than individuals with low-privacy concern.Practical implicationsThe findings could provide website managers with guidelines on how to design privacy policy contents by reducing user perceptions of vulnerability and enhancing user perceptions of corporate benevolence. The managers need to focus on customers' perceived vulnerability and corporate benevolence when launching or updating privacy policies. Furthermore, the managers also need to attend to users' privacy concerns, especially for multinational companies or companies with specific consumer groups.Originality/valueThis study extends the current privacy policy literature by articulating the separate influences of the three privacy policy dimensions and their impact mechanisms on perceived effectiveness of privacy policy. It also uncovers privacy concerns as a boundary condition that influence the effects of privacy policy contents on users' privacy perceptions.

Formentini, Marco; Secondi, Luca; Ruini, Luca; Guidi, Matteo; Principato, Ludovica

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-02-2021-0069

There is a limited understanding of effective strategies for tackling food loss and waste (FLW) following a circular supply chain management approach. The aim of this study is to analyze the role of the FLW Reporting and Accounting Standard for identifying FLW occurrences throughout the agri-food supply chain and facilitate their measurement. Our objective is to describe how this FLW is then reused within a circular economy (CE) perspective, thus enabling companies to implement a circular supply chain approach for effective decision-making based on the concept of waste hierarchies, the 3R and 4R rules.Design/methodology/approachAn in-depth analysis of Barilla's soft bread supply chain is provided in this study. By gathering both qualitative and quantitative data, this study investigates the implementation of the FLW standard by (1) identifying the main enablers and obstacles in measuring FLW throughout the entire production system; (2) providing a useful standardized tool for sustainable FLW measurement, minimization and reuse in other agricultural supply chains to enable circular economy approaches and (3) developing a decision-support strategy to use within the company for effective measurement, analysis and reuse according to a CE perspective.FindingsThe analyses carried out throughout Barilla's soft wheat bread supply chain provide an interesting example of a circular management system since almost nothing is lost or wasted while the value of resources is recovered through reuse thanks to a systematic and integrated measurement, representing a basis for effectively minimizing waste. The importance of developing an interconnected supply chain management emerged in order to obtain a comprehensive accounting framework for accurately quantifying and reporting the overall amount of wastage generated in the various phases of food production, paying particular attention to ex ante prevention initiatives and ex-post assessment actions.Originality/valueAn interdisciplinary approach integrating circular economy and supply chain management research streams was adopted in order to develop a decision-support tool that also includes the identification of the main facilitators and obstacles to the implementation of a comprehensive standardized accounting process that would enable companies to reduce-reuse-recycle losses and waste throughout the entire production process. Besides the studies available in the literature, the original of this study is that it focuses on organizational implications related to FLW measurement.

Tan, Hwee-Chin; Soh, Keng Lin; Wong, Wai Peng; Tseng, Ming-Lang

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-09-2020-0363

In the face of information leakage, this study aims to demonstrate pathways to supply chain resilience (SCR) during information sharing by deploying organizational ethical climate (OEC) and information security culture (ISC) as non-punitive mitigation approaches.Design/methodology/approachThis empirical study was conducted to verify the framework using a questionnaire distributed to Malaysian multinational corporations (MNCs) of the manufacturing sector. The data were analysed using structural equation modeling (SEM) techniques with the AMOS software.FindingsThis study has confirmed the adverse impact of intentional and unintentional leakages on information sharing effectiveness. The findings showed ISC could reduce the impact of information leakage, but an OCE could not. This study provides evidence that information sharing effectiveness could impact SCR. The former is a mediator between information leakage and SCR, with information leakage moderated by information security culture. These findings convey that multinationals should set up an ISC to reduce information leakage and enhance their SCR.Originality/valuePrior studies lacked the explanation of the impact of mitigating factors on information leakage in information sharing effectiveness affecting SCR. A framework that explains the relationships add value to organizations making available strategic decisions to curb information leakage and manage SCR.

Feiyang, Guan; Tienan, Wang; Linbing, Sun; Liqing, Tang

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-10-2020-0402

The authors selected global automobile manufacturing firms whose sales ranked within 100 in the five years from 2014 to 2018 in the Factiva database to examine how the characteristics of a firm's whole network and ego-network in a transnational coopetition network influence network performance.Design/methodology/approachThe authors analyzed the public news of the sample firms about the coopetition by structural content analysis to build the coopetition networks and access to data on the competitive actions of firms. Then, to measure the variables associated with the coopetition network, such as the structural hole, centrality and ego-network stability, the authors use UCINET 6 that is a widely used piece of software for social network analysis to establishing five undirected binary adjacency matrices.FindingsThe authors find that a firm's competitive aggressiveness mediates the relationship between a firm's whole network position and network performance that emphasizes the need for integrating competitive dynamics research and coopetition research and shows how valuable insights can be gained through such integration. And the interaction of structural hole and centrality impacts competitive aggressiveness and network performance, and the interaction is different under high and low ego-network stability. The integration of whole network and ego-network literature studies provides new insights into firm network literature.Practical implicationsIn the process of cooperation, firms should consider whether they can occupy the structural hole and center as important indicators for partner selection. Too stable relationship will prevent firms from obtaining new resources. Firms should weigh the period of cooperation according to specific situation.Originality/valueThese results indicate that ego-network stability, as an important complementary characteristic of coopetition network, has a significant synergistic effect with structural holes and centrality on competitive aggressiveness and network performance. And these findings expand the current literature on the relationship between characteristics of network, competitive aggressiveness and network performance.

Wang, Changyu; Yuan, Tianyu; Feng, Jiaojiao

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-06-2021-0238

The purpose of this study is to answer whether and how supervisor–subordinate instrumental or expressive ties based on enterprise social media (ESM) might enhance employee performance.Design/methodology/approachDrawing on social exchange theory, this study developed a theoretical model to explore the influencing mechanism of different supervisor–subordinate ties based on ESM on employee job performance. The model was empirically tested through 219 ESM users.FindingsThe results revealed that supervisor–subordinate instrumental ties based on ESM play a positive role in employee job performance, while supervisor–subordinate expressive ties based on ESM are not significantly related to employee job performance. Supervisor–subordinate instrumental ties and expressive ties based on ESM can positively influence employee job performance through the mediating effect of organizational trust. Besides, perceived performance climate can weaken the relation of organizational trust to job performance, and then weaken the indirect relations via the mediating of organizational trust.Originality/valueOur findings advance the understanding of ESM use through various underlying mechanisms and have the potential of guiding organizations to fine-tune their social media usage strategies.

Sahu, Abhishek; Agrawal, Saurabh; Kumar, Girish

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-11-2020-0465

Industry 4.0 and circular economy are the two major areas in the current manufacturing industry. However, the adoption and implementation of Industry 4.0 and circular economy worldwide are still in the nascent stage of development. To address this gap, the purpose of this article is to conduct a systematic literature review on integrating Industry 4.0 and circular economy. Further, identify the research gaps and provide the future scope of work in this area.Design/methodology/approachContent-based analysis was adopted for reviewing the research articles and proposed a transition framework that comprises of four categories, namely, (1) Transition from Industry 3.0 to Industry 4.0 and integration with circular economy; (2) Adoption of combined factors and different issues; (3) Implementation possibilities such as front-end technologies, integration capabilities and redesigning strategies; (4) Current challenges. The proposed study reviewed a total of 204 articles published from 2000 to 2020 based on these categories.FindingsThe article presents a systematic literature review of the last two decades that integrates Industry 4.0 and circular economy concepts. Findings revealed that very few studies considered the adoption and implementation issues of Industry 4.0 and circular economy. Moreover, it was found that Industry 4.0 technologies including digitalization, real-time monitoring and decision-making capabilities played a significant role in circular economy implementation. The major elements are discussed through the analysis of the transition and integration framework. The study further revealed that a limited number of developing countries like India have taken preliminary initiatives toward Industry 4.0 and circular economy implementation.Research limitations/implicationsThe study proposes a transition and integration framework that identifies adoption and implementation issues and challenges. This framework will help researchers and practitioners in implementation of Industry 4.0 and circular economy.Originality/valueReviews of articles indicated that there are very few studies on integrating Industry 4.0 and circular economy. Moreover, there are very few articles addressing adoption and implementation issues such as legal, ethical, operational and demographic issues, which may be used to monitor the organization's performance and productivity.

Zhu, Zhen; Lin, Shuaifu; Jiang, Yi; Liu, Qi

2022 Journal of Enterprise Information Management

doi: 10.1108/jeim-01-2021-0037

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the consequences of two strategies of coordinating the online procurement capability and the online channel management capability on competitive performance.Design/methodology/approachA research model is presented to examine the performance impacts of these two coordination strategies, namely the balancing strategy (achieving a close match relationship) and the complementing strategy (maintaining the synergy effect), and tested using firm-level data collected from 196 manufacturing firms in China. Garen's two-stage econometric technique was used to identify the impacts of two coordination strategies on competitive performance.FindingsOur study discusses and compares two different coordination strategies of mitigating the operational tensions across processes and deploying resource configurations for improving competitive performance. Our results show that while the balancing strategy can mitigate the risks resulted, the complementing strategy does not create synergistic effects on the focal firms' competitive performance.Originality/valueThe results extend our understanding of the nature of B2B digital process coordination both in IS management and supply chain operations.