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Organizational leaders routinely note the critical importance of human capital in enabling successful innovation outcomes. However, strategic human resource management (SHRM) practices, especially in large firms, often are not aligned with practices that facilitate breakthrough innovation (BI), where uncertainty, ambiguity, and risk of failure are high. In this paper, drawing from the motivation–opportunity–ability (MOA) framework, we identify and delineate SHRM practices that are likely to affect BI outcomes in firms. These include career risk mitigation, extrinsic rewards (motivation), idea generation facilitation (opportunity), innovation talent development, and managerial ambidexterity development (ability). We theorize that while these SHRM practices may directly affect BI outcomes, these effects are likely to be modulated by the broader organizational context, specifically, the degree of organizational conservatism. We test our hypotheses using survey data collected from 79 U.S.-based multinational firms and find that first, the impacts of career risk, extrinsic rewards, and innovation talent development on BI outcomes vary with the firm's degree of conservatism. Second, developing ambidextrous talent among middle managers positively influences BI outcomes, irrespective of the firm's level of conservatism. Overall, our study provides a basic framework to understand how SHRM practices can be leveraged to influence innovation under varying degrees of conservatism in organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The globalization of complex engineering services has resulted in physically dispersed teams that can no longer rely on the traditional and familiar oral transmission of engineering expertise nor can they assume knowledge of their team members’ culture. Yet, such teams need to be able coordinate effectively the dispersed knowledge of team members. We know little about how cultural differences among engineering team members impact the coordination of dispersed knowledge, so called transactive memory systems (TMSs)—or “who knows what” and “who knows who knows what.” In this paper, we present a longitudinal case study of a dispersed, cross-cultural team involving U.S. and Romanian engineers. The cultural differences in values, practices, and institutions had a major impact on TMS indicators of specialization, coordination, and credibility. The paper demonstrates how the cultural differences impeded TMS development. The results provide insight into TMS as an implicit coordination mechanism in a global team. We provide advice in terms of interventions that can promote the development of TMS in a culturally diverse team. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Increasingly, stakeholders are asking or requiring organizations to be more environmentally responsible with respect to their products and processes; reasons include regulatory requirements, product stewardship, public image, and potential competitive advantages. This paper presents an exploratory study of the relationships between specific environmentally sustainable manufacturing practices, and specific competitive outcomes in an environmentally important but under-researched industry, the U.S. commercial carpet industry. In general, empirical research on the impact of environmental practices on organizational outcomes is inconclusive, partly due to limitations of earlier studies. This paper addresses some of these limitations, and surveys the entire U.S. commercial carpet industry; respondents represent 84% of the market. Findings suggest that environmentally sustainable manufacturing practices may be positively associated with competitive outcomes. In particular, different types of environmentally sustainable manufacturing practices (e.g., pollution prevention, product stewardship) are associated with different competitive outcomes (e.g., manufacturing cost, product quality). These specific findings can be helpful to engineering and operations managers as they respond to environmental and competitive demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates factors affecting the, post-adoption behavior of first-Her supply chain members within the U.S. automotive industry toward a new information technology. This paper examined a specialized information technology known as the collaborative visibility network (CVN) used within the U.S. automotive industry that provides enhanced part-level visibility to Its supply chain affiliates. Using existing research on innovation diffusion, this paper examines cognitive and experiential antecedents of post-adoption behavior. A model grounded in innovation diffusion theory, social learning theory, and the technology acceptance model is proposed and tested. Field interviews followed by a mail survey were used to collect data from 515 first-tier supply chain users of CVN. A structural equation model tested the hypothesized relationships to support the proposed model. Results confirmed the majority of the hypotheses. The opportunity to experiment, training effectiveness, prior experience with a similar technology, and prior technological knowledge have an effect on perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness, which ultimately affect technology performance. Implications of this study along with suggestions for future research are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Each year, billions of dollars are spent by U.S. manufacturers to acquire hard and soft manufacturing technologies. Hard technologies are bundle of equipment, computer hardware and software such as computer numerical control, computer-aided manufacturing, robots, etc. In contrast, soft technologies are manufacturing techniques and know-how such as just-in-time, total quality management, statistical quality control, etc.--hardware is not essential to their successful use but can enhance their scope and effectiveness. This large empirical study of 1042 U.S. manufacturing plants develops a model to study the impact of manufacturing technology use on various performance measures; this study provides first evidence from the field that soft manufacturing technologies have many times the measurable effects of hard technologies on product, process, and business performance. Further, the effects of technology use are enhanced by the skilled use of technology. Implications for research and public policy are addressed. This paper has found that, in the opinion of top management in manufacturing firms, soft technologies have an impact on 1) shop floor performance; 2) product line breadth; and 3) growth and profitability. These finding should make the investment in soft technologies easier to justify. If top management controls the purse, and if it sees a link between investment in soft technology and tangible benefits in these three areas, getting top management to invest in soft technology should be easier. Before deciding on requests for investments in soft technologies, we hope top managers would seriously consider the findings of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

U.S. hospitals are confronted with challenges of increasing service volume demand and inequitable payment by different private payers. Under this circumstance, budgeting the medical service volume efficiently and allocating the volume among private payers strategically becomes very important. Our paper proposes a hospital service volume assignment model to provide feasible solutions for hospitals. We develop our base model in the radiology department that provides comparatively homogenous medical service and involves high fixed cost. Under the fee-for-service payment schedule, the base model suggests that the hospital contracting decision with a private payer (insurance company) depends on an intuitive critical ratio. The critical ratio measures the tradeoff between the outsourcing cost generated from the actual service volume in excess of the capacity and the idling cost generated from the actual service volume below the capacity. Besides the base model, we explore two model extensions. First, we examine the criteria to budget the service volume above or below the service volume capacity. Second, we include the processing cost in the cooperation of the hospital and the insurance company. Efficient algorithms are presented for all models. Our findings provide managerial insight on hospital service volume budgeting decision by incorporating inequitable payment information. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This paper addresses the question of how projects are organized and how these management structures impact project success. Despite its widely accepted managerial importance, empirical studies could not provide significant evidence of a relationship between implemented management structures and project success. A major problem in finding meaningful empirical evidence is the conceptualization of the structure measure, which is derived from a typologist's perspective. In this study, we follow the taxonomists' perspective and empirically develop an alternative taxonomy of project management structures. We empirically compare both approaches, by using two different samples, collected in the United States and Germany, including together over 600 projects. Our empirical findings show that the validity of the widely accepted project organization typology is in question. The use of cluster analyses reveals an alternative taxonomy that encompasses five structural types, differentiated by the entities managing them: project coordinator, supervised project coordinator, autonomous project manager, supervised project manager, and autonomous functional project manager. The results strongly support the widely accepted proposition of a relationship between project organization and project success. The emerging taxonomy of project organization configurations enriches the theoretical and conceptual discussions of organizing projects and unravels the multiple aspects involved in organizing the execution of projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many U.S. government agencies and their contractors have subscribed to using the prescriptive metric of technology readiness level (TRL) as a measure of maturity of an individual technology, with a view toward operational use in a system context. A comprehensive set of concerns becomes relevant when this metric is abstracted from an individual technology to a system context, which may involve interplay among multiple technologies that are integrated through a system development life cycle. This paper proposes a system-focused approach for managing system development and making effective and efficient decisions during this life cycle. A system readiness level (SRL) index that incorporates both the current TRL scale and the concept of an integration readiness level is presented with methods for determining current and future readiness of a system. Using techniques in evolutionary algorithms, the SRL index is optimized based on resource allocation to provide a decision support approach that enhances managerial capabilities in the system's development life cycle. The optimization model for the SRL is then executed with a case example and resource constraints of 75%, 60%, 45%, 30%, and 15% to demonstrate how it can be used to make strategic planning decisions in the system's development life cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines strategic capabilities as drivers of the development and launch of radical innovations. We construct a theoretical framework relating five strategic capabilities (mar- keting, market linking, technology, information technology, and management-related capabilities) to radical innovation. From this framework, we derive hypotheses concerning a division's propensity to engage in radical innovation. Using empirical data derived from a research study of 376 firms in the United States, Japan, and China, we apply analysis of variance and negative binomial distribution (NBD) regression techniques to test our hypotheses. We find evidence that, overall, technology and information technology capabilities are significantly and positively related to radical product innovation. We also find some significant differences among the three country samples concerning drivers of radical innovation. Marketing capability is more significantly and positively related to radical innovation in the United States than in Japan; and, in China, the only capability that is significantly and positively related to radical innovation is technology. All of the findings completely or partially support our research hypotheses. We conclude with a discussion of the managerial implications of our findings, and directions for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given their complexity and tight coupling, one of the most serious challenges high-reliability organizations (HROs) face is how to innovate, learn, and adapt without upsetting the internal processes that lead to their reliability. This paper describes the success of the United States Navy in using a "platform strategy" to facilitate modular innovation in its attack submarine program while maintaining high reliability. We compare the United States' submarine development program against that of the Soviets, who innovated by building a number of different types of nuclear attack submarines to test their new design concepts and thereby aggressively push both manufacturing and performance limits. We illustrate that, by adopting a platform strategy, the U.S. development program was able to sustain reliability by controlling factors that derived from four classes of concern: 1) operational; 2) manufacturing and design; 3) resource limitations, and 4) cultural constraints. The use of a platform strategy assists in maximizing systemwide organizational learning, which helps enrich a culture of reliability. However, at the same time, a platform strategy can hinder revolutionary and architectural innovation and reduce op- erational flexibility. Finally, we consider whether an HRO's innovation strategy is partially shaped by its decision-making process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The U.S. legislation at both the federal and state levels mandates certain organizations to inform customers about information uses and disclosures. Such disclosures are typically accomplished through privacy policies, both online and offline. Unfortunately, the policies are not easy to comprehend, and, as a result, online consumers frequently do not read the policies provided at healthcare Web sites. Because these policies are often required by law, they should be clear so that consumers are likely to read them and to ensure that consumers can comprehend these policies. This, in turn, may increase consumer trust and encourage consumers to feel more comfortable when interacting with online organizations. In this paper, we present results of an empirical study, involving 993 Internet users, which compared various ways to present privacy policy information to online consumers. Our findings suggest that users perceive typical, paragraph-form policies to be more secure than other forms of policy representation, yet user comprehension of such paragraph-form policies is poor as compared to other policy representations. The results of this study can help managers create more trustworthy policies, aid compliance officers in detecting deceptive organizations, and serve legislative bodies by providing tangible evidence as to the ineffectiveness of current privacy policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foreign-born scientists and researchers have long been a fixture in the U.S. R&D system. This paper examines a key indicator of scientific performance—individual research productivity. In a large sample of public sector researchers in nanoscience and technology, it was found that foreign-born scientists are consistently more productive than their native-born counterparts across different organizational settings and within a federal laboratory environment. The results furthermore show that male foreign-born researchers are more productive than their female peers in an unusually multidisciplinary research environment, except in the federal laboratory system. Both policy and management implications of these findings will be discussed. An open-versus closed-door immigration policy debate has historically resulted in policies that favor an open-door immigration policy for foreign-born researchers, but lately, and particularly since September 2001, the policy pendulum has started to swing in the other direction. I argue that a reasonable and sound immigration and science policy would balance the benefits of having a strong contingent of foreign-born researchers with the interests of current and future native-born researchers. Research-intensive organizations would serve their interests well by initiating or sustaining diversity and equal opportunity employment practices, which are likely to have a positive impact on research productivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Companies across industries have admired the success of Dell Computersin using modularity as part of a mass customization strategy to achieve build-to-order and a streamlined supply chain. Many companies are attempting to emulate this successful model, including the American automotive industry. This paper focuses on how the auto industry has been attempting to move to modularity, in part, motivated by a desire to build cars to order. This movement has led to major changes in supply chain practices based partly on imitation of successful keiretsu models in Japan and a move toward modules. This study finds significant impact of modularity on outsourcing, product development, and supply chain coordination based on interviews conducted with automakers and suppliers from 2009-2003. Based on our interviews, we observe that modularity has accompanied a major reorganization of the automotive supplier industry. We identify two major issues that appear to block U.S. automakers from gaining most of the advantages possible through modularity. First, most modularity activities appear to be primarily strategically cost reduction driven, leaving the potential of modularity for mass customization largely untapped. Second, the shift in industry reorganization has not been accompanied by changes in the supply chain infrastructure to encourage long-term partnerships. We contrast this to the more gradual approach used by Toyota as it incorporates modularity on a selective basis and moves to a build-to-order model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The market uncertainties in the generation business in the U.S. electric power industry have increased the significance of two factors in generation planning: financial risks and managerial flexibilities. At the same time, numerous utilities have multiple generation planning: projects that are interrelated with respect to their market values. For such utilities, in order to quantitatively address these two factors, in this paper, we develop and analyze a real options model for general n interrelated projects. Specifically, first, we derive a unique lattice process that approximates interrelated continuous processes for the evolution of values of projects and options (e.g., selling a constructed project). The steps of the approximation for n projects are presented progressively starting from two projects. Next, based on the lattice process, we investigate the impact of interrelation on the values of options. Then, we provide a backward dynamic programming model for optimal sequential decision making where the decisions are made over the options. Finally, managerial insights and economic implications are illustrated via numerical examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides various announcement related to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Inc. Management Society, provides an overview on various issues published within the issue. Starting January 2008, the society will change its name into IEEE Technology Management Council. Names of the recipient for the 2006, volume 53 best paper award are presented. The issue of the journal presents various reports including one by D. Libaers on the role and contribution of foreign-born scientist in the U.S.