Abstract
The productivity gains achieved since the industrial revolution have largely been contributed by improved management of operations at the firm level. Such improvements, while visible in many routine daily operations, have also been supported by better decision making at the strategic and tactical levels. The resulting cost reductions and enhancements in the value of the products and services produced have all contributed to higher competitiveness of the firm among its competitors.
It was realized relatively recently that further gains in productivity may ensue if the unit of analysis is changed from the firm to its supply chain integrating its suppliers as well as customers, thus achieving global optimization as against local optimization at the firm level. Many new ideas have already been implemented and a lot of current research in operations management is still focused on supply chain management.
The twin waves of globalization and technological changes have impacted all functions including operations management. These have affected the demand side of the market with high demand for products with newer features and functionalities, along with quick adoption and abandonment creating shorter product life cycles. Additionally, increasing trends of servitization, through which many manufacturers are offering integrated portfolios of products and services, are requiring constant changes in the way these products and services are produced.
Basically, operations management refers to the design, operation and improvement of the production system that converts inputs into the firm’s outputs comprising all its products and services, thereby adding value to some entity. The process view of operations helps in identifying innovation as a key driver for improvements in planning, operating and controlling the whole production system. Thus, nurturing organizational innovation and innovativeness has emerged as a key differentiator among competing firms.
This supplement issue on operations management and innovation presents a selection of 13 articles covering both theoretical and empirical contributions. The authors have covered many dimensions of operations management and innovation in both manufacturing and service organizations. It is hoped that this themed issue provides a snapshot of the wide range and diversity of research in this area as well as generates further interest in similar topics.