The digitization of factories promises great potential benefits. The implementation of the various technologies for the smart factory is extremely complex, requires new competencies and necessitates significant investments. The question is: How can an industrial company successfully manage this transformation? For this purpose, more than 500 published use cases were screened. These could be categorized into 44 relevant use cases, which we describe in detail in the book. Our research has al...

Using site-specific optimization approaches in international manufacturing networks is increasingly proving insufficient. To solve this problem, several holistic and integrated alternatives have been developed to reflect a global perspective. This book presents advances in the St. Gallen Global Manufacturing Network Model and its application in numerous industry-, benchmarking- and research projects. The contents combine data-driven solutions with qualitative management frameworks for the ...

The increasing importance of industrial services and rapid digitalization towards smart and remote services pose opportunities as well as challenges to the manufacturing sector. This book provides a holistic understanding of industrial service management and guides companies into building capabilities and management practices for smart and remote services. By combining insights from research and practice, it offers a unique perspective on the core and enabling activities of manufacturing c...

The preceding process of globalization and the continuously rising competitive pressure on manufacturing companies in more developed economies unveiled the limits of classical site-focused optimization approaches. The focus of network optimization shifts ever more towards an integrative view of manufacturing networks, striving for a harmonization of the strategy-, configuration- and coordination levels. This book presents such an integrative approach to the strategic management of manufact...

Achieving operational excellence is a challenge for the pharmaceutical industry, with many companies setting successful examples time and again. This book presents such leading practices for managing operational excellence throughout the pharmaceutical industry. Based on the St.Gallen OPEX Model the authors describe the current status of OPEX and the future challenges that have to be dealt with. The ample theoretical background is complemented hand-in-hand by case studies contributed by au...

In a world moving towards services, driving service productivity is a central challenge for leaders and members of all types of organisations: for service businesses there is a clear need to be “productive”, but it is far less clear what this exactly means. In this book, we invite you on a journey that explores the ways, tools and options for driving service productivity. We take an innovator’s perspectives and look at the tricky challenge of service productivity as a landscape of options ...

This book examines volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity (VUCA) and addresses the need for broader knowledge and application of new concepts and frameworks to deal with unpredictable and rapid changing situations. The premises of VUCA can shape all aspects of an organization. To cover all areas, the book is divided into six sections. Section 1 acts as an introduction to VUCA and complexity. It reviews ways to manage complexity, while providing examples for tools and approaches ...

Contemporary business-to-business (B2B) industries consist of networks of customers, competitors and other stakeholders. Firms which manage their relationships with these important stakeholders are more likely to enjoy a sustained competitive advantage in the international business environment. This book is the first to provide a comprehensive overview of the field from a broad and accessible perspective.The authors bring an authoritative, scholarly understanding to the subject, ta...

Although the area of International Manufacturing Network (IMN) and International Operations Network (ION) has received considerable attention in the literature, most of studies appear multifaceted and interdisciplinary, and thereby require thorough investigation from both academic and practical perspectives, in order to deepen our related understanding. The book seeks advanced contributions that will combine theoretical insights and empirical experience by offering a detailed examination o...

Nowadays, organisations must cope with the pressure of cost reduction and efficiency in order to succeed in a highly competitive business environment. However, drivers to improve social interaction and employee’s performance and as such to contribute to organisational goals and objectives make it necessary to be concerned with other performance criteria as well, such as effectiveness, flexibility, employee satisfaction, productivity and creativity. There is a growing need for performance m...

Join forces with others inside and outside your organization to solve your toughest problems.If you read nothing else on collaborating effectively, read these 10 articles. We’ve combed through hundreds of articles in the Harvard Business Review archive and selected the most important ones to help you work more productively with people on your team, in other departments, and in other organizations.Leading experts such as Daniel Goleman, Herm...

This book establishes and explores existing and emerging theories on Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and the adoption of IT/IS. It presents the latest empirical research findings in that area of IS research and explores new technologies and practices. The book is written for researchers and professionals working in the field of IS research or the research of SMEs. Moreover, the book will be a reference for researchers, professionals and students in management information systems ...