Factory Positioning an Unpredictable Environment: A Managerial View of Manufacturing Strategy Formation

Jari Voutilainen

Factory Positioning an Unpredictable Environment: A Managerial View of Manufacturing Strategy Formation

Julkaisun otsikon käännös: Tehtaiden asemointi vaikeasti ennustettavassa ympäristössä: liikkeenjohdollinen näkemys tuotantostrategian muodostamisesta

Jari Voutilainen

Tieto- ja palvelujohtamisen laitos

Tutkimustuotos: Doctoral Thesis › Monograph

Abstrakti

Tehtaiden asemointi on tärkeä osa tuotantostrategiaa, jonka tarkoitus on varmistaa, että tuotanto tukee yrityksen kilpailukykyä. Tämän tutkimuksen tavoite on ymmärtää, miten tuotantostrategian muodostaminen, erityisesti tehtaiden asemointi, olisi mahdollista vaikeasti ennustettavassa liiketoimintaympäristössä. Erityisesti keskityttiin strategian muodostamiseen, asemointipäätöksen ohjaamiseen ja monimutkaisuuden ja kognitiivisen ylikuorman hallintaan suunnitteluprosessissa. Työ perustuu havaintoihin uuden tuotantostrategian muodostamisesta 30 miljardin euron kuluttajaelektroniikkateollisuuden yrityksessä 3,5 vuoden aikana. Sen tuotantodivisioona operoi tehtaita yhdeksässä maassa neljässä maanosassa, työllisti noin 30 000 ihmistä ja käytti yli 100 miljardia komponenttia vuosittain. Tulokset osoittavat, kuinka asemointi on mahdollista jopa hyvin dynaamisessakin teollisuudessa. Päähavainto on, että strategian muodostamismoodia valittaessa on otettava huomioon päätöksentekijöiden luottamus muutoksen tarpeeseen. Tämä nähdään luottamus-moodi –matriisissa (CM-matriisi), jonka mukaan päätöksentekoa ohjaa luottamus muutoksen tarpeesta ja strategian muodostamismoodi. Menestyksekäs päätöksenteko vaatii kolmen erityisen tekijän huomioimista. Ensiksi, strategian muodostamismoodin täytyy soveltua vallitsevaan luottamukseen muutoksen tarpeellisuudesta. Toiseksi, keskustelua kannattaa ohjata vaikeasti ennustettavassa ympäristössä mieluummin heuristiikan kuin vain analyysitulosten avulla. Kolmanneksi, uudelleenkoodaamista, etsintää ja tyytymistä voidaan käyttää suunnittelun monimutkaisuuden ja epävarmuuden lieventämiseen. Tuloksista voi vetää kaksi selkeää johtopäätöstä. Ensiksi, tuotantostrategian muodostamisen ja tehtaiden positioinnin prosessit eivät ole aina niin mekaanisia ja analyyttisiä kuin jotkut tutkijat esittävät. Abstraktimpi päätöksentekoprosessi auttaa lieventämään monimutkaisuutta vaikeasti ennustettavassa ympäristössä. Tämä tutkimus tuokin ihmislähtöisemmän näkökulman strategian muodostamiseen. Toiseksi, analyyttisiä työkaluja, kuten tuote-prosessi –matriisia, voidaan käyttää analyysien lisäksi päätöksentekoa ohjaavina viitekehyksinä. Rajoittuneen rationaalisuuden, uudelleenkoodaamisen ja heurististen työkalujen käytettävyys strategian muodostamiseen vaikeasti ennustettavassa ympäristössä tarjoaa hyvän pohjan lisätutkimuksille. Erityisen arvokasta olisi ymmärtää pätevätkö havainnot myös muissa teollisuuksissa ja yli liiketoiminnan erilaisten syklien.

Julkaisun otsikon käännös	Tehtaiden asemointi vaikeasti ennustettavassa ympäristössä: liikkeenjohdollinen näkemys tuotantostrategian muodostamisesta
Alkuperäiskieli	Englanti
Pätevyys	Tohtorintutkinto
Myöntävä instituutio	Aalto-yliopisto
Valvoja/neuvonantaja	Vepsäläinen, Ari, Vastuuprofessori Tinnilä, Markku, Ohjaaja
Kustantaja	Aalto University
Painoksen ISBN	978-952-60-5610-4
Sähköinen ISBN	978-952-60-5611-1
Tila	Julkaistu - 2014
OKM-julkaisutyyppi	G4 Monografiaväitöskirja

Tutkimusalat

luottamus-moodi -matriisi
tuotantostrategia
strategian muodostaminen
etsintä ja tyytyminen
uudelleenkoodaaminen
tuote-prosessi -matriisi

Pääsy asiakirjaan

http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-952-60-5611-1Lisenssi: Määrittelemätön

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title = "Factory Positioning an Unpredictable Environment: A Managerial View of Manufacturing Strategy Formation",

abstract = "Positioning of factories is an important element of manufacturing strategy that ensures that production supports the competitiveness of the company. The objective of this research is to understand how manufacturing strategy could be formed by defining factory positioning in an unpredictable business environment. More specifically, we focus on strategy formation, facilitation of positioning decisions, and managing complexity and cognitive constraints during the planning process. The study is based on direct managerial observation of a 3,5 year manufacturing strategy process in a 30 billion euro consumer electronics company. Its manufacturing division operated 9 factories on 4 continents, consumed over 100 billion components and employed 30,000 persons. The results indicate how factory positioning works even in a highly dynamic industry. The main finding is that the mode of strategy formation – be it deliberate or emergent – should be correlated with the confidence level of decision-makers. This is aptly illustrated in the new confidence-mode (CM) matrix where decision making is driven by the intended strategy formation mode and the experienced levels of confidence. Three implications for successful strategic management should be pointed out. First, the strategy formation mode needs to match the level of confidence. Second, in an unpredictable environment teams need to be facilitated with heuristics rather than with just quantitative analyses. Third, recoding with search and satisficing help to mitigate complexity and uncertainty in the planning situation. Two conclusions are obvious. First, manufacturing strategy formation and factory positioning processes are not always as mechanical and analytical as some researchers propose. A more abstract approach helps decision-makers to tolerate the complexities of the uncertain environment. Hence, a softer human element of strategy formation may be revealed. Second, analytical tools such as the product-process matrix can be applied not only for quantitative positioning of products and factories but as frameworks for guiding decision-making. The applicability of bounded rationality, recoding, and heuristics in strategy formation in an unpredictable environment offers a fertile ground for further research. Especially fruitful would be to study whether the observed phenomena are similar in other industries and under varying stages of business cycles.",

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author = "Jari Voutilainen",

year = "2014",

language = "English",

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N2 - Positioning of factories is an important element of manufacturing strategy that ensures that production supports the competitiveness of the company. The objective of this research is to understand how manufacturing strategy could be formed by defining factory positioning in an unpredictable business environment. More specifically, we focus on strategy formation, facilitation of positioning decisions, and managing complexity and cognitive constraints during the planning process. The study is based on direct managerial observation of a 3,5 year manufacturing strategy process in a 30 billion euro consumer electronics company. Its manufacturing division operated 9 factories on 4 continents, consumed over 100 billion components and employed 30,000 persons. The results indicate how factory positioning works even in a highly dynamic industry. The main finding is that the mode of strategy formation – be it deliberate or emergent – should be correlated with the confidence level of decision-makers. This is aptly illustrated in the new confidence-mode (CM) matrix where decision making is driven by the intended strategy formation mode and the experienced levels of confidence. Three implications for successful strategic management should be pointed out. First, the strategy formation mode needs to match the level of confidence. Second, in an unpredictable environment teams need to be facilitated with heuristics rather than with just quantitative analyses. Third, recoding with search and satisficing help to mitigate complexity and uncertainty in the planning situation. Two conclusions are obvious. First, manufacturing strategy formation and factory positioning processes are not always as mechanical and analytical as some researchers propose. A more abstract approach helps decision-makers to tolerate the complexities of the uncertain environment. Hence, a softer human element of strategy formation may be revealed. Second, analytical tools such as the product-process matrix can be applied not only for quantitative positioning of products and factories but as frameworks for guiding decision-making. The applicability of bounded rationality, recoding, and heuristics in strategy formation in an unpredictable environment offers a fertile ground for further research. Especially fruitful would be to study whether the observed phenomena are similar in other industries and under varying stages of business cycles.

AB - Positioning of factories is an important element of manufacturing strategy that ensures that production supports the competitiveness of the company. The objective of this research is to understand how manufacturing strategy could be formed by defining factory positioning in an unpredictable business environment. More specifically, we focus on strategy formation, facilitation of positioning decisions, and managing complexity and cognitive constraints during the planning process. The study is based on direct managerial observation of a 3,5 year manufacturing strategy process in a 30 billion euro consumer electronics company. Its manufacturing division operated 9 factories on 4 continents, consumed over 100 billion components and employed 30,000 persons. The results indicate how factory positioning works even in a highly dynamic industry. The main finding is that the mode of strategy formation – be it deliberate or emergent – should be correlated with the confidence level of decision-makers. This is aptly illustrated in the new confidence-mode (CM) matrix where decision making is driven by the intended strategy formation mode and the experienced levels of confidence. Three implications for successful strategic management should be pointed out. First, the strategy formation mode needs to match the level of confidence. Second, in an unpredictable environment teams need to be facilitated with heuristics rather than with just quantitative analyses. Third, recoding with search and satisficing help to mitigate complexity and uncertainty in the planning situation. Two conclusions are obvious. First, manufacturing strategy formation and factory positioning processes are not always as mechanical and analytical as some researchers propose. A more abstract approach helps decision-makers to tolerate the complexities of the uncertain environment. Hence, a softer human element of strategy formation may be revealed. Second, analytical tools such as the product-process matrix can be applied not only for quantitative positioning of products and factories but as frameworks for guiding decision-making. The applicability of bounded rationality, recoding, and heuristics in strategy formation in an unpredictable environment offers a fertile ground for further research. Especially fruitful would be to study whether the observed phenomena are similar in other industries and under varying stages of business cycles.

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KW - manufacturing strategy

KW - strategy formation

KW - bounded rationality

KW - search and satisficing

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KW - product-process matrix

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SN - 978-952-60-5610-4

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ER -

Factory Positioning an Unpredictable Environment: A Managerial View of Manufacturing Strategy Formation

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