The influence of operational excellence on the culture and agility of organizations: evidence from industry

André M. Carvalho, Paulo Sampaio, Eric Rebentisch, João Álvaro Carvalho, Pedro Saraiva

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

25 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Purpose: This article offers a novel approach that brings together management, engineering and organizational behavior. It focuses on the understanding of organizational dynamics in an era of technological change, upholding the importance of organizational agility and of the cultural paradigm in the management of organizations. Design/methodology/approach: In this work, the authors present the conclusions from a set of studies carried out in organizations operating in technical and technological industries. The authors assessed the capabilities of these organizations in terms of operational excellence maturity and its impact on the organizational culture and organizational agility. Findings: Results show the importance of operational excellence either in developing or expanding organizational agility capabilities while reinforcing the cruciality of an excellence-oriented culture to sustain these efforts over time. Originality/value: Increasingly unstable business environments have led to a growing interest in how to develop and maintain operational excellence in the face of continued and disruptive change. However, this interest has, so far, been advanced with little empirical evidence to support the corresponding predictions. This work offers the first practical evidence that continued focus and optimization of operations, with the right cultural alignment, helps organizations survive and thrive in increasingly volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous environments.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1520-1549
Number of pages30
JournalInternational Journal Of Quality And Reliability Management
Volume38
Issue number7
Early online date8 Dec 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 16 Jul 2021

Keywords

  • Operational excellence
  • Organizational agility
  • Organizational culture
  • Quality management

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'The influence of operational excellence on the culture and agility of organizations: evidence from industry'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this