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Total eclipse on business performance and mass personalization: how supply chain flexibility eclipses lean production direct effect

Juan Manuel Maqueira (Department of Business Organization, Jaén University, Jaén, Spain)
Luciano Romualdo Novais (CIGIP - Centro de Investigación de Gestión e Ingeniería de la Producción, Universitat Politècnica de València, Valencia, Spain)
Sebastian Bruque (Department of Business Organization, Jaén University, Jaén, Spain)

Supply Chain Management

ISSN: 1359-8546

Article publication date: 9 December 2020

Issue publication date: 10 February 2021

969

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to analyze the mediating role of Supply Chain Flexibility on the interrelationships binding Lean Production implementation, Mass Personalization and business performance.

Design/methodology/approach

A random sample of 260 companies obtained from a population of 1,717 Spanish companies that occupy an intermediate position in the supply chain has been used to test the proposed hypothetical framework. Telephone surveys using a computerized system have been used to collect data, obtaining a response rate of 15.6 and a structural equation model has been designed to test the six proposed hypotheses.

Findings

Companies initially implement Lean Production to optimize Mass Personalization processes and improve business performance. However, in the presence of Supply Chain Flexibility, Lean Production implementation no longer has a direct impact on Mass Personalization and business performance, but it does have an indirect impact through the flexibility it achieves (shown as a total mediating path). Therefore, companies should implement Lean Production to achieve flexibility and thus optimize the Mass Personalization processes and obtain better performance.

Originality/value

Academics and business managers may have supporting evidence on the role played by the total mediating effect of Supply Chain Flexibility on the relationship between Lean Production, Mass Personalization and business performance. A better knowledge of these management resources and their relationship could affect the way researchers and practitioners approach them, becoming more aware of the important role of the supply chain in competitiveness.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

In memory of Maria Eva Escudero Otero. The authors acknowledge the financial support of Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Cientıfıco e Tecnologico (CNPq) of Brazil, the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (reference PID2019-106577GB-I00) and UJAFEDER Andalusian Operational Program (reference 1261128).

Citation

Maqueira, J.M., Novais, L.R. and Bruque, S. (2021), "Total eclipse on business performance and mass personalization: how supply chain flexibility eclipses lean production direct effect", Supply Chain Management, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 256-278. https://doi.org/10.1108/SCM-02-2020-0083

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited

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