Chapters authored
Innovation and Firm Competitive Advantages
Innovation provides many advantages in terms of competitive advantages; however, many firms fail to seize innovation opportunities. There are different types of innovation, namely product innovation, process innovation, architectural innovation, marketing innovation, service innovation, organisational innovation, and transformational innovation. The different types of innovation offer different opportunities across the product life cycle. In this chapter, some interesting questions are posed: (a) is it necessary to invest in all the different types of innovation, (b) can a firm benefit from one or two of the different types of innovation and (c) how important innovation timing is to extract maximum value across the product life cycle. Responses to these questions are explored, and insights are provided. Interesting lessons are provided to firms as these lessons may enable firms to improve innovation opportunities and competitive advantages.
Part of the book: Business and Management Annual Volume 2023
Quality Planning, Assurance and Control in Manufacturing, Industrial Projects and Services Environments
The role of quality planning, assurance and control is well established in manufacturing and production environments; however, the same cannot be said for industrial projects and the services environment. It is evident that the tangibility of the output is different and, as a result, evaluated differently. In a project environment, many projects exceed budget, schedule and performance. One may argue that quality planning, control and assurance have a significant role in ensuring projects meet their budget, schedule and performance objectives. In contrast, in a services environment, quality planning, assurance and control procedures are used to ensure that the set of quality criteria meets the customer’s requirements so that the customer gets a better service experience. There are differences in how quality planning, assurance and control are implemented and perceived in these three environments. This chapter explores the differences and similarities in the implementation, perception and maturity of quality planning, assurance and control. This chapter provides interesting opportunities for quality planning, assurance and control in a manufacturing, projects and services environment.
Part of the book: Quality Control and Quality Assurance - Techniques and Applications [Working title]