Leadership practices, competitive priorities, and manufacturing group performance

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the role of manufacturing leadership in enhancing manufacturing performance for different manufacturing configurations.Design/methodology/approachSurvey data collected from three levels of respondents in excess of 480, from 98 manufacturing units in the USA are used to test the study hypothesis using the cluster analysis and regression models.FindingsEffective leadership is positively associated with overall manufacturing performance beyond the fixed effects of organizational variables, such as competitive orientation and industry membership. The manufacturing leadership, however, does not seem to affect customer satisfaction.Research limitations/implicationsThe paper illustrates the use of behavioral theory of leadership in the context of managing operations with varying competitive orientations in different industries. Future research should, however, attempt to match different leadership practices/styles to different competitive orientations, and include employee characteristics, such as subordinates' prior experience, training, or skills that may influence the need for demonstrating the leadership practices differently for different competitive orientations.Practical implicationsAs manufacturers pursue a combination of priorities, their manufacturing managers need to use a gamut of effective leadership practices, such as planning, delegating, inspiring, etc. Manufacturers may also note that effective manufacturing leadership enhances performance on a host of measures, such as quality, timeliness, efficiency, etc. which are directly influenced by the manufacturing group. For measures, such as customer satisfaction, manufacturing leadership needs to be augmented by managing customer expectations and by being more flexible in accommodating customers' requirements.Originality/valueThis is the first study to deploy multiple respondents to simultaneously examine the effects of competitive orientation and leadership practices on manufacturing performance.