Abstract
Companies invest in a wide range of functions and capabilities in order to make and sell products at a profit. Consequently, the degree to which a company’s functions are aligned to the needs of its markets will directly affect its overall revenue, rate of growth and level of profit. The size of investment in the processes and infrastructure within manufacturing is significant. Getting it right, therefore, is fundamental to a firm’s overall success. If a company could change its manufacturing processes and infrastructure without incurring the key penalties of delay and increased investment, then the strategic decisions within manufacturing would be of little concern or consequence. However, nothing could be further from the truth. The reality is that a lack of fit between these investments and a company’s markets will lead to a business being well wide of the mark. Many executives are still unaware ‘that what appear to be routine manufacturing decisions frequently come to limit the corporation’s strategic options, binding it with facilities, equipment, personnel, basic controls, and policies to a noncompetitive posture, which may take years to turn round’.1
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Notes and references
Skinner, W., ‘Manufacturing — Missing Link in Corporate Strategy’, Harvard Business Review, May–June 1969, p. 13.
These perspectives are well covered in S Kotha and D Orne ‘Generic Manufacturing Strategies: a Conceptual Analysis’, Strategic Management Journal, vol. 10, 211–31 (1989).
Also, refer to W. Skinner, Manufacturing — The Formidable Competitive Weapon (New York: John Wiley, 1985). The section entitled ‘Wanted: A New Breed of Manufacturing Manager’ provides insights on developments in production management in the period 1980 to 1984 and the changing task to meet, among other things, the strategic role in manufacturing.
This argument was put forward in T. J. Hill, ‘Manufacturing Implications in Determining Corporate Policy’, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 1, no. 1, p. 4.
These include D. A. Aaker, Developing Business Strategies (New York: John Wiley, 1988)
H. I. Ansoff, Corporate Strategies (New York: Penguin, 1987)
P. J. Below et al., The Executive Guide to Strategic Planning (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1987)
A. C. Hax and N. S. Mailuf, Strategic management: An International Perspective (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall International, 1984)
B. Houlden, Understanding Company Strategy (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1990)
G. Johnson and K. Scholes, Exploring Corporate Strategy (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall International, 1989)
M. E. Porter, Competitive Strategy (New York: The Free Press, 1980), and J. Quinn et al., The Strategy Process (1988).
These are based on a presentation by D. Fisher (Ernst & Young) at Princeton, NJ, June 1992.
See Terry Hill, The Essence of Operations Management (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall International, 1993), p. 25.
Further Reading
Buffa, E. S., Meeting the Competitive Challenge: Manufacturing Strategy for U.S. Companies (Homewood. Ill.: Richard D. Irwin. 1984).
Gunn, T. G., Manufacturing for Competitive Advantage (Cambridge, Mass.: Ballinger, 1987).
Mather, H., Competitive Manufacturing (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall International, 1988).
Samson, D., Manufacturing and Operations Strategy (Sydney: Prentice-Hall, 1991).
Skinner, W., Manufacturing in Corporate Strategy (New York: John Wiley, 1978).
Slack, N., The Manufacturing Advantage (London: Mercury Books. 1991).
Voss, C. A. (ed.), Manufacturing Strategy (London: Chapman & Hall, 1992).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 1995 Terry Hill
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Hill, T. (1995). Developing a Manufacturing Strategy: Principles and Concepts. In: Manufacturing Strategy. Palgrave, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-13724-4_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-13724-4_2
Publisher Name: Palgrave, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-13726-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-349-13724-4
eBook Packages: Palgrave Business & Management CollectionBusiness and Management (R0)