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    The relationship between lean and performance measurement in service and manufacturing organisations in New Zealand : a thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Accounting at Massey University, Manawatū, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2024-08-20) Roos, Christina Maria
    This thesis examines the relationship between lean and performance measurement systems (PMSs) in New Zealand private and public organisations. There is a dearth of research on lean and PMSs, despite the importance of understanding this relationship. To provide insights and an understanding of this relationship, this study identifies and examines lean techniques and the corresponding performance measures applied to measure lean performance. The research data were analysed using Searcy’s (2004) framework of lean performance dimensions and the findings were informed by contingency theory. The research conclusions were drawn from qualitative interpretations of the data through thematic analysis. The research findings show that lean is still in an emergent state in New Zealand and that managers associate lean with reducing waste to reduce costs, promote continuous improvement, improve quality, and deliver customer value. This differs from the global perspective of providing customer value through continuous improvement (Thornton et al., 2019; Albzeirat et al., 2018). The lean techniques implemented by the lean organisations reflect the managers’ association of lean with reducing cost and promoting continuous improvement, with a marginal focus on improving customer value. Organisations that successfully use lean techniques remain in a ‘black hole’ between measuring lean performance and the inclusion of lean performance dimensions in the PMS. Less than half of the organisations adapted their PMSs to include lean performance, nor did they implement specific lean KPIs to measure and evaluate lean performance. In those organisations where managers had identified, implemented, and used critical lean success factors, they had concurrently modified their PMS to include lean KPIs. Nonetheless, dollars saved are still recognised as the most important lean contribution, subsequently, once dollar-related goals were reached, organisations restored their traditional PMSs. As such, lean performance was neglected, and the existing lean practices were not associated with PMS. Ultimately, most organisations did not adapt their PMSs sufficiently to accommodate lean, and consequently, the organisations’ PMSs did not adequately capture lean outcomes. The implications for organisations and CEOs are that they need to shift focus from cost savings and profits to lean techniques and map the correct key performance indicators to the PMS to fully measure and evaluate lean outcomes.
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    Underperformance of information and communication technology in construction organizations : a correlational study between the performance and the strategic alignment : a thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Philosophy in Building and Construction, Field of Building and Construction, School of Built Environment, College of Science, Massey University, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2023) Eliwa, Hassan
    The construction industry is applying information and communication technology (ICT), but it is evident that it does not realise its full potential and is underperforming, although other sectors are using the benefits of ICT and are extremely successful. Based on that, it is required to study and investigate the underperforming of the construction ICT and identify the problems and challenges leading to underperformance and shortcomings of ICT utilisation in construction organisations. Organisation and ICT alignment remains a top priority for businesses to improve operational efficiencies. Various studies have concluded that applying the strategic alignment model (SAM) in construction organisations can achieve better performance outcomes from the project to the organisation level. A positive connection between the utilisation of ICT and project performance has been established and concluded. However, the effects of ICT infrastructure strategy alignment with the organisational ICT infrastructure on construction organisations' performance have not been investigated. This research evaluates and analyses the importance of the alignment between the ICT infrastructure and the organisational infrastructure to improve the underperforming construction ICT not just at the project level but also at the level of construction organisations. The main objective of this research is to investigate whether the effect of ICT utilisation on project performance may be restricted and affected by its alignment with the ICT infrastructure level in the organisation. This research aims to develop guidance that assists construction organisations in solving the construction industry underperforming, the alignment of ICT in the construction industry, and improve the probability of arriving at a specific alignment solution for the construction organisation by determining the strategic alignment impact between ICT and business on organisational performance of construction organisations. A method of evaluating ICT utilisation in the construction industry and strategic alignment is proposed. The effects of this strategic alignment on project performance are discussed, and recommendations for optimal strategic utilisation are provided. The study is significant as it will introduce to the construction organisations the role of the ICT function, the method of operation of the ICT function and the sourcing options of the ICT function as antecedent variables to the alignment of business and ICT within the organisation. The research follows a practical process to understanding the complexity, challenges and requirements for ICT implementation.
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    Essays on the determinant and consequence of tournament incentives : evidence from China : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Accountancy at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2020) Sun, Li
    This research investigates the determinant and consequence of tournament incentives using data of publicly listed Chinese firms. Understanding the role of the tournament incentive and its implications is crucial, since it affects firms’ profitability and, consequently, shareholders’ wealth. Furthermore, whether tournament incentives function as an effective governance tools has remained under-explored in emerging markets. Our study sheds new light on the use of tournament incentives in the Chinese market. This study is organized into three essays: (i) a survey of the existing literature on tournament incentives in the accounting and finance area; (ii) the relation between business strategy and tournament incentives; and, finally, (iii) the effect of tournament incentives on stock price crash risk. Essay One synthesizes the theoretical underpinnings of tournament models, reviews the extant empirical literature on the determinants and consequences of tournament incentives, critiques the findings, and offers suggestions for future research. We synthesize findings from 63 empirical papers and find that several firm-level fundamental and corporate governance variables affect the structure of corporate tournaments. Our review of the consequences of tournament structure reveals that tournaments affect financial reporting and auditing as well as firm-level operational and capital market-based outcomes. This review reveals that the existing accounting and finance literature lacks a strong justification for why one theory, rather than another, is favoured. Moreover, based on potential problems that may exist in empirical models, this review also offers some methodological implications for empirical tournament studies. In Essay Two, we investigate the association between business strategy and firm-level tournament incentives in China, and find that business strategy is positively associated with firm-level tournament incentives, as proxied by pay differences among senior executives. We further explore the association between tournament incentives and future firm performance, conditional on various business strategies. We find some evidence that the larger tournament incentives offered by firms following innovative strategies are associated with better operating performance. We also find that the positive relationship between business strategy and tournament incentives is manifested only for local, but not central, state-owned enterprises (SOEs). However, no differential evidence is found using firm performance analysis. Our study fills a gap in the existing tournament literature by incorporating business strategy as a critical determinant of the tournament incentives in the more cash-compensation setting of China. Finally, in Essay Three, we investigate the association between tournament incentives and firms’ stock price crash risk in China. We explore the Chinese setting, where a cash-based compensation system is the primary compensation scheme, as opposed to the equity-based incentive schemes commonly found in the U.S. We provide robust evidence that promotion-based tournament incentives, proxied by compensation differences among top executives, are negatively and significantly associated with firms’ stock price crash risk. We also find that conditional conservatism mediates the negative association between tournament incentives and price crash. Finally, we find that the negative relationship between tournament incentives and price crash is significant for the non-state-owned enterprises only. The findings advance our understanding regarding the corporate governance role of tournament incentives in protecting shareholders’ wealth, since the occurrence of stock price crash risk destroys shareholder value.
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    Diagnosing and designing process stability and adaptability at Transpower New Zealand Limited using the Process Warrant of Fitness and the Viable Process Model : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Quality Systems at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Lemaire, Gregory Michael
    This research developed an evaluative model and tool incorporating principles and practices of the Work Systems Method (WSM) and Viable System Model (VSM) to assess the viability of processes at Transpower NZ Limited, a New Zealand State Owned Enterprise. The assessment tool looks for opportunities to sustain process identity, as well as identifying the potential for enhanced planning, control, and coordination of the work, and preserving connections to the outside world, including suppliers, customers, and regulators. Eight employees took part in interviews to reveal Transpower’s collective process requirements. These requirements became a key input into the assessment tool, called the Process Warrant of Fitness (WOF). The tool was tested on a range of Transpower processes, successfully identifying viability enhancement opportunities. The assessment tool was then tested on two non-Transpower processes to gauge its applicability outside of Transpower. To lower the barriers to adoption of the tool, an end to end user participation format, called the Viable Process Model (VPM) was also developed, further drawing on WSM and VSM principles. The VPM guides the user to identify processes to assess, apply the assessment tool, and undertake post-assessment activities. While each workplace may appear to have its own unique process viability challenges, the assessment tool and user participation format showed potential as a universal pathway to process viability, having identified opportunities in the organisations that had its processes assessed.
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    Post-entry internationalisation speed, managerial cognition, and firm performance : a dynamic capability perspective : a dissertation presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in International Business at Massey University, Albany, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Zhao, Chao
    Inspired by the deficiency in theoretical advancement in and fragmentation of empirical findings regarding the temporal dimension of firms’ internationalisation, this study examines the interaction effects of both mediation and moderation on the direct relationship between internationalisation speed and firm performance. Departing from prior studies that mainly focus on either the direct speed-performance linkage or the interactive role played by static resources at the firm level, the present study suggests that an important source of performance variations is the idiosyncratic dynamic capabilities both at firm level and individual managerial level. Based on the dynamic capability perspective, this study proposes that both absorptive capacity, which acts as a specific type of dynamic capability in relation to organisational learning, and managerial cognition, which functions as a micro-foundation of dynamic capability, play important roles in explaining the heterogeneity in the direct internationalisation speed-performance relationship. Moreover, the level and development of the firm’s absorptive capacity is the outcome of interactions among firm strategy in terms of internationalisation speed, managerial cognition, and their contingent factors including prior international experience and market dynamism. Using survey data collected from a sample of 343 SMEs operating in Australia and New Zealand, these assumptions are tested and confirmed through structural equation modelling. The findings suggest that absorptive capacity fully mediates the direct speed-performance relationship. Internationalisation speed, interacting with prior international experience, influences the trajectory of absorptive capacity development. In addition, managerial cognitive styles in terms of rational decision-making and heuristic decision-making are found to impose distinct influences on absorptive capacity development under the influence of market dynamism. This study makes a significant contribution to internationalisation theories. First, it reconciles the seeming inconsistency between traditional internationalisation models and international entrepreneurship literature in terms of several key learning-related factors. Moreover, it extends existing internationalisation models by taking time and managerial cognition into consideration.
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    Strategic intent, FDI entry strategies, and emerging market MNEs' subsidiary performance : the strategic fit approach : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Management at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2019) Mi, Lili
    Employing the strategic intent perspective as the theoretical lens, this study examines how an investing firm’s foreign direct investment (FDI) entry strategies fit with its strategic intent, and how such a strategic fit influences multinational enterprises’ (MNEs) subsidiary performance in the context of emerging economies. Prior studies have emphasised the importance of strategic intent as the key determinant to sustain a firm’s competitive advantage and have investigated the drivers of strategic intent. However, little is known about whether or not, and if so, how emerging market multinationals (EMNEs) have achieved their strategic intent in the subsidiary. To address this research gap, this study sets out to investigate the linkage between strategic intent, FDI strategy, and subsidiary performance of EMNEs from the strategic intent perspective. The strategic management literature suggests that optimal performance is achieved through the strategic fit between strategies and strategic objectives. This study, therefore, adopts the strategic fit approach to investigate the fit between EMNEs’ strategic intent and FDI entry strategies (i.e. location strategy, entry mode strategy, entry timing strategy, and FDI intensity strategy). In order to reveal the fit conditions, this study proposes the theoretical framework by using two strategic fit approaches: the strategic fit as matching and the strategic fit as gestalts. The framework and the derived hypotheses are then empirically tested using survey data from 392 FDI projects made by 280 Chinese MNEs. To achieve conformity between theory testing techniques and theoretical perspectives, this study performs tests by using multiple statistical techniques including structural equation modelling, discriminant analysis, cluster analysis, and analysis of variance. The results derived from the fit as matching approach suggest that EMNEs’ strategic intent do influence their FDI entry strategies, but the intent-strategy linkage is not universally valid for all the intent-strategy combinations. Similarly, a match between the entry strategies and strategic intent does not always generate superior subsidiary performance. The results derived from the fit as gestalts approach reveal the combination profiles of FDI entry strategies and their strategic intent. Based on the patterns of the profiles, investing EMNEs can be labelled as strategic prospector, strategic analyser, strategic defender, and natural resource seeker. The results also suggest that strategic analysers tend to perform better than strategic defenders and natural resource seekers, while the differences of the performance between other groups are not significant. This study contributes to the strategic intent literature by investigating the fit between FDI entry strategies and strategic intent, and examining the subsidiary performance of EMNEs regarding the attainment of their strategic goals at the subsidiary level. Using the fit as matching and fit as gestalts approaches, this study provides a more comprehensive picture in how FDI entry strategies fit firms’ strategic intent and how such a fit generates superior subsidiary performance.
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    User and provider perceptions of service quality : an exploratiory study of a professional service : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of Master of Business Studies at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1991) Kavet, Molly
    This study looks at service quality and its evaluation from users' and providers' perspectives. Applied research is conducted in a hospital diagnostic service, largely because of the high level of interest in issues of quality, and the technical and professional nature within the service. The focus of the study is on examining the development of conceptual frameworks of service quality and carrying out research on service quality in an operational setting. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods are used in this exploratory study. A survey of expectations and perceptions of service quality features is carried out on 74 customers and 7 providers of the service. Written and verbal comments on areas in which service quality may be improved from both groups are collated and coded. A series of survey statements is developed from the literature and from preliminary interviews as indicators of service quality features. Perceptions of customers are examined in relation to both the critical features of the service and perceptions on how the service performed in relation to each feature. The gap analysis is used to compare the views of the provider group with those of the customer group. The findings demonstrate that there are several areas where views are similar between providers and customers. In addition, areas are identified where differences exist between the importance ratings for service quality features and the evaluation of performance of the service in relation to these features. Factors which may influence the extent to which these differences exist are presented. It is suggested that a major reason for these differences is a lack of understanding of the evaluation of service quality and the importance of this evaluation on the strategic positioning of the service. It is concluded that although attention to clinical aspects of quality is important, a heightened awareness of the importance of service quality is needed by health service providers. Action taken by service providers to identify critical quality features and evaluate performance in relation to these features, can create opportunities for increased levels of customer satisfaction and the consequent likelihood of successful adaptation to changing environmental demands.
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    A quantum leap in informal benchmarking : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Organisational Excellence at Massey University, Palmerston North, Manawatu, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2017) Samuel, Alan
    Despite the paucity of available literature on informal benchmarking and the consequential lack of its understanding, informal benchmarking has outranked established benchmarking (formal), placing 4th out of 20 of the most used business improvement tools, based on a 2008 Global Benchmarking Network (GBN) survey of 450 organisations worldwide. This paradox is exacerbated by the growing popularity of informal benchmarking, even though it is not correspondingly as effective as it is widely used. Therefore, two significant gaps need be filled: firstly, to develop a theoretical understanding of, and secondly, to investigate how to increase the effectiveness of informal benchmarking as an organisational improvement tool. A pragmatic mixed method quantitative-qualitative sequential design using an abductive-deductive-inductive approach is adopted. The product of abduction is a preliminary conceptual model of informal benchmarking from the transdisciplinary academic review of benchmarking, informal learning, organisation learning and knowledge management, augmented by concepts on quantum thinking, innovation and positive deviance. The model informs the quantitative survey questionnaire, whose deductive results of 81 survey responses from 14 countries informs the in-depth semi-structured interviews of 16 informants from 7 countries, the resulting dataset being inductively coded into conceptually-driven dendrograms. The integrated findings refine the conceptual model of informal benchmarking, and develops a toolset-based application model (a pragmatic outcome of the conceptual model), a maturity assessment framework and an eco-system strategy. From here, an informal benchmarking roadmap is synthesised, representing a sustainable platform for informal benchmarking to be deployed as an effective organisational improvement initiative. The research sets the stage for a leap in scholarly understanding of informal benchmarking in the wider context of business and organisational improvement, and offers organisational improvement practitioners an invaluable cost-effective solution in a time-scarce executive world. This pragmatic study of informal benchmarking has possibly unleashed a different epistemological stance within the benchmarking field, by advocating an organic approach to benchmarking, in contrast to the highly methodical approaches associated with conventional benchmarking.
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    A seduction by governance : governance, the ERO, and the irony of agency : a thesis in partial fulfill of the requirements for the degree of Masters in Management at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2003) Gay, Kelly Maitland
    It is observations that even diligent governance is no insurance against organizational failure, supported through inconsistent research results and practitioner concern, which should sound the warning bells for governance research. This ominous disquiet is punctuated by organizational failure, normally attributed to governance, and attracts significant press. This is typically accompanied by calls for even more, and ever increased, compliance requirements. Exactly how governance, performance and compliance are related is theorized as agency. The 'knowledge' that governance leads to performance forms the focus of endless research attempting to improve organizational performance, and it is reasoned that by doing so, the shareholder will be protected from loss. However, the relationships between governance, performance and compliance does not appear to have been established. A similar corporate governance arrangement, overseen by the Ministry of Education (MOE) and implemented by the Education Review Office (ERO), was adopted for the education sector in New Zealand from 1989. It was assumed that quality governance would lead to improved performance. I suggest that the MOE and ERO have drawn on the discourse of corporate governance in the arrangement of their advice for consumption by those interested in governance within schools. In this study, a discursive approach is used to examine their advice in the arrangement of governance referenced from that discourse. A critical discourse method is therefore selected, focusing on a corpus drawn from the ERO's advice over 15 years. The analysis is divided into three sections, each draw from that progressive advice. In particular, attention is paid to the consistency, or inconsistency, in their treatment of features of the text, notably performance and compliance. Within their advice it appears that there is a significant divergence between this performance expectation and the outcome. This appears to focus the governors of schools on the need for compliance, perhaps even at the expense of organizational performance. Further it appears that those subject to the discourse of governance are seduced into the continued belief that governance is both connected to performance and that, ironically, such performance will in some way directly relate to organizational protection. An outline of the discourse of governance is attempted, implications for the critical roles of governor and auditor are drawn, and agency theory is questioned.