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PurposeThis study aims to identify the drivers of human resource empowerment in understanding the new concept of Quality 4.0 in the digital era.Design/methodology/approachFirst, the literature of quality management evolution in the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) and the position of the required workforce in Quality 4.0 were reviewed and then by using the opinions of experts and managers of Knowledge-Intensive Business Services (KIBS) firms, a set of driver effects on the readiness and ability of human resources was identified in the context of Quality 4.0. After identifying the drivers, cause-and-effect relationships among these drivers were investigated using the Grey DEMATEL technique.FindingsA total of 29 Quality 4.0 drivers of readiness and workforce ability were identified, based on multiple interactions of quality management in different stages of the production cycle. They were divided into new valuation approaches, composite dimensions, team creativity and thorough inspection. “Technical abilities and capability to solve problems” was identified as the most significant driver.Practical implicationsFindings help KIBS firms to take necessary measures and plans. Consequently, they can increase the readiness and ability of human resources based on the changes in managing Quality 4.0. Also, considering the importance of each driver, they will be able to take a step towards total quality improvement.Originality/valueDespite extensive research on the subject of the fourth Industrial Revolution, research on the human aspects required for managing Quality 4.0 is limited. This study was performed to examine the cause-and-effect relationships between human resource drivers to adapt to the changes in Quality 4.0.

Nowadays, any organization, in order to be aware of the desirability and quality of its activities, especially in dynamic environments, urgently needs an evaluation system to assess its system’s performance and efficiency. In this study, the performance of production and service organizations has been evaluated according to the effect of knowledge management success factors and organizational agility on the success factors of total quality management (TQM (total quality management)). Considering that the two areas of knowledge management and organizational agility are among those influential on TQM and each has been examined separately in the previous studies in relation to it, none of the previous studies has focused on all these three areas together. Therefore, in the present study, in addition to evaluating the performance of organizations based on the success factors of TQM, we seek to identify the influential factors and success factors of each of the three areas of knowledge management, organizational agility, and TQM; then, the impact of knowledge management and organizational agility on the success factors of TQM is evaluated. To express the above-given relationship, group interpretive structural modelling (ISM (interpretive structural modelling)) techniques have been used to rank the components of each domain; also, fuzzy quality function deployment (FQFD (fuzzy quality function deployment)) technique has been applied to find the weight and relationship of the three mentioned domains by examining the independent and interface variables of the previous step. The weights resulting from two-stage house of quality have been used as the weights for the design of the two-stage data envelope analysis (DEA) model by the weight control method. Finally, the above-given factors in knowledge-based companies located in Khorramabad Science and Technology Park have been studied and the results have been expressed.

Qualitative criteria for assessing green supply chain management (GSCM) performance are influenced by uncertainty, essentially due to the vagueness intrinsic to the evaluation of qualitative factors. This paper aims to decrease the uncertainty which is caused by human judgments in the process of GSCM performance evaluation employing linguistic terms and degrees of membership. In this study, a fuzzy set theory approach has been proposed for handling the linguistic imprecision and the ambiguity of human being’s judgment. It also pioneers applying the fuzzy inference system for evaluating GSCM performance of companies in terms of green criteria. In the proposed model, human reasoning has been modeled with fuzzy inference rules and has been set in the system, which is an advantage when compared to the models that combine fuzzy set theory with multi-criteria decision-making models. To highlight the real-life applicability of the proposed model, an empirical case study has been conducted. Findings reveal the usefulness of the proposed model in evaluating the performance of companies according to GSCM criteria with human linguistic terms. Findings also indicate that green design and green manufacturing dimensions have the highest impact on company performance. The robustness of the proposed FIS model has been proved with different defuzzification methods.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop and analyze a model of factors influencing interpersonal conflicts. Design/methodology/approach This research was conducted using a mixed method approach. In the qualitative study, the conceptual model of the factors affecting interpersonal conflicts was extracted from semi-structured interviews with 17 relevant experts using a theme analysis technique. Then, three hypotheses were developed based on the model and relevant theoretical evidence. Using a researcher-made questionnaire which was developed earlier based on the qualitative results, a quantitative-based survey was performed to assess the interpersonal conflicts and also the standard scale of the level of interpersonal conflicts (Jehn, 1997). The hypotheses were tested on a sample of 160 employees of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province Gas Company (CBPGC). Findings The results of the qualitative study indicated that individual factors including personality dimensions and individual differences; organizational factors including five dimensions of organizational culture, organizational structure, management characteristics, intra-organization factors and human resource systems; and environmental factors influenced the creation of interpersonal conflicts. The results of the quantitative study indicated that organizational factors with an effect size of 0.502 were identified as the most important factor influencing interpersonal conflicts. Research limitations/implications The findings of this study can provide a roadmap to managers of the CBPGC to be aware of the contributing factors to conflict within their organization. Originality/value The use of mixed method to identify the causes and factors of interpersonal conflict and analyzing a context different from previous studies can be considered as the innovations of this study.

PurposeThis paper aims to revise the ideal ratio for selecting new products based on their qualitative analysis of desired/undesired functions.Design/methodology/approachThe Kano model has been integrated with the ideal ratio to select and prioritize the design of new products. First, the functional analysis method in value engineering was used to determine the attributes and functions of each product design. Then, the Kano model was used to determine the type of each product attribute and to use the desirable functions of attractive attributes, one-dimensional, must-be and undesirable functions of reverse attributes in the ideal ratio to select and prioritize the design of the product. To examine the application of the proposed approach, a gas instruments manufacturing company was investigated, and five new products were selected for the study.FindingsBased on the results, the product design of industrial regulator GS 77/22 was selected as the superior product and the digital diaphragm gas meter, ultrasonic gas meter, axial regulator and turbine gas meter had the second to fifth priority, respectively.Practical implicationsThe proposed method can help product designers determine product designs suitable for customers' expectations and provide a desirable prioritization of the product design in terms of their ideal ratio according to the customers.Originality/valueThe proposed approach provides a more desirable prioritization compared with other prioritization methods based on customers' viewpoints. In the proposed method, the Kano model results in respecting customers, understanding community needs, respecting consumers' rights and increasing the organization's social responsibility, which will significantly increase the chance of product success in the market.

PurposeThis paper proposes an approach for prioritizing Risk Mitigation (RMTG) approaches in perishable food Supply Chains (SCs).Design/methodology/approachAn integrative approach has been proposed, based on the risk typology and Supply Chain RMTG (SCRMTG) approaches literature review, integrating trending Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), Quality Function Deployment (QFD) and Quadrant Analysis (QA). Risks are prioritized using Trending FMEA. SCRMTG approaches are prioritized by considering the prioritized risks using QFD and also based on their strategic importance and ease of Benchmarking via QA. The proposed approach has been examined in a dairy-manufacturing company.FindingsFindings indicated supplying the imported machine parts, old machines and delayed new product introduction, respectively, as the most prominent supply, process and demand risks and multiple sourcing, upgraded machinery, hiring skilled staff and training, collaboration with downstream partners as the highly prioritized SCRMTG approaches based on the strategic importance and ease of benchmarking.Research limitations/implicationsThe results of this study increase the awareness of SC managers and provide the company with a framework of risk management and the insights to manage SCRs in the dairy industry more effectively and efficiently.Originality/valueWhile the literature review indicates that only a few studies have been focused on prioritizing SCRMTG approaches concerning each type of SCRs, SCRMTG approaches are prioritized based on the SCRs type. Other innovations include QFD development based on the FMEA and SCRMTG approaches, considering the probability of risk occurrence, severity-impact cost and risk recovery duration in trending FMEA instead of the three risk factors in traditional FMEA.

PurposeThis study aims to revise the weights in the interrelationship matrix of the house of quality.Desqign/methodology/approachAfter determining customer requirements (CRs) and product design characteristics (PDCs), a house of quality (HoQ) has been developed and the interrelationships between CRs and PDCs have been determined and classified using the Kano model. The PDCs have been prioritized based on the classic HoQ and the revised HoQ. Finally the results have been compared and discussed. The television design of Entekhab Industrial Group, the largest producer of home appliance products in Iran has been selected as a case study.FindingsResults indicated different sets of priorities derived from the two approaches. Particularly, the difference between the revised HoQ and the classic approach was due to the nonlinear relationship between CRs and PDCs.Research limitations/implicationsThis study was performed merely on a single product of a company, and the case study results cannot be generalized to all of the home appliance industries.Originality/valueDeveloping the application of the Kano model in computing and revising the weights of the cells in the interrelationship matrix of HoQ is the main contribution of this paper.

PurposeAfter quality costing, most companies do not know how to invest in supplier quality improvement. This study aims to develop a comprehensive model for the effect of supplier quality criteria on supplier quality costs.Design/methodology/approachThe independent variable of supplier quality criteria and the dependent variable of supplier quality costs have been identified based on a literature review. Then a model has been developed for the effect of the variables. A questionnaire has been designed and distributed to 158 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Jey Industrial Town located in the Isfahan Province. Structural equation modeling and partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) have been used for data analysis.FindingsSupplier quality criteria influenced supplier quality costs (with a value of 0.711). The results also implied that organizational quality had the highest impact. The appraisal costs and the internal failure costs of purchasing received most of the influence. Also, process quality and consequential costs of failure purchasing had the lowest influencing and influenced values.Practical implicationsThe findings of this research encourage the managers of SMEs to evaluate and rank the most appropriate quality criteria related to quality costs for selecting a supplier as one of the most fundamental decisions in supply chain management.Social implicationsAppropriate selection of quality criteria influencing quality costs results in reduced quality cost. Quality cost reduction also results in decreased products' fixed prices. Ultimately, the company will have more competitive pricing, and consumers will benefit from such a significant advantage.Originality/valueStudying the influence of supplier quality criteria on supplier quality costs is relatively new in the manufacturing industry. The comprehensiveness of the investigated variables is also another advantage of the proposed model.

PurposeIn this study, an integrative approach of customer satisfaction and cost of quality has been proposed for the value analysis of products based on a cost–benefit ratio.Design/methodology/approachFor the integrative approach, Kano and prevention-appraisal-failure (PAF) models have been applied. By the proposed approach, the value of products can be analyzed according to customer viewpoints and cost of quality. Four products of a home appliance company have been used to examine the new approach.FindingsFindings indicate the priorities of the studied products as stove, TV, fridge and washing machine, respectively. Such a set of prioritized products plays a strategic role in the competitive advantage of the studied company.Research limitations/implicationsIn this study, the weights of the cost of quality items have been assumed as equal. Also, the costs of quality items were limited to the most important ones at the studied company. However, more cost of quality items might be considered in different case studies.Originality/valueIn this study, the Kano and PAF models have been considered simultaneously for product value analysis from the viewpoint of customers. In addition to the classic method of value analysis which is merely based on previous events, the proposed approach is typically proactive.