Competitive priorities: Investigating the need for trade-offs in operations strategy

A heated debate continues over the need for trade-offs in operations strategy. Some researchers call for plants to focus on a single manufacturing capability and devote their limited resources accordingly, while others claim that advanced manufacturing technology (AMT) enables concurrent improvements in quality, cost, flexibility, and delivery. Yet there is little empirical evidence for or. against the trade-off model. In response, this study addresses the question: "To what extent do manufacturing plants view competitive priorities as trade-offs?" We employ survey data collected from managers and operators in 110 plants that have recently implemented AMT. Our findings suggest that trade-offs remain. However, perceived differences in competitive priorities are subtle and may vary across levels of the plant hierarchy.