Formulation of robust strategies for project manufacturing business

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to inform of the development and use of comprehensive system dynamics model for the formulation of robust strategies in project manufacturing business. Design/methodology/approach - Experiences from action research involving field study with project manufacturing businesses are reported. Findings - It is possible, using readily available resources, to develop comprehensive system dynamics model for project manufacturing business which can be used to facilitate the formulation of robust strategies. Research limitations/implications - Field study involved only five businesses serving three project manufacturing sectors. Practical implications - The need for better approaches for dealing with dynamic complexity in project business is recognized in the literature. However, extant models deal with single projects or a few aspects of multiple projects. The research suggests that companies can develop system dynamics models that go beyond multiple projects to encompass broader business issues which cause effects within their projects. Further, such comprehensive models can be used to formulate robust strategies. Originality/value - The originality of the research reported in this paper is that both immediate sources, and ultimate sources, of dynamic complexity are described. Extant system dynamics models are concerned with either, but not both. Hence, extant models are not comprehensive. That is, they do not encompass the full extent of sources of dynamic complexity in project business. The value of this paper is that it offers practical examples to inform the development of comprehensive system dynamics model for project manufacturing business. Moreover, the use of comprehensive model to facilitate the formulation of robust strategies is explained.