Manufacturing Strategy Overview

Principles

Definition

Manufacturing strategy is an academic concept and research field examining the alignment of manufacturing capabilities with overall business strategy. It investigates the design and deployment of operational resources and processes to achieve sustainable competitive advantage.

Ontological type

Strategic Frameworks

Competitive Priorities

Capability Development

Key developments

Key Figures

Strategic Alignment era

Robert H. Hayes [1] is associated with Harvard University [3] during the Strategic Alignment era. His Restoring Our Competitive Edge: Competing through Manufacturing [6] highlighted how firms could compete through manufacturing by aligning capabilities with corporate strategy, a core idea for shaping manufacturing strategy in this era. P. M. Swamidass [2] is associated with Indiana University Bloomington [4] and the University of Missouri [5] during this era. His 1987 path analytic model, Manufacturing Strategy, Environmental Uncertainty and Performance [7], linked manufacturing strategy to performance under environmental uncertainty, underscoring the role of strategic alignment; his 1986 paper Manufacturing strategy: Its assessment and practice [8] offered empirical grounding and practical guidance for implementing strategy in manufacturing.

Capability Integration era

Xiande Zhao [1] is associated with the University of Hong Kong [3] and the Chinese University of Hong Kong [4] during the Capability Integration era. His work established how supply chain integration affects performance through contingency and configuration logic [7], clarified how competitive strategy and supply chain strategy interact under environmental uncertainty to shape business performance [8], and showed that supply chain strategy and product characteristics jointly influence performance in Chinese manufacturing [9], contributing to capability integration and cross-network value capture in this era. Barbara B. Flynn [2] is associated with Wake Forest University [5] and Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis [6]. Her contributions include integrating insights from the 2009 contingency and configuration study on supply chain integration [7] and advancing understanding of cumulative capabilities through the 2004 exploratory study [10], underscoring durable capability accumulation and cross-organizational learning that supported capability integration across networks in this era.

Digital Circularity era

Charbel José Chiappetta Jabbour [1] is associated with University of Stirling [3] and Montpellier Business School [4] in the Digital Circularity era. His key contributions in this era include the findings from 'When titans meet – Can industry 4.0 revolutionise the environmentally-sustainable manufacturing wave? The role of critical success factors' [7], 'Stakeholder pressure, green innovation, and performance in small and medium-sized enterprises: The role of green dynamic capabilities' [8], and 'Circular economy-based new products and company performance: The role of stakeholders and Industry 4.0 technologies' [9], which collectively underscore how Industry 4.0, stakeholder engagement, and circular strategies drive environmental and performance outcomes in SMEs and manufacturing. Morteza Ghobakhloo [2] has affiliations with Uppsala University [5] and Universiti Putra Malaysia [6] in this era. His notable contribution from this era is the 2018 work 'The future of manufacturing industry: a strategic roadmap toward Industry 4.0' [10], which outlines a strategic pathway for adopting Industry 4.0 to modernize and sustain manufacturing ecosystems under digital circularity.