Production Planning & Control

The Management of Operations

ISSN: 0953-7287 (Print) 1366-5871 (Online) Journal homepage: https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tppc20

Operations management and digital technologies

Francesco Schiavone & Sebastian Sprenger

To cite this article: Francesco Schiavone & Sebastian Sprenger (2017) Operations
management and digital technologies, Production Planning & Control, 28:16, 1281-1283, DOI:
10.1080/09537287.2017.1375151

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/09537287.2017.1375151

Published online: 10 Oct 2017.

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Production Planning & Control, 2017
VOL. 28, NO. 16, 1281–1283
https://doi.org/10.1080/09537287.2017.1375151
EDITORIAL
Operations management and digital technologies
In these days, the idea of creating value is mainly shaped by the
vision of intelligent and autonomous interaction between eco-
systems (Stock and Seliger 2016). The ubiquitous experiment of
digitising basically every operational process identifiable in firms
literally sounds the bell for traditional applications and process to
control manufacturing across entire supply chains (e.g. Almada-
Lobo 2015; Majeed and Rupasinghe 2017). In many cases, such
radical transformations of business are based on the implemen-
tation of big data approaches ‘in order to generate value for the
organisation by optimising, adapting or radically transforming
the operations model’ (Roden et al. 2017). Therefore, nearly all
industries expectations of established as well as potentially new
customers are rising according to one main subject: the digiti-
sation of digital products or (connected) services, or, at least,
increasing convenience and productivity because of the intelli-
gent interpretation of gathered data connected with autonomous
process flows (Manyika 2017). For this reason, a call of paper for
this PPC’s special issue was launched in 2016. We wanted to find
out what it means to the field of operations management (OM)
to digitise ‘everything’. We wanted to know how firms deal with
value-added services, the digitisation of in-house processes and
value chains. We wanted to know which factors influence the
path to digitise products, services and its creation. Therefore, the
focus of this special issue was set especially on gaining practical
insights. We will be able to learn from many real-life examples
and get to know how manufactures as well as companies from the
service sector face the challenge of digitising processes, services
and entire products.
The first paper of this special issue by Lapo Mola and co-workers
outlines the results of observing the redesign of a global value
chain (GVC) in the fashion industry, while aiming on the inter-
play of e-commerce processes and the underlying processes of
physical goods. On the basis of an exploratory multiple-case
qualitative longitudinal study in the fashion industry, this arti-
cle describes how digital technologies enabled choices among
different types of supply chain governance. In doing so, this study
responds to calls for governance-oriented longitudinal explora-
tions, and suggests an alternative path of governance choices in
which the digital technologies become the platform that allows
a dynamic discourse between outsourcer and outsourcee. The
results show that, when firms decide to leverage their perfor-
mances through the adoption of information technology, they
need to define their knowledge transfer capacities in order to
adopt the appropriate type of governance model. With this paper,
we contribute to the GVC literature adding to the knowledge
transfer dimension.
© 2017 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
Next, Rocco Agrifoglio and his colleagues explore the criti-
cal role of emerging digital technologies in the maritime indus-
try. Globalisation, variation in customer expectations, and the
developments connected to Information and Communication
Technology (ICTs) are usually considered as the main drivers of
changes in OM strategies by firms in both manufacturing and
service industries. Emerging digital technologies, such as Internet
of Things or Cloud Computing, represents a novel paradigm that
is rapidly affecting on several aspects of everyday-life of private
and business users. This paper contributes to extant literature
about the relationship between emerging digital technologies
and OM, by stressing the value co-creation issue. Specifically,
they investigate how emerging digital technologies affect OM
through value co-creation in the maritime industry. The study
reports the case of FairWind project, an open technology marine
service and graphic user interface enabling sailors to personalise
their experience on board through third party boat applications.
The case of Fair Wind points out how emerging digital technol-
ogies contribute to OM within both organisations and, more in
general, maritime industry, as well as the critical role of user’s
co-creation in defining and managing on-board operations.
One out of two empirical model tests in this special issue is
provided by Jasimuddin et al. Applying PLS, they identify rel-
evant factors influencing the intention to use and apply digital
technologies in governmental environments. The digital tech-
nologies such as internet play a crucial role in the management
of operations of organisations in both public and private sectors.
Such technologies support the implementation of effective digital
business strategies. By reviewing the extant literature, this paper
aims to identify factors that influence the intention to use dig-
ital technologies in order to develop a theoretical model which
is then tested empirically using the PLS-SEM approach. While
many studies have focused solely on the importance of social
influence, perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, aware-
ness, perceived trust in technology, perceived trust in govern-
ment, perceived cost and perceived risk, this article brings them
together to explain their linkage, and quantifies the relationship.
This study is the first empirical attempt to explore the factors
influence e-government services adoption in the UAE. Most
specifically, this article emphasises the role of social influence,
perceived ease to use, and perceived trust in technology as the
important determinants of the intention to digital technology
adoption. The paper expands the traditional discussion by incor-
porating six variables, in addition to the perceived ease to digital
technologies use and perceived usefulness, in a model that acts as
facilitator or barrier in the intention to use digital technologies.
1282  
EDITORIAL
This article helps practitioners to understand of which factors
should be given emphasis in enhancing the intention to use digi-
tal technologies. The model developed in this paper is not only a
response to the need to understand what causes the variation in
the intention to use digital technologies from the operation man-
agement perspective, it is also a response to practitioner needs
to use an appropriate construct to ensure the effective operation
and use of the digital technologies in e-government services. The
paper will help to identify the key issues surrounding the digital
technologies adoption that may lead the successful operations
of e-government.
In the following, Andrea Zangiacomi and his co-authors
implement an engineering app that helps improving already
existing manufacturing processes in mature industries.
Manufacturing applications address business to business with
highly customised applications developed for specific require-
ments, offering highly specialised solution-oriented and ser-
vice-based software components, systems, and digital tools that
aim at a fast and accurate decision-making support system. The
purpose of this paper is to describe the implementation of digital
technologies for OM using manufacturing or engineering apps
(eApps), for product design and manufacturing processes. In
particular, starting from the specific needs of two companies
from mature European industries as automotive and food, this
work depicts how this kind of solutions can support companies
and improve their operations. In particular, related benefits and
challenges faced for the full implementation of the developed
tools are highlighted. Moreover, a business model to exploit the
manufacturing apps is also proposed. The business model pro-
posed for the exploitation of the eApps supports the commercial-
isation of all the revenue streams offered by this rapidly growing
sector taking into account the specific needs of the concerned
stakeholders through a diversified value proposition.
Philipp Goelzer and Albrecht Fritzsche then will give us
a more general overview of how data will change business in
future. Aiming to prior discussions, they outline why data will
not just enable business but also mainly predetermine the success
of future business models. The ongoing digital transformation
on industry has so far mostly been studied from the perspective
of cyber-physical systems solutions as drivers of change. In this
paper, the authors turn the focus to the changes in data man-
agement resulting from the introduction of new digital tech-
nologies in industry. So far, data processing activities in OM
have usually been organised according to the existing business
structures inside and in-between companies. With increasing
importance of Big Data in the context of the digital transforma-
tion, the opposite will be the case: business structures will evolve
based on the potential to develop value streams offered on the
basis of new data processing solutions. Based on a review of the
extant literature, the paper identifies the general different fields
of action for OM related to data processing. In particular, we
explore the impact of Big Data on industrial operations and its
organisational implications.
Salvatore Esposito de Falco and his colleagues then pan to the
field of open innovation and show us how Telecom Italia tries to
profit from digital platforms to gain access to ground-­breaking
innovations in telecommunications. The study uses contract
theory to analyse the relationship between open collaborative
innovation strategies and digital platforms. The authors argue
that a collaborative mechanism and governance of the platform
affect how operations are run and impact firm ambidexterity.
They also explain how the two-fold revealing strategy, both
selective and free occurs via the platform and how governance
positively impacts the coordination mechanism. A case study
analysis on TIM OPEN draws a ground-breaking framework for
future investigations. The analysis suggests that the combination
of digital platform and collaborative innovation can facilitate
the creative process and be a driver of operational synergies.
Results confirm that the adoption of digital platforms for col-
laborative innovations reduces transaction costs. An approach
of how to create and implement a multi-dimensional dashboard
to monitor performance of ports can be read in Ferretti et al.’s
article. The consequence of port evolution is that port authorities
(PA) around the world are modifying their nature and their role,
acquiring more and more an active role in the governance of
logistic systems and are often adopting managerial and entre-
preneurial behaviours. This new role of PA requires the adoption
of a complex approach to monitoring the performance of the
single stakeholders and of the whole port. Existing studies on
port performance consider only specific indicators of port per-
formance such as operational and financial efficiency neglecting
aspects like customer satisfaction, port security and port sustain-
ability. This paper tries to fill this literature gap by (i) outlining
an integrated multi-dimensional dashboard to monitor port
performance in a strategic perspective; (ii) analysing the role of
digital technology to support the PA in the implementation of
the monitoring dashboard; (iii) and defining the evolutionary
stages of tools implementation in the strategic monitoring of PAs.
The following paper of Manish Shukla and his colleague aims
to address the constraints faced in incorporating smallholders
in sustainable palm oil production. There exists literature that
acknowledges the need for incorporating smallholders in the
production of sustainable palm oil but none has proposed a
solution beyond ‘Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil’ (RSPO)
certification. In the current business scenario, several organi-
sations are struggling to procure RSPO certified palm oil even
after committing huge resources. RSPO, though a good first step,
has a major process and capacity constraints resulting in long
processing times, delays and lack of traceability for the custom-
ers. This paper proposes a Big Data Analytics framework ena-
bled by cutting-edge technologies to incorporate smallholders
in the RSPO certification process. The data used were collected
through farm visits, stakeholder meetings, key stakeholder inter-
views, and, secondary sources. The proposed framework not only
addresses the limitation of the current certification process but
also converts it from being punitive to preventive. The outcomes
of this research will be extremely useful for all the stakeholders
in the palm oil supply chain.
Finally, Veronica Scuotto and her colleagues close this special
issue by outlining the effects of digital supply chain manage-
ment (SCM) in SMEs. By underlining the relevance of the use of
ICTs, multiply interaction between buyer and supplier, sharing of
knowledge, and electronic markets for SMEs, it emerges the need
for stimulating a debate on the possible new way to accelerate a
digitisation within the SCM of SMEs. Electronic infrastructure in
the service sector are reducing each kind of cost and improving

organisation abilities producing new link among buyer and
supplier. Alongside multiply positive effects that the electronic
market and ICTs have on the buyer-supplier relationship in terms
of building of new opportunities for interactions, increasing of
trust level and emerging conditions for collaborations. Despite
that coordination costs tend to increase and to limit the use of
ICTs. This research paper tries to reduce the paucity of study
about the digital transformation of SCM. Especially, the optimal
balance between the use of ICTs and a variegate buyer-supplier
relationships in the SCM have not been studied yet. By leveraging
on four proxies: ICTs specialised human resources, knowledge
sharing activities, buyer-supplier relationship, adoption of elec-
tronic market, this optimal was analysed via structural equation
modelling (SEM) based on a sample of 1254 SMEs operating in
the service sector in Italy.
In sum, this issue brings together an eclectic range of work
that offers new insights for scholars of OM. While sharing some
basic definitions and terminology, the issue authors are propos-
ing new ideas for scholars and practitioners of digital OM. The
intent of this issue is to encourage other scholars to take a step
forward and engage in innovative, cross-disciplinary and mul-
tilevel research.
Notes on contributors
Francesco Schiavone is an associate professor in manage-
ment at University Parthenope, Naples, Italy. He received
the Ph.D. degree in network economics and knowledge
management from the Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
(Italy) in 2006. He is also an Affiliated Professor in
innovation management at Paris School of Business and
Visiting Professor at IESEG Business School (France). In
April 2017 Prof. Schiavone has been habilitated as Full
Professor in management by MIUR (Italian Ministry of
Education and Research). Currently, his main research areas are technology
management, strategic innovation, communities of practice, and healthcare
management and innovation.
PRODUCTION PLANNING & CONTROL  1283
Sebastian Sprenger (between 2012 and 2016), worked as
research assistant and post-doctoral researcher at
Friedrich-Alexander-University of Erlangen-Nuremberg
(FAU). In 2015, his doctoral thesis, dealing with the topic
on how enterprise social software affects information
processing within organizations, was published. During
his time as postdoctoral researcher for FAU, he also was
managing director for the Dr. Theo and Friedl Schoeller
Research Center for Economy and Society. Today,
Sebastian is working for a major software development company in
Germany.
References
Almada-Lobo, F. 2015. “The Industry 4.0 Revolution and the Future
of Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES).” Journal of Innovation
Management, 3 (4), 16–21.
Majeed, M., and T. Rupasinghe. 2017. “Internet of Things (IoT) Embedded
Future Supply Chains for Industry 4.0: An Assessment from an ERP-
based Fashion Apparel and Footwear Industry.” International Journal of
Supply Chain Management 6 (1): 25–40.
Manyika, J. 2017. Technology, Jobs, And The Future of Work, 1–5. New York:
McKinsey Global Institute.
Roden, S., A. Nucciarelli, F. Li, and G. Graham. 2017. “Big Data and the
Transformation of Operations Models: A Framework and a New Research
Agenda.” Production Planning & Control 28 (11–12): 929–944.
Stock, T., and G. Seliger. 2016. “Opportunities of Sustainable Manufacturing
in Industry 4.0.” Procedia CIRP 40: 536–541.
Francesco Schiavone
Dipartimento di Studi Aziendali e Quantitativi, Universitá degli
Studi di Napoli Parthenope, Italy
Paris School of Business, Paris, France
schiavone@uniparthenope.it http://orcid.org/0000-
0001-9219-6714
Sebastian Sprenger
Department of Information Systems, University of Erlangen-
Nuremberg, Germany