Generic manufacturing strategies: an empirical test of two configurationaltypologies

The need to empirically test and validate typologies and frameworks that ar e derived deductively has been echoed repeatedly in the operations manageme nt literature. This paper reports on an empirical comparison of two configu ration-based typologies: the Product-process matrix and the more recent gen eric manufacturing strategies model. Since there is substantial conceptual overlap between these models, a simultaneous examination provides insights about both models, and in particular, about the value-added of the generic manufacturing strategies model. We examine hypotheses derived from these typologies using data from manufac turing plants in the United States, Italy, United Kingdom, Japan, and Germa ny; and from the automotive, machinery, and electronics industries. The dat a were analyzed using multiple analysis of variance (MANOVA) and hierarchic al regression techniques. Our results indicate support for the Product-proc ess matrix - lending further strength to a growing base of empirical resear ch on this model. Our findings also provide support for the generic manufac turing strategies model with respect to various measures of cost, cycle tim e/inventory, quality, and innovation performance. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the generic manufacturing strategies model is a useful augmen tation to the Product-process matrix. These findings suggest that the gener ic manufacturing strategy model has merit but deserves further empirical an d theoretical attention. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved .