Mediating role of learning organization on the relationship between total quality management and operational performance in Brazilian manufacturers
Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management
ISSN: 1741-038X
Article publication date: 3 October 2019
Issue publication date: 20 April 2020
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the mediating effect of learning organization dimensions on the relationship between the implementation of total quality management practices and companies’ operational performance improvement.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors carried out a cross-sector survey with 135 Brazilian manufacturing companies that have been implementing total quality management as an organizational strategy for at least five years. Collected data were analyzed using multivariate data analysis techniques.
Findings
The findings provide guidelines for manufacturers to increase their learning capability by reinforcing the implementation of total quality management practices, whose synergistic effects may be currently neglected. Results show that an enhanced organizational learning capability can significantly impact the improvement level of operational performance through the application of total quality management practices.
Originality/value
Several authors have investigated the relationship between total quality management implementation and learning organization aspects. However, most studies examined their relationship from a narrow perspective or under specific contexts, lacking empirical validation of their concurrent effect on operational performance improvement. The study aims at bridging this gap.
Keywords
Citation
Tortorella, G., Giglio, R., Fogliatto, F.S. and Sawhney, R. (2020), "Mediating role of learning organization on the relationship between total quality management and operational performance in Brazilian manufacturers", Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, Vol. 31 No. 3, pp. 524-541. https://doi.org/10.1108/JMTM-05-2019-0200
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited