Barbara Flynn

Permanent URI for this collection

https://hdl.handle.net/1805/11675

Barbara Flynn has a global outlook. Her large-scale research project collects data from manufacturers in 12 countries. It allows plant managers to compare the practices and performance of their plants with other plants in their industry, both in their country and with their global competitors. The data includes practices and performance related to accounting, quality management, technology management, human resource management, strategy, shop floor control and a variety of other areas. Data has been collected from some of the best plants in the U.S., Japan, China, Germany and other countries. It has been used as the foundation for many individual studies that address topics of interest to managers.

Through the provision of detailed feedback reports, participating managers are able to benchmark their practices and performance with that of other plants in their industry, both in their country and in the world. Dr. Flynn believes the best research is based on solving real world problems. Her translational research combines a rigorous methodology and strong theoretical foundation with examination of practical problems that are important to the U.S. economy.

Professor Flynn's global research efforts have a positive impact on the U.S. manufacturing practices and performance and is another example of how IUPUI's faculty members are TRANSLATING their RESEARCH INTO PRACTICE.

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    All Supply Chains Don't Flow Through: Understanding Supply Chain Issues in Product Recalls
    (2008) Lyles, Marjorie A.; Flynn, Barbara B.; Frohlich, Mark T.
    Our paper conceptualizes and highlights the role of the supply chains in China’s product recall problems. We raise questions about the interrelationships of the focal manufacturer and the supplier firms and the consequences of these relationships. We address some of the causes of the current situation, including a discussion of deep supply chains, the importance of relationships, the role of trust and the impact of cultural misunderstandings. We suggest many future research questions to further understand how the supply chain can cause or deter product recalls.
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    The best of times and the worst of times: empirical operations and supply chain management research
    (Taylor & Francis, 2017) Melnyk, Steven A.; Flynn, Barbara B.; Awaysheh, Amrou; Occupational Therapy, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
    We assess the current state of empirical research in operations and supply chain management (OSM), using Dickens’ contrast between the best of times and the worst of times as a frame. The best of times refers to the future that empirical OSM research is now entering, with exciting opportunities available using big data and other new data sources, new empirical approaches and analytical techniques and innovative tools for developing theory. These are well aligned with new research questions related to the digital economy, Industry 4.0, the impact of the millennial generation as consumers, social media, 3D printing, etc. However, we also explore how it is the worst of times, focusing on the challenges and problems that plague empirical OSM research. Our goal is to show how OSM researchers can learn from the worst of times, in order to be poised to take advantage of the best of times. We introduce the research diamond as a vehicle for emphasising the importance of a balanced research perspective that treats the research problem, theory, data collection and data analysis as equally important, requiring alignment between them. By learning and addressing the issues in this period of the best of times and the worst of times, we can take advantage of the opportunities facing our field to generate research that is balanced, insightful, rigorous, relevant, impactful and interesting.
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    Comparative Analysis of Resilience by Supply Network Structure
    (2015) Flynn, Barbara B.; Siegler, Janaina; Bradaschia, Marcelo; Vargas, Fundacao Getulio; Paulo, Sao
    This research applies Kim, et al.’s (2015) supply network structure archetypes to case data related to two disruptions in three industries in Brazil. A total of seven supply networks were studied, through in-depth interviews and archival documents. The findings suggest that there may be additional supply network structures that are relevant. Centralization appears to be a function of the size of the focal firm. There was evidence of an evolution of supply network structures with focal firm size.
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    A cross-cultural examination of the relationships among human resource management practices and organisational commitment: an institutional collectivism perspective
    (Wiley, 2016-11) Rode, Joseph C.; Huang, Xiaowen; Flynn, Barbara B.; IU Kelley School of Business – Indianapolis
    Previous research has shown that human resource management (HRM) practices vary across cultures. However, little research has empirically compared the effects of various HRM practices on firm-level or individual-level outcome variables across cultures. Drawing upon psychological contract theory and the literature on cultural values, the present study examined the effects of three organisational-level HRM practices on individual organisational commitment in a survey of 2424 individuals in 120 organisations located in four countries and three industries. Based upon the GLOBE study, we classified the four countries into two groups – high versus low institutional collectivism. The results of our hierarchical linear modelling (HLM) analyses found significant differences in the effects of organisational-level HRM on individual organisational commitment across cultures for two of the three HRM practices included in our model: training and teamwork. We also found partial support for differences across cultures for the effects of the third HRM practice: employee involvement in decision making. Overall, our results support the utility of theoretical and empirical models that address multiple levels of analyses to better understand the mechanisms through which the HRM-performance link takes place across national cultures.
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    Editorial: Empirical elephants—Why multiple methods are essential to quality research in operations and supply chain management
    (2008) Singhal, Vinod; Flynn, Barbara B.; Ward, Peter T.; Roth, Aleda V.; Gaur, Vishal
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    Editorial: Survey Research Design in Supply Chain Management: The Need for Evolution in Our Expectations
    (Wiley, 2017) Flynn, Barbara B.; Pagell, Mark; Fugate, Brian; Kelley School of Business - Indianapolis
    Survey research in supply chain management has been and will continue to be an important methodology in advancing theory and practice. However, supply chain scholars have multiple, divergent views regarding what is acceptable in terms of survey design, especially regarding respondents. We build on insights and commentaries provided by JSCM associate editors to develop and share general guidelines we will use during our tenure as editors to consider the rigor of survey research designs. We also outline ways that survey designs for supply chain research can be strengthened. The aim of this editorial was to clearly communicate expectations to the JSCM community, so that authors and reviewers can be more successful in advancing the theory and practice of supply chain management.
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    Editorial: Survey Research Design in Supply Chain Management: The Need for Evolution in Our Expectations
    (Wiley, 2018) Flynn, Barbara B.; Pagell, Mark; Fugate, Brian
    Survey research in supply chain management has been and will continue to be an important methodology in advancing theory and practice. However, supply chain scholars have multiple, divergent views regarding what is acceptable in terms of survey design, especially regarding respondents. We build on insights and commentaries provided by JSCM associate editors to develop and share general guidelines we will use during our tenure as editors to consider the rigor of survey research designs. We also outline ways that survey designs for supply chain research can be strengthened. The aim of this editorial was to clearly communicate expectations to the JSCM community, so that authors and reviewers can be more successful in advancing the theory and practice of supply chain management.
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    Effect of different food recall strategies on consumers’ reaction to different recall norms: A comparative study
    (Emerald, 2017-10-09) Hu, Haiju; Djebarni, Ramdane; Zhao, Xiande; Xiao, Liwei; Flynn, Barbara B.; Kelley School of Business - Indianapolis
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    The financial impact of product recall announcements in China
    (2013) Zhao, Xiande; Li, Yina; Flynn, Barbara B.
    A product recall can be viewed as a firm’s worst nightmare. Although the long-term damage to brand equity and company reputation may be difficult, if not impossible, to quantify, the short-term impact on shareholders’ wealth is readily estimable. While many studies have examined this issue in the Western context, little is known about the financial impact of a product recall announcement in China. To advance the knowledge about the financial impact of a product recall announcement, we explore this issue using event study methodology. In general, our findings are congruent with previous research that product recalls result in negative abnormal returns. Interestingly, however, we found that Chinese companies suffered from greater financial losses than their Western counterparts did. This study also provides evidence that the Chinese food industry experiences a more severe stock market reaction than the automobile industry and that a passive recall strategy was associated with a more negative stock market reaction than a proactive recall strategy. We conclude with several future research avenues for global research on product recalls.
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    Go Global or Stay Local? Understanding How Fiscal Incentives Reshape Supply Networks
    (Scielo, 2019) Silveira Martins, Ricardo; Siegler, Janaina; Souza-Junior, Armando; Flynn, Barbara; Silveira Martins, Guilherme; Kelley School of Business - Indianapolis
    This study investigates the way firms reconfigure their supply base and reshape their production network to capture value from Free Trade Zone incentives to capture value from incentives. Six production networks located in Manaus, Brazil are analyzed using the Global Production Network framework and factors related to plant type and supplier relationships. A multiple case study was conducted. Data was collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews administered in loco, and the selected the firms were leaders in three different industries: transportation, mechanical assembly and chemicals. The results indicate that, if effectively applied, incentives can impact production network configuration from an embeddedness perspective, causing a firm to change its strategic role. Based on the analysis, we propose five propositions that challenge the relationships among autonomy, value creation, plant types and levels of embeddedness. The propositions are particularly useful for suppliers and distributors, as well as public agencies, including infrastructure providers and policymakers.