This article was downloaded by: [129.59.95.

115] On: 26 August 2016, At: 00:11

Publisher: Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS)
INFORMS is located in Maryland, USA

Manufacturing & Service Operations Management

Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:
http://pubsonline.informs.org

Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and

Service Operations
Aleda V. Roth,

To cite this article:

Aleda V. Roth, (2007) Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations. Manufacturing & Service
Operations Management 9(4):353-367. http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/msom.1070.0197

Full terms and conditions of use: http://pubsonline.informs.org/page/terms-and-conditions

This article may be used only for the purposes of research, teaching, and/or private study. Commercial use
or systematic downloading (by robots or other automatic processes) is prohibited without explicit Publisher
approval, unless otherwise noted. For more information, contact permissions@informs.org.

The Publisher does not warrant or guarantee the article’s accuracy, completeness, merchantability, fitness
for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. Descriptions of, or references to, products or publications, or
inclusion of an advertisement in this article, neither constitutes nor implies a guarantee, endorsement, or
support of claims made of that product, publication, or service.

Copyright © 2007, INFORMS

Please scroll down for article—it is on subsequent pages

INFORMS is the largest professional society in the world for professionals in the fields of operations research, management
science, and analytics.
For more information on INFORMS, its publications, membership, or meetings visit http://www.informs.org
 MANUFACTURING & SERVICE
OPERATIONS MANAGEMENT informs ®

Vol. 9, No. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 353–367 doi 10.1287/msom.1070.0197

issn 1523-4614
eissn 1526-5498
07
0904
0353 © 2007 INFORMS

Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing

Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.

and Service Operations

Aleda V. Roth
Department of Management, College of Business and Behavioral Science, 343A Sirrine Hall, Clemson University,
Clemson, South Carolina 29634, aroth@clemson.edu

T his paper sets the stage for the special issue on the application of empirical science in operations management
(OM). It highlights the contributions that empirical science can make to operations management research
and practice. In particular, the role of theory building and testing as a motivation for OM empirical research is
emphasized. The paper provides a brief history of the empirical tradition in OM and the scholars who were the
early pioneers. The paper also gives a brief overview of the most widely used approaches to empirical research
and concludes with a summary of the papers that are included in this volume.
Key words: OM empirical research; theory building; survey research; case research; secondary data

1. Introduction research and practice. This issue is comprised of

Scholars in manufacturing and service operations
management, like their industry counterparts, are
facing a world characterized by environmental
dynamism. There is no doubt that fierce global com-
petition, short product life cycles, widened product
variety, heightened attention to customers and ser-
vice, advancements in information and process tech-
nologies, increased cross-functional and supply chain
interactions, and market forces have altered the com-
petitive landscape. As a result, operations manage-
ment (OM) as an academic discipline faces some of
the most interesting and challenging demands in its
history. Roth et al. (2007a) reviewed 230 empirical
papers published since 1990 in the following jour-
nals: Journal of Operations Management, Management
Science, Production and Operations Management, Man-
ufacturing and Service Operations Management, Deci-
sion Sciences, Journal of Service Research, International
Journal of Production Research, and International Jour-
nal of Production and Operations Management. In con-
trast to other more mature management disciplines,
these researchers found that OM has had the least
developed empirical knowledge base on which to
draw in addressing a wide array of new and complex
demands. Moreover, the quality of the existing empir-
ical literature base is mixed—but is maturing rapidly.
The aim of this special issue is to highlight the
contributions that empirical science can make to OM
353
12 high-quality, empirical manuscripts that contribute
to theory building, testing, and confirmation—and in
turn, the editorial team believes that they will greatly
enhance our understanding of manufacturing and ser-
vice operations management. Collectively, they repre-
sent a second generation of OM empiricism in ideas
presented and methods employed.
More than 40 worthy papers were submitted to the
2007 special issue. Each underwent a rigorous review
process. The editorial team applied three guiding
principles for the final selection of manuscripts that
appear in this volume. First, each manuscript rigor-
ously applied empirical methods to a manufacturing
or service OM problem. A well-developed research
design, a solid approach to data analyses, a thorough
grounding in the literature, and clarity were qual-
ifiers. Second, the research questions posed by the
authors served to accelerate development of our dis-
cipline more broadly. In short, they addressed the
question “What’s interesting and important for OM
researchers and practitioners?” The depth and com-
pleteness of thought and ideas presented and the inte-
gration of the research with the operations and related
literature from other disciplines was essential. Third,
in the opinion of the editorial team, each paper makes
a significant contribution toward stimulating future
scholarly research by challenging conventional wis-
dom, creating opportunities for debate, and providing
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
354 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
insights from exploration, theory building, and/or
theory testing. In this regard, the papers bridge tra-
ditional OM areas, such as inventory, capacity, and
service OM, with emerging areas of knowledge man-
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
agement, new product development, and behavioral
operations.
2. The What and Why of Empirical
Research for OM
Empirical research is the systematic process of deriv-
ing and analyzing data from direct or indirect obser-
vation. One of the major tasks of OM empirical
research is developing, exploring, and testing theo-
ries about phenomena of interest to operations man-
agers. A theory is a “set of interrelated constructs
(variables), definitions, and propositions that presents
a systematic view of phenomena by specifying rela-
tions among variables, with the purpose of explaining
natural phenomena” (Kerlinger 1979, p. 64); and this
set of relationships among constructs is bound within
“a set of assumptions and constraints” (Bacharach
1989, p. 496). Locke and Latham (2005) offered six
characteristics that describe good inductive theory:
(1) based on data and observations; (2) defines and
integrates concepts in ways that distinguish it from
other concepts; (3) resolves apparent puzzles or con-
tradictions in the literature or practice; (4) identifies
causal relationships; (5) takes time to develop; and
(6) is open ended and allows for reapplications and
extensions. Thus, accumulating empirical evidence for
or against any particular theory involves a planned
research design for collecting and analyzing relevant
data.
Empirical science in OM typically follows the
general scientific method (Handfield 2002, Meredith
1998). Both inductive logic, which starts off broadly
with general notions and/or observations and moves
toward theory, and deductive logic, which begins
more narrowly with an existing theory and uses data
to confirm it, are conducive to rigorous empirical
scrutiny and are represented in the special issue. The
use of deductive approaches to empirical research are
emerging in OM, particularly in experimental studies,
confirmatory analyses, and validation of assumptions
and results obtained from analytic models. Nonethe-
less, Roth et al. (2007a) found that most OM empiri-
cal research to date has mostly followed an inductive
Figure 1 Theory Building and Testing Cycle
Hypothesis
Seeking /Explanation
How? Why?
Observation/ Prediction/
Description Theory Cycle Prescription
What? When? Where?
Modification/Refinement
Verified? Repeatable?
Generalizable?
approach to theory building. A general model of an
inductive theory-building cycle is depicted in Figure 1
and discussed below.
First, observations of a phenomena are made
and described. In this phase, definitions of theoreti-
cally salient variables and constructs—latent variables
(unobservable conceptual entities)—and the specifica-
tion of their content domain serve as the necessary
first steps for high-quality empirical research in gen-
eral (Pedhazur and Schmelkin 1991; Churchill 1979,
1995; Menor and Roth 2007a, b; Roth et al. 2007a).
Second, plausible explanations about the hows and
whys of the set of interrelationships among the con-
structs are presented. Hypotheses are formed around
the nomological net of relationships that explain the
phenomena (Edwards and Bagozzi 2000). Note that
specification formal hypotheses—concrete and empir-
ically testable statements about the expected patterns
of relationships—are not theory per se (Weick 1995).
Rather, they are useful in operationalizing and testing
theory.
Third, the hypotheses are tested formally through
the application of appropriate statistical techniques.
The conditions, assumptions, and boundaries under
which the posited theory holds are evaluated against
the empirical results. Finally, refinements and modi-
fications to the theory are made and the cycle begins
again.
Not all inductive studies go through all four stages
sequentially, or even complete them all. For example,
some OM empirical studies remain in the descrip-
tive and exploratory realm. Sometimes constructs and
multi-item measurement scales are not fully devel-
oped thoroughly a priori; they evolved from observed
patterns in the data, such as with exploratory factor
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
analysis. In other cases, the study objective is to
explore emerging concepts and notions in greater
depth so that explanations can be formulated for
future research. Deductive empirical analyses would
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
start from a theory and move toward hypotheses
development and confirmatory testing.
Empiricism makes it possible to rigorously build
and test theories and concepts that are useful for
ensuring relevance and for gaining insights on emerg-
ing OM practices within the industry. It is increasingly
important for OM to augment traditional normative,
analytic research with reliable and valid empirical
observations and experiments. The obvious symbio-
sis between normative and empirical science is clear,
yet the vast majority of OM scholars are simply not
well trained in empirical research methods or in the
philosophy of science. And conversely, most who do
empirical research are not well trained in classic OM
analytical methodologies, such as queuing theory or
classic inventory theory. Hence, there is a huge com-
munications gap between the two groups. This situa-
tion creates both a challenge and an opportunity for
the next generation of OM empirical scholars to sig-
nificantly influence future research and practice. Sev-
eral articles in this special issue aim to close the gap.
2.1. Empirical Tradition in OM
Empiricism in OM research took hold in the 1980s at a
time when many U.S. firms encountered economic dif-
ficulties over Japan’s manufacturing prowess. Tradi-
tional analytical modeling approaches for improving
manufacturing did not provide sufficient solutions. As
might be predicted by Kuhn’s (1970) notions, the dis-
continuity created by the sprouting of empiricism and
the associated paradigm of inductive reasoning cre-
ated a great divide in the field. At that time, many
OM academics questioned the legitimacy and/or the
“quality” of OM empirical research. Yet operational
insights obtained in the field—such as those asso-
ciated with Japanese manufacturing practices, the
Toyota production system, and the faltering of U.S.
competitiveness (Schonberger 1986)—continued to
challenge conventional wisdom. As Roth (1996,
p. 38.9) describes:
Using a highly skilled, flexible workforce, Toyota, and
subsequently other leading practitioners, changed
production arithmetic and shattered the sacrosanct
355
walls between manufacturing direct and indirect labor.
Lean production capitalized on continuous flows of
small lots by minimizing changeover costs and manag-
ing bottleneck operations, and employed the principles
of continuous improvement (kaizen) to reduce waste.
Throughput improvement programs, such as just-in-
time (JIT) production, simultaneously attacked man-
ufacturing overhead, speeded up delivery processes,
and offered customers better value.
These ideas, led by practice, challenged much of
the prevailing normative theory, which was deduced
by making assumptions and thinking things through
logically. They spurred debates among academics and
called into question many tenets in traditional OM
thinking, such as fixed set-up costs and trade-offs
between product costs and quality. In this sense,
observations from practice were a call to arms for OM
empiricism. Theories that could be induced through
rich observational data were found increasingly use-
ful in resolving the puzzles between practice and
conventions. Counter to the prevailing wisdom in
the 1980s, Ferdows and De Meyer (1990), and oth-
ers following them, for example, observed empiri-
cally that operations-based competitive capabilities
are not trade-offs, such as flexibility for cost. Rather,
capabilities are combinative and occur in a precise
order. Grounded in operations, competitive progres-
sion theory (Roth 1996, Rosenzweig and Roth 2004)
provided a theoretical explanation of Ferdows and De
Meyer’s (1990) observed “sand-cone” effect of com-
petitive capabilities.
In addition, Japanese manufacturing, often called
world-class manufacturing, also spawned the need
to look beyond traditional boundaries of the shop
floor and plant in managing operations. Boundary-
spanning research was prime for empirical scrutiny. It
was cross-functionally and cross-firm oriented toward
the interfaces of OM and other disciplines and among
supply chain entities, respectively (Giffi et al. 1990).
According to Fisher (2007, pp. 159–160):
These developments proved to be a watershed for
Operations Management and engendered a flowering
of research into new issues, such as what drives pro-
ductivity and quality in a factory and how to make
best use of new factory automation technologies such
as flexible manufacturing systems. The study of oper-
ations also raised its sights to more strategic issues,
such as how should a company organize its opera-
tions, what is the relationship between process choice
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
356 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
and product lifecycle, and how should the operations
strategy be linked to the corporate strategy? Empirical
research was added to modeling and analysis to create
a more balanced approach to research



Gradually,
the academic study of operations became much more
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
aligned with real issues of real operations managers in
real companies.
Arguably, OM empiricism had its roots in opera-
tions strategy and has been evolving rapidly over the
past two decades to include many other subareas of
operations and supply chain management. Through
in-depth case studies the OM faculty at Harvard
Business School—Kim Clark, David Garvin, Robert
Hayes, Gary Pisano, Wickham Skinner, and Steven
Wheelwright in manufacturing and Christopher Hart,
James Heskett, Christopher Lovelock, David Maister,
Earl Sasser, Leonard Schlesinger, and Daryl Wyckoff
in service operations—began conceptualizing the OM
strategy domain. The logic of manufacturing strat-
egy was complemented by early empirical field inves-
tigations. Among the pioneers were Arnoldo Hax
and Charles Fine at MIT (Fine and Hax 1985); Jef-
frey Miller and Aleda Roth at Boston University, and
Kasra Ferdows and Arnoud De Meyer at INSEAD
and Jinichiro Nakane at Waseda University (Roth
et al. 1997); Roger Schroeder at the University of
Minnesota; Paul Swamidass at Indiana University;
Shawnee Vickery at Michigan State; Robert Markland
at the University of South Carolina; Brian Talbot at the
University of Michigan; and Terry Hill and Chris Voss
at London Business School (Voss 1992). Manufactur-
ing strategy was largely unstructured, complex, and
generally not amenable to traditional, analytic model-
ing (Hayes et al. 1988, Fisher 2007).
The evolution of service strategy research during
the mid ’80s added much more complexity to oper-
ations because of the inherent characteristics of ser-
vices, including (1) the customer as a participant in
the service process, (2) the simultaneity of produc-
tion and consumption of services, (3) time-perishable
capacity, (4) intangibility of products, and (5) diffi-
culty measuring outputs (Fitzsimmons and Fitzsim-
mons 1998, Heskett et al. 1990). Two decades later,
Roth and Menor (2003, p. 146) in their research
agenda for service operations called for more empir-
ical research, because “many service management
problems are fuzzy and unstructured; are multi-
dimensional and complex; and are less conducive
to normative, analytical modeling.” These authors
also reported the need for more rigorous empirical
research in services.
The age of OM empiricism blossomed with pioneer-
ing broad-based, large-scale survey research, which
complemented and further defined the domain of
operations strategy. Several of the early multiperiod
surveys in OM offered important systematic sources
of basic knowledge about manufacturing practices,
processes and technology, management practices, and
other contingencies and key factors related to opera-
tions performance. These studies in turn linked opera-
tions to knowledge about business performance. Two
of the earliest scholarly empirical studies of these
types appeared in Management Science (Swamidass
and Newell 1987, Miller and Roth 1994). Some of
these large-scale projects are now described.
In 1981 Jeffrey Miller pioneered the Manufactur-
ing Futures Project (MFP), and extended it inter-
nationally a few years later with Kasra Ferdows,
Arnoud De Meyer, and Jinichiro Nakane. When I
joined Boston University in 1985, we strengthened
the research methods, measurement, and sampling.
The MFP was the first large-scale, academic empirical
investigation of international manufacturing strategy
(Roth and Miller 1992, Roth et al. 1997).
In 1987, Marjolijn van der Velde of the Bank Admin-
istration Institute and I started the Retail Banking
Futures Project (Roth and Jackson 1995) to develop
and test theories of service operations strategy. Sub-
sequently, Pat Harker and Frances Frei at Wharton
developed a large-scale financial services database. In
1987, Craig Giffi of Deloitte and Touche and I spear-
headed the Survey of North American Technology,
which later evolved into the global Vision in Manufac-
turing (VIM) study (Giffi et al. 1990, Roth 1996). In the
same year, Clay Whybark launched the Global Man-
ufacturing Research Group. In 1989, Roger Schroeder
and Barbara Flynn began the World Class Manu-
facturing project (Flynn et al. 1995). For a detailed
description of these studies, see Roth et al. (2007a,
1997). Collectively, these projects served as incubators
for the evolution of rigorous and relevant empirical
research.
To respond for the dire need for OM theory build-
ing and testing, Swamidass (1991) in the Academy of
Management Review called for establishing a base of
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
scholarly OM empirical inquiry. Soon thereafter insti-
tutional support for empirical research surfaced. Aca-
demic mini-conferences on empirical research were
held at the University of Michigan (Ettlie et al. 1990),
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
London Business School (Voss 1992), INSEAD (Fer-
dows 1989), and elsewhere. In the 1990s, empiri-
cism became established as a principal OM research
approach at many institutions, including Boston Uni-
versity, London Business School, Michigan State Uni-
versity, Ohio State University, the University of Min-
nesota, Clemson University, Arizona State University,
and the University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill.
These institutions were among the first to provide for
rigorous OM doctoral training in advanced empirical
methods and the philosophy of science.
Subsequently, the OM journals evolved with the
paradigm shift toward empirical science. Decision Sci-
ences under editor-in-chief Robert Markland cultivated
empirical OM. He pressed for managerial relevance in
submitted manuscripts—a tradition carried on under
the stewardship of Ram Narasimhan and Vicki Smith-
Daniels. The Journal of Operations Management tran-
sitioned its focus to empiricism under Jack Mered-
ith. The empirical baton subsequently was passed
on to Robert Handfield, Kenneth Boyer, and Morgan
Swink. Since the launch of Production and Operations
Management (POM) in 1992, Kalyan Singhal, editor-in-
chief, has strongly encouraged and supported empir-
ical research to improve relevance to practice (Sing-
hal 1992). POM was the first OM journal to promote
empirical research explicitly under the aegis of editors-
in-chief Gabe Bitran, Hau Lee, and Wally Hopp, the
way was paved for publishing rigorous empirical
research in the operations and supply chain manage-
ment department of Management Science.
Leroy Schwarz, founding editor-in-chief for
Manufacturing and Service Operations Management
(M&SOM), invited me to serve as a senior editor to
encourage and foster high-quality empirical research.
The Mendelson and Pillai (1999) paper on clockspeed
was one of the first empirical papers to appear in
M&SOM. In 2004, Garret van Ryzin, editor-in-chief
of M&SOM, commissioned this 2007 special issue,
with the explicit goal of fostering the development of
a coherent, cumulative body of empirical knowledge
in manufacturing and service operations. The role of
empirical science in M&SOM has been strengthened
357
by Gérard Cachon, the current editor-in-chief, who
emphasizes more data-driven research (Cachon 2006).
Each of the above developments set the stage for the
articles appearing in this issue. Collectively, these
papers reflect a maturing base of scholarship toward
the second generation of empirical research.
2.2. The Scope of Empirical Research
The scope of empirical science is wide. There are
many research methodologies and approaches, which
are used alone or in combination for conducting
empirical research (Gupta et al. 2006). While the
notion of “one best way” is a folly, the selection and
design choices for addressing a particular research
question in a particular context and stage of knowl-
edge are critical. The context is established by the
research settings, of which there is much diversity
in OM (e.g., industrial versus service organizations;
shop floor versus firm; job shop versus flow process;
front-office versus back-office; and so on). The stage
of knowledge indicates how much is known about
the substantive area or topic of inquiry. Such knowl-
edge is embodied in the literature and the accumu-
lated paradigms of the OM discipline; it reflects the
relative maturity of the OM subdiscipline. For exam-
ple, manufacturing strategy and quality management
are both substantively and empirically more mature
than emerging areas of e-business and new product
development, which is less structured and more ill
defined (see Roth et al. 2007a).
Empirical research methods vary widely from
qualitative interpretative to positivist quantitative
approaches (e.g., in the most simplistic view, interpre-
tative research has no numbers; in contrast to research
quantified with numbers) (Cassell and Symon 1994).
Positivism is characterized by its emphasis on objec-
tive analysis and logical empiricism. The basic notion
of positivism is this: to match the achievements of nat-
ural science in explanation, prediction, and control,
the application of the formal scientific method and
hypothesis testing (such as illustrated in Figure 1) are
the only legitimate approaches to social science and
organizational research (Lee 1991, 1999; Dobuzinskis
1997).
On the other side, the interpretative school of
thought suggests that the scientific method is inade-
quate to study social reality. Lee (1991, p. 347) asserts:

358



people and the physical and social artifacts that
they create, are fundamentally different from the phys-
ical reality examined by natural science. Unlike atoms,
molecules, and electrons, people create and attach their
own meanings to the world around them and to the
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
behavior that they manifest in that world. Stated differ-
ently, the same physical artifact, the same institution,
or the same human action can have different mean-
ings for different human subjects, as well as for the
observing social scientist. The observing social scien-
tist must, among other things, interpret this empiri-
cal reality in terms of what it means to the observed
people


the social scientist must collect facts and data
describing not only the purely objective, publically
observable aspects of human behavior, but also the
subjective meaning this behavior has for the human
subjects themselves.
Positivism employs tools that can be calibrated to
at least equal interval measurement scales, but inter-
pretatism uses those that capture content and nomi-
nal/ordinal states (Kvale 1996). Lee (1999, p. 342) fur-
ther suggests that different methods/procedures are
associated with each approach:



the “interpretative approach” refers to such
procedures as those associated with ethnography,
hermeneutics, phenomenology, and case studies


the
“positivist” approach


refers to such procedures as
those associated with inferential statistics, hypothe-
sis testing, mathematical analysis, and experimental
and quasi-experimental design


the two approaches
to organizational research can be mutually supportive,
rather than mutually exclusive.
Most OM empirical researchers are trained in
quantitative analyses, positivism, and theory-testing
research; and hence by tradition much of the extant
OM empirical literature is biased toward this school
of thought. Accordingly, “positivists and postpos-
tivists argue that what they do is good science, free
of individual bias and subjectivity


[Consequently,]
it is erroneous to presume that all qualitative
researchers share the same assumptions” (Denzin and
Lincoln 2000, p. 10).
The point is this: In judging the “quality” of OM
empirical research, it is essential that the differences
within and between the various traditions are under-
stood. In reality, the blending of qualitative and quan-
titative research has been advocated by Creswell
(1998), Eisenhardt (1989a), Yin (1994), and others.
Even survey research can be conducted in different
Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
ways, including self-administered surveys, face-to-
face interviews, and structured observations. Several
of the papers in the special issue are based on case
studies that have incorporated quantitative analyses.
None has taken a strictly interpretative approach,
which I believe will be forthcoming in the near future
as we tackle the interfaces between OM and other
social science-based disciplines such as organizational
and consumer behavior.
Among the most common approaches in OM
empirical research are surveys, which provide pri-
mary data. Case research, experiments, and behav-
ior operations is on the rise, as are applications
using secondary data sources. Because all empirical
research contains flaws, alternative explanations, and
methodological trade-offs, the relative strengths and
weaknesses of various research designs should be
understood prior to the conduct of any study. As pre-
sented in each paper in this 2007 special issue, a dis-
cussion of the study limitations is expected in any
publication of empirical research.
2.2.1. Case Studies. Case studies are one type of
qualitative research that comprises a range of disci-
plinary traditions and schools of thought, including
those drawn from sociology, education, and anthro-
pology. According to Eisenhardt (1989a, p. 536), a case
study has several characteristics. First, it “is a research
strategy which focuses on understanding the dynam-
ics present in a single setting.” Second, case research
“can involve one or multiple cases, and numer-
ous units of analysis.” Third, cases can employ “an
embedded design, that is, multiple levels of analy-
sis within a single study.” Fourth, case-based research
“typically combines multiple data collection meth-
ods such as archives, interviews, questionnaires, and
observations.” Fifth, cases “can be used to accomplish
multiple aims,” including description and generating
and testing theory.
There are two general types of case research. First is
case research that develops a grounded theory, which
is an interpretive framework for inductive theory
development about observable phenomena. It consists
of systematic, multi-step processes for the data collec-
tion and analysis of qualitative data that moves the
researcher from observation to concept development
(e.g., codes and categories) (Glasser and Strauss 1967,
Denzin and Lincoln 2000).
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
The second type of case study, which is more com-
mon in OM, explores a phenomena of interest (e.g.,
enterprise resource planning (ERP) implementation
processes or its inventory and management practices)
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
in one or more companies in substantial depth to
build theory (Eisenhardt 1989a, b; Eisenhardt and
Graebner 2007). In either instance, good case research
presumes that the researcher is well grounded in the
qualitative field techniques for observing, note tak-
ing, interviewing, analyzing, and reporting (Creswell
1998, Miles and Huberman 1994). Although many
researchers believe that case research is best for the-
ory building, some would argue that it is useful for
testing as well (see for example, Yin 1994; Eisenhardt
1989a, b; Meredith 1998; Voss et al. 2002). Eisenhardt
and Graebner (2007) provide a state-of-the-art sum-
mary on how to build theories from cases. This article
is especially useful to OM empirical theory building
and for judging the quality of case research.
2.2.2. Survey Research. Survey research covers a
wide array of interlocking technological, statistical,
and scientific methods that enable the gathering of
information from a sample of individuals. Survey
research as a source of primary data has been the
most widely used in OM empirical research, primarily
because until recently the number and types of sec-
ondary data available were not amenable to answer-
ing many operations questions. The distinct advan-
tages of survey research are that the items can be
tailored specifically to address a particular research
question, and the relevant population can be targeted.
Moreover, some literature suggests that self-reports
by knowledgeable managers are not inferior to sec-
ondary and archival data (see Ketokivi and Schroeder
2004).
Survey research has advanced as a scientific tool in
OM. If conducted well, surveys can provide quantifi-
able, reproducible information (Dillman 2000). Such
information is necessary for hypothesis testing and
providing unbiased measurement of constructs and
their relationships. A good research design should
enable the testing of alternative hypotheses and the-
oretical structures. Advancements in survey research
have come from many directions; together they help
build a solid research design strategy. (See Fink 2003
359
for an overview.) A first-order step prior to design-
ing the study is to determine the research ques-
tions and objectives of the research. Some formative
questions are: Is the study intended to be descrip-
tive, exploratory, or confirmatory? Will it develop
new measures and/or test hypotheses? Is it a cross-
sectional or longitudinal investigation?
Next, a detailed research strategy should be built
around the following elements: (1) the definition of
target population and sampling plan; (2) the meth-
ods of data collection; (3) questionnaire design; (4) the
development, measurement, and assessment of con-
structs and indicator variables; (5) the analysis plan;
and (6) reporting. The development of probability
sampling techniques allows inferences to be made
about the entire population of interest. Such samples
require a comprehensive list (e.g., sampling frame)
and proper statistical procedures for analyzing data
and assessing sources of errors and statistical power
(Cohen 1988, Churchill 1995).
One of the most important design choices pertains
to the unit of analysis in the study, including indi-
viduals, groups/teams/units, programs, dyadic rela-
tions, business entities, etc. The unit of analysis should
reflect the entity that answers the research question.
Note that the respondent who provides the data may
differ from the unit of analysis, so that qualifications
and knowledge of the target respondents are impor-
tant. For example, the project manager, who is most
knowledgable, is targeted to report on a new project
development project, which is the unit of analysis.
Also in OM empirical research, hierarchies of units
of analysis are important, such as in the investiga-
tion by Anita Tucker in this volume (“An Empirical
Study of System Improvement by Frontline Employ-
ees in Hospital Units”). A whole area of statistical
techniques around hierarchical modeling has devel-
oped that enables the researcher to include data at
two different levels within the same analysis. How-
ever, OM researchers should be aware of ecological
and exception fallacies that can occur when the wrong
inferences are drawn from the unit of analysis.
Originated in a paper by Robinson (1950), the
term “ecological fallacy” is a widely recognized error
in the interpretation when group-level, aggregated
data are the unit of analysis. Ecological fallacies
occur when inferences about individuals (e.g., subunit
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
360 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
level of analysis) are based solely on aggregate-level
relationships (e.g., ecological correlations—group or
population summary data to which the individ-
ual (subunit) belongs—versus correlations based on
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
observations of the individuals (subunits)). Consider
the following example using group-level data aggre-
gated at the industry level. If industries with higher
aggregate capacity tend to have lower performance,
then it would be an ecological fallacy to infer that
high capacity is the root cause of plant (subunit)
performance.
The central notion underlying an ecological fallacy
is this: Strong aggregate-level relationships are not
necessarily reproduced at the individual level. This
point should not be construed, however, to mean
that all associations among aggregate data are wrong
or that all conclusions based on associations drawn
from the population about attributes of the subunits
within the group are always inaccurate. In many
cases, aggregate data can be quite insightful. But it
is all too easy to make inaccurate generalizations
from aggregate data—and OM empirical researchers
should understand the inherent vulnerability of this
type of misinterpretation. An exception fallacy is the
reverse. Here stereotypic conclusions are made to a
group or to population-based individuals (subunits
of analysis). (See Rousseau 1985 for a discussion of
issues of level in organizational research.)
Second, the approach to survey data collection can
be direct to indirect. Direct methods include con-
ducting the survey face-to-face with respondents or
through telephone or online chat. These approaches
allow for interaction and deep probing. Indirect meth-
ods are mail surveys and traditional Web surveys.
Dillman (2000) offers an excellent in-depth discussion
of approaches, best practices, and trade-offs that must
be made in designing good surveys.
Third, for the design of the survey instrument,
the researcher needs a substantive knowledge of the
area of inquiry, the technology of survey design, and
the inherent trade-offs in survey instrument design
choices. The technology of survey instrument design
covers decisions regarding item wording and place-
ment, the response formats, and the general appear-
ance of the survey. Instrument pretesting and pilot
testing are important.
Fourth, the researcher must address measurement
and measurement errors. This means conceptual def-
initions of the construct (or latent variables) at the
theoretical level, as well as their operational defini-
tions and indicator (manifest) variables, should be
provided. A fundamental tenet of theory develop-
ment in empirical science is this: Indicator items
and multi-item measurement scales should exhibit
the psychometric properties of reliability and validity
(Bagozzi and Phillips 1982; Churchill 1979; Gerbing
and Anderson 1988; Melnyk and Handfield 1998;
Menor and Roth 2007a, b).
The Roth et al. (2007a) review found that item
and construct measurement in OM empirical research
is particularly problematic. Often the psychometric
properties of direct and objective measures are not
given—and proxy variables are selected without ade-
quate attention to reliability and validity. Moreover,
validated measures in one study are not always used
consistently across studies to mean the same thing;
and items are often cherry picked from one study
to the next. Given this state, it is not surprising that
while OM empirical research has progressed over the
past several decades, it is a field largely devoid of its
own theories, as the theories employed are typically
borrowed from other disciplines. A lack of proper
attention to measurement might in part provide an
explanation. Menor and Roth (2007a) offered a novel
approach that typically leads to better metrics, more
efficiently (see, for example, Bardhan et al. in this
issue [“Project Performance and the Enabling Role
of Information Technology: An Exploratory Study on
the Role of Alignment”] and Menor and Roth 2007b).
Froehle and Roth (2007) applied a similar approach to
new construct development.
A related issue pertains to systematic measurement
error and how it might influence the interpretation
of results. This is a concern in studies that employ
the same methods, such as data gathered from a sin-
gle respondent (Huber and Power 1985, Podsakoff
et al. 2003, Podsakoff and Organ 1986). Common
methods bias represents one major potential source
of systematic measurement error that may inflate the
correlations between variables due to common meth-
ods variance (CMV). CMV generally refers to any
measurement variances that are attributable to the
use of a similar method or test. Despite its wide
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
acceptance, Spector (2006, p. 221) argues the following
points:



the popular position suggesting that CMV automat-
ically affects variables measured with the same method
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
is a distortion and oversimplification of the true state
of affairs, reaching the status of urban legend. Empir-
ical evidence [casts] doubt that the method itself pro-
duces systematic variance in observations that inflates
correlations to any significant degree.
Spector recommends that researchers focus on mea-
surement bias, which he defines as,
the product of the interplay of constructs and methods
by which they are assessed


[and this] involves their
identification and control to rule them out as explana-
tions for observed relationships. (2006, p. 221).
Thus, it behooves OM researchers—using data re-
corded by the same individual, regardless of whether
it is from a primary or secondary data source—to
employ procedures to reduce measurement bias a pri-
ori in the study design stage (e.g., see the article by
Anita Tucker in this volume [“An Empirical Study
of System Improvements by Frontline Employees in
Hospital Units”]) and post hoc to examine empirically
the degree to which common methods bias may be
present (e.g., see Menor et al. in this volume [“Exam-
ining the Influence of Operational Intellectual Capital
on Capabilities and Performance”]). For comprehen-
sive literature reviews, see Doty and Glick (1998) and
Podsakoff et al. (2003).
Fifth, the analysis design plans should include meth-
ods for testing competing hypotheses and addressing
potential endogeneity problems caused by such fac-
tors as self-selection bias (Shaver 1998 and Heckman
1979) and reciprocal relationships between posited
independent and dependent variables (e.g., misspeci-
fication of causality) (Leiblein et al. 2002).
Finally, reporting of the data should be sufficient
that the study can be adequately evaluated in terms of
its contribution to the literature, the adequacy of the
methods and measures, and details that allow other
researchers to replicate the survey in different con-
texts and populations.
2.2.3. Secondary and Archival Data Sources. As
represented by the papers in this special issue,
there is an increasing focus on the use of sec-
ondary and archival data in OM empirical research.
361
Archival data cover a spectrum from documents,
news accounts, histories, content analysis, and liter-
ary criticism (Lee 1999). Secondary databases are usu-
ally obtained from precollected survey data or codi-
fied information that is used for purposes other than
that originally intended (Kiecolt and Nathan 1985).
Roth et al. (2007b) have compiled references to all
secondary data and formulae that have been used
to measure operational and business performance in
the extant OM literature published between 1990 and
2007. Their paper offers a critical summary of advan-
tages and shortcomings of secondary data in advanc-
ing OM empirical research and theory.
One of the key advantages of secondary sources is
the availability of data without the time and expense
of primary data collection. Especially when publically
available, secondary data facilitate replication of find-
ings by other scholars; they might also reduce self-
selection effects and sampling bias—especially when
complete data and coverage of the target popula-
tion are included. The trade-off, of course, is that not
all constructs of theoretical interest may have corre-
sponding indicator variables, and the psychometric
properties of the variables might not be known. Often
key variables are not available at all, or proxies must
be used for items that that were intended to measure
something else. Moreover, the researcher may be too
distant from the data to understand all the detailed
nuances associated with the database. These factors
potentially pose serious threats to the validity of the
empirical model and constructs.
2.2.4. Experiments. There are a number of choices
regarding experimentation in OM research. In behav-
ioral operations, researchers are using laboratory
experiments that enable them to control for inter-
vening variables. Independent variables can be
manipulated to determine their effects on depen-
dent variables. Frequently, researchers use conve-
nience samples; often students are used.
In quasi-experimental research, some change in the
environment happens that can be attributed to a nat-
urally occurring event. Quasi-experimental research
often takes place in the field, such as the paper by
DeHoratius and Raman (“Store Manager Incentive
Design and Retail Performance: An Exploratory Inves-
tigation”). For experimental and quasi-experimental
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
362 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
studies, Campbell and Stanley (1966) describe a num-
ber of threats to validity of which the researcher
must be aware during the course of the experiment.
These include the following: (1) unintended extra-
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
neous events may be confounded with experimental
manipulations; (2) the subject changes in some way
(e.g., learning or becoming fatigued); (3) the act of
measuring may change what is being measured; (4)
the approach used to measure the dependent variable
may change (e.g., observer becomes tired and is less
apt to record accurately); (5) statistical regression of
extreme scores changes positions toward the average;
(6) the assignment of subjects to groups may not be
random; (7) systematic differences in some types of
individuals may make them more likely to drop out;
and (8) interaction effects of any of the above threats.
See Campbell and Stanley (1966) and Cook et al.
(1990) for design strategies to mitigate against these
risks. Less frequently employed in OM are experi-
mental simulations where the human subjects are sub-
jected to the model of a simulated segment of the
real world, and their responses are recorded (Mowday
and Steers 1979).
2.2.5. Other. Various other types of empirical
research are sometimes used in OM, but they are rare
and are not summarized here. Some examples are
opinion research and participant observer research.
Data mining, which is essentially an exploratory
approach of pattern recognition in a data set, is not
covered here. Advocates must take special care so
that data mining does not become an exercise of data
fitting. One effective way is to use a split sample
approach, where data mining is the first step in the
exploration of concepts and their relationships, and
the hold-out, independent sample is used afterward
for validation. Of course, the issues of sampling bias
and error, as well as measurement errors, remain.
3. Papers in the Special Issue
The 12 papers covered in this volume are far reaching,
as indicated in Table 1. The manuscripts cover a vari-
ety of OM substantive topics, ranging from investigat-
ing the front line of process improvement in hospitals
to testing theories of innovation and strategy fit in
relation to performance. This set also illustrates vari-
ous types of empirical inquiries—from natural exper-
iments, to survey research, to laboratory experiments,
as well as the nature of data employed—primary
and secondary. Interestingly, the dominant approach
found in this issue was the application of various
types of econometric analyses of secondary data. Col-
lectively, however, the papers in this issue represent
other types of empirical methodological applications
that are useful in analyzing data (e.g., psychometric
methods and first- or second-generation multivariate
methods). Each is briefly summarized below.
Marshall Fisher (“Strengthening the Empirical Base
of Operations Management”) sets the stage with his
views on how OM can learn from other disciplines,
including physics, medicine, and finance, which have
strong empirical roots. He develops a conceptual
framework that illustrates how research can be clas-
sified by two attributes: the goal of the research (pre-
scriptive versus descriptive) and the interaction of
the research with the world (highly structured; data
and algorithms versus less-structured interviews and
observations). He offers strategies that might be par-
ticularly effective in conducting a program of empir-
ical research by navigating the matrix and concludes
with the advantages of adding a strong empirical
component to OM research.
Noah Gans et al. (“Simple Models of Discrete
Choice and Their Performance in Bandit Experi-
ments”) employ a controlled laboratory experiment to
examine whether several analytically tractable choice
models in the literature are good representations of
actual choices firms make when choosing suppliers.
The set of models captures variation in product or ser-
vice quality and its influence on the customer switch-
ing to a competitor. By a more tractable model, the
authors infer that “aggregate measures of a subject’s
performance are simple functions of system parame-
ters, preferably with simple, closed-form mathemat-
ical expressions.” The authors find that in tests of
model fit, some of the most analytically tractable
models of consumer choice perform best in that they
more than adequately capture the essentials of cus-
tomer choice behavior.
Other papers address issues in traditional OM
literature. Sergey Rumyantsev and Serguei Netes-
sine (“What Can Be Learned from Classical Inven-
tory Models? A Cross-Industry Exploratory Investi-
gation”) explore the issue of whether classical inven-
tory models can explain firm-level inventory dynam-
 Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.

Table 1 Summary of Articles

Title Authors Research questions Research approach Study population

Simple Models of Discrete Choice and
Their Performance in Bandit
Experiments
An Empirical Study of System
Improvement by Frontline
Employees in Hospital Units
What Can Be Learned from Classical
Inventory Models? A Cross-Industry
Exploratory Investigation
The Effect of Operational Performance
and Focus on Profitability:
A Longitudinal Study of the U.S.
Airline Industry
Store Manager Incentive Design and
Retail Performance: An Exploratory
Investigation
U.S. Retail and Wholesale Inventory
Performance from 1981 to 2004
Customer Efficiency, Channel Usage, and
Noah Gans Are the models built to explain consumer
George Knox behavior adequately explaining actual
Rachel Croson performance (customer choice)?
Anita L. Tucker What factors support system improvements
by frontline employees?
Sergey Rumyantsev Can insights from the classical inventory
Serguei Netessine models be used to explain the inventory
dynamics of entire companies?
Nikos Tsikriktsis Does operational performance affect
profitability in the airline industry?
Does operational performance lead
to higher profitability?
Nicole DeHoratius Does changing store incentive structure change
Ananth Raman store manager behavior in such a way as to
alter store performance? (Not explicitly stated)
Hong Chen Did inventory holdings actually decline?
Murray Z. Frank Did the financial market place a particularly
Owen Q. Wu low value on firms that held relatively
high inventories?
Mei Xue What drives a customer’s use of different channels Case study: Econometric
Lab experiment
Field survey (primary data):
Instrumental variable
regression
Econometric analysis
of secondary data
Econometric analysis
of secondary data
Case study: Natural
experiment
Econometric analysis
of secondary data
373 participants (students); 272 completed
experiment; 78,769 individual choices;
65% male
Nurses from 37 hospital units, primarily in
Massachusetts; 907 completed surveys from
100 units of 24 hospitals responded
722 publically traded companies in eight industry
segments (i.e., oil and gas, electronics,
wholesale, retail machinery, hardware,
food and chemicals)
U.S. airline industry (10 carriers—focused
and full service airlines)
13 BMS stores acquired by Tweeter Home
Entertainment before and after incentive
plan change
U.S. retail and wholesale companies 1981–2004:
NAICS classification of retail versus
wholesale (sales to general public)
U.S. bank customers’ transactions from
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS

Firm Performance in Retail Banking Lorin M. Hitt in a multichannel service delivery system? analysis a large U.S. bank
Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations

Patrick T. Harker How does customers’ channel use influence firm

Estimating Demand Uncertainty
Using Judgmental Forecasts
In Search of the Bullwhip Effect
Examining the Influence of Operational
Intellectual Capital on Capabilities
and Performance
Project Performance and the Enabling
Role of Information Technology: An
Exploratory Study on the Role
of Alignment
Strengthening the Empirical Base
of Operations Management
performance?
Vishal Gaur Is using expert forecasts a good Case study: Econometric Financial analyst estimates; Sport Obermeyer
Saravanan Kesavan proxy for measuring demand uncertainty? analysis of secondary data business forecasts
Ananth Raman (Not explicitly stated)
Marshall L. Fisher
Gérard P. Cachon Why does a industry (or firm) variance amplify? Econometric analysis Retail, wholesale, and manufacturing
Taylor Randall Why attenuate demand variance? of secondary data industries’ groups
Glen M. Schmidt
Larry J. Menor Does operational intellectual capital, when Structural equation modeling Survey data from 264 respondents from the
M. Murat Kristal effectively leveraged, become a source of of secondary data VIM Survey (Roth et al. 1997); respondents
Eve D. Rosenzweig operational and competitive advantage? covered the top 25% manufacturers according
(Not explicitly stated) to size in the United States and representing
broad industrial sectors
Indranil R. Bardhan What factors contribute to the assimilation of Structural equation modeling 780 responses in pilot data set; 637 project
Vish V. Krishnan enabling information technology and translate of secondary data managers in final sample
Shu Lin into superior project performance? Specifically,
how must technologies be chosen and
integrated into an innovation-intensive project?
Marshall Fisher How can OM learn from other disciplines Conceptual paper
how to conduct empirical research?
363
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
364 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
ics. This issue is of interest because classical inven-
tory models usually to not consider factors such as
competition and industry dynamics, because they are
derived at the product level. The authors use sec-
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
ondary data from COMPUSTAT and run econometric
models over the period 1992–2002. Interestingly, this
research supports the notion that predictions from
classical inventory models still seem to work in the
aggregate, and as a result they provide a novel way
to test the validity of assumptions made in analytical
work.
Hong Chen et al. (“U.S. Retail and Wholesale
Inventory Performance from 1981 to 2004”) also use
COMPSTAT data and econometric methods to investi-
gate the question of whether inventory holdings actu-
ally declined over time. For those firms that retained
high inventory levels, the study evaluated if the finan-
cial market placed a particularly low value on them.
The empirical results demonstrated that over the long
run, abnormal inventory has a negative effect on firm
stock price performance.
Gérard Cachon et al. (“In Search of the Bullwhip
Effect”) performed an exploratory, econometric study
pertaining to evidence of a bullwhip effect in retail,
wholesale, and manufacturing industry groups using
secondary data that was obtained from the U.S.
Census Bureau from 1992 to 2006. These authors
conclude that aggregate industry data generally do
not exhibit the bullwhip effect among retailers and
manufacturers.
Vishal Gaur et al. (“Estimating Demand Uncer-
tainty Using Judgmental Forecasts”) examined the
dispersion among forecasting experts as a measure
of demand uncertainty. They applied the Institutional
Brokers (I/B/E/S) database of actual and sales data
to the Sport Obermeyer company for 248 items. They
found that the statistical correlations between the
forecast and the dispersion between data sets are
significant; accuracy was improved, the closer the
time frame of the forecast. The paper also presents
a general methodology for using dispersion among
experts’ forecasts and scale to estimate the variance of
demand.
There are four papers directed toward service orga-
nizations. Anita Tucker (“An Empirical Study of Sys-
tem Improvement by Frontline Employees in Hos-
pital Units”) examines the conditions under which
frontline nurses actually make an effort to improve
their work systems and prevent future failures.
She employs survey research from individuals in
workgroups to develop measures and to test spe-
cific hypotheses concerning “psychological safety—
the belief that one can talk about errors without the
risk of punishment.” Her results suggest that rather
than relying on hiring motivated individuals, man-
agers need “to create a work environment where it is
safe to talk about operational failures” and “respond
to employee communication about work failures.”
Nikos Tsikriktsis (“The Effect of Operational Per-
formance and Focus on Profitability: A Longitudi-
nal Study of the U.S. Airline Industry”) takes sec-
ondary data from the U.S. domestic airline industry
to assess the influence of operational performance on
profitability using econometrics. In addition, he stud-
ies the notion of “focus” on airline profitability. Inter-
estingly, performance outcomes are tied to the oper-
ating model of the airlines. Focused airlines tend to
out perform the industry; however, late arrivals cut
into their profitability. They tend to outperform the
industry. In contrast, capacity utilization was a key
driver of profitability for full-service airlines, but not
late arrivals.
Nicole DeHoratius and Ananth Raman (“Store
Manager Incentive Design and Retail Performance:
An Exploratory Investigation”) examine the effects
of changing incentive structures on store manager
behavior. Before the transition in ownership to BMS,
Tweeter store managers were rewarded for sales and
penalized for shrinkages. After the shift, store man-
agers were penalized less for shrinkage than under
the Tweeter plan. The quasi-experimental approach
of this study employs a natural experiment occur-
ring with a single company having multiple stores
and taking advantage of the shift in changed owner-
ship incentives. The study used company and archival
data. This research found that store performance
improved after the switch of the store managers’
incentives toward sales. Although there were greater
inventory shrinkages, the increase in sales offset the
shrinkage in overall profitability. Clearly, store man-
agers compensation scheme is critical to retail store
performance.
Mei Xue et al. (“Customer Efficiency, Channel
Usage, and Firm Performance in Retail Banking”)
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
used case-based transactions from one U.S. bank’s
customers to determine the drivers of a customer’s
use of different channels in a multichannel delivery
system. Customers who are more proficient in the
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
use of self-service channels are termed “efficient.” The
empirical models in this study suggest that customer
efficiency is strongly associated with expected demo-
graphic and behavioral patterns. Overall, the greater
the customer efficiency in using self-service channels,
the greater the profitability. Moreover, customer effi-
ciency displays a highly complex relationship with
customer retention and product utilization.
In contrast to the above, two papers deal with more
nontraditional areas of interest in OM—knowledge
and innovation. Larry Menor et al. (“Examining the
Influence of Operational Intellectual Capital on Capa-
bilities and Performance”) examined knowledge man-
agement in OM. These authors used cross-sectional,
secondary data from the Vision in Manufacturing
project. Using structural equation modeling, they
evaluated the influence of operational intellectual cap-
ital at the organizational level and operating (com-
petitive) capabilities of process flexibility and prod-
uct innovation on business performance. Their empir-
ical results demonstrated the strategic importance
of developing and leveraging operational intellectual
capital.
Indranil Bardhan et al. (“Project Performance and
the Enabling Role of Information Technology: An
Exploratory Study on the Role of Alignment”) eval-
uated project performance, taking into account the
enabling role of information technology (IT). They
sought to present a theory of how the fit between
the choice of enabling IT and core characteristics of
the project affected performance, and they used sur-
vey research as their approach. The central contribu-
tion of their research is this: Their study “clarifies the
role of information technologies in project manage-
ment, providing insights into how to integrate IT into
innovation-intensive operational activities for improv-
ing project execution and productivity.”
4. Conclusions
Overall, the scholarship exemplified in this issue
encapsulates a wide variety of perspectives of OM
empirical research and serves as a linchpin for inte-
grating empirics into the toolkits of mainstream OM
365
research. It debuts new approaches that link empirical
insights with analytic tools and assumptions. The arti-
cles offered here provide a stepping stone for future
investigations into subject matter of theoretical and
practical importance to our community. The authors
(1) addressed important OM phenomena; (2) offered
rich theoretical perspectives of various OM phenom-
ena; and (3) performed appropriate and well-executed
research methodologies. I want to thank the authors
for submitting high-quality manuscripts for this spe-
cial issue.
In addition, I am especially grateful to Garrett
van Ryzin, former editor-in-chief of M&SOM, for
commissioning this focused issue, and to Gérard
Cachon, editor-in-chief (M&SOM) for his continuing
strong support through the transition of the jour-
nal leadership. I am most appreciative of the invalu-
able assistance, guidance, and expertise provided
by the guest senior editors: Kenneth Boyer, Mar-
shall Fisher, Robert Handfield, Kevin Hendricks, Sun-
der Kekre, Haim Mendelson, Roger Schroeder, Luk
van Wassenhove, and Chris Voss. The referees also
deserve a special thanks, because they provided excel-
lent, concise, and constructive feedback to the editors
and authors: Gérard Cachon, Richard Chase, Thomas
Choi, Robin Cooper, Charles Corbett, Karen Donahue,
Amy Edmonson, Craig Froehle, Mark Frohlich, Vishal
Gaur, Daniel Guide, M. Murat Kristal, Andrea Masini,
Larry Menor, Pedro Oliveira, Elliot Rabinovich, Taylor
Randall, Eve Rosenzweig, Manus (Johnny) Rungtu-
sanatham, Rachna Shaw, Enno Siemsen, Kingshuk K.
Sinha, Vinod Singhal, Jeff Stratman, Christian Ter-
wiesch, Nikos Tsikriktsis, Anita Tucker, and Rohit
Verma. I also wish to thank Jeff Shockley and Lisa
Bosman for their research assistance and Jeanne Elliott
and Kimberly Scales for their respective contributions
in the role of managing editor for the special issue.
References
Bacharach, S. B. 1989. Organizational theories: Some criteria for
evaluation. Acad. Management Rev. 14(4) 496–515.
Bagozzi, R. P., L. W. Phillips. 1982. Representing and testing orga-
nizational theories: A holistic construal. Admin. Sci. Quart. 27
459–489.
Cachon, G. 2006. A letter from the editor. Manufacturing Service
Oper. Management 8(1) 1–4.
Campbell, D. T., J. C. Stanley. 1966. Experimental and Quasi-
Experimental Design for Research. Rand-McNally, Chicago, IL.
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
366 Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
Cassell, C., G. Symon. 1994. Qualitative research in work contexts.
C. Cassell, G. Symon, eds. Qualitative Methods in Organizational
Research: A Practical Guide. Sage, London, UK, 1–13.
Chopra, S., W. Lovejoy, C. Yano. 2004. Five decades of operations
management and the prospects ahead. Management Sci. 50(1)
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
8–14.
Churchill, G. A., Jr. 1979. A paradigm for developing better mea-
sures of marketing constructs. J. Marketing Res. 16 64–73.
Churchill, G. A., Jr. 1995. Marketing Research: Methodological Founda-
tions. The Dryden Press, Fort Worth, TX.
Cohen, J. 1988. Statistical Power Analysis. Erlbaum, Hillsdale, NJ.
Cook, T. D., D. T. Campbell, L. Peracchio. 1990. Quasi experimen-
tation. M. D. Dunette, L. M. Hough, eds. Handbook of Industrial
and Organizational Psychology. Consulting Psychologists Press,
Palo Alto, CA, 419–490.
Creswell, J. W. 1998. Qualitative Inquiry and Research Design. Sage,
Thousand Oaks, CA.
Denzin, N. K., Y. S. Lincoln, eds. 2000. Handbook of Qualitative
Research. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Dillman, D. A. 2000. Mail and Internet Surveys: The Tailored Design
Method. Wiley, New York.
Dobuzinskis, L. 1997. Historical and epistemological trends in pub-
lic administration. J. Management Hist. 3(4) 298–316.
Doty, D. H., W. H. Glick. 1998. Common methods bias: Does com-
mon methods variance really bias results? Organizational Res.
Methods 1(4) 374–406.
Edwards, J. R., R. P. Bagozzi. 2000. On the nature and direction
of the relationship between constructs and measures. Psych.
Methods 5 155–174.
Eisenhardt, K. M. 1989a. Building theories from case study research.
Acad. Management Rev. 14(4) 532–550.
Eisenhardt, K. M. 1989b. Making fast strategic decisions in high-
velocity environments. Acad. Management J. 32(3) 543–576.
Eisenhardt, K., M. Graebner. 2007. Theory building from cases:
Opportunities and challenges. Acad. Management J. 50(1) 25–32.
Ettlie, J., M. Burstein, A. Fiegenbaum, eds. 1990. Manufacturing
Strategy. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston, MA.
Ferdows, K., ed. 1989. International Manufacturing Strategies. Elsevier
Science Publishers, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Ferdows, K., A. De Meyer. 1990. Lasting improvements in manu-
facturing performance: In search of a new theory. J. Oper. Man-
agement 9(2) 168–184.
Fine, C., A. Hax. 1985. Manufacturing strategy: A methodology and
an illustration. Interfaces 15(6) 28–46.
Fink, A. 2003. The Survey Handbook. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Fisher, M. 2007. R. H. Hayes: Forty years of leading operations man-
agement into uncharted waters. Production Oper. Management
16(2) 159–168.
Fitzsimmons, J., M. Fitzsimmons. 1998. Service Management: Opera-
tions, Strategy and Information Technology. Irwin/McGraw Hill,
Boston, MA.
Flynn, B., R. G. Schroeder, S. Sakakibara. 1995. The impact of qual-
ity management practices on performance and competitive
advantage. Decision Sci. 26(5) 659–692.
Froehle, C. M., A. V. Roth. 2007. A resource-process framework of
new service development. Production Oper. Management 16(2)
169–188.
Gerbing, D. W., J. C. Anderson. 1988. An updated paradigm for
scale development incorporating unidimensionality and its
assessment. J. Marketing Res. 25(2) 186–192.
Giffi, C., A. V. Roth, G. Seal. 1990. Competing in World Class Manu-
facturing: America’s 21st Century Challenge. Business One Irwin,
Homewood, IL.
Glasser, B. G., A. L. Strauss. 1967. The Discovery of Grounded Theory:
Strategies for Qualitative Research. Aldine, Chicago, IL.
Gupta, S., R. Verma, L. Victoriano. 2006. Empirical research pub-
lished in production and operations management (1992–2005):
Trends and future directions. Production Oper. Management 15(3)
432–448.
Handfield, R. 2002. Writing the ideal paper for JOM: A new editor’s
perspective. J. Oper. Management 20(1) 10–18.
Hayes, R. H., S. C. Wheelwright, K. B. Clark. 1988. Dynamic
Manufacturing: Creating the Learning Organization. Free Press,
New York.
Heckman, J. J. 1979. Sample selection bias as a specification error.
Econometrica 47 153–162.
Heskett, J. L., W. E. Sasser, C. W. L. Hart. 1990. Service Breakthroughs:
Changing the Rules of the Game. Free Press, New York.
Huber, G. P., D. Power. 1985. Retrospective reports of strategic-level
managers: Guidelines for increasing their accuracy. Strategic
Management J. 6 171–180.
Kerlinger, F. N. 1979. Behavioral Research: A Conceptual Approach.
Holt, Rinehart & Winston, New York.
Ketokivi, M. A., R. G. Schroeder. 2004. Perceptual measures of per-
formance: Fact or fiction? J. Oper. Management 22(3) 247–264.
Kiecolt, K. J., L. Nathan. 1985. Secondary Analysis of Survey Data.
Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
Kuhn, T. 1970. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. University of
Chicago Press, Chicago, IL.
Kvale, S. 1996. Interviews: An Introduction to Qualitative Research
Interviewing. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Lee, A. S. 1991. Integrating positivist and interpretive approaches
to organizational research. Organ. Sci. 2(4) 342–365.
Lee, T. W. 1999. Using Qualitative Methods in Organizational Research.
Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Leiblein, M. J., J. J. Reuer, F. Dalsace. 2002. Do make or buy deci-
sions matter? The influence of organizational governance on
technological governance technological performance. Strategic
Management J. 23 817–833.
Locke, E. A., G. P. Latham. 2005. Goal setting theory: Theory build-
ing by induction. M. Hitt, K. G. Smith, eds. Great Minds in
Management: The Process of Theory Development. Oxford Univer-
sity Press, Oxford, UK, 128–150.
Melnyk, S., R. Handfield. 1988. May you live in interesting
times


The emergence of theory-driven empirical research.
J. Oper. Management 16(4) 311–319.
Mendelson, H., R. R. Pillai. 1999. Industry clockspeed: Measure-
ment and operational implications. Manufacturing Service Oper.
Management 1(1) 1–20.
Menor, L., A. V. Roth. 2007a. Improving perceptual measurement
in operations management research. Working paper, Richard
Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario, Lon-
don, Ontario, Canada.
Menor, L., A. V. Roth. 2007b. New Service development compe-
tence in retail banking: Construct development and measure-
ment validation. J. Oper. Management 25(4) 825–846.
Meredith, J. 1998. Building operations management theory through
case and field research. J. Oper. Management 16(4) 441–454.
Miles, M. B., A. M. Huberman. 1994. Qualitative Data Analysis:
A Sourcebook of New Methods. Sage Publications, Newbury Park,
CA.
 Roth: Applications of Empirical Science in Manufacturing and Service Operations
Manufacturing & Service Operations Management 9(4), pp. 353–367, © 2007 INFORMS
Miller, J. G., A. V. Roth. 1994. A taxonomy of manufacturing strate-
gies. Management Sci. 40(3) 285–304.
Mowday, R. T., R. M. Steers, eds. 1979. Research in Organizations:
Issues and Controversies. Goodyear Publishing Company, Santa
Monica, CA.
Downloaded from informs.org by [129.59.95.115] on 26 August 2016, at 00:11 . For personal use only, all rights reserved.
Pedhazur, E. J., L. P. Schmelkin. 1991. Measurement, Design, and
Analysis: An Integrated Approach. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates,
Hillsdale, NJ.
Podsakoff, P. M., D. Organ. 1986. Self-reports in organizational
research: Problems and prospects. J. Management 12 531–543.
Podsakoff, P. M., S. B. MacKenzie, J.-Y. Lee, N. P. Podsakoff.
2003. Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical
review of the literature and recommended remedies. J. Appl.
Psych. 88(5) 879–903.
Robinson, W. S. 1950. Ecological correlations and the behavior of
individuals. Amer. Sociol. Rev. 15 351–357.
Rosenzweig, E. D., A. V. Roth. 2004. Towards a theory of competi-
tive progression: Evidence in high-tech manufacturing. Produc-
tion Oper. Management 13(4) 354–368.
Roth, A. V. 1996. Neo-operations strategy: Linking capabilities-
based competition to technology. G. H. Gaynor, ed. The
Handbook of Technology Management. McGraw Hill, New York,
38.1–38.44.
Roth, A. V., W. Jackson. 1995. Strategic determinants of service
quality and performance: Evidence from the banking industry.
Management Sci. 41(11) 1720–1733
Roth, A. V., L. Menor. 2003. Insights into services research: A
research agenda. Production Oper. Management 12(2) 145–164.
Roth, A. V., J. G. Miller. 1992. Success factors in manufacturing.
Bus. Horizons 35(4) 73–81.
Roth, A. V., A. E. Gray, J. Singhal, K. Singhal. 1997. Inter-
national technology and operations management: Resource
toolkit for research and teaching. Production Oper. Management
6(2) 167–187.
367
Roth, A. V., R. G. Schroeder, X. Huang, M. M. Kristal. 2007a.
Handbook of Metrics for Operations Management: Multi-Item Mea-
surement Scales and Objective Items. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA.
Forthcoming.
Roth, A. V., J. Shockley, H. Weng. 2007b. Use of secondary data in
operations management research. Working paper, College of
Business and Behavioral Science, Clemson University, Clem-
son, SC.
Rousseau, D. 1985. Issues of level in organizational research: Multi-
level and cross-level perspectives. L. L. Cummings, B. M. Staw,
eds. Research in Organizational Behavior, Vol. 7. JAI Press, Green-
wich, CT, 1–37.
Schonberger, R. J. 1986. World Class Manufacturing: Lessons in Sim-
plicity Applied. Free Press, New York.
Shaver, J. M. 1998. Accounting for endogeneity when assessing
strategy performance: Does entry mode choice affect FDI sur-
vival. Management Sci. 44 571–585.
Singhal, K. 1992. Introduction: Shaping the future of manufacturing
and service operations. Production Oper. Management 1(1) 1–4.
Spector, P. E. 2006. Method variance in organizational research:
Truth or urban legend? Organ. Res. Methods 9(2) 221–232.
Swamidass, P. M. 1991. Empirical science: New frontier in operations
management research. Acad. Management Rev. 16(4) 273–296.
Swamidass, P. M., W. T. Newell. 1987. Manufacturing strategy,
environmental uncertainty and performance: A path analytic
model. Management Sci. 33(4) 509–524.
Voss, C. 1992. Manufacturing Strategy, Process and Content. Chap-
man & Hall/Van Norstrand Publishers, London, UK.
Voss, C., N. Tsikriktsis, M. Frohlich. 2002. Case research in oper-
ations management. Internat. J. Oper. Production Management
22(2) 195–219.
Weick, K. E. 1995. What theory is not, theorizing is. Admin. Sci.
Quart. 40 385–390.
Yin, R. K. 1994. Case Study Research: Design and Methods. Sage, Thou-
sand Oaks, CA.