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Research within Sheffield University Management School (SUMS) into supply chain management and carbon reduction has delivered economic and environmental impacts by helping businesses reduce their carbon footprint through lower-cost resource efficiencies. The supply chain management tool, SCEnAT, developed from SUMS research, has helped businesses change their operations to reduce CO2 emissions, make cost savings of up to £250k per company and improve their business performance through, in one case, winning additional contracts worth £1.75m. The research has also been used by regional business organisations in developing and implementing growth strategies to support low carbon businesses in Yorkshire and Humber.
This case study focuses upon research surrounding knowledge management (KM) practice and implementation (organisational change). The case study utilises research and impact from the Systems Thinking and Organisational Change Research Group (SYTOC), which existed in Derby Business School between 2007 and 2012.
Impact included enhanced business process and practice for many organisations through the significant dissemination of the research. The core group of SYTOC includes Longbottom, Dexter, Marshall and Seddon, visiting professor and a leading authority on change in the public sector.
Research at the University of Sheffield has led to the development of a Reverse Logistics Toolkit that enables companies in the retail sector, together with members of their supply chain, to improve management of the flow of surplus or unwanted products returned by customers. Companies using the toolkit have seen a reduction in returns of up to 40%, a significant figure given that total UK retail returns have been valued at around £6 billion per annum. The toolkit has enabled companies to reduce costs, improve service provision and reduce transport movements.
In response to the declining number of applicants for leadership posts in Further Education, David Collinson developed the Practitioner Research Programme. Funded by the UK Government's Learning and Skills Improvement Service, the programme offered FE leaders and managers the opportunity to produce research-informed answers to challenges they were facing in their own practice. Findings were developed into 88 practitioner research reports that were disseminated to every FE college in England and Wales and made available online. Research engagement enhanced knowledge and understanding of leadership issues, stimulating organisational change and improving the performance of individuals, teams and organisations. Key themes were presented at a national conference where outstanding projects received awards for the impact of research on their own FE organisation, the local community and leadership development. Findings were extensively cited in the `Independent Commission on Colleges in their Communities' report, and in the Foster Review of UK FE.
Research undertaken by Starkey and colleagues has informed the development of a particular philosophy and practice of research. This has informed policy debates about the nature of effective management research for engaging with practice — now widely referred to as co-production — and led to new insights into the practice of policymaking in government. The research informed (1) the development of a new approach to policymaking adopted by the previous administration in work conducted for and with the Cabinet Office with senior civil servants and representation from the House of Lords; (2) collaborative work on the development of low carbon communities which was conducted with the Department of The Environment and Climate Change.
UWE research has informed the implementation of HR policy to support front-line managers more effectively in their role as people managers in diverse organisations (e.g. Selfridges, the Royal United Hospital, Bath, and the MOD). This research has provided empirical evidence that front-line managers (such as team leaders) are critical to organisational effectiveness and makes recommendations on the supportive conditions necessary to improve their behaviour in people management. It has also directly influenced the policies and learning materials of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, as well as advisory materials produced by ACAS, and a variety of public policy documents that have informed organisations' HR practice in supporting and developing front-line managers.
The research reported in this case study demonstrates that in order to achieve a carbon neutral future whole life building carbon footprinting should be undertaken by using Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) at all stages of design, construction and throughout the lifespan of buildings. Practical tools in this area are few, and the award winning research projects reported here address this need and have had impacts in the following areas; firstly, through their direct applications in building procurement and management, secondly through changes to national standards and specifications and thus professional practice, and thirdly through enhanced public awareness at local, national and international levels.
This case study describes the significant impact of the research discussed on the debate about the design and delivery of leadership development programmes both nationally and internationally. In particular the work described has informed the rethinking of the nature of the content of leadership programmes and has contributed towards the emergence of an alternative consensus about the nature of the development of school leaders. Although hard to measure, the subsequent impact on attitudes and behaviours of school leaders can be traced back to the research. Increased international debate about effective leadership can be demonstrated through the demand for translations of the research into other languages.
This interdisciplinary research work in the areas of Knowledge Management (KM), e-Business, enterprise systems, Customer Relationship Management (CRM), and Supply Chain Management resulted in socio economic impact through improved organisational performance in 90 companies in the North West, resulting in process improvements, enhanced productivity, marketability, increased revenues, employment, reduced costs, enhanced knowledge capital, profitability, and sustainability. This positive regional impact included an ERDF funded project (£1.4m), 5 KTPs (£500,000), an ESRC project, and other bespoke collaborative company projects. This research work in collaboration with industry encompassed a knowledge sharing regional network that included BAE Systems, Daimler, Northwest Aerospace Alliance, APPH Group — BBA Aviation, Hyquip Limited, Alliance Learning Limited, Darts Corner Limited etc.
Lean is a business operations paradigm, originating from post-war Japanese manufacturing, which has its UK and European research roots in Cardiff Business School (CBS). Following the initial success of lean as a concept for improvement, it became evident that there were issues surrounding the sustainability of lean transformations. In addressing this problem, CBS's Lean Enterprise Research Centre (LERC) has developed a structured training programme, the Lean Competency System (LCS), and delivered tailored lean solutions, which have directly facilitated the implementation of sustainable lean transformation strategies in over 200 public and private sector organisations since 2008. Several thousand people have received LCS accreditation, increasing the longevity of the effects from implementing lean strategies and creating efficiency savings worth millions of pounds.