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PurposeTo explore the relationship between the dimensions of supply chain flexibility and firm performance in a sample of automotive suppliers.Design/methodology/approachEmpirical survey of a representative sample of 126 Spanish automotive suppliers during the months of September and October 2003. Data gathered through a mail survey to purchasing managers by using a structured questionnaire. Spearman correlation coefficients were used to analyse the relationship between the different supply chain flexibility dimensions, between supply chain flexibility dimensions and firm performance dimensions, and between supply chain flexibility dimensions and environmental uncertainty dimensions. A multivariate analysis studied the determinants of supply chain flexibility.FindingsThe research has found a positive relation between a superior performance in flexibility capabilities and firm performance, although flexibility dimensions are not equally important for firm performance. On the other hand, the results show that companies enhance more the basic flexibility capabilities (at the shop floor level) than aggregate flexibility capabilities (at the customer‐supplier level). However, aggregate flexibility capabilities are more positively related to firm performance than basic flexibility capabilities. Thus, companies might miss opportunities to improve competitiveness by underestimating customer‐supplier flexibility capabilities. Finally, the results indicate that flexibility capabilities are enhanced in supply chains with higher environmental uncertainty, technological complexity, and mutual understanding, but with lower interdependence among the agents involved in the supply chain.Research limitations/implicationsThere are other factors not included in the model that could impact the relationship between flexibility, supply chain characteristics and firm performance. On the other hand, the research has used cross‐sectional data, which are limited in order to explain causal relationships. Another limitation of the research is that we did not use any secondary data (like manual financial reports) to crosscheck firm performance.Practical implicationsThe results of the research contribute to a better understanding of the forces and constraints that companies face with flexibility capabilities.Originality/valueThe paper analyses the relationship between supply chain flexibility dimensions and firm performance. The model provides a framework of supply chain flexibility dimensions that may be used as a test base for further research.

Develops and tests an integrated check‐list to assess manufacturing changes towards lean production. Using the results from a survey to manufacturing plants located in the Spanish region of Aragon, analyzes which lean production indicators are more used to assess the company's improvements in their production systems, and the determinants on the use of these indicators.

El desarrollo de las actividades de la Nueva Economía y la creciente participación de la mujer en profesiones tecnológicas, sugiere la hipótesis de que la Nueva Economía y otras actividades relacionadas representen un giro hacía una menor discriminación y un acceso más rápido de la mujer hacia puestos de mayor responsabilidad en estas actividades que en las de la economía tradicional. Este trabajo plantea las implicaciones que esta tendencia tiene para la gestión de los Recursos Humanos a través del sistema de compensación de la empresa. El trabajo realiza una revisión de la literatura sobre género, compensación e innovación, con la que se establecen diversas hipótesis a contrastar con empresas de alta tecnología y de la Nueva Economía.

This paper anayzes the differences of male and female human resource (HR) managers' perceptions on the benefits, barriers and feasibility of teleworking adoption in a sample of Spanish companies. The results indicate that teleworking is seen as more feasible where there are a large number of female employees, and that female HR managers perceive teleworking differently than male HR managers. Women tend to be more positive about the potential of teleworking.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to study the effect of gender diversity (in executive boards and top management) on firm performance. To reconcile the inconsistent and non‐conclusive findings from previous studies, competing curvilinear relationships are theorized between gender diversity on boards and firm performance based on different theoretical backgrounds.Design/methodology/approachThe paper comprises a literature review and development of theoretical propositions.FindingsCurvilinear relationships were developed that may integrate different theoretical perspectives.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper provides theoretical support to reconcile the inconsistent and non‐conclusive findings from previous theoretical perspectives and empirical studies by proposing that competing recommendations from theoretical perspectives could be tested through curvilinear relationships.Practical implicationsThe propositions provide a strong argument for having more women in top management positions who will be promoted later through the "glass ceiling" to more gender‐balanced boards.Originality/valueThe paper reconciles inconsistent and non‐conclusive findings from studies about gender diversity on boards and firm performance.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to explain the impact of workplace flexibility on managers' perceptions of firm performance. The research focuses primarily on outsourcing, an increasingly common way of creating workplace flexibility, by studying its antecedents based on several economic and organisational theories.Design/methodology/approachThe methodology is a postal survey to a sample of 156 Spanish firms and statistical analysis.FindingsThe findings suggest that it is important to take into account different theoretical perspectives to explain the intensity of outsourcing: all proposed antecedents of the intensity of outsourcing except differentiation strategy and cooperation are significantly associated to outsourcing. There is not any significant relationship between outsourcing and firm performance; workplace internal flexibility does impact on firm performance but external flexibility does not. However, the results change according to the category of core and peripheral outsourcing.Research limitations/implicationsThis study's single country setting could limit the generalizability of the findings. Longitudinal as opposed to cross‐sectional data are needed for studying the causal assumptions reported here. Future studies should also take a multiple‐source as opposed to a single‐source data collection approach. Finally, objective measures of outsourcing and firm performance, as well as moderated variables are needed to analyse differentiated impacts on firm performance.Practical implicationsThis research makes two contributions to both practice and theory. First, the results show that the perceived impact of outsourcing on sub‐factors of firm performance is positive for peripheral activities and negative for core activities. Second, the research provides a framework to analyse the antecedents of outsourcing and the concurrent impact of outsourcing and other workplace flexibility dimensions on firm performance.Originality/valueThe paper explains outsourcing decisions by antecedents based on several economic and organisational theories. It also analyses the concurrent impact of outsourcing and other workplace flexibility dimensions on firm performance.

PurposeAims to contribute to the teleworking literature by analysing the differences between teleworking adopters and non‐adopters regarding the use and impact of information and communication technologies.Design/methodology/aproachAnalyses the differences on the use and impact of information and communication technologies in a sample of Spanish companies. The data for the study come from a survey of a representative sample of 479 small and medium sized companies located in Galicia, a Spanish region in the northwest of the country. The data were obtained through interviews with the company managers (CEO, systems information manager, or technology manager) between May and October of 2003FindingsThe results indicate that teleworking companies have adopted more equipment (per company and per employee), and the differences are statistically significant for all type of information equipment but personal computers. Although there is a positive correlation between the number of equipment and firm size (number of employees), there are not statistically significant differences of firm size between teleworking adopters and non adopters. Firm size is not an explanatory variable of equipment use in the adopter companies.Originality/valueContributes to the teleworking literature by analysing the differences between teleworking adopters and non adopters regarding the use and impact of information and communication technologies

El propósito de este artículo es plantear, mediante una revisión de la literatura, el posible efecto moderador de determinadas variables -diversidad, flexibilidad laboral, equidad percibida, tipo de tareas y longevidad del equipo- que pueden interactuar sobre el potenciamiento de un equipo de trabajo. De acuerdo con el análisis realizado, la diversidad y la flexibilidad laboral pueden moderar la relación entre el potenciamiento del equipo y las características organizacionales y del empleo. La equidad percibida puede moderar la relación entre potenciamiento y resultados del equipo. Y el tiempo, el tipo de tarea y el apoyo social y organizacional pueden actuar como moderadores de estas relaciones.

Shows the results of a survey about the antecedents of work‐family conflict in a sample of Spanish employees. Analyses and discusses the influence of job‐related and non‐related factors. The results indicate that both groups of factors are antecedents of work‐family conflict. Even though gender is not a significant variable to explain work‐family conflict, the empirical study found differences at the time to explain the antecedents of men and women's work‐family conflict. A few family‐domain and work‐domain perceptions had a strong influence on work‐family conflict such as the gender roles, importance of family, job flexibility and job mental and physical requirements. Some of these perceptions suggest the influence of a culture where traditional gender roles still prevail and family as an institution is very strong. Functional mobility and educational level are also antecedents of work‐family conflict. However, job category level, marital status, and social benefits do not have any influence on work‐family conflict in the multivariate analysis, but the bivariate analysis showed that they have indeed an influence on the work‐family conflict according to the hypotheses developed in the research framework.

This paper analyzes the results of a survey about labor mobility of a sample of 1,182 Spanish employees. The results indicate that women have lower mobility than men, and that the mobility of men and women is explained by different factors. The employee's perceptions about job satisfaction, pay fairness, and employment stability are also more explicative of job mobility than traditional job‐related factors, such as wages or training. These results have managerial implications for the segmentation of men and women in the labor market.