Product returns – interdisciplinary interfaces between knowledge, quality and product innovation management
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2017 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | Proceedings from 20th International Conference on Quality and Service Sciences (QMOD): Challenges and Opportunities of Quality and Sustainability in the 4th Industrial Revolution |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Management and administrative |
| Keywords | product returns; knowledge quality and innovation management; interdisciplinarity interface |
| Attached files | |
| Description | Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to review existing research on intersections of four disciplines, specifically knowledge, quality and product innovation management related to the consumers´ product returns within the reverse logistics (reverse supply chain management) discipline to identify gaps justifying further research activities. The primary aim of this review is to summarize and evaluate existing literature pertaining the above-mentioned areas of interest and to formulate potential research streams dedicated to the intersections that would help to unify management practices. Design/methodology/approach: Literature review of English-written peer-reviewed journal articles was conducted in two scientific databases: Web of Science and SCOPUS. Multiple keyword combinations were used for search to ensure potential intersections. Findings: Identified state of the art in the literature shows that the existing intersections do not link all four disciplines and that linkages exist only between two disciplines. It is evident that only very weak interdisciplinarity exists in theory. Research limitations/implications: A key limitation is that the paper is based primarily on review of articles accessible in two databases. Both research and managerial implications result from the review. The outcomes can assist researchers and managers to better understand the link between the disciplines and individual functions in organizations and to promote the integration of methods, tools and practices that potentially can lead to needed knowledge integration across organizations. Originality/value: The paper identifies gaps in the literature concerning the needed interdisciplinary linkages between four disciplines as well as key drivers for interdisciplinarity in research in the aforementioned four areas if interest. |
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