Tóm tắt
Traditionally, executives have assumed that trade‐offs – high
quality or low cost, efficiency or customization – are inevitable.
In defining their businesses, the choice has always been seen in terms
of mass production of inexpensive, commodity‐like products or services
(the assembly line) on the one hand, and on the other hand,
premium‐priced, individually‐tailored, highly differentiated offerings
(the “job shop”). But the notion that such trade‐offs and
choices are permanent, inevitable business realities is fading as a new
management paradigm – mass customization – emerges. Mass
customization consists of cutting‐edge management methods and tools that
give companies the ability to produce customized, affordable,
high‐quality goods and services, but with the shorter cycle times and
lower costs historically associated with mass production and
standardization. Proposes that much of the power of mass customization,
like total quality management before it, lies in its visionary and
strategic implications. Also delineates an exploratory diagnostic
framework to help companies assess the potential for mass customization
as an explicit strategy in their industries. The key dimensions of this
framework are customer sensitivity, process amenability, competitive
environment, and organizational readiness.
