High/low-context communication: Conceptualization and scale development

Abstract

Given the significance of maintenance in today’s operating environment, excellence in maintenance performance becomes a strategic issue of capital intensive organizations. Managing for excellence needs effective measurement of performance. Whilst organizational performance measurement in general has been discussed extensively in the literature, few of these discussions focus specifically on the maintenance function. The overall objective of this research project is to study the role measurement can play in managing maintenance performance. In the initial phase o f the inquiry, eight maintenance organizations in Hong Kong and Canada were visited and interviews were conducted during these visits. Findings from such field work indicate that maintenance organizations seldom measure their performance using a balanced set o f indicators, or regard performance measurement as a strategic management tool. An approach that involves the use of strategy driven balanced scorecards has been proposed to enhance effectiveness of maintenance performance management.