The application of group consensus theory to aid organisational learning and sustainable innovation in manufacturing SMEs

Figures & data

Figure 1. Schematic diagram of the research adopted for this study.

Table 1. Questions asked to the focus group

1	Decision-making power is widely shared throughout the organisation	11	Conflicts and disagreements are dealt with openly	21	Important issues are not avoided
2	The predominant management style is participative rather than “top-down”	12	There is generally a high level of trust between members of staff	22	We have regular meetings to review progress and discuss issues
3	I feel able to participate in decisions which are important to the organisation	13	I feel comfortable expressing my feelings in the organisation	23	I would welcome more responsibility within my job
4	Senior managers commonly delegate decision-making to others	14	Important issues for the organisation are discussed readily	24	I am satisfied with the way I am managed by my immediate boss
5	It is easy for me to raise awkward issues with managers	15	Staff rarely feel anxious	25	We learn from mistakes, and are not blamed for them
6	Staff are encouraged to speak out	16	Staff rarely behave defensively	26	I enjoy my work
7	Difficult issues are not normally brushed under the carpet	17	We do not have a blame culture in the organisation	27	I trust the information I get from senior management
8	Staff are “open” in their communications (e.g. there are few “hidden agendas”)	18	Staff are encouraged to reflect on the organisation’s processes	28	I receive open and honest feedback about my performance
9	When the going gets tough, people help each other	19	I rarely feel threatened when things are going wrong	29	I have the opportunity to influence the way I work
10	People are willing to admit when they make mistakes or errors of judgement	20	I rarely feel powerless in the organisation	30	The organisation needs to change

Figure 2. Group consensus theory profiles.

Table 2. OLC criteria and the variables

OLC criteria	Variables
Experimentation	V1. Participants provide support and encouragement to others when presenting new ideas from the team members
	V2. Participants provide and receive favourable responses to new initiatives and feel encouraged to generate new ideas
Risk taking	V3. Participants take risks in the design and processes for the new product
	V4. Participants are seen to venture into unknown territory
Interaction with the external environment	V5. Participants collect, bring back and report information about what is going on outside the company
	V6. Participants use the systems developed for receiving, collating and sharing information from outside the company
	V7. Participants interact with the environment: competitors, customers, technological institutes, universities, suppliers, etc.
Dialogue	V8. Participants are encouraged to communicate
	V9. There is a free and open communication within the project team
	V10. Managers facilitate communication within project teams
	V11. Cross-functional teamwork is in place
Participative decision-making	V12. Managers in this project frequently involve employees in important decision
	V13. Products and processes are significantly influenced by the view of employees
	V14. Participants feel involved in project decisions

Figure 3. Composite OLC profiles.