Effect of company size on manager’s perception

The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of a company’s size on its manager’s perception towards changes in market needs and manufacturing flexibility. To serve the purpose, a questionnaire was designed by considering different types of manufacturing flexibility and changes occurring in market needs. The collected data were then analyzed to verify the proposed hypotheses. The results showed that a company’s size significantly influence manager’s perception towards manufacturing flexibility and market requirements. For instance, reliability is given higher priority by managers of micro and small enterprises in comparison with managers of medium and large enterprises. Similarly, routine flexibility is found to be significantly more important to managers of micro and small enterprises, while production facility flexibility is considered more important by managers of medium and large enterprises. Furthermore, the results showed that there is a positive relationship between changes in market requirements and manufacturing flexibility, showing that manufacturing flexibility is governed by changes in market requirements. This research was conducted with managers at various companies in the energy sector; so the results may not be applicable to other industries.