Learning strategies and CI: lessons from several small to medium Australian manufacturers

Australian manufacturers need to develop strategies that will enable them to compete in the Asia‐Pacific region. Australia is regarded as a high wage economy so can rarely compete solely on price. Once they are able to deliver a quality product at an acceptable price to remain competitive they must get the most out of their existing resources, particularly their workforce. CI is a widely recognised low cost strategic process for improving a manufacturing operation. This paper examines five small to medium manufacturers and uses a mapping tool that measures the extent of learning within the firms. If firms using CI are to fully benefit from the learning process then they must have a strategy in place that ensures knowledge is captured and the workforce is willing to transfer knowledge throughout the organisation.