Title: Conflicting cultures between original equipment manufacturing and original brand manufacturing management: Taiwan's real obstacles to upgrading?

Authors: Vincent Shie, Craig Meer

Addresses: Department of Sociology, Fu Jen Catholic University, No. 510 Chung Cheng Road, Hsinchuang, Taipei 24205, Taiwan. ' Adaptation and Land Management Division, Department of Climate Change, GPO Box 854, Canberra, ACT 2601, Australia

Abstract: Original equipment manufacturing (OEM) and original brand manufacturing (OBM) are two operations in the information technology industry. Although Taiwan is the global OEM hub, its profit margins are shrinking. Adding an OBM strategy is a possible solution, but conflicts between OEM and OBM cultures may arise. Thus, it is advised that the separation of the two conflicting modes is the answer. This study challenges such an assertion from a systems perspective. We investigate the real obstacles at three, i.e. corporate, sectoral and global levels, and find that the functional separation in itself can only provide a partial reason.

Keywords: OEMs; original equipment manufacturers; OBM; original brand manufacturing; Taiwan; information technology; organisational culture; manufacturing management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBSR.2010.029949

International Journal of Business and Systems Research, 2010 Vol.4 No.1, pp.82 - 93

Published online: 03 Dec 2009 *

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