Introduction: The topic of digital transformation plays an increasingly important role and is nowadays inevitable for firms to stay competitive. However, the effects of digital transformation are described as scattered and how to organize for digital transformation in the context of international manufacturing networks has not been investigated previously. This study sets out to explore the challenges that companies face when organizing for digital transformation. The following research questions were stated: RQ1: How do IMNs currently organize for digital transformation? RQ2: What challenges are IMNs facing when organizing for digital transformation? Method: A systematic literature review was combined with a multiple case study to reach the research objectives. Four case companies working with digital transformation in their International Manufacturing Networks and participating in the research project KODIT were part of the study. By this kind of study research study, the phenomenon of interest can be both examined and described. Thereby, a comprehensive context allows to solidify existing knowledge and create new knowledge in order to answer the research questions.  Frame of References: A literature review was performed to introduce  the concept of International Manufacturing Networks and to create an understanding of digital transformation and  its  related terms. Organizational change, maturity models and success factors, different approaches, roadmaps, and frameworks, were investigated to provide an insight into current ways of organizing for digital transformation. Furthermore, different challenges related to digital transformation were described. Empirical Findings: The empirical findings provide an overview of how the studied case companies work with digital transformation in their manufacturing networks. Each case company has a different understanding of digital transformation and its way of working. Whereby lead factories, cooperation, and collaboration play an important role. At the same time, the case companies face different challenges when working with digital transformation within an International Manufacturing Network. Analysis and Discussion: Organizing for digital transformation includes various aspects such as structural changes, approaches, success factors, maturity models, roadmaps, and frameworks. Whereby, digital transformation can only be successful when applying a holistic perspective. When undergoing the digital transformation journey numerous challenges have to be faced. By analyzing those challenges, it becomes clear that the introduction of a network perspective increases the complexity of digital transformation.   Conclusion and Recommendations: By combining existing literature with a case study, it can be shown how companies currently organize for digital transformation and which aspects are important to consider. Furthermore, a comprehensive overview of potential challenges International Manufacturing Networks can face when working with digital transformation is provided. Hence, this thesis provides a means to develop a holistic understanding of organizing for digital transformation in International Manufacturing Networks. A complete case study is required in the future to validate the findings of this thesis.

Since the dawn of globalization, manufacturing companies around the world have been expanding their global footprint to stay competitive. International manufacturing network of a company consists of plants with different roles and responsibilities spread across different locations around the world. Due to this increasing geographical dispersion and competitiveness, effective co-ordination of these  plants has become a priority along with achieving effective and efficient operations. This led to the development of the Core plant role. Core plants are the manufacturing plants that aims to achieve competitive and effective production, generate and transfer knowledge, while leading and coordinating the other plants within the network.     However,  the core plant role varies significantly across companies and academia  due to a lack of a common understanding regarding  its responsibilities and objectives. Furthermore, the performance of core plants are being measured with the same generic KPIs  as the other plants, even though their roles and responsibilities varies significantly. As a result, it has become difficult to measure their true performance and contribution of value to the network. The purpose of this thesis is to contribute to the development of comprehensive performance  measurement system that collectively measures the true performance and value of the core plant role to its international manufacturing network. Initially, the thesis investigates and bridges the mentioned knowledge gap with a two-tier literature review, before establishing their validity and relative importance in empirical context through survey.  The survey approach is also utilized to assess the current situation of performance measurement among core plants of different manufacturing companies.   The  findings suggest that ‘attaining operational excellence’ has the highest strategic importance but  this responsibility  only extends to  individual plant level not the network level. The core plant, network level responsibility ‘knowledge generation’ has the highest relative strategic importance and ‘Capability development’ has the lowest relative  strategic importance. The findings also reveal that the performance measurement systems of network level  core plant responsibilities are either poorly developed or non-existent.  The thesis concludes with a suggestion of a conceptual framework that provides the guidelines to develop a comprehensive performance measurement system for core plants. The findings and suggestions are of practical relevance to the top management of international manufacturing companies and academia for conducting future research.

Production sites in international manufacturing networks tend to have different responsibilities and roles in the network. One common classification of plants is to divide the sites into one core plant and several other production units or subsidiaries, where the core plant has an active role in the creation and transfer of knowledge, innovation and know-how, concerning products and processes. Efficient knowledge management within the manufacturing network is seen as a key success factor for companies and consequently an issue of high strategic priority for firms. In a time where the firm's competitive advantage lies in the ability to efficiently transfer knowledge among the plants in the network, it becomes increasingly important for the core plant and its subsidiaries to possess the required capabilities to be able to address the complexity of knowledge management and successfully manage, transfer, receive and apply the knowledge. The aim of the study is therefore to explore how knowledge can be transferred from the core plant to its subsidiaries and which capabilities and prerequisites that are required by both the core plant and the subsidiaries to achieve an efficient knowledge transfer. To achieve the aim of the study, a literature review and a case study at GKN Aerospace has been performed, which included semi- structured interviews, observation and document studies. The case study explores knowledge management and knowledge transfers both from a general network perspective and through three applied knowledge transfers projects that have been performed at the case company. The studied projects are knowledge transfers and collaborations between the site in Trollhättan, which has a natural but informal role of supporting other sites in the network, and three different sites in the United states; El Cajon, Newington and Cincinnati. The empirical findings were categorized into two main parts; general knowledge transfers in the network and the specific projects. These findings were then compared to the theoretical framework in the analysis to provide a discussion around each research question. The analysis constitutes the foundation for the conclusions, discussion and recommendations. In the conclusion of this study the importance of formalizing the responsibilities and roles of the sites in a manufacturing network is highlighted. It is also crucial to assign a team of supporting experts, with the responsibility of performing and improving the knowledge sharing and transfer activities performed in the organization. To achieve a successful knowledge transfer between sites it is, further, essential to establish a clear and straightforward strategy in terms of knowledge management to facilitate the transfer and sharing in the network and reduce the complexity. Guidelines identified in this study, for working with knowledge transfers, are to use a structured process, a solid planning, assure the involvement of all parties and perform face- to- face meetings at the receiving site. / Fabriker i internationella tillverkningsnätverk tenderar att ha olika ansvarsområden och roller i nätverket. En vanlig klassificering är att dela in de i en core plant och flera andra produktionsenheter eller systerfabriker (subsidiaries) där core plant innehar en aktiv roll i skapandet och överföringen av kunskap, innovation och “know-how” när det kommer till produkter och processer. Effektiv knowledge management inom tillverkningsnätverket ses som en viktig framgångsfaktor för företag och är följaktligen en fråga med hög strategisk prioritet. I en tid då företagets konkurrensfördelar ligger i förmågan att effektivt överföra kunskap mellan produktionsenheterna i ett nätverk, blir det allt viktigare för core plant och dess systerfabriker att besitta de förmågor som krävs för att kunna hantera komplexiteten i knowledge management. Fabrikerna måste på ett framgångsrikt sätt kunna hantera, överföra, ta emot och tillämpa kunskapen. Syftet med studien är följaktligen att undersöka hur kunskap kan överföras från en core plant till dess systerfabriker samt de förmågor och förutsättningar som krävs av både core plant och systerfabrikerna för att uppnå en effektiv kunskapsöverföring. För att kunna uppnå syftet med studien har en litteraturstudie och en fallstudie, på GKN Aerospace, genomförts. Fallstudien inkluderar semi-strukturerade intervjuer, observationer och dokumentstudier. I fallstudien undersöks knowledge management och kunskapsöverföring både från ett generellt nätverksperspektiv och genom att studera tre tillämpade projekt som har genomförts på fallföretaget. De studerade projekten innefattar kunskapsöverföring och samarbete mellan fabriken i Trollhättan, som har en naturlig men informell roll i att stötta andra fabriker i nätverket, och tre olika produktionsenheter i USA; El Cajon, Newington och Cincinnati. De empiriska resultaten har kategoriserats i två huvuddelar; generella kunskapsöverföringar i nätverket samt de specifika projekten. Resultaten har sedan jämförts med studiens teoretiska referensram i en analys för att tillhandahålla en diskussion kring varje forskningsfråga. Analysen utgör grunden för studiens slutsatser, diskussion och rekommendationer. I studiens slutsatser lyfts betydelsen av att formalisera ansvar och fabrikers roller i ett nätverk. Det är också nödvändigt att tillsätta en grupp av supporterande experter med ansvaret att genomföra och förbättra kunskapsöverföringar samt dela och sprida kunskap inom organisationen. För att kunna uppnå en lyckad kunskapsöverföring mellan fabriker i nätverket är det, ytterligare, av vikt att etablera en tydligt och rättfram strategi i form av knowledge management för att underlätta kunskapsöverföring och -delning i nätverket samt för att reducera komplexiteten. Riktlinjer för att arbeta med kunskapsöverföringar, som har identifierats genom studien är användandet av en strukturerad genomförandeprocess, en gedigen planering, involverande av alla parter i kunskapsöverföringen samt att personligen träffa den mottagande arbetsgruppen på plats på den fabriken. / COPE - Core Plant Excellence