Beyond Individual Skills: Cultivating Competence Synergies in Thai Automotive Production

Noppong, S, Ong, CE ORCID: 0000-0002-4470-390X, Teoh, SY and Lau, C (2025) Beyond Individual Skills: Cultivating Competence Synergies in Thai Automotive Production. Employee Relations, 47 (9). pp. 147-172. ISSN 0142-5455

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Abstract

Purpose - This study aims to understand and model how individual competences are developed and utilized within small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises (SMEs) in the Thai automotive sector, highlighting the role these competences play in enhancing organizational competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach - Employing a grounded theory methodology, this study analyzes data from in-depth interviews with 30 participants (10 owners and 20 employees). The research systematically categorizes competences and investigates their synergistic effects on organizational performance. Findings - Identifies key competences such as inquisitiveness, functional, emotional intelligence, and integration competences. It is found that these competences, when combined, lead to synergistic effects that significantly enhance employee performance and organizational efficiency. Originality/value – The study contributes novel insights into the competence-based theory of firm competitiveness in emerging markets, particularly by demonstrating how individual competences interact to produce greater collective capabilities within SMEs. Keywords Supply chain management, Competence development, Employee competence, Grounded theory, Thai automotive SMEs.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact permissions@emerald.com
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HF Commerce > HF5001 Business
Divisions:	Liverpool Business School
Publisher:	Emerald
Date of acceptance:	23 December 2024
Date of first compliant Open Access:	4 July 2025
Date Deposited:	30 Jan 2025 13:06
Last Modified:	04 Jul 2025 11:00
DOI or ID number:	10.1108/ER-07-2024-0379
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/25499

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