Abstract
Background: Supply chains in South Africa operate in a challenging business environment. This environment influences the efficiency and effectiveness of South African businesses and supply chains. These factors further influence the competitiveness of products produced in the country, the economic growth and development of South Africa.Objectives: The purpose of this study was two-fold: Firstly, to obtain insight into the main business environment risks and other factors, from a logistics perspective; and secondly, to demonstrate the use of methodology not often used in logistics research − the sequential mixed method.Method: The explorative study was conducted amongst logistics service providers and cargo owners in 2013 by means of a sequential mixed method study, consisting of a survey to determine the importance of risk factors in the business environment, followed by a qualitative study in the form of a focus group discussion to obtain richer data and insight into these risks and factors. The results of these two methods were integrated with industry literature.Results: It was found that increasing transportation costs, operational management of infrastructure and human resources-related problems pose the biggest challenges in the logistics industry. In addition, it was found that the mixed method research study has application possibilities in logistics research.Conclusion: The factors identified as particularly problematic for the logistics industry, namely ineffective operational management of infrastructure, the general conditions in the labour market and increasing costs (to some extent) are outside the control of individual organisations. However, organisations can control how they react and mitigate these risk factors. It is shown that these factors and risks can change overnight. The use of the explorative mixed method in obtaining qualitative and quantitative inputs and integrating it with existing literature proved to be a workable and usable methodology.
Highlights
There is a critical need for the improvement of South Africa’s freight transportation system, based on the vulnerability of the country’s logistics performance and competitiveness, as it relates to transport costs. (Simpson & Havenga 2012:51)if one looks at the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) of South Africa the situation does not look too bad
This article reported on a sequential mixed method study that had been conducted in the logistics industry
In the first part of the study – the survey – it was found that operational inefficiencies of infrastructure, lack of sufficiently educated and skilled human resources, increasing transportation cost and labour relations in the industry are the most important factors or risks in the business environment
Summary
Chains in South Africa operate in a challenging business environment. This environment influences the efficiency and effectiveness of South African businesses and supply chains. These factors further influence the competitiveness of products produced in the country, the economic growth and development of South Africa
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