Relationships between supply chain capabilities, competitive advantages, and business performance: an exploratory study of the food industry in Vietnam

Abstract

Relationships between supply chain management (SCM) practices and business performance have been discussed and investigated widely, making substantial contributions to the body of knowledge. SCM is a key success for business improvement. The Vietnamese food industry is a rapid growing industry and can dominate several food export sectors with sustainable competitive advantages in the world. This study examines the relationships between supply chain management capabilities and competitive advantages towards business performance in the Vietnamese food industry. The data were gathered from conducted surveys with 302 food manufacturing companies in Vietnam, and the model was tested by using structural equation modelling (SEM). The empirical results provide significant evidence to support that supply chain capabilities play an important role in the improvement of business to a certain degree. They have both direct and indirect effects on business performance through competitive advantages, which are related to each other, following the sand cone model.