Abstract
Supply chain management has a critical role in steering business success through coordinated activities of the value chain partners. The success of fast-moving consumer goods companies (FMCGs) has a direct relationship with the performance of the leading retailers, which are their main channel of distribution. The supply chain of the leading South African food FMCGs and the corresponding retail chain stores was studied with the aim of establishing that collaboration and integration enhanced the response to the customers’ requirements. The study was grounded on collaboration and integration theory, and a qualitative research methodology was used. Non-probability sampling was used, and senior managers selected from the two types of firms were interviewed. The data collected was transcribed, coded and thematically interpreted using content analysis. The outcome of the study indicated that supply chain collaboration and integration of the FMCG retailers, enhanced response to the customers’ requirements.
Highlights
The business environment has become more competitive with the complexity of supplier– customer relationships, globalisation and a demand-driven approach that requires agile and resilient supply chains (Linton 2013)
A survey in South Africa conducted by Supply Chain Foresight found three top priorities shared by South African business executives and supply chain managers: the need to increase margins, the need to increase supply chain competitiveness, and the need to increase flexibility and responsiveness (Barloworld Logistics 2014)
Chain performance has become a critical factor in business success, and its improvement has become a focus for several firms (Huo et al 2014)
Summary
The business environment has become more competitive with the complexity of supplier– customer relationships, globalisation and a demand-driven approach that requires agile and resilient supply chains (Linton 2013). A survey in South Africa conducted by Supply Chain Foresight found three top priorities shared by South African business executives and supply chain managers: the need to increase margins (increase prices and reduce costs), the need to increase supply chain competitiveness, and the need to increase flexibility and responsiveness (Barloworld Logistics 2014) These priorities were linked to the outcomes from lean or agile supply chain initiatives. Lean and resilient (agile) supply chain practices are being implemented by various firms to improve the supply chain performance as companies compete more through the effectiveness and efficiency of their supply chains (Cabral, Grilo & Cruz-Machado 2012) In this instance, three supply chain (SC) terms are stipulated: lean – balancing quality and response without sacrificing quantity objectives; resilient – the ability to return to a position of equilibrium after experiencing some form of deviation from expectations; and agile – the ability to respond quickly to unpredictable changes in customer needs by reconfiguring operations. Lean supply chain initiatives use the lean concepts of reduction of non-value-adding activities to eliminate waste, reduce costs and shorten the supply chain lead times (Carvalho, Duarte & Machado 2011)
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