Unboxing the hyper-connected supply chain: a case study in the furniture industry

Abstract

This work aims to investigate the role of digital technologies, specifically enhanced interconnectivity, in supply chains (SC)s and their management. With a case study of an international company leading the home furniture industry and its suppliers, we explore the development of (new and integrated) practices and routines in operational processes for heading to a hyper-connected SC. The study builds on the notion of absorptive capacity to frame the SC transformation brought by the assimilation of specific digital technologies (i.e. Internet of Things, Cloud-based platforms, Augmented and Virtual Reality, and Artificial Intelligence). We analyze how SC actors combine these technologies to develop their SC processes and routines in terms of real-time data exchange and end-to-end visibility between globally distributed companies, devices, products, and people. Key theoretical implications rely on identifying interconnection levels across SC processes that allow incorporating technological knowledge at the SC level, building on trustful collaboration and secure and reliable communications beyond the boundaries of every single factory. Results also provide practitioners with a set of collaborative practices and related challenges to integrate digital technologies at different (and complementary) levels as guidelines for a transformation towards SC hyper-connectivity aimed at improving the overall SC performance.