Collaborative Supply Research Articles

Buyer–Supplier Collaboration Quality in New Product Development Projects

Previous research has found that buyer–supplier collaboration in new product development can contribute to project success. Empirical evidence is mixed, however, and the concept of buyer–supplier collaboration is under‐developed. This work develops a new construct, buyer–supplier collaboration quality, defined as the extent to which a buyer and supplier exploit shared resources while minimizing waste through interacting during project planning and execution. We use resource dependence theory to formulate interfirm and project‐level antecedents of buyer–supplier collaboration quality and argue how it affects new product development project outcomes. Data from an empirical survey of 214 buying organizations validate the measurement structure of the new construct and support its positive associations with design quality and project efficiency. We also find that goal congruence, complementary capabilities and interfirm coordination efforts increase buyer–supplier collaboration quality, while interfirm relationship‐specific investment reduces it.

The Impact of Supplier Relationship Management on Competitive Performance of Manufacturing Firms

Supplier Relationship Management is very important for manufacturing firms as it can ensure the supply of reliable and frequent deliveries in today's dynamic and competitive environment. For such relationship to be effective and long-term, it has to be beneficial for all parties, the buying and the supplier firms. This study attempts to examine the impact of supplier relationship management (SRM) on competitive performance in the manufacturing sector. Based on the literature review, we measure SRM through five main practices: supplier quality improvement, trust-based relationship with suppliers, supplier lead time reduction, supplier collaboration in new product development, and supplier partnership/development. We measure competitive performance through cost, quality, flexibility, delivery, and on time product launch. Using international data collected in Japan, Korea, USA, and Italy as part of round 3 of High Performance Manufacturing (HPM) project, and After using statistical package of social sciences (SPSS) to describe and analyze the data, the results show that two practices of supplier relationship management, supplier partnership/development and supplier lead time reduction significantly and positively affect the competitive performance of the buying firms. Discussion and conclusion are provided based on the results of this study.

Identifying innovative suppliers in business networks: An empirical study

In the literature, considerable attention has been given to the role of supplying firms in the context of innovation. However, not every supplier is capable of contributing to a buyer's innovation performance. In addition, the willingness and commitment of suppliers to collaborate with buyers is not always apparent. Thus far, the literature has not given a conclusive description of the nature of innovative suppliers due to a lack of empirical evidence. In this study, we seek to identify a set of characteristics that can identify those suppliers that can make significant contributions to a buyer–supplier collaboration. Our statistical analysis of survey data shows that a supplier's technical characteristics and collaborative attitude, and the buyer–supplier relational characteristics on buyer–supplier relationships explain an important part of a supplier's contribution to buyer innovation. At a theoretical level, the findings of this study explain why some suppliers contribute more effectively than others to buyer–supplier innovations. At a practical level, the findings provide managers with a more complete picture of those suppliers with the highest expected innovation contribution in their network.

KNOWNET: Exploring Interactive Knowledge Networking across Insurance Supply Chains

Social media has become an extremely powerful phenomenon with millions of users who post status updates, blog, links and pictures on social networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. However, social networking has so far spread mainly among consumers. Businesses are only now beginning to acknowledge the benefits of using social media to enhance employee and supplier collaboration to support new ideas and innovation through knowledge sharing across functions and organizational boundaries. Many businesses are still trying to understand the various implications of integrating internal communication systems with social media tools and private collaboration and networking platforms. Indeed, a current issue in organizations today is to explore the value of social media mechanisms across a range of functions within their organizations and across their supply chains.The KNOWNET project (an EC funded Marie Curie IAPP) seeks to assess the value of social networking for knowledge exchange across Insurance supply chains. A key objective of the project being to develop and build a web based interactive environment - a Supplier Social Network or SSN, to support and facilitate exchange of good ideas, insights, knowledge, innovations etc across a diverse group of suppliers within a multi level supply chain within the Insurance sector.

Integrated dynamic scheduling of material flows and distributed information services in collaborative cyber-physical supply networks

An original model for dynamic scheduling of information services and material flows in collaborative cyber-physical supply networks is stated and solved with the help of the structure dynamics control approach. The proposed service-oriented description makes it possible to coordinate the availability of information services and material process schedules simultaneously. It also becomes possible to determine the volume of information services needed for the physical supply processes. In addition, the impact of disruptions in information services on the schedule execution in the physical structure is analysed. The results provide a base for information service scheduling according to an actual physical process execution.

A Relationship Analysis between Green Supply Chain Management and its Performance: A Path Analytic Model

This paper proposes and empirically tests a model of the relationship between green supply chain management (GSCM) practices and corporate performance. Based on a literature review, we identified five determinants, namely, environmental commitment, supplier collaboration, supplier assessment, information sharing among suppliers, and business process improvement that are used as determinants in a structural model which influence environmental and economic performance. The model was analyzed using the data from a survey of sample of Japanese manufacturing firms. The results suggest that the degree of supplier collaboration has an influence on the environmental performance directly. Meanwhile, the impact of supplier assessment on the environmental performance is mediated by the information sharing and/or business process improvement. Furthermore, we find positive relationship between environmental performance and economic performance.

A Business Process Modelling Approach to Improve OEM and Supplier Collaboration

Nowadays, Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) are facing fast changes in technological advancement. These changes encourage them to be more innovative and to offer their Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) quality products with ever shorter deadlines, which is not an easy task. This project (BENEFITS) aims to provide innovative solutions to keep the most exploitable SME’s skills within its local regions. This paper focuses on Business Process Modeling (BPM) and process interactions during the development phases of innovative products. Due to the specific needs and requirements in terms of Product Lifecycle Management (PLM)-based solutions for SMEs and OEMs, this work explores the relationship between them and their suppliers, based on ICT technologies and focuses on SMEs adoption of PLM. Such relationship needs the Business Process Modeling and Notation (BPMN) for representing all tasks that must be done for the collaborative process planning. Two existing information models (NIST and PPRO) serve as an information model to investigate the way of implementing design processes in the context of PLM.

Re-examining the structure of supplier stratification matrix: a focus on differential value and relationship

This paper explores current empirical practice in supplier stratification management, focusing on how suppliers are stratified and how to manage these supplier segments differentially by using common evaluation criteria. Using information gathered through interviews of senior managers of supplier relationship management from 15 companies and extensive literature search, this paper proposes a new framework on supplier stratification that addresses the weakness in existing stratification conceptualisation. A survey was also conducted to evaluate the relative importance placed on different evaluation criteria when evaluating different supplier segments. Factor analysis reveals that all these evaluation criteria are indeed determined by two factors: purchasing value and relationship. Our analyses further show that, for purchasing value: strategic suppliers have the highest value, followed in decreasing order by custom, collaborative, and finally commodity suppliers. For relationship: strategic suppliers are distinctly the most important segment, followed by collaborative and custom suppliers, and finally commodity suppliers.

Variation of purchasing's involvement: case studies of supplier collaborations in new product development

Firms are increasingly involving suppliers in new product development (NPD) and one reason for this is to access technological knowledge. Previous research argues that purchasing fulfils an important role in involving the suppliers in NPD. However, purchasing's role under technological uncertainty has not been investigated in detail. The purpose of this paper is to explore purchasing's role in technology selection, supplier selection and level of participation in NPD projects involving suppliers. Three NPD projects at one large high-tech firm are studied. The results show that purchasing has limited influence in the technology selection process, but fulfils an important role in the selection of the supplier and has a role as a trouble-shooter throughout the collaborative NPD projects. Purchasing does not necessarily need to be involved in solving daily, routine problems, but serves as a trouble-shooter to solve problems related to the supplier's strategy, the relationship with the supplier, and commitment issues.

Supplier and customer involvement in NPD performance of Iranian dairy HTBFs

Supply chain management (SCM) and new product development (NPD) collaboration has an important role in creation of sustainable competitive advantage in companies for retaining in competitive market. One of the best strategies to obtain competitive advantage and reduce the failure rate of new product development in food industry is co-operation with suppliers and customers that in this research we have discussed. In this paper, an effect of Supplier and customer involvement in NPDP performance of Iranian dairy HTBFs is investigated. Then questionnaire was distributed among 120 Iranian managers in the dairy companies that 102 questionnaires were suitable. Based on the results, significant impact of supplier collaboration on the cost, innovation and speed of new product development was confirmed and significant impact of customer involvement on innovation and cost of new product development were confirmed serious. However, a significant impact of customer involvement on NPDS was not confirmed.

Collaboration capacity for sustainable supply chain management: small and medium-sized enterprises in Mexico

Abstract Sustainability calls for multi-stakeholder initiatives; hence a requirement for implementing sustainable management approaches is the capacity of different actors to collaborate with each other. This research tested a theoretical model of collaboration capacity as a multi-dimensional organisational construct to gauge cleaner production implementation within supply chains. The construct measured operational, cooperative, and communicative routines of small and medium-sized firms to design, implement and communicate the results of cleaner production projects. Assessment focused on the collaboration capacity of 177 suppliers that participated in the Mexican Sustainable Supply Programme from 2005 to 2008. The results of the study revealed how a supplier's collaboration capacity is influenced by characteristics of firms and managers, such as the firm's sector, the number of participating managers and their profiles. Following collaboration theory reasoning, the empirical findings support the notion that collaboration may contribute to inter-organisational dynamics by strengthening knowledge absorption capacity, structuring solutions, and motivating activity around a commonly defined problem or goal such as cleaner production. Therefore, collaboration capacity is essential for effective implementation of cleaner production. Such cleaner production actions provide competitive advantages for sustainable supply chain management.

The value to blood establishments of supplier quality audit and of adopting a European Blood Alliance collaborative approach.

The assessment of suppliers of critical goods and services to European blood establishments is a regulatory requirement proving difficult to resource. This study was to establish whether European Blood Alliance member blood services could collaborate to reduce the cost of auditing suppliers without diminishing standards. Five blood services took part, each contributing a maximum of one qualified auditor per audit (rather than the usual two). Four audits were completed involving eight auditors in total to a European Blood Alliance agreed policy and process using an audit scope agreed with suppliers. Audits produced a total of 22 observations, the majority relating to good manufacturing practice and highlighted deficiencies in processes, procedures and quality records including complaints' handling, product recall, equipment calibration, management of change, facilities' maintenance and monitoring and business continuity. Auditors reported that audits had been useful to their service and all audits prompted a positive response from suppliers with satisfactory corrective action plans where applicable. Audit costs totalled € 3,438 (average € 860 per audit) which is no more than equivalent traditional audits. The four audit reports have been shared amongst the five participating blood establishments and benefitted 13 recipient departments in total. Previously, 13 separate audits would have been required by the five blood services. Collaborative supplier audit has proven an effective and efficient initiative that can reduce the resource requirements of both suppliers and individual blood service's auditing costs. Collaborative supplier audit has since been established within routine European Blood Alliance management practice.

Effect of Supplier and Customer Collaboration on Product Innovativeness: A Focus on Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMES) in Kenya

This study investigated the effect of supplier and customers’ collaboration on product innovativeness in manufacturing SMEs. Using a cross sectional survey design with a sample size of 196, a standard multiple linear regression (MLR) was performed between product innovativeness as the dependent variable and the dimensions of supplier and customer collaboration, as independent variables. The results of the supplier collaboration regression indicated that the predictors explained 45.1% of the variance (R 2 =.477, Adj R 2 =.451), F (6, 119) = 18.115, p < .001; t=1.995.; that of customer collaboration indicated that the predictors explained 38.8% of the variance (R 2 = .388, Adj R 2 = .358), F (6, 119) = 12.597, p < .001; t=6.441. Understanding customer needs is the only dimension that significantly contributed positively to predicting PI (B = 1.169, p = .056) t=1.930. It is concluded that supplier dimensions of win-win relationships, deep suppliers trust, expertise from suppliers and support in product launch will positively predict PI. Similarly, customer collaboration dimension of deep understanding of customer needs will positively predict PI. The researchers recommend the setting up of SMEs support policies that promote collaborations in research for purposes of sharing information / accessing the diverse knowledge base on new product design, development and production.

Adoption of green supply chain management practices and their impact on performance: an exploratory study of Indian manufacturing firms

Research on green supply chain management (GSCM) or sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has attracted increased attention in recent years. Although GSCM/SSCM has been studied for developed and developing countries, there has been little information about the adoption of GSCM/SSCM practices in India. This article presents one of the earliest surveys on GSCM practices in Indian manufacturing firms. The items for the survey were developed based on the extant literature and feedback from corporates. Some of the major findings of the survey are as follows. We found that the state of adoption of GSCM practices by Indian firms was still in its infancy, the awareness of environmental sustainability was quite low among consumers, and the regulatory framework was also lacking in terms of promoting environmental sustainability. Results of data analysis showed that supplier collaboration for environmental sustainability had a positive impact on environmentally sustainable product design and logistics, which in turn was positively related to competitiveness and economic performance of the firm. We compared the results with the observations made by other researchers for developed and developing countries and provided managerial implications for the government and manufacturers as to what steps need to be taken to generate awareness towards environmental sustainability and facilitate the adoption of GSCM practices among Indian firms to a greater extent. We conclude the paper by indicating directions for future research on GSCM/SSCM.

Developing a business process for product development

Purpose – Organizations are identifying strategic supply chain relationships as a major source for competitive advantage. Interest in the concept is becoming prevalent in many industries, including new product development within the engineering sector. Collaborative supplier relationships are being used in new product development as a tool to share the development burden and reduce the development life cycle. The purpose of this paper is to develop a business process to act as a roadmap for optimum supplier integration.Design/methodology/approach – An Engineering case organisation (Genco Inc.) is explored to provide an understanding of the extent and timing of supplier involvement, within new product development. Subsequently a high level business process is developed to govern early supplier integration, within a product development phase gate model.Findings – The findings suggest and the business model strives to create a more holistic view of supplier integration; extending the scope beyond the individ...

Connecting product design, process and supply chain decisions to strengthen global supply chain capabilities

The importance of product design as a main determinant of process design has been emphasized in operations management literature for decades, but the direct and indirect impacts of product design on process and supply chain activities is a research area that has received less attention to date. This multiple case study addresses this research gap by assessing how and why changes in product design shape process and supply chain practices and in particular, how these changes influence global supply chain behavior and capabilities.Utilizing a 3DCE theory base, multiple manufacturing case studies are compared and contrasted to examine the interrelationships and dependencies among product, process and supply chain behaviors and capabilities. Product design changes were found to alter the scope and scale of process and supply chain modifications in specific ways that alter firms' competitive product design customization capabilities and competencies; flexible, advanced process technologies; and collaborative supplier practices.This study contributes to operations management literature by providing a rich empirical analysis of operations system interplay. The study develops substantive research propositions and a 3DCE theoretical framework that may be used to drive future operations management research and in addition, provides managerial insights that can be used to strengthen supply chain capabilities in a global and dynamic context.

Supply chain operational risk mitigation: a collaborative approach

Along with increasing supply chain risks due to economic and environmental changes, it is imperative to answer the question of how to reduce supply chain risks. This study examines supply chain collaboration as a risk mitigation strategy. The study examines three types of risks, namely supply risk, demand risk and process risk in relation to three types of collaboration, namely supplier collaboration, customer collaboration and internal collaboration, as a mechanism to mitigate those risks. The proposed relationship model is tested with data collected from 203 manufacturing companies in Australia. The results show that each area of collaboration effectively reduces its respective supply chain risk, but only the mitigation of process risk and demand risk has a direct effect on supply chain performance. In addition, both supply risk and demand risk increase process risk. We offer theoretical and practical implications of the findings.

Harnessing value in knowledge management for performance in buyer–supplier collaboration

This study aims to investigate how different knowledge-management processes (i.e. knowledge acquisition and dissemination) affect the manufacturers’ performance in collaborative economic exchanges with their suppliers. Drawing upon the knowledge based view and transaction cost economics, this study proposes that knowledge-management processes are positively related to the performance of the manufacturers in a collaborative buyer–supplier relationship. It also posits that this link is stronger when the levels of supply-chain integration and relational stability are higher rather than lower. The findings of this study show strong support for these propositions. Theoretical and practical contributions of this study are also addressed.

Knowledge sharing and creation in supplier–supplier collaboration

To fulfill buyers' increasingly sophisticated procurement needs, suppliers often collaborate with partners that possess complementary skills and knowledge. Collaborative partnerships enable suppliers to create knowledge together and develop superior products or services for the buyer. The literature, however, has paid limited attention to the drivers of knowledge sharing and creation between the supplier partners in such collaborations. Drawing on multiple theoretical perspectives, this paper develops and tests a conceptual model of knowledge sharing and creation between two suppliers when they collaborate to serve a buyer. Survey data collected from 129 supplier firms lend strong empirical support to the conceptual model. Structural equation modeling results show that knowledge sharing and creation between supplier partners depends not only on supplier–dyad factors (past collaborative history, relationship-specific investments, and knowledge base compatibility) but also on buyer factors (buyer governance, relationship closeness with the buyer, and interdependence with the buyer). This research expands the literature by showing the influence of the buyer on its suppliers' knowledge sharing and collaborative behavior in a buyer–supplier–supplier triad.

Motivational Antecedents of Buyer-Supplier Collaboration in New Product Development Projects (WITHDRAWN)

Inter-firm collaboration has become an increasingly popular vehicle for new product de-velopment, however, high failure rates point to the need of further exploring its underlying mech- anisms. In this vein, Hoegl and Wagner (2005) have demonstrated the importance of teamwork quality for buyer- supplier collaboration in new product development teams. Relying on equity theory, we argue that equity perceptions form the motivational base for joint collaboration. However, buyers and suppliers show different levels of equity sensitivity depending on the nature of the goods exchanged. In particular, we argue that buyers and suppliers are equity sensitive when it comes to tangible goods, but favor being over-rewarded when it comes to intangible goods. Data based on 65 buyer-supplier new product development teams, depicting the buyer and the supplier perspective, shows, that joint collaboration is fostered when both, the buyer and the supplier perceive equity in terms of tangible goods. As for intangible goods, it is only the buyer’s perception of being over-rewarded driving joint collaboration. Managerial and theoretical impli-cations are discussed. Our results point to the importance of cooperative instead of exploitative business relations in buyer-supplier collaboration, thus addressing this years’ academy theme “Capitalism in Question”.