Supply Chain Partners Research Articles

The role of digital platforms in e-commerce food supply chain resilience under exogenous disruptions

PurposeOperational risks can cause considerable, atypical disturbances and impact food supply chain (SC) resilience. Indicatively, the COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions in the UK food services as nationwide stockouts led to unprecedented discrepancies between retail and home-delivery supply capacity and demand. To this effect, this study aims to examine the emergence of digital platforms as an innovative instrument for food SC resilience in severe market disruptions.Design/methodology/approachAn interpretive multiple case-study approach was used to unravel how different generations of e-commerce food service providers, i.e. established and emergent, responded to the need for more resilient operations during the COVID-19 pandemic.FindingsSC disruption management for high-impact low-frequency events requires analysing four research elements: platformisation, structural variety, process flexibility and system resource efficiency. Established e-commerce food operators use partner onboarding and local waste valorisation to enhance resilience. Instead, emergent e-commerce food providers leverage localised rapid upscaling and product personalisation.Practical implicationsDigital food platforms offer a highly customisable, multisided digital marketplace wherein platform members may aggregate product offerings and customers, thus sharing value throughout the network. Platform-induced disintermediation allows bidirectional flows of data and information among SC partners, ensuring compliance and safety in the food retail sector.Originality/valueThe study contributes to the SC configuration and resilience literature by investigating the interrelationship among platformisation, structural variety, process flexibility and system resource efficiency for safe and resilient food provision within exogenously disrupted environments.

Kinerja rantai pasok PT. X dalam upaya peningkatan keberlanjutan dan responsivitas agroindustri kelapa sawit

The supply chain of the palm oil agro-industry is quite complicated and lengthy and involves many actors. This causes supply chain performance to be less than optimal. In addition, it also raises doubts applying the principle of sustainability in its business activities. Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the performance of the supply chain of the palm oil agro-industry to know the actual conditions at the moment and to identify existing problems and opportunities for improvement. Thus, the right strategy can be formulated to increase the sustainability and responsiveness of the palm oil agro-industry. This study aims to identify the condition of the palm oil agro-industry supply chain mechanism and analyze the performance of the palm oil agro-industry supply chain so that improvement strategies can be formulated. Analysis of the supply chain performance of the palm oil agro-industry was determined using the Supply Chain Operation Reference (SCOR) method by weighting the results of the Analytical Hierarchy Process questionnaire (AHP) to obtain the supply chain. The results showed that the supply chain structure of the palm oil agro-industry consisted of farmers, transportation, palm oil mills, private partners, distributors, and consumers. Analysis of the performance of supply chain actors in the palm oil agro-industry is primarily in the medium and above average categories. Improving supply chain performance needs to be emphasized at each stage of the planning process with reliability performance attributes and performance indicators in the form of accuracy in predicting the number of requests. Alternative strategies that are prioritized to improve supply chain performance are increasing the competence of human resources and supply chain partnerships.

Supply chain collaboration, agility and firm performance: a case of manufacturing SMEs in India

PurposeThe dynamic business environment and intense competition have mandated agility in operations for manufacturing firms. Effective inter-organizational collaboration can make operations more agile. This paper develops an interpretive model to explore the effect of supply chain collaboration (SCC) on supply chain agility (SCA) and, subsequently, on business performance.Design/methodology/approachA hierarchical model that illustrates the relationship between SCC, SCA and firm performance components is developed using total interpretative structural modeling (TISM). Also, statistical validation of the model has been performed.FindingsThe results indicate that the vision and alertness of the firm on the strategic front promote collaboration between supply chain partners. This creates operational agility, helping the firm to absorb fluctuations in demand, thereby enhancing business performance.Research limitations/implicationsThe opinion of most respondents was considered to develop the TISM framework over the fuzzy one, which necessitates a significantly more extensive data set. However, multiple discussions with participants can eliminate the prejudice of the majority approach. Also, the paper's development and validation were restricted to Indian manufacturing small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The model can potentially be evaluated in large organizations to provide further insights.Originality/valueThe study blends the factors of SCC and SCA in a novel way to explain their combined impact on business performance. The TISM model addresses the “why” of theory development in addition to the “what” and “how” of it. Using triangulation in combination with the interpretative tool, this study additionally offers methodological value.

Optimizing Supply Chain Resilience in the Era of Global Disruptions: A Comprehensive Framework for Effective Risk Management

In the contemporary global business environment, characterized by increasing interconnectivity and frequent disruptions, supply chain resilience has become paramount for organizational success. This thesis introduces a comprehensive framework aimed at optimizing supply chain resilience amidst such challenges. Drawing from extensive literature, theoretical models, and empirical research, the framework emphasizes proactive risk identification, robust mitigation strategies, and agile response mechanisms. It stresses collaboration, information sharing, and alignment among supply chain partners, leveraging technology for enhanced visibility and adaptability. Additionally, the framework underscores the significance of organizational culture, leadership, and employee empowerment in fostering resilience. Through empirical validation and case studies, practical insights are provided, addressing challenges like resource allocation and sustainability integration. Moreover, the thesis explores emerging trends such as climate change impacts and technological advancements, guiding organizations towards future-proofing their supply chains.

Decision framework for public-private partnership in agricultural commodities

Public-private partnerships are critical to advancing sustainability in the agricultural sector and increasing global food security. Partnerships are a means of increasing productivity and encouraging growth in the agricultural sector. The Partnership encourages private sector participation to reduce risks that occur in the agricultural sector. The aim of this research is to understand how supply chains are configured, to identify drivers of supply chain partnerships and to synthesize partnership strategies. Currently, agricultural areas in East Java are trying to build sustainable partnerships to improve farmers’ abilities in managing the agricultural sector. By using data from surveys and observations of 50 private companies and 50 farmers spread across the research object locations, it was found that there was quite a significant interaction between intensive coordination, partnership quality, quantity and quality of partners. The mechanisms used in partnerships can encourage sustainable agricultural management. It is hoped that the implementation of these findings can encourage partnerships between the private sector and the public sector to achieve significant development. It is hoped that this partnership can play an important role in addressing agricultural problems. Partnerships are formed to create shared values in the form of an institutional framework to address the root of problems.

INVESTIGATING BARRIERS IN GREEN SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

The Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) has emerged in today’s scenario in response to the growing concern of environmental sustainability. Green Supply Chain is a term that has it’s importance in the entire supply chain starting from the designing of the product to raw material procurement to manufacturing of the product to distribution and until the end-of-life of the product. It’s main aim is to minimize the negative impact of the supply chain activities and also to maximize the efficiency of resources along with reduction of the waste generation. There are a number of challenges in implementing green practices in the organization, which include the need for cooperation, collaboration and coordination among the partners of supply chain and also the need to identify the cost-effective green practices and technologies. There are a number of strategies which have been proposed to address the challenges faced. These include packaging which is eco-friendly, the concept of reverse logistics etc. The organizations which adopt the green supply chain practices in their organizations, gain various types of benefits from it. These benefits include savings in the costs as there is reduction in the consumption and also waste generation. The brand image of the organization is enhanced by the adoption of green practices and there is increase in the customer loyalty etc. Companieswhich use green supply chain management in their supply chain include Johnson and Johnson, Ford, Adidas, Nestle, Coca-Cola, Tesla etc. The adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) faces multiple challenges including financial barriers, lack of awareness and supplier engagement, and regulatory complexity, while cultural resistance and technological limitations also impede its implementation. Success relies on top management support and overcoming these hurdles to develop sustainable practices across the entire supply chain.

Social capital and supply chain relationships

AbstractWe examine the role of social capital in influencing decisions pertaining to buyer–supplier relationships. We report that firms make larger relationship‐specific investments when their supply chain partners are headquartered in states with high social capital. This result is more pronounced when supply chain partners have incentives to engage in opportunistic behavior. Furthermore, the duration of supply chain relationships is longer when the firm and its supply chain partner are both headquartered in high social capital states, and when the partner invests in relationship‐specific assets. Collectively, the evidence suggests that social norms reflecting trustworthiness facilitate investment and stability along supply chains.

An Empirical Analysis of the Moderating Effect of Organizational Context on the Relationship between Leadership Process and Effectiveness of Freight Forwarding Firms in Nairobi City County, Kenya

Highly competitive and fast shifting market conditions require business enterprises to possess superior organizational capabilities for success. Previous studies have identified persistent challenges including leadership processes and complex work environments as constraints to organizational success. The freight forwarding sector in Kenya grapples with challenges related to high operational costs, poor co-ordination, and rapid developments in information technology and related insecurity. Literature on organizational leadership has neither addressed nor empirically tested the dimensions of gauging effectiveness of freight forwarding firms. Specifically, there is lack of empirical investigation linking organizational context with leadership process and effectiveness of freight forwarding firms. This study sought to investigate the moderating effect of organizational context on the relationship between leadership process (tactical, strategic, and situational influence) and effectiveness of freight forwarding firms in Nairobi City County, Kenya. Through a mixed methods approach, the study adopted explanatory sequential design anchored on the Balanced Score Card model, Institutional Theory and Structuralism Theory. Target population was 400 freight forwarding firms practicing in Nairobi City County, from which 276 respondents were selected through stratified random sampling. Quantitative data was collected through questionnaires with a response rate of 84% while qualitative data was collected from 10 key informants through in-depth interviews. Descriptive statistics used were frequencies, means and standard deviation, while regression analysis was used to test the study hypotheses. Qualitative data was subjected to thematic analysis. Results established that organizational context has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between leadership process and firm effectiveness. With leadership process viewed through input > processing > output logic, the external environment provides streams of opportunities in terms of inputs, which firms can harness to create competitive advantage and effectiveness. Findings demonstrated the link between leadership process, organizational context, and effectiveness. Management should entrench effective leadership process through active deployment of appropriate influence strategies to generate key capabilities and conducive work contexts. Government policies should promote collaborative approaches among supply chain partners. The study recommends future research to expand the conceptual, methodological, and contextual scope for more representative conclusions. Keywords: Freight Forwarding Firms, Leadership Process, Organizational Effectiveness, Organizational Context

Impact of uncertainty ascribed to defective products on supply chains

ABSTRACT Traditional inventory management has considered when and how much to order against the uncertainty of demand. Although many studies on inventory management have presumed that quality of products received from manufacturers is perfect, defective products would be, in actual, contained in the procurement to retailers. The inclusion of defective products causes the uncertainty in supply. The retailer does not necessarily require being responsible for all the loss by overstock and shortage of products due to the uncertainty ascribed to the inclusion of defective products. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of the uncertainty ascribed to the inclusion of defective products on a supply chain. This paper first has formulated a simple supply chain model with defective products composed of the manufacturer and retailer. The model has made it clear how the uncertainty ascribed to the inclusion of defective products has an impact on the order quantity and respective profits. Then, this paper has discussed a method of assessing a latent loss as a monetary value. Combining contract techniques and game theory, this paper has proposed a contracting method that the manufacturer compensates the retailer for the latent loss to maintain a supply chain partnership.

The impact of social capital on major customer supply chain power

We investigate the impact of regional social capital on firms' ability to attain bargaining power over their supply chain partners. Using ordinary least squares and instrumental variables estimations, we find a positive relationship between firm-level supply chain power and US county-level social capital. Additionally, we observe this positive effect to be stronger for firms in durable goods manufacturing and the services industry, but not for nondurable goods manufacturers. We conclude that firms headquartered in US counties with high social capital are preferred by suppliers, resulting in greater supply chain power.

Supplier–customer cultural similarity and supplier performance

Using a corporate culture measure based on the textual analysis of the Q&A section of earnings conference calls, we document robust evidence that similar corporate cultural values between supply chain partners improve the financial performance of suppliers. Consistent with the view that supplier–customer cultural similarity facilitates communication, promotes altruistic attitudes, and builds trust between trading partners, we find that culturally similar suppliers experience higher cost efficiency, fewer problems with underinvestment, and better innovation performance. Our results also indicate that cultural similarity benefits customers, although to a lesser extent. Overall, our study sheds new light on how inter-firm cultural similarity influences firm performance along the supply chain.

Safeguarding proprietary information in the supply chain and relationship‐specific investments

AbstractWe examine whether the risk of losing proprietary information through the supply chain affects relationship‐specific investment (RSI) decisions by supply chain partners. Using state courts' staggered adoption of the Inevitable Disclosure Doctrine (IDD) as a shock to the firm's ability to protect proprietary information, we find that customers increase RSI when their supplier is headquartered in a state that adopts IDD. The effect is more substantial for customers who face a higher risk of losing proprietary information and with suppliers that are difficult to substitute. IDD also plays a more prominent role in the absence of alternate mechanisms that reduce contracting frictions, such as shared directors, common ownership, or joint ventures. Our results are robust to using cross‐citation measures of RSI and alternative estimations that mitigate potential biases arising from the staggered difference‐in‐difference approach. Our findings suggest that proprietary information protection enables firms to reduce contracting frictions arising in supply chain relations.

Investigating the Adoption of Blockchain Technology in Agri-Food Supply Chains: Analysis of an Extended UTAUT Model

Against a backdrop of globalization, dynamic shifts in consumer demand, and climate change impact, the intricacies of agri-food supply chains have become increasingly convoluted, necessitating innovative measures to guarantee agri-food security and authenticity. Blockchain technology emerges as a promising solution, offering transparency, immutability, traceability, and efficiency in the overall supply chain. This study aims to investigate determinants impacting both the intention to use and the actual usage of blockchain-driven agri-food supply chain platforms. To achieve this, an expanded and adapted conceptual model rooted in the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) was formulated and empirically examined through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling using data from 175 respondents from agri-food companies across eight European countries. Agri-Food Supply Chain Partner Preparedness (FSCPP) emerged as the pivotal factor with the highest degree of influence on the intention to use blockchain-driven supply chain platforms. Additionally, the results from this study offer support for the significant influence of Performance Expectancy (PE), Effort Expectancy (EE), and Perceived Trust (PT) on usage intention, while also revealing the positive impact of Organizational Blockchain Readiness (OBR) on expected Usage Behavior (UB). This study provides significant insights into blockchain adoption within agri-food supply chains, contributing to the existing literature through an extended UTAUT framework.

A quantitative approach for evaluating the impact of increased supply chain visibility

Communication and collaboration between supply chain partners is more important than ever. To achieve this, visibility between different supply chain tiers is essential. Recent literature has discussed the benefits of increased supply chain visibility, but more research is necessary to provide concrete evidence. The main question this article aims to answer is about what parts of a supply chain are critical for establishing and increasing visibility. Toward this end, this study uses the amount of unmet customer demand as a performance measure, and performs simulations and empirical analysis on multi-tier supply chains of various sizes. Results indicate that the customers (i.e., downstream supply chain) are the most critical components, and the managers must focus on increasing visibility with them. In addition, visibility in the downstream can be nearly as effective as full visibility in specific settings: The maximum gap between the amounts of unmet demand for the two settings is about 7%. However, the main value of full visibility becomes more apparent when significant deviations exist between forecasted and actual customer demand amounts. As the experiments demonstrate, full visibility in the entire supply chain is the most effective level of visibility.

ICT, Supply Chain Digital Integration Capability, and Firm Financial Performance: The Antagonistic Effects of Perceived Government Support and Cognitive Constraints on Digital Transformation

While awareness among managers regarding the benefits of digital transformation in supply chain management has grown, many Chinese SMEs have not fully embraced this shift due to ineffective ICT investments, a lack of effective government support, and the presence of related cognitive challenges. Leveraging a sample of 302 SMEs in China, the study employs SEM techniques to validate the direct effect of ICTs on the digital integration capability, and the relationship between the digital integration capability and firm financial performance. Furthermore, the LMS technique is applied to investigate the moderating role of government support and cognitive constraints within these relationships. Result shows that: (1) ICTs positively affect firm’s supply chain digital integration capability; (2) firm’s supply chain digital integration capability positively affects firm financial performance; (3) perceived government support exhibits an antagonistic effect, hindering the promotion of supply chain digital integration capabilities through ICT infrastructures; (4) Certain cognitive constraints related to digital transformation act as negative moderators within the digital transformation process. Through the exploration of two previously overlooked factors, namely perceived government support and cognitive constraints related to digital transformation, our research contributes to a deepened understanding of dynamic capability theory, social cognitive theory, and organizational inertia theory. Our findings suggest that government policymakers must reassess the effectiveness and objectives of policies in the digital transformation journey. Furthermore, firms are urged to acknowledge and address the potential adverse effects of cognitive constraints within their organizations and among their supply chain partners. Emphasizing the importance of digital integration capability is also crucial.

Greening Service Capacity in Telecom Supply Chain under Environmental Regulation

Comprehensive understandings about how to realize service capability greenness in the telecom sector are still rare. In this paper, a non-serial telecom supply chain consisting of an infrastructure supplier, a content provider and a telecom operator is formulated under environmental regulation. The telecom operator aims to find the optimal green procurement ratio between traditional and green equipment. Some common real-life situations are assumed, and the service capacity greenness problems are solved by game theory regarding coordination and interaction among supply chain partners. The results show that the prevailing concern of managers’ “energy saving is not money saving” is the direct reason for a mixed purchase strategy. Further, when diseconomy of purchasing energy-saving equipment reaches a certain threshold, tightening environmental regulation may cause telecom companies to reduce the proportion of energy-saving equipment purchased. Finally, the telecom sector is characterized by its booming service capacity per equipment, which benefits green purchase ratio greatly. When the other six influencing factors are relatively stable, the driving force of telecommunication technology update will push the telecom sector to a greener future.

Developing relationships as a security factor in supply chain management in the metal sector in Poland

Ensuring security in the current environment, becomes particularly important in both social and economic terms. The changing conditions for business operators are not conducive to ensuring process stability and thus reducing risks in supply chains. It is becoming essential to identify areas, resources and activities that have the potential to ensure process stability and security and reduce uncertainty as well as risk in supply chains. Developing bonds between business partners is particularly important in this regard. Cooperation based on trust ids the basis of such partnerships in supply chains. At the same time, creating such relationships is not only a challenge, but also an additional source of risk. The objective of this paper is to identify the key aspects of relationship formation within companies and their role in ensuring the security of supply chains. Achieving the purpose of the thesis requires the identification of the essence of relationships and relational capital, and the presentation of research findings on key aspects of corporate relationships in supply chains. The research was conducted using a proprietary questionnaire and covered businesses operating in in the metal industry in Poland. The issues examined included such elements as: competences of enterprises in supply chain management in terms of shaping relations: within the enterprise, with customers, suppliers of materials and services, intermediaries (distributors), the number of contractors with whom enterprises cooperate and the level of their relationships, at which they cooperate, involvement of partners/contractors in decision-making, concepts used in relationships with co-operators, type of contracts and partnerships created, measurement/evaluation of cooperation and the scope of control of cooperation with contractors, elements of building trust, factors conducive to cooperation, barriers and reasons for failures in establishing supply chain management relationships. The research thesis is: identifying the relationships of enterprises with contractors has a positive impact on their formation and ensuring the security of supply chains. The research niche presented in the article concerns the use of opinion and judgment research based on the author's survey questionnaire in the environment of enterprises from the metal industry. Obtaining the results allowed to identify the role and scope of business relationships in supply chains and important factors influencing their shaping. The role of managing relationships with business partners as an important element impacting the security of supply chains was also emphasised.

An investigation of corporate social responsibility conformity: The roles of network prominence and supply chain partners

AbstractNumerous studies on corporate social responsibility (CSR) indicate that firms adopt CSR practices for various reasons related to their supply chain. However, the necessity to conform to a firm's own industry CSR norm is overlooked. Conforming to one's industry CSR norm—a herding behavior known as CSR conformity—ensures firm in‐group legitimacy and preserves internal resources for core business activities. On the other hand, deviating from industry norms sets a firm apart from its peers, making the firm more appealing to supply chain partners. Motivated by this dilemma, this study draws on middle‐status conformity theory and explores how a firm's network prominence determines its CSR conformity. Panel data analyses of 1650 firm‐year observations reveal an inverse U‐shaped relationship between firm network prominence and its CSR conformity, indicating that firms with a mid‐level network prominence engage in higher CSR conformity. However, the inverse U is flattened when a firm's supply chain partners (and their respective industries) share similar CSR standards, suggesting that a firm can only prioritize its own industry CSR norms if its supply chain partners share a compatible CSR standard. These findings highlight the importance of understanding CSR from an organizational conformity perspective, especially in the context of supply chain network.

Circular supply chain management: Antecedent effect of social capital and big data analysis capability and their impact on sustainable performance

AbstractThe circular economy era has begun, and circular supply chain management (CSCM) is widely acknowledged as a management paradigm that promotes firm sustainability. Through previous research, we have learned that the key challenge in the circular transformation of manufacturing firms is to encourage supply chain partners to collaborate and effectively participate in resource cycles. Drawing inspiration from social capital theory and resource‐based views, we explored how social capital effect sustainable performance through CSCM and the moderating effect of big data analytics capability (BDAC). We tested this by collecting data from 414 Chinese manufacturing firms. The results indicate that both internal and external social capital are positively correlated with CSCM. In addition, CSCM mediates the relationship between social capital and organizational environmental and social sustainability. The results also indicate that BDAC strengthen the impact of external social capital on CSCM, but the moderating effect on the relationship between internal social capital and CSCM is not significant. This essay advances the theory and practice of CSCM by offering fresh perspectives on how social capital influences sustainable performance of firms.

Supply Chain Resilience During the Covid-19 Pandemic: Understanding the Role of Collaboration, Visibility, Velocity, and Flexibility in Supply Chain Resilience Using Structural Equation Modeling Approach

The Covid-19 has wrought havoc on the supply chain across the world. During the global pandemic, supply chain managers were forced to rely on short-term solutions with little to no impact on their operations. This paper aims to assess the effect of collaboration, visibility, velocity, and flexibility on supply chain resilience. A total of 66 respondents constitutes the sample of the study, consisting of middle management employees across all depots nationwide. Eight research questions and eight hypotheses were generated and tested at 0.05 significance level using descriptive statistics and path analysis to quantify the relationships among multiple variables. Data were then analyzed through partial least squares - structural equation modeling. Results showed that collaboration, visibility, and flexibility have a significant impact on supply chain resilience. However, velocity did not have a significant impact on supply chain resilience. The research concludes that the supply chain capabilities play a crucial role in the supply chain resilience of the company and its supply chain partners. The key recommendations of the paper help enhance these capabilities to improve the resilience of its supply chain.