PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate how perceived service quality influences both a shipper's satisfaction and subsequent loyalty in third‐party logistics outsourcing relationships.Design/methodology/approachCritical service dimensions are identified and their impact on satisfaction and loyalty are developed into a theoretical model, which in turn is examined empirically using structural equation modelling from a survey of 235 industrial companies in Finland.FindingsThe results support the satisfaction‐loyalty model in a logistics outsourcing context confirming that service perceptions influence loyalty through a shipper's overall satisfaction with the service provider.Research limitation/implicationsThe empirical study is limited to Finland and data were collected before the financial crisis of 2008‐2009 which affected the economy and this industrial sector. The theoretical constructs and model also need to be validated and tested further across a wider empirical context.Practical implicationsLogistics service providers recognise the importance of service quality in outsourcing relationships. However, while the continuity of the current relationship is supported by good service quality, the efforts to extend the scope of the outsourcing arrangement need to be examined on a different basis.Originality/valueThe paper is one of the first to investigate and confirm the service‐satisfaction‐loyalty paradigm in a logistics outsourcing context.
This paper discusses trends in contemporary management that reflect the need for reassessing the notion of supply chain integration. Recent developments in the areas of strategy, channels, processes, relationships, organisation and performance measurement show pressures that call for attention to the various dimensions and varying intensities of integration.It is concluded that emphasis should be directed to focused efforts instead of holistic overall integration, and the concept of semiintegrated supply chains is offered for collectively describing the phenomena in today's supply chain management.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine how modularity is used for enabling value creation in managing healthcare logistics services.
Design/methodology/approach
Material logistics of four different kinds of hospitals is examined through a qualitative case study. The theoretical framework builds on the literature on healthcare logistics, service modularity and value creation.
Findings
The case hospitals have developed their material logistics independently from others when looking at the modularity of offerings, processes and organisations. Services, such as assortment management, shelving and developing an information platform, have been performed in-house partly by the care personnel, but steps towards modularised and standardised solutions are now being taken in the case hospitals, including ideas about outsourcing some of the services.
Research limitations/implications
This paper proposes seven modularity components for healthcare logistics management: segmentation, categorisation and unitisation of offerings, differentiation and decoupling of processes, and centralisation and specialisation of organisations. Thus, this study clarifies the three-dimensional concept of modularity as a cognitive frame for managing logistics services with heterogeneous customer needs in a rapidly changing healthcare environment.
Practical implications
Modularity offers a tool for developing logistics services inside the hospital and increases possibilities to consider also external logistics service providers.
Social implications
Managing healthcare logistics services through modularity has potential social implications in developing healthcare processes and changing the usage of health services. On a wider scale, modularity is helping healthcare systems reaching their goals in terms of service quality and cost.
Originality/value
This paper shows the context-specific antecedents of service modularity and the usage of modular thinking in managing healthcare logistics.
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