Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to contrast traditional transaction-based supply chain strategies with emerging relationship-based strategies in human resource and organizational areas. Design/methodology/approach -A theoretical framework is proposed based on the relationship of human resource variables (staffing, training, evaluation, and compensation) and organization variables (structure, culture, and empowerment strategies) with supply chain integration and performance. Findings -A model is presented of the relationship of human resource and organization variables with supply chain integration and performance. Propositions are posited and conclusions are noted with suggestions for further research.Research limitations/implications -The paper is clearly only theoretical. Much empirical testing is yet to be done. Originality/value -The paper is among the first to focus the relationships of human resource strategies and organization variables with supply chain integration and performance. While the structuring and measurement of integrated global supply chain flows, particularly of the "hard" products, services, and information, are well established, much less is understood concerning the contribution of such "soft" areas as human resource management activities and organization variables.
Despite years of research and application, integrated supply chains remain dynamic, multifaceted, and often misunderstood entities. However, in many environments the potential for process improvement remains. This paper categorizes four historical phases of supply chain development and classifies distinct supply chain strategies that are appropriate for each environment. These historical phases of the emergence of the supply chain are then equated to those of processes, facilities, businesses, and industries. A successful supply chain integration effort is then posited to depend on long-, mid-, and short-term strategies and tactics that balance the differentiation of serial supply chain activities and the integrative effort applied. These relationships offer academics and practitioners a contingency perspective of supply chains and a model to define and anticipate supply chain situations as well as mechanisms to develop appropriate responses.The emergence, during the past half-century, of time-based supply chain management strategies as the key competitive resource has necessitated extensive re-evaluation of corporate strategies and manufacturing positioning (Porter, 1996). Time compression requires an extensive collaborative effort to effectively integrate purchasing, manufacturing, and distribution activities in both individual businesses as well as among serially related supply chain activities. Commenting on these integrative mechanisms, Peter Drucker (1999, p. 67) notes:Business growth and business expansion [. . .] will increasingly have to be based on alliances, partnerships, joint ventures, and all kinds of relations.
PurposeThis conceptual paper aims to examine the notion that supply chain integration is an extension and application of vertical integration theory.Design/methodology/approachThe paper initially defines a foundation in the supply chain and vertical integration literature, with particular attention to the seminal works of Harrigan in vertical integration and Hayes and Wheelwright in product life cycles. The paper then offers an assessment of the state of the supply chain integration literature. Subsequently, the stage of product/process life cycle and environmental variables such as complexity and munificence are examined in detail and are the basis for the theoretical model and propositions.FindingsThis study argues that the stage of life cycle variables is associated with the various dimensions of supply chain integration, and that environmental complexity and munificence have significant moderating effects on the relationships. The paper posits that, for efficiency and success, a strategic fit must exist between environmental, strategic and operations variables, and that specific dimensions of integrative effort are appropriate for given situations. That fit would attenuate bullwhip inefficiencies, either of inventories and other mechanical decisions, or of the less tangible human and structural interaction.Originality/valueAs such, this paper represents a cross‐functional and interdisciplinary approach to operations and strategic management theory by identifying and facilitating appropriate operations decisions pertaining to the contingencies of the supply chain.
Though supply chain integration has emerged in the past several decades as a major foundation for corporate competitiveness, there is a paucity of research devoted to the theory linking the corresponding strategic management notion of vertical integration with the applied concept of supply chain integration. Built on the work of Harrigan, this paper delineates supply chain integration as a multidimensional construct and proposes a model in which environmental turbulence and strategic orientation have a direct impact on the degree, stages, and breadth of supply chain integration. Contributions, limitations, and implications are offered.
Purpose -There is significant anecdotal evidence of increasing global supply chain fragility; and, for this reason, robustness and operational sustainability are of notable concern to senior executives. Though the issues are myriad, four factors dominate these concerns: increasing complexity of products, processes, and technologies, increasing structural complexity of supply chains, increasing diversity and global nature of business systems, and the environmental costs and impacts of extended supply chains. This paper aims to focus on these factors. Design/methodology/approach -This conceptual, theoretical paper differentiates corporate sustainability and operational robustness in terms of profitability and costs, then defines and develops internal, external, and uncontrollable fragility factors. A process that measures and integrates these factors is proposed for brainstorming and decision making. Additionally, methods to represent and compare alternatives, progress against internal or external targets, and industry goals or known competitor values are offered. Findings -This study describes and demonstrates an easy-to-implement process to address the potentially disastrous consequences of supply chain fragility.Practical implications -This study offers both academicians and practitioners a model to research, assess, and identify the risks and costs of current levels of supply chain fragility and to weigh various solutions. Originality/value -Unfortunately, few research efforts define these issues or identify the associated risks. Further, little has been put forward to posit, model, and facilitate the practical decision process to address these factor relationships. To these ends, the paper proposes a "fragility index" to help supply chain managers assess sources and potential costs of fragility, sustainability, and the associated environmental stress in their supply chains.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.