Achieving mass customization through trust‐driven information sharing: a supplier's perspective

Abstract

Purpose -Trust is essential for business relationships within a supply chain, and information sharing provides a key means to improve the efficiency of a supply chain. The purpose of this paper is to test empirically the relationship between trust and manufacturer-supplier information sharing to determine its (positive) effect on mass customization. Design/methodology/approach -The data come from 208 firms in North America and China. Structural equation modeling supports the data analysis. Findings -The results suggest that high mutual trust can lead to free information sharing between suppliers and manufacturers, which in turn leads to improved mass customization capabilities. In addition, cultural differences have significant moderating effects on the relationship between trust and information sharing. Originality/value -The study described in this paper measures mutual trust between manufacturers and suppliers and regards information sharing as the free flow of information, both to and from the manufacturer and supplier.

Improving supply chain flexibility and agility through variety management

“…A full partnership requires sharing risks and benefits, and a SC's long-term focus should not revolve solely around price. Trust between manufacturers and suppliers should encourage extensive knowledge sharing and build deeper relationships (Liao et al, 2011), which in turn can reduce uncertainty. Sharing sensitive information such as cost (Ngai et al, 2004) and creating close partnerships, especially during product development, are crucial (Cousins et al, 2011).…”

Supply Chain Collaboration and Trust in the Philippines

“…Future researches should describe information sharing in different levels depending on the criticality of information being shared. The scope and coverage of information sharing should not just be limited to sharing of databases since firms that are not yet in the SCM paradigm may be sharing 9 information in major functions such as demand forecasts, production plans, materials plans, production schedules, and logistics (Liao et al, 2011). Another set of measures may be developed to measure the sharing of critical information like product development maps and mutual access to the partners' databases, cost data, and web-enabled inventory data, among others (Olorunniwo and Li, 2010).…”

Mass Customization in Supply Chain Level: Development of a Conceptual Framework to Manage and Assess Performance

“…Literature has put more attention on relationships among partners in customer oriented environments where a more flexible and efficient supply chain is requested. The relationship is interpreted as integration and cooperation between suppliermanufacturer, manufacturer-customer; and among internal divisions of manufacturer [15], [22], [25], [34], [45,46]. Literature rarely differentiates cooperation and integration and draws the line between them.…”

“…In particular it focuses on portion of capacity allocated to the manufacturer Percentage of capacity allocated to manufacturer Information exchange level [20], [21], [22], [25], [26], [45] This factor refers to internal capability of supplier in sharing information Expected time interval in sharing information between supplier and manufacturer (e.g. weekly/ monthly)…”

“…Based on our literature review, this study analyses modularization to the aim of a better understanding about this method by focusing on its characteristics and advantages [4], [19], [35], [44]. It specifically discusses about the need for a more intimate relationship among supply chain partners to produce, supply and manage the inventory of modules for customization [13], [20], [22,23]. Literature has put more attention on relationships among partners in customer oriented environments where a more flexible and efficient supply chain is requested.…”