Data-driven capabilities, supply chain integration and competitive performance

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of data-driven capabilities on supply chain integration (SCI) and competitive performance of firms in the food and beverages (F & B) industry in Pakistan. Design/methodology/approach The authors adopt the structural equation modeling approach to test the proposed hypotheses using AMOS 23. Survey data were collected from 240 firms in the F & B industry in Pakistan. Findings The results revealed that SCI (i.e. internal integration (II) and external integration (EI)) significantly mediates the effect of data-driven capabilities (i.e. flexible information technology resources and data assimilation) on a firm’s competitive performance. In addition to the direct effects, II also has an indirect effect on competitive performance through EI. Practical implications The study has several implications for managers in the context of big data application in food supply chain management (FSCM) in a developing country context. The study posits that firms can achieve excellence in performance by governing data-driven supply chain operations. The study also has implications for distributors and importers in the F & B industry. The cloud-based sharing of data can improve the operational performance of channel members while reducing their overall cost of operations. In practice, food franchises largely get the advantage of shared resources of their suppliers in managing orders, payments, inventory and after-sales services. Originality/value The study is novel and deepens the understanding about the use of big data in FSCM keeping in view the industry trends and stakeholder’s priorities in a developing country context.

A Systematic Literature Review on 30 Years of Empirical Research on Information Systems Business Value

“…Some authors view it as a simple first-order construct. For instance, Chen (2012) operationalized 'IS capabilities' as human IS resources, and Irfan and Wang (2019) as flexible IT resources. Nevertheless, other scholars adopt 'IS capabilities' as a second-order construct.…”

A systematic and network-based analysis of data-driven quality management in supply chains and proposed future research directions

“…In this regard, the authors studied the existing supply chain performance measures and their influence on organizational performance and delivered valuable retail supply chain outcomes practicing big data analytics. Further, Irfan and Wang (2019) analyzed the effects of data-driven capabilities on integrating SCs and the performance of the organizations involved in food and beverage businesses in Pakistan. The authors adopted structural equation modeling methodology to test the data-driven capabilities influence on competitive performance.…”

Revisit the Relationships and Dimensions of Supply Chain Integration for Business Outcomes

“…External integration refers to a firm achieves collaboration with external supply chain partners (Irfan and Wang, 2019;Robinson et al, 2018). External integration focuses on collaboration between the company and external partners in information sharing, project participation, quality improvement to achieve better supply chain performance.…”

“…Furthermore, joint decisionmaking creates mutual trust between supply chain partners to avoid misunderstanding and conflict (Zhang et al, 2021). System coupling can be defined as the focal firm collaborate with suppliers and customers by using collaborative techniques, such as vendor managed inventory (VMI), just-in-time (JIT), Kanban, and continuous replenishment (Feyissa et al, 2019;Irfan and Wang, 2019;Tarifa-Fernández et al, 2019;Ganbold et al, 2020). System coupling enables the focal firm to share information, such as forecast, sales revenue, demand variation, inventory, production plans, with external partners, thereby improves the supply chain's information flow and material flow (J.…”

“…Most of the scholars who supported this thought further conceptualize SCI into three dimensions: internal integration, supplier integration, and customer integration (Kumar et al, 2017;Porter, 2019). Internal integration refers to a firm's internal function collaborations (Irfan and Wang, 2019). In addition, supplier integration and customer integration imply that the focal firm cooperates with external partners (key suppliers and customers) to integrate the strategies, processes, and practices (Kanyoma et al, 2020).…”