Exploring the role of power on procurement and supply chain management systems in a humanitarian organisation: a socio-technical systems view

Siawsh, Nidam Marcus; Peszynski, Konrad; Young, Leslie; Vo-Tran, Huan

doi:10.1080/00207543.2019.1634293

Cited by 40 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 164 publications

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“…Figure 3 shows that nearly 70% of these studies, representing 27 out of 39 documents, did not analyze human resource factors as the main focus of their research on HSCs. This finding corroborates the study of Siawsh et al (2019), which stated that the focus of HSC studies has been mostly on non-human aspects. Furthermore, McLachlin and Larson (2011) clarify that literature aimed at commercial supply chains might contain useful guidance on relationships including HR aspects, which could be adapted and further explored in humanitarian supply chains.…”

Section: Results and Recommendationssupporting

confidence: 91%

“…In addition, it explained the importance of developing skills and expertise in general disaster management and in logistics to enhance the preparedness of local people for response activities. It also reinforced the necessity of having a national center in training for disaster management Siawsh et al (2019) This research sought to understand the influence of power in the decision-making process in the humanitarian context. It suggested that professional training is seen as the foundation for humanitarian actors to develop the necessary expertise for their work Stuns and Heaslip (2019) This paper evaluated the effectiveness of humanitarian logistics training and the factors that influence its success.…”

Section: Results and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this context, it can be argued that human resource factors-also known as the 'soft side' of organizations (Dubey and Gunasekaran 2015)-are relevant for the success of HSC management, since this field involves dealing with different actors and cultures, political systems and government legislation (Pateman et al 2013), and an adequate humanitarian workforce is essential to accomplish successful aid initiatives. Additionally, Siawsh et al (2019) state that the focus of existing research has predominantly been on non-human aspects of humanitarian relief operations. Managing humanitarian supply chains is a 'people business' (Pateman et al 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The human side of humanitarian supply chains: a research agenda and systematization framework

Fiorini

Jabbour

et al. 2021

Ann Oper Res

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Humanitarian operations are increasingly receiving attention due to the numerous recent disasters and crises caused by both natural and man-made events, from mass human exodus to pandemics such as COVID-19. The successful management of humanitarian supply chains requires the effective use of human resource practices, which in turn requires strong leadership in the so-called ‘soft side’ of management. This study aims to investigate the current status of research on the human aspects of humanitarian supply chains. Through a systematic and comprehensive literature review, encompassing an original codification and in-depth analysis of journal articles, this work provides a research agenda and a number of lessons concerning human resource management (HRM) in humanitarian operations. The main findings reveal that: (i) HRM impacts the ability of humanitarian organizations to adequately prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters; (ii) training programs for aid personnel are a vital aspect of humanitarian responsiveness; (iii) humanitarian operations require a workforce with a variety of soft and hard skills; (iv) lack of trained staff is one of the main challenges in this field; and (v) building relationships and strengthening networks can enlarge the human resource pool available. Therefore, the findings of this study and its proposed research agenda have implications for both theory and practice. In terms of theory, this work provides seven recommendations, representing opportunities for scholars to advance this body of knowledge. For humanitarian practitioners, this paper offers insightful lessons to guide them in the management of human resources in humanitarian operations.

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Section: Results and Recommendationssupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Results and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The human side of humanitarian supply chains: a research agenda and systematization framework

Fiorini

Jabbour

et al. 2021

Ann Oper Res

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“…Socio-technical system theory defines a socio-technical system as “systems that involve both complex physical-technical systems and networks of interdependent actors” (De Bruijn and Herder, 2009, p. 981). While a social system is composed of organizational structures and employees, a technical system encompasses organizational tasks, tools, techniques and technology components (Chauhuri and Jayaram, 2019; Siawsh et al , 2019). The interactions between any two components can result in six distinctive relationships, namely, actor-structure, actor-technology, actor-task, task-technology, task-structure and technology-structure (Hester, 2012).…”

Section: Literature Review and Hypotheses Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determinants of recovery satisfaction and service loyalty: the differing effects of service recovery system and service recovery performance

Kamath

Pai

Prabhu

2020

JSTP

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PurposeThis study aims to explore whether frontline employees' service recovery performance as well as customers' recovery satisfaction (RS) act as mediating mechanisms that simultaneously transmit the positive influence of an integrated service recovery system (SRS) on customers' service loyalty (SL).Design/methodology/approachA total of 134 useable retail banking branch cases (including responses from 134 branch heads, 439 frontline employees and 941 customers) were used to test our model using the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) approach.FindingsService recovery system, measured as a higher-order multidimensional construct, has a strong and positive influence on customers' SL. Besides, service recovery performance partially mediates, along with RS, the relationship between SRS and SL. Finally, customers' recovery satisfaction has the strongest influence on service loyalty.Practical implicationsThis study strongly suggests that practitioners not only focus on implementing an effective SRS but also on leveraging service recovery performance and RS to build sustained customers' loyalty. Practitioners must provide more attention to training their frontline employees, reward and recognize employees and continually evaluate their employees' recovery efforts.Originality/valueThe role of frontline employees' service recovery performance and customers' RS as mediating mechanisms in transmitting the positive effect of SRS on customers' SL is investigated using the combined perspectives of social-technical system theory and interdependence theory.

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“…In addition to the four streams of procurement reviewed, other topics covered by previous research on humanitarian procurement are: e-procurement (Walker and Brammer, 2012), advanced purchasing and prepositioning of relief items (Duran et al, 2013), joint procurement and inventory decision (Hu et al, 2017, Torabi et al, 2018, supplier partner selection (Venkatesh et al, 2018), and the role of power in supplier-buyer relationship in humanitarian setting (Siawsh et al, 2019).…”

Section: Procurement Transportation and Inventory Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Convening green to humanitarian logistics scene: a collaborative research approach for embedding environmental sustainability in humanitarian logistics

Zarei¹

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Humanitarian supply chains are more expanded and global than ever before. Humanitarian organizations, alongside their development counterparts, work around the clock to satisfy the needs of beneficiaries, whether it is an armed conflict in the Middle East, a refugee crisis in Europe, or an ongoing drought in Africa. Meeting the ever-growing humanitarian needs entails intense logistics operations from procurement, to transportation, warehousing, last-mile distribution, and reverse logistics. These operations contribute to considerable environmental impact. However, environmental sustainability has been overlooked in humanitarian supply chain research hitherto. The objective of this thesis is integrating humanitarian supply chain management with green supply chain management, two streams within the supply chain management literature which have been growing in isolation from one another.The thesis builds upon the contingency theory and proposes a theoretical underpinning to distinguish the peculiarities of humanitarian environment and investigate how such peculiarities impact on the adoption, customization, and development of green practices. An action research methodology was used in collaboration with an international humanitarian organization and two and a half cycles of collaboration were conducted to integrate environmental sustainability into their supply chains.The research reveals four key findings. First, it proposes a greening framework that frames the extant green practices in a suitable form for humanitarian organizations. Second, it unearths the barriers and enablers of greening humanitarian supply chains vis-à-vis intra-organizational management, organizational functions such as procurement, funding environment, as well as other stakeholders such as suppliers, other humanitarian organizations, and country offices. Third, it explores the mechanisms through which humanitarian organizations can deal with or benefit from the identified barriers and enablers viz. i) improving the visibility of headquarters over delegations through increased presence of staff and employing information and communication technologies to track products during lastmile distribution, ii) developing instructions to minimize scavenging during reverse logistics and disposal, iii) promoting cooperation among different implementing partners at each country, and iv) raising flexible funding and donors' awareness about sustainability, inter alia. Fourth, a carbon footprinting conducted within the action research showed that humanitarian supply chain designs with hubs replenished periodically outperforms the design with perpetual replenishment through direct shipments from suppliers to country offices in terms of global warming potential.Moreover, the research offers strong practical contributions by implementing action steps for greening humanitarian supply chains and investigating the success or failure of each step. It also makes methodological contributions to action research by identifying the challenges and opportunities for conduc...

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Exploring the role of power on procurement and supply chain management systems in a humanitarian organisation: a socio-technical systems view

Cited by 40 publications

References 164 publications

The human side of humanitarian supply chains: a research agenda and systematization framework

The human side of humanitarian supply chains: a research agenda and systematization framework

Determinants of recovery satisfaction and service loyalty: the differing effects of service recovery system and service recovery performance

Convening green to humanitarian logistics scene: a collaborative research approach for embedding environmental sustainability in humanitarian logistics

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