Implementing Supply Chain Technologies in Emerging Markets: An Institutional Theory Perspective

Abstract

Supply chain technology (SCT) facilitates information transfer within and across firm boundaries. However, institutional environments in emerging markets give rise to challenges that inhibit the implementation of SCT and the consequent realization of its benefits. Unfortunately, there is a lack of understanding as to the nature or the extent of these implementation challenges. We undertook a grounded theory study in the emerging market of India to investigate how SCT is implemented when subjected to prevailing institutional pressures. Based on an analysis of interviews with 50 supply chain managers, we find that early adopters of SCT experience significant and numerous unmet expectations associated with SCT implementation. These unmet expectations arise from competing institutional logics with the resultant isomorphic pressure causing the juxtaposition of two incompatible supply chains in India. A key finding of this study contradicts extant research, supporting recent work in emerging markets, to suggest a need to reassess our mental models developed in the West and conceptualize de novo models that are sensitive to the institutional environments of emerging markets.

Understanding the Downstream Healthcare Supply Chain: Unpacking Regulatory and Industry Characteristics

“…“Coercive pressure relates to formal and informal pressures in the shape of constraints placed by an organization on other organizations that are dependent on it” (Saldanha et al., , p. 12). As such, coercive influences are rooted in (1) governmental laws or regulations, (2) external supply chain nodes such as customers and key suppliers, and (3) the firm's culture and informal hierarchy (DiMaggio & Powell, ).…”

“…Institutional theory provides a useful lens for investigating supply chains, including those involving healthcare delivery because it provides insight into exogenous factors that influence decision-making (Hirschinger, Spickermann, Hartmann, Von Der Gracht & Darkow, 2015;Huang, Gattiker & Schroeder, 2010;Saldanha, Mello, Knemeyer & Vijayaraghavan, 2015). DiMaggio and Powell (1983) suggest that as an industry matures, the firms and networks within that industry become more homogenous due to external pressures stemming from government regulations, competitors, and professions to gain legitimacy.…”

Supply Chain Integrity: A Key to Sustainable Supply Chain Management

“…One approach to formally develop the SCI construct uses Hinkin's (1995) three-stage method. Other options to further refine SCI include use of a qualitative method such as case studies (Yin 2014) or grounded theory (Glaser and Strauss 1967;Glaser 2001), which have been demonstrated to be fruitful in supply chain management research (e.g., Mello and Flint 2009;Randall and Mello 2011;Saldanha et al 2015). Adopting a grounded theory approach to further develop and confirm the SCI construct would lead to a theoretical framework rooted in practice and grown from interviews and site observations.…”

Purchasing Policy or Purchasing Police? The Influence of Institutional Logics and Power on Responses to Purchasing Formalization

“…It is an illuminating example of how actors deal with conflicting institutional demands, and it provides new insights into actors' responses to increased purchasing formalization (Eisenhardt & Graebner, ). Existing studies have tended to focus on the state, firm, or supply chain level (Saldanha, Mello, Knemeyer & Vijayaraghavan, ), but less is known about how actors at the microlevel cope with conflicting institutional demands (Palmer, Simmons, Robinson & Fearne, ; Yang & Su, ). It has also been pointed out that conflicting institutional demands lead to an increase in political games in organizations (Jarzabkowski, Matthiesen & Van de Ven, ) and that the outcome of the games depends on the power distribution between those involved (Bjerregaard & Jonasson, ).…”