Leveraging supply chain networks for sustainability beyond corporate boundaries: Explorative structural network analysis

Social Network Analysis: Applications and New Metrics for Supply Chain Management—A Literature Review

“…This unforeseen event and its repercussions on supply networks at a global level heightened the need for tools that can provide a precise visualization of networks, actors, and the nature of the ties between them [9,13]. Concepts derived from diverse fields of knowledge, such as SNA, have gained traction in terms of application in the area of SCM [10,17,[19][20][21][22][23]. Furthermore, new developments have emerged from the application of SNA in SCM, including directed and non-directed networks [24] and the concept of semi-directedness [25].…”

“…Refs. [15,20] calculate the metric degree assortativity, which measures the extent to which companies associate with similar companies in the network, that is, the preference for a network's node to link to others that have some similarity. Moreover, Cai and other researchers [15] also devised two new metrics to identify outbreaks of disease and contamination: MSC-Maximum Spread Capacity-and MIC-Maximum Infection Chain.…”

“…This not only addresses structural aspects but also associates SNA with various topics, as explored by Wichmann and Kaufmann [13], indicating that the use of SNA in SCM goes beyond being just an analytical tool. Most of the studies reviewed applied SNA in the context of manufacturing, especially in the automotive sector [10,17,[20][21][22]42].…”

“…In addition, focusing on the automotive sector, Laari, Wetzel, Töyli, and Solakivi [20] explored how network characteristics and nodes can influence sustainability and concluded that the most sustainable companies are not necessarily the ones closest to customers but rather the most central ones. Therefore, according to [20], supply chain managers must map their suppliers and consider network configuration.…”

“…In addition, focusing on the automotive sector, Laari, Wetzel, Töyli, and Solakivi [20] explored how network characteristics and nodes can influence sustainability and concluded that the most sustainable companies are not necessarily the ones closest to customers but rather the most central ones. Therefore, according to [20], supply chain managers must map their suppliers and consider network configuration. Regarding network configuration, Le, Oláh, and Pakurár [21] analyze a supply chain composed of 60 assemblers and 210 suppliers and point out that only a few manufacturers predominantly control the exchange of information.…”