Rational and intuitive decision-making in sourcing teams: Effects on decision outcomes

According to dual process theory, individual decision-making can be based on rational procedures and experience-based intuition, and the decision-making approach can influence decision outcomes. We investigate how the application of rational procedures and experience-based intuition affects the outcomes of supplier selection decisions taken by cross-functional sourcing teams. Specifically, we examine whether the selected supplier׳s cost and quality/delivery/innovativeness performance is higher when more team members use a highly rational and/or a highly experience-based decision-making approach. From data on 54 teams, we find that the use of rational procedures enhances cost performance. Conversely, when sourcing team members use their experience-based intuition, the decision is more likely to result in satisfactory supplier performance along all tested performance dimensions.     

Individual modes and patterns of rational and intuitive decision-making by purchasing managers

This study extends the literature on decision modes in purchasing. While decision modes have traditionally been divided broadly into rational and intuitive processing modes (dual-process approach), following the tenet of recent psychology research, we further differentiate the latter into experience-based and emotional processing (multiple systems approach). Previous decision-making research has been inconsistent in its findings about the relationship between decision modes and performance. Using the purchasing manager's supplier selection decision process as our unit of analysis, we first investigate the relationship between individual decision modes and the financial and non-financial performance of the selected supplier. Hierarchical regression analyses indicate that rational processing is positively related to both financial and non-financial performance, while emotional processing is negatively related to financial performance, and the interaction of rational and emotional processing is positively related to both performance outcomes. Because recent cognitive psychology assumes that some combination of rationality and intuition is commonly used, we then apply a configuration approach and develop a taxonomy of decision-making modes surrounding supplier selection. Cluster analysis results show five decision-making patterns that are related to the performance of the selected supplier.     

Sustainable Supplier Selection in Megaprojects: Grey Ordinal Priority Approach

Due to mounting environmental and social challenges, supplier selection has become one of the most critical tasks of project-oriented organizations. Because supplier selection can affect the long-term success and profitability of the organizations and their projects, directly, embracing sustainability can add value in the equation. Considering sustainability measures can positively guide project managers in making better decisions for the projects in the long term. Therefore, the current study attempts to provide a conceptual model for selecting the best supplier based on a sustainability framework in megaprojects. Meanwhile, decision-making methods can be employed as a proper tool to find the best supplier. Ordinal priority approach (OPA) is a recent development in multiple criteria decision making (MCDM), while it has many benefits compared with other methods like analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS). However, this method cannot consider multiple ranks during the decision-making process, and using an uncertainty approach feels strongly. Grey systems theory (GST) can consider uncertainties with no need for large sample or proposing membership function. Hence, the current study employed the GST to consider multiple ranks for criteria and alternatives in the OPA method. This is the first time that a sustainable supplier selection framework has been presented for megaprojects with the aid of the Grey OPA (OPA-G) method. Finally, a case study has been examined to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach. The results show that the proposed approach can be used in real-world situations and it has acceptable performance under uncertainty conditions.     

Practice and promise of formal supplier selection: a study of four empirical cases

In this paper an experimental study of formal decision-making models for supplier selection is described. Attention is paid to all phases of the supplier selection process: the recognition of the need for a new supplier, the formulation of decision criteria, the qualification of suitable candidates and final selection. It appears from the experiments that formal decision models may prove to be useful in various ways throughout the whole supplier selection process and in different purchasing situations.     

Expect the unexpected: examining the shaping role of entrepreneurial orientation on causal and effectual decision-making logic during economic crisis

ABSTRACT

While many firms operate in dynamic environments, the competitive conditions faced by firms during an economic crisis are especially unstable and turbulent. We examine firm strategic decision-making in this distinctive context and investigate the question of whether causal and effectual logic provide similar paths to performance during such challenging economic times. Further, we examine the potential impact that a firm’s level of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) has upon the relationship between managers’ predominant decision-making logic and their firm’s overall performance in this crisis. To test these relationships, we employ a robust national random sample of 447 Russian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) collected from 2015 to 2016 during a period of economic crisis. Our results indicate that EO plays an important moderating role, shaping the nature of the relationships between managers’ decision-making logic and financial performance. Moreover, additional analysis identifies the presence of a non-linear relationship between both logics and the performance of SMEs.     

Purchasing practices in small- to medium-sized enterprises: An examination of strategic purchasing adoption,supplier evaluation and supplier capabilities

The benefits that can be derived from effective purchasing have long been recognised in the management literature. Despite a growing body of research on purchasing practices in small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), a number of key issues remain under-examined. We investigate SME purchasing practices in terms of (1) the degree to which purchasing is regarded as a ‘strategic’ activity by SMEs, (2) the use of supplier evaluation systems by SMEs and (3) the supplier capabilities emphasised by SME buyers. Through a survey of UK SME managers, we find that purchasing practices varied greatly across SMEs. Purchasing formality is generally low with limited evidence of purchasing being employed strategically and with many firms not undertaking formal supplier evaluations. In terms of supplier capabilities, we find that SMEs differ in the capabilities they prioritise, with three distinct groups evident. These groups are labelled ‘holistic’, ‘process’ and ‘logistics’ based on the supplier capabilities they emphasise. These three groups of firms also differed in terms of the emphasis they placed on strategic purchasing, supplier evaluation, technological focus and how they compete in their main markets, but not in terms of firm size or number of suppliers utilised. The implications of these findings are discussed and areas meriting future research are proposed.     

基于ED-GRA和CPT的图书馆供应商选择的决策方法

为了解决高校图书馆图书供应商选择问题中的决策者认知复杂问题,反应决策者的心理与行为特征,本文提出一种基于认知复杂的多属性决策方法.首先,采用欧式距离(ED)和灰色关联分析法(GRA)确定专家权重和图书供应商评价指标体系的权重;然后,提出基于累积前景理论(CPT)的多属性决策方法,计算图书供应商的综合前景值.     

信用担保对中小企业参与政府订购计划的影响——基于信息经济学视角

政府与中小企业之间的信息不对称导致政府订购计划对中小企业发展的扶持作用无法发挥.基于信息经济学理论,对不同信息结构下中小企业参与政府订购计划的反应进行分析,发现担保机构的介入使采购人与供应商之间的信息结构发生了根本性的转变,订购计划的风险转移至担保机构,信息结构的改变也使供应商收益和采购人效用得到了提升.可见,政府采购信用担保的引入对于中小企业参与政府订购计划具有良性影响.     

Supplier selection or collaboration? Determining factors of performance improvement when outsourcing manufacturing

An empirical study was designed to determine factors of performance improvement when outsourcing manufacturing. Findings from a survey of 136 manufacturing plants in Sweden show that most of them achieve their outsourcing motives, but not without trade-offs. Factors of performance improvements such as economies of scale or operations in low-cost countries can improve one performance dimension, such as product cost, yet negatively impact volume flexibility, speed or product innovation. The results show part characteristics and supplier operating capabilities are more important than supplier relationship strategies when outsourcing manufacturing, meaning that supplier selection trumps supplier collaboration in the make-or-buy decision.     

An application of an integrated ANP–QFD framework for sustainable supplier selection

This study provides a novel integrated multi-criteria decision-making approach to sustainable supplier selection problems. Despite the large supply chain management literature on green performance measurement, the need for a systematic analysis of how specific sustainable variables develop and affect each other remains mostly overlooked. The proposed integrated framework allows for such an analysis. By combining analytic network process and quality function deployment, our model identifies a clear hierarchical structure for all the relevant sustainable factors and sub-factors while weighting the decision criteria based on the importance given to customer requirements. Finally, suppliers are ranked using a multi-objective optimisation procedure based on ratio analysis and weighted aggregated sum product assessment. The proposed framework is used to analyse a case study of a dairy company, but it can be easily implemented for supplier selection by any other company with similar features.     

Making tough choices: A policy capturing approach to evaluating the tradeoffs in sustainable supplier development initiatives

This research explores the tradeoffs that decision makers are willing to make when implementing development initiatives to improve supplier sustainability performance. We employ a policy capturing methodology in which respondents are forced to choose between multiple potential sustainable supplier development initiatives. Data were collected from traditional and executive MBA students. The results suggest that when confronted with tradeoffs, decision makers value improvements in supplier cost savings and injury reduction equally, which was somewhat unexpected. Further, both improvements in supplier cost savings and injury reduction were valued over supplier emissions performance. Because we measure individual tradeoff preferences, multi-level regression analysis was used to better understand the impact of respondent value structure regarding sustainably developing suppliers. Our findings suggest a hierarchy of tradeoff preferences for decision makers as they pertain to sustainable supplier development. As the pressure to ensure supply chain sustainability increases, more firms will engage in sustainable supplier development. The outcomes of the choices they make when choosing between initiatives, and how managers make these choices, will be of increasing interest in both industry and academia. This research answers previous calls for further examination of decision maker tradeoff preferences in sustainable supply chain development.     

The pandemic and SME supply chains: Learning from early experiences of SME suppliers in the U.S. defense industry

While the COVID-19 pandemic has been disrupting supply chains in an unprecedented fashion, one type of firms that has been particularly affected are small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We focus on these SMEs, specifically on SME suppliers to the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), and investigate the impact that the pandemic has had on these suppliers, as well as the effectiveness of various government procurement efforts to alleviate the challenges. In doing so, we rely on survey data collected by the National Defense Industry Association (NDIA) during the early stages of the pandemic in March and April 2020 to assess initial government responses and SME supplier receptions. To derive more granular insight, we scrutinize the results across firm size, dependence on the DoD, whether the SME is a first-tier supplier or not, and industry. Through this investigation, we for instance find that the weakest suppliers are the very small SMEs (1–49 employees), and that most government measures were judged to not be that effective—at least in these early stages of the pandemic. Overall, our study leverages insight from one of the few large-scale surveys conducted on the impact of the pandemic on SME suppliers and their relationship with government agencies in the very early phases of the pandemic.     

现代企业生产经营决策支持系统构架设计

通过构建企业经营决策支持系统(DSS),对市场竞争条件下的企业产品市场需求预测、最佳产品销售价格和广告费用投入等市场促销手段运用决策、最佳产品生产组合方案及其调整决策、最佳生产物料订购批量及其供应商选择决策、拟定方案下的企业经营成本及其盈亏预算、最佳企业经营方案进行决策,才是正确进行现代企业决策的重要保证。     

Supplier selection using a multi-criteria decision aid method

An ever-increasing trend in today's industrial firms is to exploit outsourcing for those products and activities deemed to be outside the company's core business. Given the financial importance and the multi-objective nature of supplier selection decision, in this paper an effort is made to highlight those aspects that are crucial to process qualitative and quantitative performance measures. In this paper, the contribution of a multi-criteria decision aid method ( ) to such problems is investigated, together with how to allow for a simultaneous change of the weights (importance of performance criteria), generating results that can be easily analysed statistically, performing an innovative sensitivity analysis. By way of example, the model is applied to a mid-sized Italian firm operating in the field of public road and rail transportation. The whole suppliers selection model presented ( techniques plus high-dimensional sensitivity analysis) seems to be a useful additional tool inside the final choice phase of a supplier selection process. Finally, potential issues for future research are presented.     

The interplay of effectuation and causation in decision making: Russian SMEs under institutional uncertainty

The institutional context of Russia and the recent regime of foreign trade sanctions makes it a natural laboratory to study change in decision making regarding the international activities of SMEs. This research explores how the increased institutional uncertainty is evaluated, enacted and responded to by SMEs that are heavily involved in relations with international suppliers. This longitudinal multiple-case study reveals that although firms simultaneously use both causation and effectuation in their decision making, an increase of institutional uncertainty boosts effectuation. The study shows that the intensity of both types of decision-making logic varies along the studied period in accordance to changing perceptions of institutional uncertainty. Also, the studied firms use effectuation logic differently enabling us to distinguish two types of effectuation with contrasting performance implications: opportunity-driven effectuation and survival effectuation.     

基于风险价值评估模型的供应链道德风险分析

企业与供应商合作存在信息不对称的情况,为有效的做出决策,企业根据道德风险的特征确定风险因子,建立价值评估模型,以供应商的历史表现为依据,进行道德风险价值评估,从而决定是与供应商合作,还是考虑采取预警、防范或其它相关措施.通过实例计算分析.说明理论方法的可行性和有效性.     

博弈分析框架下的供应链应收账款融资研究

如何解决中小企业融资难问题,一直困扰着理论界和实务界。供应链金融概念的提出和发展,为中小企业融资难问题提供了解决办法。作为供应链金融的融资工具之一,应收账款融资由于在操作上的快捷和简便,受到众多中小企业和银行的青睐。文章从博弈论的角度,分析了核心企业、中小企业供应商、银行三方在应收账款融资过程中的决策。通过分析可以得出,核心企业从自身的经营稳定性和利益出发,会选择为中小企业应收账款融资提供担保。同时,银行为了扩展自身业务,提高资产收益,会接受中小企业提出的应收账款融资请求。核心企业、中小企业、银行之间的博弈达到帕累托最优。     

Antecedents and consequences of social capital on buyer performance improvement

The ability to leverage social capital within strategic buyer–supplier relationships is increasingly cited as a key driver of value creation. Despite the importance of strategic partnerships, the process by which social capital accumulates within buyer–supplier relationships and contributes to buyer performance improvements is not well understood. Drawing on social capital theory, we develop a model linking positive relational capital, and its antecedents, supplier integration and supplier closeness, to buyer performance improvements. Further, we hypothesize that structural capital, as reflected in managerial communication and technical exchanges, is also positively related to buyer performance improvements. Using data provided by 111 procurement executives from the United Kingdom, we find support for our hypotheses. The study extends the supply chain management and social capital literature and suggests important implications for both research and practice.     

供应商选择研究

运用模糊决策理论，建立了评价供应商绩效评价模型。最后，运用逼近理想排序法，选择出满意的供应商。     

Together or separately? Direct and synergistic effects of Effectuation and Causation on innovation in technology-based SMEs

Technology-based SMEs develop their activity in changing environments with strong competitive pressures. These conditions make them much more likely to innovate but also make the innovative process more challenging due to greater complexity of decisions about resources and establishment of actions to achieve favorable innovation results. Although prior studies have analyzed diverse factors that impact the innovative dynamics of this type of firm, little advance has been made in exploring the problem from the perspective of decision-making. This study seeks to close this research gap using Effectuation Theory, one of the most-cited theories emerging in the field of entrepreneurship. More specifically, we analyze the use of causal and effectual decision-making logics to evaluate their direct and ambidextrous effects on innovation in technology-based SMEs. Our results provide evidence that not just one path, but rather a pool of alternatives, supports product and process innovation development. More specifically, when technology SMEs pursue product innovation, both effectuation and causation can be used as predominant mechanisms to achieve positive innovation results. If firms also seek to develop process innovations, however, they may obtain better results with an ambidextrous approach.