Cross-functional alignment in supply chain planning: A case study of sales and operations planning

In most organizations, supply chain planning is a cross-functional effort. However, functional areas such as sales, marketing, finance, and operations traditionally specialize in portions of the planning activities, which results in conflicts over expectations, preferences, and priorities. We report findings from a detailed case analysis of a supply chain planning process that seemingly weathers these cross-functional conflicts. In contrast to traditional research on this area, which focuses on incentives, responsibilities, and structures, we adopt a process perspective and find that integration was achieved despite formal functional incentives that did not support it. By drawing a distinction between the incentive landscape and the planning process, we identify process as a mediator that can affect organizational outcomes. Thus, organizations may be capable of integration while functions retain different incentives and orientations to maintain focus on their stakeholders’ needs. Through iterative coding, we identify the attributes of the planning process that can drive planning performance—information, procedural, and alignment quality—but also find evidence that achieving alignment in the execution of plans can be more important than informational and procedural quality. In addition to process attributes, we also identify social elements that influenced the performance of the planning process and place the information processing attributes within a broader social and organizational context.     

Development and validation of a measurement instrument for studying supply chain management practices

It is widely argued that competition is no longer between organizations, but among supply chains. Effective supply chain management (SCM) has become a potentially valuable way of securing competitive advantage and improving organizational performance. This research conceptualizes, develops, and validates six dimensions of SCM practices (strategic supplier partnership, customer relationship, information sharing, information quality, internal lean practices, and postponement). Data for the study were collected from 196 organizations and the measurement scales were tested and validated using structural equation modeling. It is hoped that this study will provide a parsimonious measurement instrument to assess the performance of the overall supply chain.     

The link between supply chain fit and financial performance of the firm

The bottom-line financial impact of supply chain management has been of continuing interest. Building on the operations strategy literature, Fisher's (1997) conceptual framework, a survey of 259 U.S. and European manufacturing firms, and secondary financial data, we investigate the relationship between supply chain fit (i.e., strategic consistencies between the products’ supply and demand uncertainty and the underlying supply chain design) and the financial performance of the firm. The findings indicate that the higher the supply chain fit, the higher the Return on Assets (ROA) of the firm, and that firms with a negative misfit show a lower performance than firms with a positive misfit.     

Towards an understanding of supply chain quality management

In this paper, we define supply chain quality management (SCQM) to operationalize and understand the effect of increased emphasis on supply chain management on the practice of quality management. We review current research in quality management and identify common themes found in the literature. Key quality management content variables identified are customer focus, quality practices, supplier relations, leadership, HR practices, business results, and safety. We use these variables to propose areas for future research in the field of supply chain quality management.     

Customer-facing supply chain practices—The impact of demand and distribution management on supply chain success

Traditionally, distribution has been viewed as the key (physical) link between a company's internal supply chain activities and its customers. More recently, demand management has emerged as a new dimension at the customer interface. Although it has become increasing popular in industry, it has not yet been analyzed in depth with respect to its impact on supply chain performance. Both distribution management and demand management entail customer-facing processes and practices and that are interrelated and (may) jointly determine supply chain performance. In this paper we seek to extend the stream of research in supply chain management by systematically investigating the impact of customer-facing supply chain practices on supply chain performance. Specifically, the paper examines the relative impact of relevant practices associated with demand and distribution management. To this end, we collected data from 116 multi-national companies based in Europe and analyzed it using structural equation modeling techniques. Our results suggest that (i) high demand management performance has a substantial positive impact on the overall supply chain performance, (ii) this effect is stronger than that of distribution management performance, and (iii) there is no evidence that demand management might be an enabler for effective distribution management. Among the individual practices that constitute demand and distribution management, adherence to the demand and distribution management processes and demand segmentation emerged as the strongest performance levers. Based upon additional in-depth interviews conducted with selected companies from our sample, we shed light on some of the most important findings that emerged from our survey analysis.     

电子化采购与供应链管理浅谈

当今经济环境中的激烈竞争和市场不确定性的增加为企业带来了越来越大的压力。企业纷纷转向战略供应管理,加强与供应链上、下游企业的合作,改善与供应商的关系,使供应链流程自动化以降低成本、缩短采购提前期,最终赢得市场竞争优势。电子化采购则是企业实现上述运营目标的关键管理模式。文中首先简要论述了供应链管理相关理论和电子采购的基本内涵,然后阐述了实施电子采购的必要性,最后提出了电子化采购的构成因素并分析其在供应链管理中的作用。     

Supply chain management executives in corporate upper echelons

Supply chain strategies and their implementation have been recognized as a source of competitive advantage. According to the principle “structure follows strategy”, we expect the number of firms having supply chain management (SCM) functions represented on their top management team (TMT) to have increased in the past years. However, little is known about the degree to which executives responsible for SCM functions (i.e., Chief Supply Chain Officers) are present or absent in TMTs and if their presence is related to firm performance. Therefore, we study the TMTs of large US corporations and show that SCM is present in upper echelons, either through executives whose responsibilities explicitly include SCM or indirectly by executives, especially CEOs, who had acquired SCM experience in their previous positions. However, firms׳ operating margins are lower when a Chief Supply Chain Officer is present in the TMT.     

A replication and extension of quality management into the supply chain

As competition moves beyond a single firm into the supply chain, researchers are beginning to explore quality management (QM) in a supply chain context. The literature suggests that supply chain management (SCM) consists of internal practices, which are contained within a firm, and external practices, which cross organizational boundaries integrating a firm with its customers and suppliers. Supplier quality management and customer focus are two QM practices that are also clearly in the domain of SCM. In this study we investigate how these two supply chain management-related quality practices lead to improved performance and examine the practices that precede and mediate those relationships. In doing so, we replicate and extend the relationships among the QM practices and their effects on firm performance suggested in Kaynak [Kaynak, H., 2003. The relationship between total quality management practices and their effects on firm performance. Journal of Operations Management 21, 405–435] using survey data gathered from firms operating in the U.S. The inclusion of customer focus and supplier quality management in the QM model supports the importance of internal and external integration for quality performance. Implications of the results for researchers and practitioners are discussed, and further research implications are suggested.     

The impact of supply chain integration on performance: A contingency and configuration approach

This study extends the developing body of literature on supply chain integration (SCI), which is the degree to which a manufacturer strategically collaborates with its supply chain partners and collaboratively manages intra- and inter-organizational processes, in order to achieve effective and efficient flows of products and services, information, money and decisions, to provide maximum value to the customer. The previous research is inconsistent in its findings about the relationship between SCI and performance. We attribute this inconsistency to incomplete definitions of SCI, in particular, the tendency to focus on customer and supplier integration only, excluding the important central link of internal integration. We study the relationship between three dimensions of SCI, operational and business performance, from both a contingency and a configuration perspective. In applying the contingency approach, hierarchical regression was used to determine the impact of individual SCI dimensions (customer, supplier and internal integration) and their interactions on performance. In the configuration approach, cluster analysis was used to develop patterns of SCI, which were analyzed in terms of SCI strength and balance. Analysis of variance was used to examine the relationship between SCI pattern and performance. The findings of both the contingency and configuration approach indicated that SCI was related to both operational and business performance. Furthermore, the results indicated that internal and customer integration were more strongly related to improving performance than supplier integration.     

Remote control and maintenance outsourcing networks and its applications in supply chain management

The paper analyzes the impact of e-business technologies on maintenance management and supply chain operations. The aim of this work is to investigate the network organization level of supply chains in case of remote maintenance application and to understand how maintenance policies are coupled with information technology (IT) solutions. To this purpose two literature reviews are presented: firstly, on the supply chain and network integration, and then on the evolution of maintenance using information technology. Following this, the paper present four specific industrial case-studies of eMRO network organisation. They have been chosen as reference models from a set of practical applications and pilot tests performed by the authors in different production sectors in the last 5 years. Technology complexity environments, maintenance outsourcing level, and supply chain integration context are discussed for each case-studies with particular regards to the profitable forms of collaboration provided by the introduction of IT and the Web. This analysis work toward the development of a framework useful to: (1) classify different e-maintenance systems and understand the relationships between the different members of the network, and (2) identify the variables which can influence the introduction and development of the systems.     

Creating a competitive advantage in the global flight catering supply chain: a case study using SCOR model

Flight catering is a complex food service industry that caters to a wide range of airlines. Meals provided to passengers are a measure of in-flight service on an airplane. In the case of the airline industry, flight catering companies are responsible for preparing the meal that flight crews serve it at a voyaging altitude. This case study examines Emirates Kitchen Flight Catering (EKFC), a jointly owned entity of Dubai Civil Aviation (10%) and the Emirates Group (90%). Based on existing literature, international archival reports, company publications and participant observations of EKFC, the paper examines how EKFC reached the top of the catering supply chain by offering the best-in-class quality services and food to its passengers. The paper addresses the persistent growth of EKFC’s operations and investigates relevant strategies that reinforce EKFC’s fundamental competencies through the application of Supply Chain Operations Reference framework. Offering a combination of on-board excellence, quality, and fresh and delicious food while controlling costs across the supply chain is an important differentiator of EKFC’s flight catering business, thereby setting a benchmark for other businesses.     

Demand chain management theory: constraints and development from global aerospace supply webs

This paper develops an empirical and theoretical approach to where strategic capabilities should lie within global aerospace supply chains. Theory from transaction cost economics (TCE) and the resource-based view (RBV) of the firm are applied to the aerospace sector and used to underpin a theory of demand chain management (DCM). A two-stage research process was used to generate and validate data from aerospace supply chain case studies. Demand chain driver and resource-based response categories were identified from these data and are presented. Concluding comments concern current limits of a demand chain theory and implications for practitioners.     

Barriers to supply chain information integration: SMEs adrift of eLands

The literature extols the potential benefits of supply chain integration and the crucial role of integrated eBusiness to deliver those benefits. However, adoption of eBusiness in supply chains has been slower than expected, particularly in small to medium sized enterprises (SMEs). This paper reports findings of a longitudinal study of four supply chains in different sectors over a 4-year period. Specifically it examines the barriers to adoption of eBusiness technologies and therefore to achievement of integrated information in supply chains. Differences between firms in supply chains and between supply chains are examined. The study reveals disparity between existing and planned use of eBusiness by larger downstream firms compared to upstream SMEs. The SMEs are cautious, only planning to invest in eBusiness if dominant downstream customers force them; however, they do not appreciate the full benefits to be gained from eBusiness adoption. The downstream larger businesses are forging ahead with eBusiness in ‘eIsolation’ and are not providing supply chain leadership. They are creating eLands with SMEs adrift of them.     

Cyber supply chain risk management: Revolutionizing the strategic control of critical IT systems

Cyber supply chain risk management (CSCRM) is a new discipline designed to help IT executives address the challenges of the rapid globalization and outsourced diffusion of hardware and software systems. CSCRM is an integrative discipline combining elements of cybersecurity, supply chain management, and enterprise risk management into a new and powerful concept to exert strategic control over the end-to-end processes of the focal organization and its extended enterprise partners. This article provides a survey of the field, as well as a detailed analysis of the results of a four-year research project on CSCRM, conducted by the Robert H. Smith School of Business Supply Chain Management Center for the National Institute of Standards and Technology, that focused on the development of organizational assessment tools and a capability/maturity model for this emerging discipline.     

Gaining from disorder: Making the case for antifragility in purchasing and supply chain management

The purchasing and supply chain management (P&SCM) discipline assumes that supply chains are fragile systems, hence taking a “negative” approach toward disorder. Building on Taleb’s concept of antifragility—the ability to gain from disorder rather than avoiding it—, we challenge this traditional assumption. The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed that some companies were indeed able to gain from disorder, whereas some of those that focused too much on robustness and resilience lost ground. Building robust and resilient supply chains may no longer be enough to thrive in today’s highly volatile business world. This article sparks a new debate by introducing antifragility to the P&SCM literature and provides new directions for future research.     

基于供应链管理的建筑物料采购管理模式研究

文中从建筑施工企业传统建筑物料采购管理模式的弊端出发,利用矩阵分析法将建筑物料分为战略型、重要型、一般型和瓶颈型物料,相对应的将供应商分为战略型、重要型、普通型和技术型供应商,并结合供应链管理的先进理论,针对不同类型的物料进行了不同的采购管理模式研究.     

Imperatives of the science of operations and supply-chain management

Although knowledge in operations and supply-chain management (O&SCM) has advanced substantially during the last six decades, our community has not fully utilized the potential for radical innovations. We identify two sets of opportunities for pursuing radical innovations. First, there is an opportunity to pursue all phases of science, including exploratory and qualitative research, developing theories, causation and internal validity, and testing models and theories for external validity (the ability to generalize knowledge to other situations). This would broaden the domain covered by each research effort, minimize the bias resulting from the choice of research paradigm and research domain, to enhance external validity, and to minimize the gap between our research efforts and the real world our community seeks to reshape. Second, there is an opportunity to pursue multiple perspectives because a scientific conclusion valid for a narrow domain may prove to be partially true or even false if one obtains multiple perspectives. Multiple perspectives can be obtained by investigating different parts of the system, by employing different methods of analysis, by using different sources of data, or by using different subsets of the same data. Developing scientific knowledge requires pursuit of all phases of science and of multiple perspectives. In a separate paper, we propose and analyze ways to accomplish it.