Toward the development of an integrated model of technology internalization within the supply chain context

Purpose – Integrating information technologies in supply chains is becoming increasingly more important and challenging. The purpose is to develop a framework for understanding antecedents to internalizing technologies in supply chains. Design/methodology/approach – A literature review covering over 30 years of interdisciplinary research was used as the theoretical underpinning for developing the supply chain internalization model (SCIM). A series of 93 personal interviews with members of a major automotive supply chain were conducted, and detailed qualitative data collected, to identify a set of significant antecedents to technology internalization. Findings – The results of the research is an empirically derived framework, the SCIM, including a comprehensive set of 79 directional antecedents useful for academicians and practitioners for understanding factors impacting how information technologies are internalized in organizations and supply chains. Research limitations/implications – Empirically testing the proposed directional relationships can be used to confirm their validity and measure the relative strengths of individual or interacting antecedents. The relationships outlined in the SCIM should be tested in a diverse array of industries in order to generalize the model. In addition, the relative strength of the factors should be tested since in different contexts. For more robust understandings, moderating and mediating effects amongst the variables should be identified. Practical implications – Practitioners can use the SCIM as a source for established guidelines for developing strategies for implementing information technologies. Originality/value – This paper lays the groundwork for facilitating the internalization of information technologies in supply chains and is flexible enough to accommodate future research into technology internalization.