Purpose – The paper extends a central paradigm of the strategy literature to the supply chain environment to foster a better understanding of the elements characterizing strategic decisions that lead to supply chain structural development and performance. Design/methodology/approach –...

Many of today's most successful companies have decided to focus on their core business and purchase other functional needs from outside vendors. Time and resource constraints make utilization of public or contract warehousing providers an attractive option. Because of their specialized...

Organizational structure significantly influences firm performance. A recent survey of logistics professionals revealed that centralized structures accommodated logistics system integration better than decentralized structures. Also, centralized firms spent a lower percentage of net sales on...

The impact of information exchange on suppliers' performance is investigated in the context of trade relationships formed between manufacturers and third party providers of international logistics services. A conceptual model that predicts the important linkages among information exchange,...

Functional areas within a firm must effectively interact and work together to plan, coordinate, and implement strategic initiatives. Interfunctional integration is believed to be directly related to a firm's competitiveness and profitability. The current research was undertaken to gain a greater...

Purpose: This research seeks to identify the motivations, means and outcomes of supply chain integration (SCI) among firms in the middle market (i.e. those with annual revenues between US$10m and US$1bn). These firms often interface with larger, more powerful firms in the supply chain – both...

Efficient Consumer Response (ECR) is an industry‐wide initiative that is commonly believed to have fallen far short of its promised efficiencies and value. Many believe that unrealistic expectations among grocery industry participants are primarily at fault for this shortcoming. The level of...

Manufacturing flow management is the supply chain management process that includes all activities necessary to move products through the plants and to obtain, implement, and manage manufacturing flexibility in the supply chain. Manufacturing flexibility reflects the ability to make a variety of...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a theoretical model of supply chain agility and, based on that, develop a research framework for investigating linkages between supply chain agility and firm competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach – The conceptual model of supply chain...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review the growing literature examining supply chain risk management (SCRM) and to develop a typology of risks in the supply chain. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws its insights and conclusions from a review of the literature on supply...