scholarly journals Pandemic turned into pandemonium: the effect on supply chains and the role of accounting information

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajantha Velayutham ◽  
Asheq Razaur Rahman ◽  
Anil Narayan ◽  
Michael Wang
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Accounting Information ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Demand Side ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Business Entities ◽  
Respiratory Devices

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the disruptive effects of COVID-19 on supply chains and question the role of accounting information in managing these supply chains in the face of such disruptive effects.Design/methodology/approachThe study first explains the effects of COVID-19 on the supply chains of business entities. It then explains the role of accounting information in supply chain management, questions accounting information's ability to play such a role, and makes recommendations for better accounting disclosures and accounting research for supply chains of firms. To illustrate the salient points, a case study of Fisher and Paykel Healthcare is conducted. It identifies the risks and uncertainties of supply chains exposed by COVID-19 disruptions to businesses.FindingsCOVID-19 has affected Fisher and Paykel Healthcare from both the supply-side (upstream) and demand-side (downstream) perspectives. On the supply side, it has disrupted the supply of raw materials used in the manufacture of respiratory devices and the costs of importing such materials. On the demand side, it has disrupted market logistics and customer demand. This has subsequently affected production. Such disruptions can be overcome through the dissemination of appropriate accounting information for the different stages of the supply chain to the managers. Such accounting information can also be useful to external stakeholders for minimizing their risks.Originality/valueThe study attempts to create an awareness of the supply chain uncertainties faced by managers and stakeholders arising from exogenous shocks, such as a pandemic, and how these uncertainties can be mitigated by aligning accounting information flows with the supply chain activity flows. The observations made in this paper are at a conceptual level and, therefore, can be applied to any industry.

AI technologies and their impact on supply chain resilience during COVID-19

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sachin Modgil ◽  
Shivam Gupta ◽  
Rébecca Stekelorum ◽  
Issam Laguir
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Supply Chain ◽  
Information Processing ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Failure Modes ◽  
Stress Test ◽  
Weak Links ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Supply Chain Resilience

PurposeCOVID-19 has pushed many supply chains to re-think and strengthen their resilience and how it can help organisations survive in difficult times. Considering the availability of data and the huge number of supply chains that had their weak links exposed during COVID-19, the objective of the study is to employ artificial intelligence to develop supply chain resilience to withstand extreme disruptions such as COVID-19.Design/methodology/approachWe adopted a qualitative approach for interviewing respondents using a semi-structured interview schedule through the lens of organisational information processing theory. A total of 31 respondents from the supply chain and information systems field shared their views on employing artificial intelligence (AI) for supply chain resilience during COVID-19. We used a process of open, axial and selective coding to extract interrelated themes and proposals that resulted in the establishment of our framework.FindingsAn AI-facilitated supply chain helps systematically develop resilience in its structure and network. Resilient supply chains in dynamic settings and during extreme disruption scenarios are capable of recognising (sensing risks, degree of localisation, failure modes and data trends), analysing (what-if scenarios, realistic customer demand, stress test simulation and constraints), reconfiguring (automation, re-alignment of a network, tracking effort, physical security threats and control) and activating (establishing operating rules, contingency management, managing demand volatility and mitigating supply chain shock) operations quickly.Research limitations/implicationsAs the present research was conducted through semi-structured qualitative interviews to understand the role of AI in supply chain resilience during COVID-19, the respondents may have an inclination towards a specific role of AI due to their limited exposure.Practical implicationsSupply chain managers can utilise data to embed the required degree of resilience in their supply chains by considering the proposed framework elements and phases.Originality/valueThe present research contributes a framework that presents a four-phased, structured and systematic platform considering the required information processing capabilities to recognise, analyse, reconfigure and activate phases to ensure supply chain resilience.

Doing good across organizational boundaries

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (12) ◽  
pp. 2389-2412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugo K.S. Lam
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Financial Risk ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Signalling Theory ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Moderating Role

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to theoretically hypothesise and empirically test the impact of sustainable supply chain practices (SSCPs) on firms’ financial risk. Design/methodology/approach This research adopts signalling theory to explain the signalling role of SSCPs and the moderating role of the signalling environment in terms of supply chain characteristics. It collects and combines longitudinal secondary data from multiple sources to test the direct impact of SSCPs on firms’ financial risk and the moderating role of supply chain complexity and efficiency. It conducts various additional tests to check the robustness of the findings and to account for alternative explanations. Findings This research shows that SSCPs help firms reduce financial risk but do not affect their returns. Moreover, the risk reduction of SSCPs is greater for firms with more complex and efficient supply chains. The findings are robust to alternative variable measurements and analysing strategies. Research limitations/implications This research reveals the role of SSCPs in reducing financial risk, urging researchers to pay more attention to the financial risk implications of supply chain practices in general and SSCPs in particular. Practical implications This research encourages firms to engage in SSCPs to reduce financial risk and enables them to assess the urgency of their SSCPs investments in view of the complexity and efficiency of their supply chains. Originality/value This is the first research examining the impact of SSCPs on financial risk, based on longitudinal secondary data and signalling theory. The empirical evidence documented and the theoretical perspective adopted offer important implications for future practice and research on SSCPs.

scholarly journals Sourcing decision under interconnected risks: an application of mean–variance preferences approach

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soumyatanu Mukherjee ◽  
Sidhartha S. Padhi
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Decision Maker ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Drug Manufacturer ◽  
Perfect Competition ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Demand Side ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Supply Chain Risks ◽  
Mean Variance

AbstractSupply chains are customarily associated with multiple interconnected risks originated from supply side, demand side, or from the unanticipated background uncertainties faced by a firm. Also, effective functioning of supply chain hinges on sourcing decisions of inputs (raw materials). Therefore, there is a striking need to analyse the risk preference of the decision maker while going for optimal sourcing decision under varying degree of interconnected supply chain risks. This study addresses this issue by analysing the comparative static effects under interconnected supply chain risks for a risk averse decision-maker, manufacturing and selling products in a regulated market under perfect competition. The decision-maker faces not only supply-side risk (due to random input material prices) but also interconnected risks arising out of background risk (setup costs risk) and demand-side risk (output prices risk). With preferences defined over the mean and standard deviation of the uncertain final profit, this study illustrates the effects of the changes in the pairwise correlations between the three above mentioned risks on the optimum input choice of the manufacturer. To contextualise this study, an India-based generic drug manufacturer cum seller has been considered as a case in the parametric example of our model. Adaptation of the mean–variance framework helps obtaining all the results in terms of the relative trade-off between risk and return, with simple yet intuitive interpretations.

The impact of digitalization and inter-organizational technological activities on supplier opportunism: the moderating role of relational ties

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lu Yang ◽  
Baofeng Huo ◽  
Min Tian ◽  
Zhaojun Han
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Indirect Effect ◽  
Least Square ◽  
Dark Side ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Relational Governance ◽  
Content Type ◽  
It Integration ◽  
The Impact

PurposeDigitalization encourages the manufacturer to engage in inter-organizational technological activities (i.e. supplier IT integration and supply visibility) with its major supplier, which influences supply chain (SC) governance. This study tests a moderated mediation model that considers supplier IT integration and supply visibility as mediators between supply-side digitalization and supplier opportunism, and relational ties as a moderator in the relationship between inter-organizational technological activities and supplier opportunism.Design/methodology/approachOrdinary least square (OLS) regression is used to examine data from 200 firms in China describing their supply chain management (SCM) practices and perceived relationships with their major suppliers.FindingsSupply-side digitalization is positively related to supplier IT integration and supply visibility. Supply-side digitalization has a positive indirect effect on supplier opportunism through supplier IT integration but a negative indirect effect through supply visibility. Relational ties weaken the positive effect of supplier IT integration and the positive indirect effect of supply-side digitalization on supplier opportunism. Relational ties also weaken the negative effect of supply visibility and the negative indirect effect of supply-side digitalization on supplier opportunism.Originality/valueThis study enriches understanding of SC governance in the digital age by empirically confirming that digital transformation brings both challenges and opportunities to SC governance and by clarifying the interplay of relational governance and technological activities. In addition, this study contributes to the SC digitalization literature by empirically validating the role of digitalization in promoting inter-organizational technological activities, as well as by revealing its potential dark side.

Toward a more complete theory of sustainable supply chain management: the role of media attention

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Hartmann
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chain Management ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Complete Theory ◽  
Sustainable Supply Chain ◽  
Chain Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sustainable Supply Chain Management ◽  
Media Attention

Purpose To contribute to the development of a more complete theory of sustainable supply chain management (SSCM), this study aims to focus on media attention as an under-researched antecedent. Media transmit information about (good or bad) business practices and information recipients often adjust their behavior accordingly. Although media often uncover scandals in supply chains, no systematic understanding explicates how they shape lead firms’ reactions to scandals. This empirical study investigates how media attention to a major supply chain scandal influences buying companies’ SSCM. Design/methodology/approach The research setting is the fashion industry, five years after the Rana Plaza building collapse. Matched SSCM data from 73 fashion lead firms and news articles collected from major outlets were analyzed using ordinary least squares regression analyzes. Findings This study generates nuanced insights into the role of the media in triggering SSCM. Certain facets of media attention (direct media exposure and negative framing) result in higher levels of SSCM, others have no significant effect (media visibility) and some result in less SSCM (positive framing). Research limitations/implications The varying effects of different facets of media attention on SSCM have not been established previously. Both media and supply chain researchers should address these unique effects in their continued assessments. Social implications External stakeholders can use these findings to devise more effective ways to influence lead firms and improve social and environmental conditions in supply chains. Originality/value This study is the first empirical investigation of the effects of various facets of media attention on SSCM.

Manufacturer structural embeddedness and the network rent: the intervening role of relational embeddedness in the triadic supply chains

2019 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 334-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Artur Swierczek
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Partial Least Square ◽  
Central Position ◽  
Collaborative Relationships ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Structural Embeddedness ◽  
Relational Embeddedness ◽  
Positive Effect

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether the manufacturer that occupies the central position in the triadic supply chain is capable of enhancing relationships within both dyads to produce the network rent and extra profit shared among all supply chain actors. Design/methodology/approach The paper opted for an exploratory study using a survey of triads forming supply chains. To reveal the capability of yielding the network rent in the examined triads, multiple regression analysis with Interaction effects was used. Having confirmed the existence of supernormal profit, the partial least square path model was developed to investigate the effects of manufacturer structural embeddedness on relational embeddedness and the resulting impact on the network rent. Findings The obtained findings show that manufacturer structural embeddedness has a direct and positive effect on relational embeddedness and relational embeddedness of two dyads (represented as a higher order factor) has a direct and positive effect on the network rent. In addition, relational embeddedness mediates the positive relationship between manufacturer structural embeddedness and network rent, as the null model with no mediation appears to underestimate the direct and positive effect between manufacturer structural embeddedness and the network rent. Research limitations/implications The study makes three key contributions. First, it extends the application of both relational and structural embeddedness to grasp the network architecture of the triadic supply chain. Second, the concept of manufacturer structural embeddedness is used to elaborate on the role of the manufacturer in establishing relationships of high quality with the supplier and the customer. In connection to the previous point, the calculated network rent demonstrates that establishing collaborative relationships in triadic supply chains may bring a significant supernormal profit, derived as the outcome of mutual interplay between the relational performances of two dyads. Practical implications The study shows that manufacturers intending to use their central position to develop collaborative relationships with both partners, and the supplier and the customer, ought to appreciate the role of social ties embedded in interorganizational networks. The paper also implies that in parallel with using formal contracts as a governance mechanism, the manufacturer centrally positioned in the triadic supply chains ought to deliberately shape relational embeddedness of both dyads. Finally, managers can consider the ways to enhance relational embeddedness in a triad by improving relational embeddedness of a certain dyad. Originality/value This study provides a novel framework for studying two basic dimensions of embeddedness (structural and relational) and their impact on the network rent in triadic supply chains that goes beyond the dyadic perspective and incorporates the extended supply chain.

From green to good supply chains:

2019 ◽  
Vol 49 (8) ◽  
pp. 839-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Carbone ◽  
Valérie Moatti ◽  
Tobias Schoenherr ◽  
Srinagesh Gavirneni
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chain Management ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Supply Chain Performance ◽  
Socially Responsible ◽  
Chain Management ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Socially Responsible Investments

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate to what extent dynamic capabilities (DCs) developed in the field of green supply chain management can foster social supply chain performance. In addition, the role of both human and stakeholder capital in enhancing this relationship is investigated. Design/methodology/approach Relying on the theoretical framework of the resource-based view, complemented with the DCs perspective, the authors hypothesize about the benefits of a firm’s environmental management capability for its social supply chain performance, as well as the moderating role of both human and stakeholder capital. Our contentions are tested through a multi-year database of socially responsible investments covering 1,177 multinational corporations. Findings The findings show that companies can sustain positive and superior social performance in their supply chain by leveraging DCs developed in the environmental field. This impact is further shown to be elevated in the presence of both human and stakeholder capital. Research limitations/implications This study represents a snapshot of the transformation process from environmentally to socially responsible supply chains. While the secondary data employed offers unique advantages, secondary data also have limitations. Social implications Developing environmental capabilities not only enhances companies’ profitability, but can also lead to better supply chains through improved labor conditions and well-being. Originality/value The authors’ shift from a company-centric to a sustainability-centric conceptualization of DCs can open up new opportunities to engage research, potentially leading to high-impact results in the field of sustainable supply chain management. In addition, the authors leverage a secondary data source not frequently utilized in prior work.

scholarly journals The evolving role of supply chain managers in global channels of distribution and logistics systems

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (8/9) ◽  
pp. 671-688 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Kiessling ◽  
Michael Harvey ◽  
Levent Akdeniz
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Learning Organizations ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Logistics Systems ◽  
Relational Marketing ◽  
The Past ◽  
Contractual Arrangements ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – Supply chains have become a strategic strength to many firms due to the nature of the globalization of business. The past roles of supply chain managers have changed dramatically and now also include various new duties that will enhance firm competitiveness due to their boundary spanning nature and the new focus of learning organizations. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This was a theoretically developed paper exploring trust, learning organizations, and supply chains. Findings – Researchers are now focussing on the relationship among the supply chain network through the paradigm of relational marketing as the governance structures of contractual arrangements globally cannot be anticipated. Originality/value – The research through the lens of relational marketing explores how supply chain managers’ core duties are now compounded by global/cultural nuances in respect to implicit knowledge acquisition and relationship development through strong-form trust.

Applying the resource-based view to alliance formation in specialized supply chains

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 262-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bodo Steiner ◽  
Kevin Lan ◽  
Jim Unterschultz ◽  
Peter Boxall
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chain ◽  
Supply Chains ◽  
Competitive Advantage ◽  
Alliance Formation ◽  
Resource Heterogeneity ◽  
Primary Input ◽  
Resource Based View ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Resource Characteristics

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore drivers of alliance formation in a specialized supply chain from a manager’s perspective, focussing on firm-specific resources, resources embedded in inter-firm relationships and capabilities under the control of the focal firm. Design/methodology/approach This paper focusses on the resource-based view to obtain insights from the analysis of a manager survey conducted in Canada’s beef sector, applying a logistic regression approach to study alliance formation. Findings In identifying significant roles for resource richness and diversification of resource usage, the analysis highlights the importance of resource characteristics underlying factor market imperfections as drivers of alliance formation in a single primary input supply chain. The results suggest that resource heterogeneity is important for alliance formation and organizational success in specialized supply chains. Research limitations/implications If previous alliance-related experience of managers, controlled for in the underlying cross-sectional survey, serves as an approximation for persistent unobservables impacting the alliance formation decision, we may face spurious state-dependence. Practical implications Managers interested in building compatible alliances in specialized single primary input supply chains may benefit from an improved understanding of the differential role of resource characteristics and resource heterogeneity for alliance formation, as these can function as a source of competitive advantage. Originality/value The analysis provides new insights from an individual manager’s perspective on alliance formation drivers in a specialized agri-food supply chain, thereby solidifying extant findings on alliance formation obtained in other sectors. The study contributes to the understanding of the role of resources in alliance formation with regard to prior relationship experience, resource heterogeneity and thus causal ambiguity, thereby also contributing to the debate of the role of relational capabilities vs firm-internal resources for sustained competitive advantage.

US GDP is set for a rapid consumption-led rebound

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Supply Chains ◽  
Federal Government ◽  
Economic Activity ◽  
Public Land ◽  
Supply Side ◽  
Demand Side ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Behavioural Changes ◽  
Commodity Production ◽  
Direct Payments

Significance Economic activity is likely to heat up rapidly as people spend some of the savings accumulated in 2020 and direct payments given to them by the federal government. Impacts Domestic travel, hospitality and entertainment will rebound rapidly but longer-term demand could suffer from permanent behavioural changes. Supply chains have faced supply-side disruption and may face demand-side pressures as people return to offices, drive, and eat out more. Commodity production will be under pressure as demand for petroleum rises and the Biden administration restricts output on public land.

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