Procurement 4.0: factors influencing the digitisation of procurement and supply chains

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 965-984 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Bienhaus ◽  
Abubaker Haddud

Purpose While digitisation is a key driver of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0); organisations have different approaches to deal with this topic to get a clearer picture of the opportunities and challenges concerning the digital transformation. The purpose of this paper is to identify the impact of digitisation on procurement and its role within the area of supply chain management. The research will also explore potential barriers to digitising procurement and supply chains and ways to overcome them. Finally, the significance of potential enabling technologies to the digitisation will also be examined. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative approached utilising an online survey was used to collect the primary data for this study. Data were collected from 414 participants directly involved with procurement or related business functions and work for different organisations in different industries. The survey included eight items about the impact of digitisation on organisational performance in the area of procurement and supply chains; ten items related to key barriers to digitisation of organisations and ways to overcome them; and seven items about enabling technologies to leverage procurement procedures and processes digitisation. All of these items utilised the Likert five-point level of agreement scale. Findings The findings indicate that digitisation of procurement process can yield several benefits including: supporting daily business and administrative tasks, supporting complex decision-making processes, procurement will become more focussed on strategic decisions and activities, procurement will become a strategic interface to support organisational efficiency, effectiveness, and profitability, and supporting the creation of new business models, products, and services. The authors were also able to confirm that there are barriers to digitising procurement process and supply chains and such barriers found in existing procedures, processes, capacities, and capabilities. Finally, the significance of a number of enabling technologies to the digitisation process was revealed. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of its kind with participants located world-wide. Industry 4.0 as a topic had been explored within different business areas and functions but very limited research specifically explored potential impact, barriers, and enabling technologies of procurement 4.0. The results can be beneficial for organisations already implemented Industry 4.0 or planning to do so. The study can also benefit academic scholars interested in the researched topic, business professionals, organisations within different sectors, and any other party interested in understanding more the concept of procurement 4.0.

Author(s):  
Sibel Yildiz Çankaya ◽  
Bülent Sezen

Modern industry developed over several centuries and three industrial revolutions. Today, we experience the fourth era of the industrial revolution, Industry 4.0. The advance of industrialization brought along many problems, including environmental pollution, global warming, and depletion of natural resources. As a result, the concept of sustainability began to gain importance. Sustainability can be achieved through a balance between economic, social, and environmental processes. In order to establish such balance, businesses need new business models or insights. At this point, Industry 4.0 can be regarded as a new business mindset that will help businesses and communities move towards sustainable development. The technologies used by Industry 4.0 bear a strong promise to solve these problems, after all. Even though Industry 4.0 attracts a lot of attention lately, few works are available on its impact on sustainability. This chapter examines the impact of Industry 4.0 on sustainability.


Author(s):  
Elena Viktorovna Shirinkina

The relevance of this research is substantiated by the fact that the world job market is currently under the influence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Industry 4.0). The goal lies in assessing the impact of cyclic and unexpected trends upon the job market, and thus, the forms of job management and employment functions. In this regard, analysis is conducted on the academic theories in the context of conceptualization of the impact of Industry 4.0 upon the job market and employment functions. The long-term trends in transformation of the job market are determined. The empirical basis of this research is comprised of the statistical data provided by Rosstat and the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation, as well as the resources of analytical articles and scientific publications, including the materials of international organizations, leading consulting companies, global associations, leading educational institutions, other active participants of global educational environment, and job market experts. An overview is given to the trends that affect the companies, their strategies and business models; the impact of such trends upon the transformation of current professions and the emergence of new professions; skills required for these professions. The scientific novelty lies in substantiation of the concept of skill-biased technical change (SBTC) and the theory of routine-biased technological change (RBTC). The presented materials would allow the companies to combine business news with fundamental training of specialists for going along the new career trajectiory in light of the new technological challenges, which defines the practical value of this research.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcello Braglia ◽  
Leonardo Marrazzini ◽  
Luca Padellini ◽  
Rinaldo Rinaldi

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present a structured framework whose objectives are to identify, analyse and eliminate fashion-luxury supply chains inefficiencies.Design/methodology/approachA Lean Manufacturing tool, the 5-Whys Analysis, has been used to find out the root causes associated with the problem identified from a data analysis of production orders of a fashion-luxury company. A case study, which explains the methodology and illustrates the capability of the tool, is provided.FindingsThis tool can be considered a suitable instrument to identify the causal factors of inefficiencies within luxury supply chains, suggesting potential countermeasures able to eliminate the problems previously highlighted. In addition, enabling technologies that deal with Industry 4.0 are associated with the root causes to enable further improvement of the supply chain.Practical implicationsThe effectiveness and practicality of the tool are illustrated using an industrial case study concerning an international Italian signature in the world of fashion-luxury footwear sector.Originality/valueThis framework provides practitioners with an operative tool useful to highlight where the major inefficiencies of fashion-luxury supply chains take place and, at the same time, individuates both the root causes of inefficiencies and the corresponding corrective actions, even considering Industry 4.0 enabling technologies.


2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (4) ◽  
pp. 267-269
Author(s):  
Larry Wofford ◽  
David Wyman ◽  
Christopher W. Starr

PurposeThis paper addresses the increasingly rapid and disruptive changes caused by technology innovations impacting commercial real estate (CRE) and how leaders in today's CRE business environment can better anticipate, and even experiment with, disruptive technologies while maintaining current business assets and practices.Design/methodology/approachThis qualitative research is based in systems theory, through which the impact of disruptive technology innovation cycles on business models is described for tactical and strategic utility.FindingsThe advent of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) is characterized by a convergence of multiple technological innovations including artificial intelligence, the Internet of things, smart buildings, autonomous agents, and automated decision-making. Industry 4.0 promises a future of discontinuities and disruptive innovation superseding the deployment of digital technologies enabled by Industry 3.0. Ambidextrous leaders need to maintain two concurrent foci: one on the current CRE business environment for incremental improvements and one on new opportunities made possible by the next technology innovation cycle.Practical implicationsBy anticipating the inflection points of nonlinear technology adoption cycles, CRE leaders can reduce risks and increase innovative opportunities as participants in the next disruptive cycle rather than falling victim to it.Originality/valueThis work examines CRE market disruptions caused by technology innovation cycles through the lens of systems theory. A connection is made between the nonlinear nature of technology disruption cycles within the CRE business environment and how CRE leadership can better anticipate and prepare for change through ambidextrous thinking.


Author(s):  
Carlo Bagnoli ◽  
Francesca Dal Mas ◽  
Maurizio Massaro

The objective of this article is to analyze the impact of Industry 4.0 on business models considering technological change as a driver of strategic innovation. The research aims to provide the key to interpreting a process of innovation that, starting from the technological transformation, translates it into a broader change of business models. A structured literature review has been developed analyzing 144 sources divided into scientific papers, reports from consultancy firms and institutional reports. This method identified the importance given by the literature to the technologies and their impact on the building blocks of the business model. The research has led to the identification of 12 business models that can represent a framework to interpret the Industry 4.0 phenomenon strategically. A questionnaire analysis of a sample of 111 companies based in Italy allowed us to compare the results of theoretical research with the perceptions of Italian entrepreneurs.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 731-765 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abubaker Haddud ◽  
Anshuman Khare

Purpose New technological trends continue to emerge, and businesses adopt them in different capacity in a pursuit of improving current ways of doing things and to gain competitive advantages over rivals. One of the key business functions that is impacted by the implementation of different disruptive technologies is the supply chain management. As a result, there is a continuous need to identify where digitalizing supply chains may provide businesses with benefits to capitalize such gains. This study aims to examine potential impacts of digitalizing supply chains on five selected lean operations practices through the identification of key areas and benefits under each of these practices. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 74 participants mainly from the academic community and who were university scholars through the use of an online survey. The used online survey consists of six main parts in total, but three were included in this paper and these were designed to gather data about participants’ general information, level of influence of seven technological trends on supply chain performance and management and potential impact of digitalizing supply chains on five lean operations practices. Findings The authors were able to confirm the significant impact of digitalizing supply chains on the five examined lean operations practices. Most of the examined potential impacts were found to improve certain areas that directly improve the practices of the explored five lean operations practices as well as the overall supply chain and business performance. They were also able to determine the level of influence of the seven examined enabling technologies on supply chain performance and management. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind. Although some literature explored different aspects related to the concept of Industry 4.0 and digitalizing supply chains, no study has specifically explored potential impacts of digitalizing supply chains on lean operations. The results from this study can be beneficial to academic scholars interested in the researched themes, business professionals specializing in supply chain management and lean operations, organizations within different industrial sectors particularly manufacturing where lean thinking is adopted and any other party interested in understanding more about the impact of digitalizing supply chain on lean operations and on an overall business performance.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bhaveshkumar Nandanram Pasi ◽  
Subhash K. Mahajan ◽  
Santosh B. Rane

PurposeThe purposes of this research article are as follows: to explore the understanding of the Industry 4.0 (I4.0) concept among Indian manufacturing industries, to determine the motivating factors for I4.0 implementation, to identify I4.0 enabling technologies which are used by Indian manufacturing industries and assess their sustainability, to explore the impact of above identified enabling technologies on sustainability pillars, to determine how Indian manufacturing industries interpret the concept of I4.0 and to develop a road map for I4.0 implementation and sustainability.Design/methodology/approachTo perform this research work, a dual research methodology was adopted. Questionnaires were sent to 16 Indian manufacturing industries, and expert interviews were conducted with seven experts who have been practicing the I4.0 concept since the last three years in their business. Also, a sustainability measurement tool was developed to measure the sustainability of the used I4.0 enabling technologies.FindingsIn this research article, it is found that smart sensors and robot arms have high sustainability, whereas cyber physical systems (CPSs) and big data analytics have low sustainability. During an expert interview, it has been found that adoption of the I4.0 concept in Indian manufacturing industries is creating job loss fear in employees. Also, it is found that Indian workers must be trained to adopt and sustain I4.0 enabling technologies.Research limitations/implicationsThe sustainability of I4.0 enabling technologies in Indian manufacturing industries was indicated by analyzing responses received through questionnaires and expert interviews. There are other measures of sustainability which are beyond this study. Further studies are expected to fill the gap.Practical implicationsThe authors have explored reasons for low sustainability of I4.0 enabling technologies in Indian manufacturing industries, suggested a road map for its implementation and sustainability and identified the relationship between different parameters (such as job loss, job creation, workers’ qualification and business profit) and I4.0 sustainability, therefore helping Indian organizations to develop sustainable manufacturing systems based on the I4.0 concept.Originality/valueThis research article gives an idea about sustainability of I4.0 enabling technologies in Indian manufacturing industries.


Upravlenets ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 82-96
Author(s):  
Maksim Kolyasnikov ◽  
Natalya Kelchevskaya

The existing business models essential for the creation of consumer value and, consequently, business competitiveness are now undergoing a transformation. Brand-new technological developments based on network integration, intelligent technology and flexible automation are becoming increasingly relevant: additional competitive opportunities appear, and knowledge management and intellectual capital management are becoming key business processes. When developing a strategic vision, it is important for companies to pick the relevant data out of the information flow about the external and internal environment and convert it into organizational knowledge, which is a core management resource. The paper analyses the experience of Russian and foreign companies in the introduction of scalable models focused on the widespread use of Industry 4.0 and establishes the principles and strategies of knowledge management that allow these companies to maintain their competitive positions in a strategic perspective. The theory of knowledge management and resource approach constitute the methodological framework of the present study. The general scientific methods of logical-structural analysis and systematization, as well as the contingency case study method were applied. The information base encompasses the case studies of six companies, retrieved from publicly available sources. The findings of the empirical research prove the feasibility of applying a situational approach to knowledge management: companies use different strategies for accumulating and sharing knowledge according to their maturity level and the area of implementation of Industry 4.0. Based on the results obtained, the authors develop a situational approach to the strategic knowledge management of companies that successfully apply the technologies of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The theoretical and practical significance of the study lies in identifying common approaches to knowledge management under various conditions, which can be used to create the strategic vision of managers involved in the key decision-making process in companies.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anh Tuan Nguyen

Purpose This study aims to develop a competency model for the Vietnamese workforce in the era of Industry 4.0. Design/methodology/approach A combination of an online survey and a Delphi study was conducted to identify a set of skills, abilities, knowledge and personalities that are critical for effective performance in the future workplace. Findings A set of 26 competencies was identified. Similar to previous findings in the context of developed countries, the set centres around a group of competencies commonly called “21st century competencies”. It also includes characteristics unique to a developing nation. Research limitations/implications The proposed framework of competencies may not cover all human capabilities necessitated by the workplace and may include items with overlapping definitions. The study only represents the view of the business community, and its survey sample was limited in size and location. The impact of COVID-19 on the competency model was not explicitly covered during the study. Practical implications The competency model could serve as a basis for the educator to reform curricula, the policy maker to devise policies and the employer to develop training programmes. It can be used as a reference for other nations at similarly-developmental level. Originality/value The present study is among a few empirical studies regarding a model for Industry 4.0 competencies in the context of low middle-income countries and probably provides one of the first Industry 4.0 competency models for Vietnam. It also provides a novel framework for identifying and analyzing competencies.


Author(s):  
Sibel Yildiz Çankaya ◽  
Bülent Sezen

Modern industry developed over several centuries and three industrial revolutions. Today, we experience the fourth era of the industrial revolution, Industry 4.0. The advance of industrialization brought along many problems, including environmental pollution, global warming, and depletion of natural resources. As a result, the concept of sustainability began to gain importance. Sustainability can be achieved through a balance between economic, social, and environmental processes. In order to establish such balance, businesses need new business models or insights. At this point, Industry 4.0 can be regarded as a new business mindset that will help businesses and communities move towards sustainable development. The technologies used by Industry 4.0 bear a strong promise to solve these problems, after all. Even though Industry 4.0 attracts a lot of attention lately, few works are available on its impact on sustainability. This chapter examines the impact of Industry 4.0 on sustainability.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document