Best Practices in Leveraging E-Business Technologies to Achieve Business Agility

2011 ◽  
pp. 356-287
Author(s):  
Ehap H. Sabri

This chapter explains the best practice in implementing e-business Technologies to achieve business cost reduction and business agility. Many companies started to realize that gaining competitive advantage is no longer feasible by only managing their own organizations; it also requires getting involved in the management of all upstream supply organizations as well as the downstream network. E-business technologies present huge opportunities that are already being tapped by several companies and supply chains. Although the benefits of implementing e-business technologies are clear, enterprises struggle in integrating e-business technologies into supply-chain operations. The author illustrates the strategic and operational impact of e-business technologies on supply chains and explains the performance benefits and challenges firms should expect in implementing these technologies. Also, the author provides the best-practice framework in leveraging e-business applications to support process improvements in order to eliminate non-value-added activities and provide real-time visibility and velocity for the supply chain. Finally, this chapter presents the future trends of using e-business in transformation programs.

Author(s):  
Ehap H. Sabri

This chapter explains the best practice in implementing e-business Technologies to achieve business cost reduction and business agility. Many companies started to realize that gaining competitive advantage is no longer feasible by only managing their own organizations; it also requires getting involved in the management of all upstream supply organizations as well as the downstream network. E-business technologies present huge opportunities that are already being tapped by several companies and supply chains. Although the benefits of implementing e-business technologies are clear, enterprises struggle in integrating e-business technologies into supply- chain operations. The author illustrates the strategic and operational impact of e-business technologies on supply chains and explains the performance benefits and challenges firms should expect in implementing these technologies. Also, the author provides the best-practice framework in leveraging e-business applications to support process improvements in order to eliminate nonvalue- added activities and provide real-time visibility and velocity for the supply chain. Finally, this chapter presents the future trends of using e-business in transformation programs.


2009 ◽  
pp. 679-700
Author(s):  
Ehap H. Sabri

This chapter explains the best practice in implementing e-business Technologies to achieve business cost reduction and business agility. Many companies started to realize that gaining competitive advantage is no longer feasible by only managing their own organizations; it also requires getting involved in the management of all upstream supply organizations as well as the downstream network. E-business technologies present huge opportunities that are already being tapped by several companies and supply chains. Although the benefits of implementing e-business technologies are clear, enterprises struggle in integrating e-business technologies into supply- chain operations. The author illustrates the strategic and operational impact of e-business technologies on supply chains and explains the performance benefits and challenges firms should expect in implementing these technologies. Also, the author provides the best-practice framework in leveraging e-business applications to support process improvements in order to eliminate nonvalue- added activities and provide real-time visibility and velocity for the supply chain. Finally, this chapter presents the future trends of using e-business in transformation programs.


2010 ◽  
pp. 853-875
Author(s):  
Ehap Sabri

This chapter explains the best practice in implementing e-business Technologies to achieve business cost reduction and business agility. Many companies started to realize that gaining competitive advantage is no longer feasible by only managing their own organizations; it also requires getting involved in the management of all upstream supply organizations as well as the downstream network. E-business technologies present huge opportunities that are already being tapped by several companies and supply chains. Although the benefits of implementing e-business technologies are clear, enterprises struggle in integrating e-business technologies into supply- chain operations. The author illustrates the strategic and operational impact of e-business technologies on supply chains and explains the performance benefits and challenges firms should expect in implementing these technologies. Also, the author provides the best-practice framework in leveraging e-business applications to support process improvements in order to eliminate nonvalue- added activities and provide real-time visibility and velocity for the supply chain. Finally, this chapter presents the future trends of using e-business in transformation programs.


2012 ◽  
Vol 6 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 27-33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Harry Bremmers ◽  
Bernd Van der Meulen ◽  
Zorica Sredojevi ◽  
Jo Wijnands

Recent price movements have put food supply chains under pressure. On the one side, upward price tendencies on commodity markets result in higher costs to processing firms. On the other side, these firms are confronted with a strong retail sector that is able to prevent compensation to protect consumers’ and own economic interests. Regulatory impediments of European law, especially with respect to foodstuffs, can adversely be utilized as barriers to protect the interest downstream the supply chain. The problem is that legal-economic instruments which can serve to smooth price volatility in supply markets can also opportunistically be used at the expense of the middlesection in food supply chains (i.e., mainly small and medium sized producers). The aim of this article is to identify the legal-economic mechanisms that effect price transfers in food supply chains in the European Union and define policy adjustments to improve pricing mechanisms, while safeguarding the interests of the processing industry. Policy alternatives to improve the smooth functioning of notably intermediate markets in food supply chains are the restructuring of competition law, improved processor information management and creating transparency of value added in the supply chain by means of labelling devices.


Author(s):  
Orestes Peristeris ◽  
Peter J. Kilbourn ◽  
Jacobus Walters

Background: In an increasingly competitive business world, businesses need to be able to measure the effectiveness of their supply chain management process practices against proven best practice frameworks. A number of these frameworks exist internationally but have to be used within the context of knowing the relative strengths and weaknesses of potential benchmarking frameworks. Two such frameworks were identified in the research and a case was made to use one such framework, the Global Supply Chain Forum (GSCF) framework, to measure the effectiveness of the supply chain practices of a leading confectionery manufacturing company in South Africa.Objective of the research: The purpose of the research was to identify an international best practice framework, which could be used by South African manufacturing organisations to benchmark their supply chain management (SCM) practices.Methodology: The methodology followed was a literature review of the existing SCM frameworks to identify a framework, which would be the most suited to the objective of the study, followed by a case study of a leading manufacturing organisation’s SCM practices benchmarked against those found in the framework.Results and conclusions: The main finding of the case study was that there is a high degree of adherence between the case study organisation’s SCM practices and those found in the SCM framework. There was also generally a high level of importance ascribed by respondents to the best practices contained by the GSCF framework. It was therefore concluded that the GSCF framework proved to be a useful instrument for a comprehensive analysis of supply chain management processes and practices for a manufacturer in the fast moving consumer goods industry, with potential for applications by organisations in the supply chains of other industries.


2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 424-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oguji Nnamdi ◽  
Richard Owusu

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the scope of sourcing research in Sub-Sahara African (SSA) from scholarly journals published from 1980 to 2013 on sourcing-related issues. The study identifies what is known about sourcing from this region and the implications for managers and researchers in supply chain management. Design/methodology/approach – Totally, 40 scholarly journals (supply chain journals and other journals publishing on diverse business topics) were found relevant and reviewed. Content (all field) search using the names of each SSA countries (e.g. Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, etc.) was carried out in the supply chain journals to filter out articles discussing sourcing-related topics. For other business journals, keyword search was performed (procurement, sourcing, purchasing, outsourcing, supplier relations, supplier selection, supplier development, supply management, offshore, supply chain and logistics). Findings – The literature review suggests that studies discussing sourcing issues in SSA have focussed mainly on challenges of sourcing from SSA, and they provide some insights on implementation of supply chain tools such as total quality management, negotiating and selecting suppliers from SSA, and just-in time purchasing. However, the authors found that there is an under-representation of this region in supply chain management literature. More so, the articles discussing sourcing issues in Africa are limited in scope empirically and theoretically in comparison with the large amount of contributions in other emerging economies of Asia and developed economies. Research limitations/implications – The limited amount of publications and contributions does not allow us to provide an integrated framework for sourcing from SSA. Practical implications – There is a need for future research to explore how the SSA context could enhance theorizing in supply chains. Also, there is need for researchers to extend the sourcing debate from the over emphasis on technology sourcing, knowledge intensive service outsourcing and component sourcing to other lower value-added products such as agricultural products and other raw materials sourced in SSA. Originality/value – This paper is one of the first to explore the scope of sourcing in Africa. As the findings suggest, there have been limited amount of papers published about this region. The review provides a perspective for researchers to explore this region and to aid theory development in supply chains. It also provided implications on how to support research publication focussing on this region and how to inform managerial perceptions on sourcing from SSA.


Logistics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 85
Author(s):  
Moritz Berneis ◽  
Herwig Winkler

Background: In relevant research, blockchain technology (BCT) is credited with great potential for supply chain management (SCM). However, even after more than 10 years of the technology’s existence, it is barely used for any self-sustaining applications. This raises the question of why BC cannot prevail against its alternatives. With this paper we want to identify criteria by which the added value of BCT can be measured. Furthermore, we want to evaluate how well the different supply chains (SC) exploit the added values of BCT. Methods: For this, we identified real-world examples and case studies for luxury, food, and healthcare SCs. These examples are described in detail and then analyzed for their added value compared to possible alternatives. Results: The results show that in the clusters of food and healthcare SCs, no general added value of BC over current best-practice solutions could be verified. Luxury SCs manage valuable products that are typically traded in small quantities. It is within this cluster that the implementation of BC can be justified best. Conclusions: In conclusion, this study shows that the application of BCT is especially beneficial for goods with a high value and low trade volume. In addition, the interface between reality and the digital twin should be as secure as the database or BC solution itself. Furthermore, the demand for transparency and immutability of data should be more important than the need to protect sensitive data. Finally, SC participants, especially the end customer, must also be able to appreciate the advantages of BCT.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 5-19
Author(s):  
Hubert Escaith ◽  
Sangeeta Khorana ◽  
William A. Kerr

As the world economy has become increasingly integrated the spectre of transnational supply chains has become a central feature of globalisation. The smooth and unfettered working of transnational supply chains has facilitated efficiency increasing changes to business operations (such as just in time inventory management). The automotive sector worldwide has been at the forefront of internationally integrated supply systems. The European Union (EU) has, in part, been structured to reduce friction in Europe-wide supply chains through the single market. Transnational supply chains are at the heart of United Kingdom (UK) – EU trade, and the UK’s departure from the EU’s single market (Brexit) will increase friction in international trade. This case study of the UK’s automotive sector uses a social network approach to analyse supply chain linkages between the UK, EU and other trading partners, and how these could be impacted as a result of Brexit. We use data from Trade in Value Added (TiVA) and World Input-Output Database (WIOD) to map supply chains, estimate total value-added in exports and examine how Brexit is likely to impact the competitiveness of UK exports. Results confirm that the UK’s automotive sector is closely integrated with the EU. To offset the loss of UK’s export competitiveness after Brexit, trade facilitation measures complemented with a duty drawback scheme could be an option in the short run. Policy measures are, however, unlikely to replace the benefits of duty-free and frictionless access enjoyed under single market trading arrangements. This suggests that the UK automotive sector, which is primarily comprised of globally active firms, may have to reconfigure supply chain arrangements and in the long run alter how decisions pertaining to locations are made. Keywords: Brexit, global value chains, input-output linkages, WIOD.


Food Research ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (6) ◽  
pp. 221-228
Author(s):  
A. Azhar ◽  
Y.T. Tu

Halal food plays an important role in the economic development in various countries. However, halal food supply chains could threaten the environment in several ways. This study was aimed to analyse the best practice of the implementation of a sustainable halal food supply chain from many data sources. The data then transform into managerial knowledge for the halal food industry. The data was collected using SAS Text Miner and analyzed using the decision tree. The analysis shows four key features of sustainable halal food supply chains: pre-slaughtering, warehousing, halal integrity, and packaging. From these features, the two most important factors of successful sustainability implementation in the halal food supply chain are found to be warehousing and packaging. The present study applies a relational view theory and an analysis theory of natural resource-based view, creating and extending new sustainable strategies of halal food chain management to sustainable halal food chain management.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mittal Chikul ◽  
Hsann Yin Maw ◽  
Yang Kok Soong

Objective: To simulate and compare a manual hospital supply chain management model versus a process that is technologically integrated (either by Radio Frequency Identification [RFID] technology or automated guided vehicles [AGVs]), in a general hospital in Singapore.Methods: Design: Deterministic modelling of hospital supply chain management for manual and technologically integrated processes as part of the institutional quality improvement exercise. Setting: Study was conceptualised during re-location of a 355-bed general hospital to newer premises within Singapore with an increased capacity of 700 beds. Study duration was 1.5 years and data collection was performed from Sep 2014 to Sep 2015.Results: Automating the inventory check and use of automated guided vehicles for medical supplies can improve business and operational performance by saving time on no-value added activities that can be transferred to patient care. RFID intervention requires least number of man-hours per day reducing the total manpower requirements by about one third as compared to the manual process while improving productivity by about 40%, it also provides cost savings of about 25% over a period of 10 years. Sensitivity analysis shows that extent of these cost savings are dependent on overall staff utilisation. Although use of AGV alone is expensive in our model, combining AGVs with RFID technology provides the least manpower dependence among the different interventions studied, it also gives a positive return on investment as compared to manual process beyond 3 years of operations.Conclusions: Optimising supply chains within healthcare helps minimise manpower dependency and costs. However, prior to adopting a specific intervention, the unique characteristics of each healthcare setting should be considered. There is need for similar research into healthcare supply chains to identify key determinants to cost savings and improving productivity, both locally and regionally.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document