Supply chain management, 3rd party logistics & food quality & safety: evidence from Greece

The aim of this study was to examine whether or not the efficiency of the supply chain management affect the food quality & safety. We focused upon transportation, warehousing, and inventory management. We also examined why food companies choose to outsource logistics functions such as transportation and warehousing and to what extent outsourcing affected food quality & safety. We conducted a large scale quantitative survey during January to March 2005. We faxed 400 questionnaires to Greek food companies with more than 5 personnel. We got 79 usable questionnaires (response rate 19.8%). The data analysis showed that food companies have no doubt that improving food quality means increased market share and profits. Transportation & warehousing are the main cost drivers. The most significant problems of the logistics function are: (1) re-occurring failures to quality control (2) overdue expiration date (3) inefficiencies in product sorting and handling. 44% of the companies have a logistics department. 35% of companies reported that prefer to get 3rd party logistics; most of them are SMEs. 50% of Greek food companies have acquired ISO certification in production, transportation and warehousing. ISO 14001 is rarely used. Almost all companies reported that training of personnel is a factor of improving food quality

Alignment model for trunk road network maintenance outsourcing

Road maintenance outsourcing is now the foremost strategy by which road authorities procure maintenance works. Despite growing application of road maintenance outsourcing, there are conflicting estimates on the effective­ness of road maintenance outsourcing and shortage of appropriate models to align over optimistic expectations of road authorities from road maintenance outsourcing with substantiated benefits. This paper investigates the efficacy of road maintenance outsourcing. In this paper, the different variants of road maintenance outsourcing and road maintenance works are evaluated with a SWOT analysis and a comprehensive literature review respectively. In addition, a road main­tenance outsourcing alignment model based on a decision tree and Balance Score Card is proposed and illustrated with a Nigerian trunk road network authority as a case study. The result of the SWOT analysis and comprehensive literature review establishes fresh insight into road maintenance outsourcing dynamics. The presented road maintenance outsourc­ing alignment model provides adequate pathways that could assist road authorities identify the most appropriate road maintenance outsourcing variant for road maintenance procurement. In addition it aligns actual benefits and expectations of road maintenance outsourcing and facilitates development of SMART metrics for effective assessment of road main­tenance outsourcing. The proposed model is applicable across other infrastructures. First published online: 01 Sep 201

Outsourcing: guidelines for a structured approach

Outsourcing is a management approach by which an organization delegates some noncore functions to specialized and ef®cient service providers. In the era of ªglobal marketº and ªe-economyº, outsourcing is one of the main pillars of the new way to conceive the relationships among companies. Despite outsourcing large diffusion, huge business cases and big deals of documentation available on network or press, there is no structured procedure able to support the govern of the evolution of a generic outsourcing process. In accordance with the principles of total quality management, this paper describes a proposal of a new approach for managing outsourcing processes. The model, which can be easily adapted to different application ®elds, has been conceived with the main aim of managing strategic decisions, economic factors and human resources. The approach is supported by different decision and analysis tools, such as benchmarking techniques, multiple criteria decision aiding (MCDA) methods, cost analysis, and other process-planning methodologies. An application of the method to a real case is also provide

REVIEWING OUTSOURCING CONTROVERSY IN INDONESIA (An Exploratory Study of Human Resources Outsourcing Practice in Semarang City)

Outsourcing in Indonesia is still a controversy. The different concept of outsourcing between employers (vendors and users), employees/outsourced workers, and government makes another problem in outsourcing implementation, especially in industrial relationship either in enterprise and macro level. This study aims to determine the concept of outsourcing of each element of the tripartite, the problems that arise in the implementation, and solutions from each party, in dealing with the practice of the working system. The problems under study, based on specific issues related to industrial relations, including: wages, welfare programs, health and safety, discrimination, job security, and dispute resolution, and termination of employment. This qualitative research is an exploratory, with the data collection methods: focus group discussions, observations, interviews, and study documentation. The data collected from employers (vendors and users), the national unions, worker outsourcing, and government within the scope of Semarang city. The results showed that the problems that arise due to differences in each party's conception of the tripartite elements. Uncertainty rules of outsourcing is a major problem, giving rise to labor flexibility in the implementation, which implies profitable for each party, especially the workers of outsourcing. In the end, the regulation enforcement related to the implementation of the outsourcing firm is badly needed, to compromise the disputes of workers and employer interests

Domestic Outsourcing in the United States: A Research Agenda to Assess Trends and Effects on Job Quality

The goal of this paper is to develop a comprehensive research agenda to analyze trends in domestic outsourcing in the U.S. -- firms' use of contractors and independent contractors -- and its effects on job quality and inequality. In the process, we review definitions of outsourcing, the available scant empirical research, and limitations of existing data sources. We also summarize theories that attempt to explain why firms contract out for certain functions and assess their predictions about likely impacts on job quality. We then lay out in detail a major research initiative on domestic outsourcing, discussing the questions it should answer and providing a menu of research methodologies and potential data sources. Such a research investment will be a critical resource for policymakers and other stakeholders as they seek solutions to problems arising from the changing nature of work

Risk management and the stratification of logistics service provision

This paper stems from a research project undertaken between 2007 and 2010. It discusses the development of supply chain management together with the understanding of the impact of supply chain risk. It gives an overview of the increasing stratification of service provision from first part logistics to joint service consortia and proposes a model balancing risk with service provision

Theorizing Risk and Research: Methodological Constraints and Their Consequences

Conflict, postconflict settings, and other risky research sites are important with wide-ranging policy implications. Microlevel, field-based research lends critical insights to how conflicts work and the mechanisms behind macrolevel correlations that underpin quantitative political science. This article identifies how the risks associated with conflict and postconflict contexts influence researchers’ choices by theorizing the existence of distinct adaptive strategies. Specifically, researchers facing elevated risk generally manage it through three main strategies: outsourcing risk, avoiding risk, and internalizing risk. We argue that these strategies systematically shape and circumscribe outputs. We conclude by discussing how the relationship between risky fieldwork and what we know about conflict is poorly acknowledged. Thinking about how we manage risk should play a larger role in both our preparation for and interpretation of research, particularly in conflict and postconflict contexts

New Tasks in Old Jobs: Drivers of Change and Implications for Job Quality

This overview report summarises the findings of 20 case studies looking at recent changes in the task content of five manufacturing occupations (car assemblers, meat processing workers, hand-packers, chemical products plant and machine operators and inspection engineers) as a result of factors such as digital transformations, globalisation and offshoring, increasing demand for high quality standards and sustainability. It also discusses some implications in terms of job quality and working life. The study reveals that the importance of physical tasks in manufacturing is generally declining due to automation; that more intensive use of digitally controlled equipment, together with increasing importance of quality standards, involve instead a growing amount of intellectual tasks for manual industrial workers; and that the amount of routine task content is still high in the four manual occupations studied. Overall, the report highlights how qualitative contextual information can complement existing quantitative data, offering a richer understanding of changes in the content and nature of jobs