The ‘T-Shaped Buyer’: a transactional perspective on supply chain relationships

This paper challenges the normative view of interdependent buyer-seller relationships and provides a more holistic perspective of the contextual reality that shapes buyer behaviour. By proposing an innovative qualitative methodology, which focusses on boundary-spanning, pre-sales interactions, the research penetrates complex and commercially sensitive buyer-seller relationships. The longitudinal research design uses web-based diaries and follow-up interviews to explore conditions of power based interdependence between buyers and sellers. The ensuing data is mapped using qualitative content analysis and the results are aggregated graphically for assessment. Using this approach the study develops a nuanced view of the dominant patterns of buyer behaviour, and challenges the opinion that a search for competitive advantage will strengthen cooperative relationships in conditions of power based interdependence. The paper introduces the metaphor of the 'T-Shaped Buyer' to explain the empirical findings and, while acknowledging the contextual limits of the study, suggests that this metaphor may cause both academics and practitioners to reflect on normative thinking

Reducing the impact of demand process variability within a multi-echelon supply chain

Forrester analyzed Supply Chain and the different levels existing in it, as well as the participant companies and the role played by each of them inside the chain as a global group, and observed that small variations in end item demand caused oscillations that are amplified throughout the chain. This phenomenon, called the Bullwhip effect, has detrimental consequences on inventory levels and on all kind of inventory costs that may affect the added value of the activities throughout the logistics chain and ultimately affect the Net Present Value of all the activities in the chain. There is a set of collaborative supply chain structures which reduce these harmful consequences within the supply chain. The study presented in this paper quantifies how collaborative supply chain structures reduce the Bullwhip effect in terms of demand variability and inventory cost

Industry 4.0 (I4.0) Based Virtual Organization Model for the Coordination of Sustainable Textile Supply Chain

The lack of attention on the forward and backward supply chain issues, i.e., the transparency between supply chain agents, information sharing, resource deployment, workforce knowledge, waste reduction, cost efficiency, and resource management are the major problems of textile supply chain. The coordination of forward and backward supply chain becomes difficult due to the players\u27 self-interest and firmographics. It becomes much complicated when we consider the triple bottom line of sustainability (TBLS) in the supply chain. Therefore, in this paper, we propose an Industry 4.0 (I4.0) based virtual organization model for the coordination of the forward and backward supply chain. The results obtained through virtual organization model are also compared with the centralized supply chain and traditional cost-sharing contract. The results reveal that virtual organization model can perform better than the price only contract and it will be help firms in achieving greater sustainability with respect to traditional contract mechanisms

Inventory cost consequences of variability demand process within a multi-echelon supply chain

The bullwhip effect (Lee et al, 1997a) is a known supply chain phenomenon where small variations in end item demand create oscillations that amplify throughout the chain. Different price elasticity of demand influence different changes of demand when prices of items are changing on the time horizon. The variance of the orders at the end user placed on suppliers or on manufacturer increases with the orders flow upstream in the logistics chain. This creates harmful consequences in inventory levels and all kind of inventory costs that may affect added value of activities along the logistics chain and finally affect Net Present Value of all activities in the chain. Traditional model of dynamic supply chain structures is used for this particular study, based on the seminal work of Forrester Diagrams (Forrester 1961). Simulation platform for supply chain management at stochastic demand developed by Campuzano (2006) has been used. VENSIM Simulation Software was previously used for developing these supply chain dynamic models. In the development platform generalised supply chain models are constructed graphically and also analytically. Our study here is to get a dipper insight into the processes in a logistics chain, measuring the inventory cost consequences due to variability demand amplification

An application of hybrid life cycle assessment as a decision support framework for green supply chains

In an effort to achieve sustainable operations, green supply chain management has become an important area for firms to concentrate on due to its inherent involvement with all the processes that provide foundations to successful business. Modelling methodologies of product supply chain environmental assessment are usually guided by the principles of life cycle assessment (LCA). However, a review of the extant literature suggests that LCA techniques suffer from a wide range of limitations that prevent a wider application in real-world contexts; hence, they need to be incorporated within decision support frameworks to aid environmental sustainability strategies. Thus, this paper contributes in understanding and overcoming the dichotomy between LCA model development and the emerging practical implementation to inform carbon emissions mitigation strategies within supply chains. Therefore, the paper provides both theoretical insights and a practical application to inform the process of adopting a decision support framework based on a LCA methodology in a real-world scenario. The supply chain of a product from the steel industry is considered to evaluate its environmental impact and carbon ‘hotspots’. The study helps understanding how operational strategies geared towards environmental sustainability can be informed using knowledge and information generated from supply chain environmental assessments, and for highlighting inherent challenges in this process