Achieving excellence in logistics through the appropriate style of information management.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Commerce,Logistics is a management discipline that has been spoken about for years and is yet to deliver the full potential that it purports to bring about. Excellence in logistics has been identified as one of the major challenges that products related organisations currently face to ensure continued success in an increasingly competitive, global market. One of the key enablers to integration is the effective application of information technology. Most managers easily accept this as fact but few are clear in describing how this can be achieved. Two prime works used as reference for this research are Bowersox's research into logistics, providing a reference framework on the role of logistics in organisations, and Cilliers's study of logistics at ISO South African companies, providing a South African reference point, It is the combination of the Bowersox attributes and the Cilliers qualified sample of South African companies that provides the basis for an exciting research initiative establishing the role of information technology in achieving logistics excellence in South Africa Both successful and less successful organisations were measured against a set of attributes to determine which were most crucial in achieving logistics excellence: It is clear from the survey that logistics excellent companies have a marked difference in their approach to information teclmology as compared to those who are not logistics excellent. This is mapped out in the paper in some detail and some of the detailed responses may be somewhat of a surprise to the reader as they challenge conventional wisdom. The results of the survey were encapsulated into a simple model. This should act as a quick reference to IT professionals seeking to playa leading role in driving their company towards logistics excellence. Information technology plays a vital role in achieving logistics excellence. This paper provides some insight into the factors that are critical in achieving this goal.Andrew Chakane 201

Key success factors facilitating SME ecommerce in developing countries : evidence from Indonesia

This research is mix method research (qualitative and quantitative) which have two main objectives observing the evidence from Indonesia. Firstly, to identify the key success factors facilitating SME ecommerce in developing countries especially in post-adoption stage of ecommerce practice. Secondly, to examine the relationship among the logistics capabilities (internal, external and country logistics capabilities) and the SME ecommerce transaction. Besides, the research also attempted to identify the major logistics problems faced by logistics sector and also to clarify the country logistics performance index, both investigations are related to the SME ecommerce practice.The SLR has identified seven potential key success factors facilitating SME ecommerce in developing countries which has been categorized into three factors including internal, external and interconnected factors. Internal factors included human resources and marketing/marketplace decision. External factors comprised customer demand, law and regulation, and secure payment system. Meanwhile the interconnected factors involved information and communication technology (ICT) and logistics capabilities. Firming these findings, the interview study accomplished towards seven SMEs ecommerce in Indonesia which indicated the similar factors based on their experiences and practices. Moreover, the second phase of the research has administered the collection of questionnaires toward 372 respondents involving the industries, governments, academicians, logistics associations, logistics service providers (LSPs), and SMEs ecommerce. The weight analysis of the research has identified the five major problems of logistics sectors in Indonesia related to the SME ecommerce which included the problems of infrastructures, road traffic jam level, government law and regulations, human resources and also dwelling time in port. Besides, the research also observed the Indonesia Logistics Capability Index (ILCI) concerning the SME ecommerce practice which clarified the index slightly above the average level (score: 2.79 out of 5). Furthermore, the last phase of the research has accomplished through the operation exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM). It has examined that internal logistics capabilities showed a respectable relationship to SME ecommerce transaction, while external logistics capabilities indicated a modest relationship to SME ecommerce transaction, yet it is still tolerable. In the other hand, even though the country logistics capabilities indicated a poor relationship to SME ecommerce transaction, but it has a very supported effect toward external logistics capabilities and external logistics capabilities.The findings of the research effectively contribute to both theory and practice and the research propositions provide potential and applicable guidance for the stakeholders in academia, companies and government to facilitate SME ecommerce development in developing countries especially in Indonesia related to the entire logistics capabilities

Success Factors in New Product Launch

This research report has sought to identify the success factors of new product launch. For this purpose, it has adopted a qualitative as well as quantitative research methodology. That is, based on four case studies investigating the new product launch of four consumer goods companies, together with literature review, a conceptual model was developed. Subsequently a pilot study was conducted to test this model, i.e. a web based questionnaire was created and sent out to companies across four countries, i.e. Germany, France, USA, and the UK. The case studies indicate that companies involve network partners such as suppliers, consumers, customers, consultants, and academia into strategic and tactical launch decisions. Furthermore, the use of the Internet and Social Media throughout the new product launch process has become the rule rather than the exception. Literature review has further shown that lean launch strategies and logistics personnel involvement are important for NPL success. Accordingly, the model was built around these factors and hypothesized that the involvement of a company’s network into strategic and tactical launch decisions, the use of Internet and Social Media for various launch activities such as market research, promotion and distribution, the use of lean launch logistics strategy, and the involvement of logistics personnel during launch are positively related to market performance. The findings of the pilot study reveal that network involvement is very low. Further, consultants’ involvement into tactical launch decisions negatively impinges on new product launch success. Besides this, no other network partner’s involvement was found significant in explaining new product launch success. While lean launch strategies were not found to be significantly positively related to launch success, logistics personnel involvement was. Despite the finding that Social Media is significantly positively related to launch success, the use of the Internet for feedback purposes is found to be significantly negatively affecting product performance. The use of the Internet for promotion or distribution purposes was not significant. Nevertheless, due to the nature of the pilot study, i.e. a low sample of 24 respondents, these findings have to be taken with caution and need to be further investigated by future research

A Study On Influencing Factors And Performance Of Logistics Outsourcing Practices Among Electrical And Electronics Firms In Malaysia

Penyumberluaran aktiviti logistik telah menjadi strategi popular bagi kebanyakan organisasi dalam memburu kecemerlangan operasi di era persaingan sengit pasaran global. Logistics outsourcing has been growing as a popular strategy for many organizations in pursuit of operational excellence despite the fierce competitive market globally

Factors affecting new product development success: A study on manufacturing sector in Malaysia

New product development has become significantly important for the manufacturing industries. It’s the important factors to drive the success or failure of a company where growth and development of the company are solely depend on its ability to introduce the new product. Therefore, the new product development is the criteria that cannot be questioned by the company in maintaining a competitive advantages. The modern business environment nowadays are focused on the development and integration of the supply chain. Supply chain has become an important topic which emphasis on variables that might affect the company and the new product development. This study aims to determine the relationship between some of the supply chain variables that might affect the growth of new product development for the manufacturing industries. There are many important factors in the supply chain where it has contributed to the new product development success. For this study, the factors that been identified are the communication, logistics, supply chain strategy, product development strategy and the top management supports. A total of 238 respondents in various companies within the manufacturing industry in Malaysia’s manufacturing sectors has participated in this study by completing the questionnaire survey. SPSS was use to analyze the data and hypothesis testing using several statistical analysis such as reliability analysis, correlation and regression analysis. From this analysis, the supply chain variables showed a significant relationship to the successful new product development in the view of Malaysian manufacturing sectors. It is hope that this study will be beneficial the others in understanding the key terms and can be implement into the new product development so that it is become more successfu

Current Advancements of and Future Developments for Fourth Party Logistics in a Digital Future

This paper aims to analyze the potential future of the 4PL concept based on expert opinions with special regard to the influence of digitalization coming with a disruptive trans-formation of supply chains. Service arrangements, provider capabilities and benefits resulting from a 4PL partnership are compared in current and future configurations. The research follows an explorative mixed methods approach with semi structured interviews followed by an expert panel. This builds a basis for an online survey questionnaire to inquire on important future aspects for the 4PL concept by a sample of respondents from multinational companies. Our results show a clear trend away from simply organizing transportation and logistics activities towards the provision of an IT platform as well as further value-added service activities such as planning, analytics and monitoring. Along with this, IT capabilities appear to be an important differentiator for 4PL providers in the future. Moreover, relationships between 4PL providers and their clients become closer and more strategic, which leads to a customer valuing not only direct cost reductions but rather improvements resulting from optimized operations through superior analysis and planning functions

Information technology and performance management for build-to-order supply chains

En las siguientes líneas se plantea un artículo de reflexión que tiene en cuenta parte del marco teórico que sustenta la investigación titulada “Prácticas pedagógicas que promueven la competencia argumentativa escrita (CAE) en niños campesinos de los grados 4° y 5° del Centro Educativo Municipal La Caldera, Sede Principal de Pasto”, desarrollada en el año 2012. En él se contemplan los aportes de las ciencias del lenguaje y la comunicación, la teoría de la argumentación, la didáctica de la lengua escrita y los géneros discursivos, que dan cuenta de la necesidad de desarrollar la capacidad crítica en los estudiantes a través de la argumentación, lo cual implica transformar las prácticas pedagógicas para que se alejen de la transmisión de conocimientos y den paso a la comunicación, para que la palabra escrita sea apropiada de manera significativa

Standing in the Shadow of the Giants - Conditions for Entry and Survival of Small Businesses on the Deregulated Bus and Railway Markets in Sweden

Since the late 1980s, the entry barriers for new bus and railway companies have gradually been reduced in Sweden. In this paper the effects of these changes upon small businesses are analysed with the help of a couple of case study firms. Four parts of the transportation sector are considered: local and regional bus services, long-distance bus services, regional train services and inter-regional train services. Although offering different basic conditions for entry, new as well as old small businesses have often faced a common problem on each of these markets: having to compete with a giant former monopolist or oligopolists, or being dependent on some of its/their factors of production. Although several firms have been forced out of the markets, a number of them have managed to survive and grow. In this paper it is argued that there are a few key factors that govern a small firm’s success or failure.Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies. Faculty of Economics and Business. The University of Sydne

Small and Medium sized Enterprises’ Collaborative Buyer-Supplier Relationships: Boundary Spanning Individual Perspectives

Boundary-spanning individuals (BSIs) play a critical role in supply chain management, especially in small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) where interactions with buyers and suppliers can depend heavily on just a few individuals. This study, utilizing data from Korean manufacturing-sector SMEs, explores whether cooperative social value orientations of SMEs’ BSIs influence the effects of collaborative buyer-supplier initiatives. The results suggested that the performance implication of decision-sharing initiative increases when BSIs have a high level of cooperative social value orientation. However, it also negatively moderates the relationship between risk/benefit sharing (involving financial losses or gains) and performance suggesting possible negative side-effects. However, we found that such orientation also negatively moderates the relationship between risk/benefit sharing (involving direct financial losses or gains) and relationship performance suggesting possible negative side-effects