A robust fuzzy possibilistic AHP approach for partner selection in international strategic alliance

The international strategic alliance is an inevitable solution for making competitive advantage and reducing the risk in today’s business environment. Partner selection is an important part in success of partnerships, and meanwhile it is a complicated decision because of various dimensions of the problem and inherent conflicts of stockholders. The purpose of this paper is to provide a practical approach to the problem of partner selection in international strategic alliances, which fulfills the gap between theories of inter-organizational relationships and quantitative models. Thus, a novel Robust Fuzzy Possibilistic AHP approach is proposed for combining the benefits of two complementary theories of inter-organizational relationships named, (1) Resource-based view, and (2) Transaction-cost theory and considering Fit theory as the perquisite of alliance success. The Robust Fuzzy Possibilistic AHP approach is a noveldevelopment of Interval-AHP technique employing robust formulation; aimed at handling the ambiguity of the problem and let the use of intervals as pairwise judgments. The proposed approach was compared with existing approaches, and the results show that it provides the best quality solutions in terms of minimum error degree. Moreover, the framework implemented in a case study and its applicability were discussed

Third-Party Logistics

Third-party logistics was propelled first in US; later on, European nations put it on to successfully deal with an organization’s coordination exercises, re-appropriating the capacity and purchasing the administrations. 3PL suppliers without their very own advantages are called lead coordination suppliers that have preferred the standpoint that they have particular industry ability combined with low overhead expenses, yet they bring down arranging power. Lead coordination suppliers may likewise be less bureaucratic with shorter basic leadership cycles because of the littler size of the organization, and the most critical contrast between a second gathering coordination supplier and an outsider coordination supplier is the way that a 3PL supplier is constantly incorporated in the client’s framework. The 2PL is not coordinated as compared to the 3PL as it is just a redistributed coordination supplier with no framework mix. A 2PL regularly just gives institutionalized administrations, while 3PLs frequently give benefits that are redone and particular to the necessities of their client. Coordination is evaluated as a significant use for organizations. Thus, in the present aggressive condition, there is a squeezing need to control coordination expenses, and execution estimation has turned out to be an effective apparatus in accomplishing business targets

Barriers to circular food supply chains in China

Purpose: This paper aims to identify and systematically analyze the causal-effect relationships among barriers to circular food supply chains in China. Design/methodology/approach: Grounded in multiple organizational theories, this paper develops a theoretical framework for identifying relevant barriers to integrating circular economy philosophy in food supply chain management. The study uses 105 responses from Chinese food supply chain stakeholders including food processors, sales and distribution channels, consumers and government officials. It applies a fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory (DEMATEL) method to examine the causal-effect relationships among the identified barriers. Findings: Overall, the results suggest two key cause barriers: first, weak environmental regulations and enforcement, and second, lack of market preference/pressure. Meanwhile, lack of collaboration/support from supply chain actors is the most prominent barrier. The key cause and prominent barriers are also identified for each of the supply chain stakeholder involved. Research implications: The study offers practical insights for overcoming barriers to integrating circular economy philosophy in the management of supply chains in the Chinese food sector, as well as in other contexts where similar challenges are faced. It also sheds light on which organizational theories are most suitable for guiding similar studies. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first barrier study on circular food supply chains. The use of multiple organizational theories for the development of the theoretical framework is unique in barrier studies. The study offers insights from multiple stakeholders in the Chinese food supply chains

Optimal path selection of innovation resource allocation in China’s regions with shared inputs

As an effective form of interaction between innovation subjects and resources, the regional innovation network’s optimal allocation of resources is the key to improving national innovation capacity. According to the innovation value chain, the process of resource allocation in innovation can be divided into two correlative sub-systems: the knowledge innovation stage (KIS) and the achievements commercialisation stage (ACS). To evaluate regional innovation efficiency, a two-stage network data envelopment analysis model with shared inputs is used, with fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis to analyse the improvement path of resource allocation efficiency from the dimensions of regional environment and network structure. The results show that efficiency in the KIS is higher than in the ACS, and the efficiency scores for most regions in China are better under the model with shared inputs. The efficiency of innovative resource allocation is affected by the cross-action of seven factors: regional economic development, infrastructure, policy system, social culture, network scale, network openness, and network centrality. To achieve highefficiency resource allocation, regions should build an innovation network that matches their environmental characteristics. These findings provide theoretical guidance for formulating innovative resource allocation policies suitable for different regions

Training of Crisis Mappers and Map Production from Multi-sensor Data: Vernazza Case Study (Cinque Terre National Park, Italy)

This aim of paper is to presents the development of a multidisciplinary project carried out by the cooperation between Politecnico di Torino and ITHACA (Information Technology for Humanitarian Assistance, Cooperation and Action). The goal of the project was the training in geospatial data acquiring and processing for students attending Architecture and Engineering Courses, in order to start up a team of "volunteer mappers". Indeed, the project is aimed to document the environmental and built heritage subject to disaster; the purpose is to improve the capabilities of the actors involved in the activities connected in geospatial data collection, integration and sharing. The proposed area for testing the training activities is the Cinque Terre National Park, registered in the World Heritage List since 1997. The area was affected by flood on the 25th of October 2011. According to other international experiences, the group is expected to be active after emergencies in order to upgrade maps, using data acquired by typical geomatic methods and techniques such as terrestrial and aerial Lidar, close-range and aerial photogrammetry, topographic and GNSS instruments etc.; or by non conventional systems and instruments such us UAV, mobile mapping etc. The ultimate goal is to implement a WebGIS platform to share all the data collected with local authorities and the Civil Protectio

A Multi-Attribute decision support system for allocation of humanitarian cluster resources , based on decision makers’ perspective

The rush of the humanitarian suppliers into the disaster area proved to be counter-productive. To reduce this proliferation problem, the present research is designed to provide a technique for supplier ranking/selection in disaster response using the principles of utility theory. A resource allocation problem is solved using optimisation based on decision maker’s preferences. Due to the lack of real-time data in the first 72 h after the disaster strike, a Decision Support System (DSS) framework called EDIS is introduced to employ secondary historical data from disaster response in four humanitarian clusters (WASH: Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, Nutrition, Health, and Shelter) to estimate the demand of the affected population. A methodology based on multi-attribute decision-making (MADM), Analytical Hierarchy processing (AHP) and Multi-attribute utility theory (MAUT) provides the following results. First a need estimation technique is put forward to estimate minimum standard requirements for disaster response. Second, a method for optimization of the humanitarian partners selection is provided based on the resources they have available during the response phase. Third, an estimate of resource allocation is provided based on the preferences of the decision makers. This method does not require real-time data from the aftermath of the disasters and provides the need estimation, partner selection and resource allocation based on historical data before the MIRA report is released

Sustainable supply chain management towards disruption and organizational ambidexterity:A data driven analysis

Balancing sustainability and disruption of supply chains requires organizational ambidexterity. Sustainable supply chains prioritize efficiency and economies of scale and may not have sufficient redundancy to withstand disruptive events. There is a developing body of literature that attempts to reconcile these two aspects. This study gives a data-driven literature review of sustainable supply chain management trends toward ambidexterity and disruption. The critical review reveals temporal trends and geographic distribution of literature. A hybrid of data-driven analysis approach based on content and bibliometric analyses, fuzzy Delphi method, entropy weight method, and fuzzy decision-making trial and evaluation laboratory is used on 273 keywords and 22 indicators obtained based on the experts’ evaluation. The most important indicators are identified as supply chain agility, supply chain coordination, supply chain finance, supply chain flexibility, supply chain resilience, and sustainability. The regions show different tendencies compared with others. Asia and Oceania, Latin America and the Caribbean, and Africa are the regions needs improvement, while Europe and North America show distinct apprehensions on supply chain network design. The main contribution of this review is the identification of the knowledge frontier, which then leads to a discussion of prospects for future studies and practical industry implementation

Sustainable Assessment in Supply Chain and Infrastructure Management

In the competitive business environment or public domain, the sustainability assessment in supply chain and infrastructure management are important for any organization. Organizations are currently striving to improve their sustainable strategies through preparedness, response, and recovery because of increasing competitiveness, community, and regulatory pressure. Thus, it is necessary to develop a meaningful and more focused understanding of sustainability in supply chain management and infrastructure management practices. In the context of a supply chain, sustainability implies that companies identify, assess, and manage impacts and risks in all the echelons of the supply chain, considering downstream and upstream activities. Similarly, the sustainable infrastructure management indicates the ability of infrastructure to meet the requirements of the present without sacrificing the ability of future generations to address their needs. The complexities regarding sustainable supply chain and infrastructure management have driven managers and professionals to seek different solutions. This Special Issue aims to provide readers with the most recent research results on the aforementioned subjects. In addition, it offers some solutions and also raises some questions for further research and development toward sustainable supply chain and infrastructure management

The Role of Knowledge Management in Supply Chain Management: A Literature Review

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to examine the state of knowledge management research in supply chain management from three standpoints, methodological approach, supply chain management area, and knowledge management processes. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve this, a systematic review is conducted over the period 2000-2014 on the basis of a qualitative content analysis. Findings: Major results showed that knowledge management can be viewed as a leverage mechanism for: (i) supply chain integration; (ii) the enhancement of intra and inter-relations across the supply chain; (iii) supply chain strategy alignment; and (iv) the reinforcement of knowledge transfer in product development. Some supply chain management areas such as reverse logistics, inventory management, forecasting/demand planning, outsourcing, and risk management have been explored only to some extent. Furthermore, knowledge transfer is being studied in the majority of the articles, mainly by both case study and survey approach; mathematical models and simulation techniques are used in very limited articles. Findings concerning theoretical perspectives and managerial issues are also described. Research limitations/implications: The limitation of our study encompasses the aspects of search period (2000-2014), selection of search databases (Web of Science and SCOPUS and language selection (English). Practical implications: The exhibition of the KM processes within the SC context may help practitioners and managers interested in implementing KM initiatives to replicate the methodologies in order to increase the possibilities of a successful KM adoption. Originality/value: The systematic review will contribute to the understanding of the present state of research in the knowledge management theory, with focus on the supply chain, as there are no state-of-knowledge studies that report a systematic literature review approach.Peer Reviewe

Blockchain Technology for Enhancing Supply Chain Performance and Reducing the Threats Arising from the COVID-19 Pandemic

A rigorous examination of the most recent advancements in blockchain technology (BCT) and artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled supply chain networks is provided in this book. The edited book brings together the perspectives of a number of authors who have presented their most recent views on blockchain technology and its applications in a variety of disciplines. The submitted papers contribute to a better understanding of how blockchain technology can improve the efficacy of human activities during a pandemic, improve traceability and visibility in the automotive supply chain, support food safety and reliability through digitalisation of the food supply chain, and increase the performance of next-generation digital supply chains, among other things. The book attempts to address and prepare a way to address the complicated issues that supply chains are encountering as a result of the global pandemic