Strategic value of data analytics in interorganizational relationships

Researchers suggest that data analytics (DA) enhance decisions related to interorganizational relationships (IOR) and lead to reduced risk and improved performance. However, and despite this potential, firms face challenges regarding effective use of their DA capabilities to enhance their IORs. The massive investment in DA, as well as the need for an efficient use of DA in IOR settings, create the potential opportunities for two streams of research: a deeper understanding of business value of DA in IOR; and a systematic examination of DA’s strategy for an enhanced alignment with IORs. Despite the published scholarly works in these two research streams, the complexity, diversity, and newness associated with DA technologies make our understanding of the business value of DA in IOR and DA strategy for IOR incomplete. First, our understanding of why and how DA impact IOR performance is inadequate and fragmented. Second, the focus of the preponderance of published empirical papers in understanding the value of DA is at the operational level, and the strategic implications of DA capabilities in IOR are not addressed. Third, the literature fails to consider the inherent heterogeneity among the user base of DA systems, and consequently, the findings are not generalizable. Finally, the literature fails to address the impact of external factors, such as complexity and volatility on DA strategy. In this dissertation, I attempt to contribute to the literature by focusing on these research gaps and investigating them in three studies. In the first study, a holistic value-view of a firm’s supply chain enabled by DA for improved business performance, is presented based on two complementary views of market-oriented coordination and strategic supplier partnership. The study discusses how DA capabilities impact the constituents of this complementary view of supply chain to amplify business performance. I propose a theoretical model of the effect of DA capabilities on a firm’s co-creation of value, with its partners for business performance. Then, I test the model empirically based on a survey of 198 practitioners. My findings show that DA capabilities improve upstream and downstream integration and leverage the co-creation of value. The second study provides a better understanding of the impact of DA on interorganizational collaborations by answering two fundamental research questions: “How does a firm use its DA capabilities to improve collaboration and enhance performance?” and “What is the impact of DA capabilities on a firm’s collaboration and performance?” To answer these questions and to provide a deeper insight from multiple perspectives, I utilized a mixed method research by conducting a thorough content analysis of 34 published case studies, followed by a confirmatory research based on a survey of 210 practitioners to empirically test the insights generated from my content analysis. My findings identify several paths to improved performance using DA capabilities. My analysis suggests that DA capabilities, used appropriately in an interorganizational collaborative environment, lead to reduced costs and the need for required working capital and ultimately better performance through improved collaborative relationships such as planning and scheduling. In the third study, I expand the results of the two prior studies by analyzing the DA strategic focus. I employ an agent-based simulation to test different DA strategies in various business environments that are identified by levels of complexity and dynamism. My findings indicate that optimum DA strategy has a quadratic relationship with the levels of complexity and dynamism, which explains the prior contradictory findings of the IS literature. These three studies contribute to the business value of IT and IS strategy literatures by investigating the business value of DA in IOR settings, identifying impacts of DA on value co-creation in IORs and determining a suitable DA strategy based on various environmental factors

Distribution System Analysis of PT AGRICON in Oil Palm Plantation Sector

Indonesia is an agrarian nation, which means that agriculture is the main activity and job for the citizen in this nation, this fact making pesticide a common product to be used by the farmers. Agricon has been largely known as a producer of high quality pesticide products for food and horticulture crops, while the plantation market side has not been seriously handled. Currently Agricon is aiming new sector of market, palm oil plantations. In the past, mainly independent distributors handled the marketing and distribution of Agricon’s pesticide products in the plantation sector market. Agricon now wants to directly deal with plantation companies. This report will discuss about the distribution system of Agricon’s pesticide products in the plantation sector, analyzing its current system and finally making a conclusion about which is the best distribution system regarding the marketing in the oil palm plantation sector.By using direct selling and channeling strategy theory in conducting in depth interview to analyze the system. Therefore, PT. Agricon is suitable and should conduct direct selling and distribution to the big buyer but still utilize distributor as assistant and using distributor and wholesaler for medium and small buyer.Purpose:To Analyze PT. Agricon current distribution system and improving it by making the suitable distribution system.Design/methodology/approach:By analyzing current condition and distribution system of PT. Agricon as base of the research then analyzing the system suitability by using direct selling by manufacturing and channeling strategy theory. Conducting in depth interview to PT. Agricon executives as primary data and distributor and competitor as supporting data as comparison.Findings:The researcher discover that PT. Agricon is still in the state of preparing the employees; direct selling should be conducted to big buyer to avoid price war, PT. Agricon should still use distributor for assistance and in dealing with medium and small buyer because distributor can be a competitor also so they still must be used. PT. Agricon should improve their method in the agreement with distributor.Research limitations/implications:The research only to choose the best distribution system of PT. Agricon and only in the oil palm plantation sector.Practical implications:The outcome and output of this research is the suitable and probably the best distribution system of PT. Agricon in oil palm plantation sector.Originality/value:The analysis about oil palm plantation market condition and the best distribution system for local pesticide industry.Keywords-component; Pesticide, Oil Palm Plantation,CategoryDistribution Channel; Marketin

Distribution System Analysis of PT AGRICON in Oil Palm Plantation Sector

Indonesia is an agrarian nation, which means that agriculture is the main activity and job for the citizen in this nation, this fact making pesticide a common product to be used by the farmers. Agricon has been largely known as a producer of high quality pesticide products for food and horticulture crops, while the plantation market side has not been seriously handled. Currently Agricon is aiming new sector of market, palm oil plantations. In the past, mainly independent distributors handled the marketing and distribution of Agricon’s pesticide products in the plantation sector market. Agricon now wants to directly deal with plantation companies. This report will discuss about the distribution system of Agricon’s pesticide products in the plantation sector, analyzing its current system and finally making a conclusion about which is the best distribution system regarding the marketing in the oil palm plantation sector.By using direct selling and channeling strategy theory in conducting in depth interview to analyze the system. Therefore, PT. Agricon is suitable and should conduct direct selling and distribution to the big buyer but still utilize distributor as assistant and using distributor and wholesaler for medium and small buyer.Purpose:To Analyze PT. Agricon current distribution system and improving it by making the suitable distribution system.Design/methodology/approach:By analyzing current condition and distribution system of PT. Agricon as base of the research then analyzing the system suitability by using direct selling by manufacturing and channeling strategy theory. Conducting in depth interview to PT. Agricon executives as primary data and distributor and competitor as supporting data as comparison.Findings:The researcher discover that PT. Agricon is still in the state of preparing the employees; direct selling should be conducted to big buyer to avoid price war, PT. Agricon should still use distributor for assistance and in dealing with medium and small buyer because distributor can be a competitor also so they still must be used. PT. Agricon should improve their method in the agreement with distributor.Research limitations/implications:The research only to choose the best distribution system of PT. Agricon and only in the oil palm plantation sector.Practical implications:The outcome and output of this research is the suitable and probably the best distribution system of PT. Agricon in oil palm plantation sector.Originality/value:The analysis about oil palm plantation market condition and the best distribution system for local pesticide industry.Keywords-component; Pesticide, Oil Palm Plantation,CategoryDistribution Channel; Marketin

Manufacturing Small And Medium Size Enterprises Offshore Outsourcing And Competitive Advantage: An Exploratory Study On Canadian Offshoring Manufacturing SMEs

This paper explores whether and how theoffshore outsourcing of the manufacturing SMEs creates competitive advantagesfor these firms. The offshore outsourcing strategy is widely criticized in thedeveloped countries for allegedly reducing job opportunities, missing scaleeconomy, diminishing innovation potentialities and creating various socialproblems. The present article with empirical data from thirteen Canadianoffshoring manufacturing SMEs attempted to address that the world-widedistributed co-production network could instead increase profit and marketshare, boost investment in R&D, raise focus on core competency and enhancecompetitivity of offshoring SMEs. This strategy enables companies to enhancetheir competitiveness by allowing them to have access to the competitiveproduction factors and new markets for their products. This paper contributesto the existing body of knowledge by showing that not only the largemultinationals but also the SMEs can achieve competitive advantages fromoffshoring part of their activities to foreign firms where those tasks can beperformed more competitively

Developing Strategic Decision Making Process for Product and Service Planning

It is imperative to forecast advanced or emerging technologies to aid in decision making on firm\u27s R&D investments and business plan for commercialization efforts. Even though a company must align R&D planning with overall business planning such as manufacturing, sales and marketing, personnel, and finance, systematic management approaches are limited in it based upon the prediction of technological change and speed. This paper aims to provide a decision support tool to aid in strategic service planning and technology development in a firm. The study is to enhance strategic development of service and product with the consideration of emerging technologies. This model helps decision makers to easily identify emerging technologies and new research fields with systematic decision making process

The Role Of Social Capital In Managing Relationships With eCommerce Suppliers

Contemporary E-Commerce solutions are often developed and delivered in inter-firm setups that involve various business partners. Being characterised by innovative, ill-structured tasks and using new technologies to develop new business models and services, E-Commerce projects and the subsequently resulting relationships with business partners are demanding and challenging to manage. Surprisingly, project and partner management issues in E-Commerce remain largely unaddressed. This paper takes an inter-firm perspective and addresses the social dimension of E-Commerce relationships. Social capital theory, referring to the value of social relationships and networks, is used to guide this research. Based on findings from case study research, different types and episodes of E-Commerce supplier relationships are distinguished, each calling for a different role of social capital as the basis for effective inter-firm collaboration. By applying social capital theory the study enhances the understanding of E-Commerce as a network-based business as well as the general understanding of the social aspects in relationship management, which to date is largely dominated by concepts like trust and culture. The paper presents a comprehensive framework of social capital in E-Commerce relationships and points out some management implications.

The promise of peer-to-peer trading? The potential impact of blockchain on the actor configuration in the Dutch electricity system

This paper considers the potential of blockchain technology to empower distributed and decentralized local electricity markets. Although blockchain has gained considerable attention in the last few years as a facilitator for new electricity markets, no attention has yet been given to its potential influence on the configuration of the actors in the electricity system and its ability to transform the existing system. Based on a social network analysis, this paper investigates how blockchain can influence the actor configuration of the electricity system in the Netherlands. After describing the Dutch system, we compare the existing with the potential future system’ actor configuration and the corresponding expected shifts in functions and network position of the actors. We conclude that although many functions are likely to remain and new central authorities may be formed, the impact of blockchain does not seem to be as disruptive and decentralizing as may be expected. This study provides first contributions to the ongoing discussion about the potential of blockchain to disrupt and reshape the electricity system