Supplier selection activities in the service sector: A case study in Nigeria

This paper presents the results of the supplier selection process conducted by a Nigerian service sector organization. One organization was used as a case study whereby data collection involved an action research approach; the data was then subject to statistical analysis via the SPSS Statistics software package. In total, 185 potential suppliers were assessed. Several statistically significant differences were also found between those suppliers that met the minimum requirements and those that did not as well as between organizations that offered products and organizations that offered services

Stakeholders, Green Manufacturing, and Practice Performance: Empirical Evidence from Chinese Fashion Businesses

This study explores the relationship among stakeholders, green manufacturing, and practice performance in the fashion business in China and focuses on assisting companies to enhance environmental awareness and green manufacturing practices. We collect research data by developing questionnaires for various Chinese enterprises. A five-point Likert scale is adopted to enable respondents to indicate the extent to which they agree with the items. Through tests and analyses, the questionnaire is validated as reliable, the structural equation model has a good fitting degree, and hypotheses are proved true. Specifically, corporate stakeholders have a significant positive impact on green manufacturing and practice performance, and green manufacturing has a significant positive impact on practice performance in the context of Chinese fashion businesses. Moreover, corporate stakeholders can have a positive impact on practice performance through green manufacturing. We also propose some policy implications, including implementing compulsive policies and regulations and encouraging and establishing preferential policies, such as tax concessions. Moreover, enterprises should actively strive to improve green manufacturing technology and management level to ensure the smooth implementation of green manufacturing practices. To retain sustained earnings and development, green manufacturing should be the bottom line of involved firms. We also emphasize that the importance of corporate stakeholders should be promoted in consideration of enterprises’ practice performance and future development

TQM and organizational management practices: Are they really complementary?

The objective of this research is to explore if TQM firms execute various organizational management practices significantly different from non-TQM firms in the ASEAN automotive supply chain. Datasets were collected from ASEAN automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and their Tier 1 and 2 suppliers. Then, datasets were tested by using statistical analysis. The results show that seven TQM practices including leadership, strategy and planning, customer focus, information and analysis, people management, process management, and supplier involvement are significantly higher in TQM firms than Non-TQM firms. ASEAN OEM suppliers in the automotive industry can use the results of this study to select and deploy suitable TQM practices to enhance their competitiveness in the first instance in the automotive sector and then to other value-adding sectors. This study also indicates that automotive industry and others need to consider TQM practices, as an organizational innovation or organizational development intervention, along the entire supply chain

Integration of manufacturing and distribution networks in a global car company : network models and numerical simulation

Global supply chain practices and their effects have received considerable attention over the last two decades. In the recent past, the need for integration across supply chains has been identified as a key for effective and efficient operations of supply chains. This is observed with the increasing trend of collaborative partnerships among supply chain partners. This paper presents an integrated approach for manufacturing and distribution networks within the supply chain system of a global car company. The paper shows that the integration of manufacturing and distribution networks creates the environment for effective planning of many components and execution/follow-up of those plans. These components include materials, resources, operations/activities, suppliers and customers. The main features of the integration include component integration at individual networks via use of a central warehouse. This integration reduces various interfacing steps between partners and enables representations of relationships (component precedence, parent-component and component-component). The proposed integrated model is numerically tested using past data from one of Japan's auto-makers, based in the emerging economy of Thailand. The paper concludes that the integrated supply network eliminates the need for interfacing of individual networks and enables simultaneous planning of many components as well as forward planning of supply components in global supply chain operations. It also shows that the integrated approach is capable of providing visibility, flexibility, and maintainability for further improvement in the supply network environment

Lean supply chain strategy and operational performance

Abstract not available

Prioritising enabling factors of Internet of Things (IoT) adoption in digital supply chain

Purpose – This paper explores the role of Internet of things (IoT) enabling factors in adopting digital supply chain. Design/methodology/approach – Analytical hierarchy process (AHP) was used to rank performance measures and prioritise the enabling factors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to validate and support key research findings from the AHP analysis. Findings – The results show that level of customer demand is the most important indicator in adopting IoT while the level of product/process flexibility is the least important. System integration and IoT infrastructure are the top two enabling factors in increasing the level of process stability, supply chain connectivity, and product/process flexibility, respectively. Furthermore, the study suggests that the enabling factors for IoT adoption are directly connected with organisational resources/technological capabilities that support the resource-based view theory. This research identified interdependencies between IoT enabling factors and key performance measures for IoT adoption success in managing the digital supply chain. Practical implications – Supply chain managers can use the empirical findings of this study to prioritise IoT adoption, based on the relative importance of enabling factors and performance measures. The research findings are focused on broader supply chain practices of large companies rather than a specific industry and SMEs. Hence, any industry-specific adoption factors and SMEs were not evident from this study. Originality/value – This research study empirically established priorities of enabling factors for IoT adoption, along with inter-dependencies among enabling factors as a basis for developing guidelines for IoT adoption

Factors affecting managerial intention to adopt sustainable supply chain management in Thai electronics industry

Aim/Purpose: This research aims to understand the intention to adopt sustainable supply chain practices in Thailand, focusing on the factors which affect the organisational intention towards adopting sustainable supply chain management. Design/methodology/approach: Using the theory of planned behaviour, this study categorise common themes, which clarifies the adoption of sustainable supply chain management and developed a hierarchical theoretical model. Fourteen senior executives from the electronics industry in Thailand were selected to participate in this study. Structured Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied to analyse and assess the priority weights of factors affecting managerial intention to adopt sustainable supply chain management. Findings: The analysis shows that subjective norm plays a major role towards the intention to adopt sustainable practices (priority weight= 0.6473), followed by perceived behavioural control (0.2416) and attitude (priority weight= 0.1111). At the factor level, customer influence (priority weight = 0.4254), governmental pressure (priority weight = 0.1660), and financial capability (priority weight = 0.1372) are found to be the most important factors. Value: This is a unique study which employs the theory of planned behaviour to assess the factors affecting managerial intention to adopt sustainable supply chain. Research limitations/implications: This study is conducted in the context of Thai electronics industry and therefore the results obtained may not be applicable to other industries. Practical implications: This research provides a distinctive concept through the identification of the influential factors which help generates an understanding of sustainable supply chain management adoption among electronics organisations in Thailand