Modeling and implementing strategies for supply chain alignment

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to illustrate how blockchain technology can improve supply chain adaptability, alignment and agility which collectively enhance competitive advantage which in turn influences firm performance. Design/methodology/approach The conceptual framework of the present study is developed by conducting an extensive literature review on blockchain technology, supply chain adaptability, alignment, agility and competitive advantage. The sample data were collected from 397 supply chain practitioners in India to validate the conceptual model. Confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to ascertain the validity of the measures used and a structural model was analyzed for testing the proposed conceptual framework. Findings The results of the present study show that blockchain technology can improve supply chain adaptability, alignment, agility which lead to competitive advantage, which leads to better firm performance. Besides, trust generated through blockchain use also increases firm performance. Research limitations/implications Currently, the respondents do not have practical experience of using blockchain technology. They have responded based on their knowledge about supply chain and blockchain which they acquired from published sources. Different supply chains require different strategic choices and different information needs. But the present study assumes that all supply chain needs are identical. The present study assumes that government regulations regarding blockchain technology are favorable; however, currently, there is no legal framework to address blockchain technology. The findings of the current study indicate that companies not only should create more awareness regarding blockchain but also should actively work with IT companies that are engaged in developing blockchain-based supply chain solution. Managers, as well as IT companies and academicians, should join hands to study and develop a framework for regulating blockchain technology and suggest these to the policy actors. Practical implications The present study shows that supply chain practitioners are confident that blockchain technology will help improve supply chain parameters. These findings can help IT companies and their marketers for developing and promoting blockchain-based IT applications. In addition, the important implication for supply chain practitioners is that blockchain helps in creating a competitive advantage and increases firm performance. Originality/value The effect of IT on important supply chain variables has been studied in the past; however, there is not a single study which sheds light on how disruptive technologies such as blockchain will affect supply chain adaptability, alignment, agility and firm performance.

The interactive effects of product and brand portfolio strategies on brand performance: Longitudinal evidence from the U.S. automotive industry

This study empirically analyzed the impact of supply chain capabilities—agility, adaptability, and alignment—on supply chain resilience, while also examining whether organizational flexibility plays a moderating role in these relationships. A survey was conducted among domestic manufacturing firms, yielding a total of 176 responses, and the research hypotheses were tested using PLS structural equation modeling(PLS-SEM). The results revealed the following findings. First, supply chain agility had a significant positive (+) impact on supply chain adaptability, alignment, and resilience, and both adaptability and alignment also had a significant positive (+) effect on supply chain resilience. Second, in examining the mediating effect of supply chain adaptability and alignment in the relationship between supply chain agility and resilience, both adaptability and alignment were found to have a significant positive (+) mediating effect. Finally, regarding the moderating effect of organizational flexibility, it was confirmed that organizational flexibility significantly moderated the relationships between supply chain agility and both adaptability and alignment. Additionally, organizational flexibility was found to have a significant moderating effect on the relationships between supply chain agility, adaptability, alignment, and resilience. Through this study, it can be suggested that supply chain resilience is maximized not only through rapid responses to disruptions (agility) but also by incorporating long-term adaptive responses to environmental changes (adaptability) and fostering collaboration among supply chain stakeholders (alignment). Furthermore, strategic management of organizational flexibility is necessary to enhance supply chain resilience.

Changes in the global business environment constrain companies to adopt digital technology to enhance their performance and competitiveness. This study aims to analyze the role of managerial capability on operational performance through supply chain digitalization and supply chain adaptability in manufacturing companies in Indonesia. Managerial capability is a key factor that enables organizations to design effective strategies, allocate resources efficiently, and foster internal collaboration and external partnerships. The study has distributed questionnaires to 117 respondents from various middle and top managerial functions within the manufacturing company. The questionnaire was designed using a five-point Likert scale and distributed offline and online using a Google Form link. Data analysis employed Partial Least Squares – Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine the outer model and inner model. The results indicate that managerial capability has a significant impact on supply chain digitalization and supply chain adaptability, but does not directly affect operational performance. Instead, the effect of managerial capability on operational performance is mediated by supply chain adaptability and the combination of supply chain digitalization and adaptability. Supply chain digitalization plays a crucial role in enhancing supply chain adaptability, ultimately leading to a positive impact on operational performance. These findings confirm that supply chain digitalization not only increases the speed of information flow and transparency but also strengthens the company's ability to adapt to market dynamics. The practical implications of this research are the need for manufacturing companies to continuously develop managerial competencies that support digital technology investments, strengthen an adaptive organizational culture, and foster synergy between internal and external functions. For academics, this research provides a conceptual contribution in explaining the mediating relationship between managerial capabilities, supply chain digitalization, supply chain adaptability, and operational performance in the era of digital transformation.

The disjointed nature of the food and beverage manufacturing sub-sector presents a significant challenge in relation to competitiveness. This is rooted in the lack of effective linkages in the internal and external supply chains and their adaptability. Consequently, the study also established the moderating effect of supply chain adaptability on the relationship between supply chain integration and the competitive advantage of food and beverage industry in Kenya. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey. According to the Kenya Association of Manufacturers (2020), there were 270 food and beverage industry in Kenya. The study’s target population was 73 food and beverage industry in Kenya. A two-stage sampling design was employed. In the initial stage, 73 food and beverage manufacturing firms were selected through stratified random sampling with the aid of the Nassiuma formula (2000). Subsequently, in the second stage, through purposive sampling, two participants were selected from the 73 food and beverage manufacturing firms to give a sample size of 146 respondents. These included the supply chain managers, procurement managers, operations managers, and finance managers. Primary and secondary data was collected through research questionnaires which were both structured and unstructured. The data obtained was analyzed using SPSS version 28. The reliability results showed that all the variables in the study had a Cronbach’s alpha value that was above 0.7, thus indicating adequate convergence and internal consistency. The data collection tool also passed the content validity test. The findings showed that there was a positive significant correlation between supply chain integration*supply chain adaptability and the competitive advantage of food and beverage industry in Kenya. The study concluded that the competitive advantage is anticipated to grow for every unit increase in supply chain integration and that supply chain adaptability moderates the relationship between supply chain integration and competitive advantage for food and beverage industry in Kenya. The study recommends that food and beverage manufacturers should leverage expertise to support and manage multiple processes and be able to identify exceptional collaborators internally with expertise and a network that spans several departments.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of triple-A supply chain and marketing strategy alignment on the performance by collecting and analyzing data from the textile industry in Egypt. Design/methodology/approach – A research model is proposed which describes the impact marketing strategy alignment, triple-A supply chain on supply chain performance and organizational performance. The proposed research model and hypotheses were tested using correlation analysis and structural equation modeling based on data collected from 153 companies working in the Egyptian textile industry. Findings – The results of the study support that organizational performance is positively associated supply chain performance. Also supply chain performance is directly affected by triple-A supply chain and marketing strategy alignment. Research limitations/implications – The data used in this study were collected from 153 companies working in the Egyptian textile industry. The generalization of the study results may be limited by the size of the sample. Originality/value – This study provides a useful working model in the textile industry. The results suggest successful implementation of triple-A supply chain and marketing strategy alignment will help in improving the supply chain performance, which in turn improves organizational performance.

The rapid growth of e-commerce has revolutionized the retail landscape in Europe, significantly impacting traditional supply chain networks. This article explores the effects of the e-commerce boom on European supply chains, identifying the challenges faced by businesses in adapting to the changing market dynamics. It delves into the key drivers behind the e-commerce surge, the resulting shifts in consumer behavior, and the consequent alterations required in supply chain strategies. The study also presents case examples of successful adaptation strategies implemented by European companies to thrive in the e-commerce era. By analyzing these trends and case studies, the article provides insights into the transformative potential of e-commerce on European supply chains and offers valuable recommendations for companies seeking to remain competitive in this dynamic environment. Keywords: E-commerce, European supply chain networks, retail, consumer behavior, supply chain adaptation, logistics, online shopping, digitalization, market disruption.

PurposeThis paper aims to review the concept of supply chain management. The typical problems facing with textile and apparel supply chain are short product cycle for fashion articles, long production lead‐time and forecasting errors for fashion items. The Hong Kong textile and apparel supply chain faces additional problems of distance from customers in the US and European markets, long production lead‐times and minimum batch sizes for production, and, recently, elimination of quota restriction in the US market, all of which force them to improve efficiency and enhance competitiveness through supply chain management. Seeks also to provide a selective bibliography for industrial practitioners with sources which can help them develop their supply chain strategies for the fashion market in Hong Kong.Design/methodology/approachA range of recent published (1993‐2005) works, which aim to provide practical advice are critiqued to aid the individual practitioner to manage its supply chain strategies in Hong Kong. These sources are sorted into sections: supply chain management in Hong Kong, textile and apparel supply chain management in Hong Kong, and problems faced by small and medium‐sized enterprises for textile and apparel supply chain.FindingsThe differentiation of product demands into functional and innovative products helps the supply chain company to employ different supply chain strategies for different products, namely responsive supply chain strategy for innovative products and efficiency supply chain strategy for functional products. These two supply chain strategies are focused on the downstream supply chain aiming at shortening the time to research the market and also to reduce the stock levels in the retailing industry.Research limitations/implicationsThis is not an exhaustive list and cases are mainly from the Hong Kong textile and apparel industry, which perhaps limits its usefulness elsewhere.Practical implicationsA very useful source of information and impartial advice for industrial practitioners to develop their own supply chain strategies for the fashion market in Hong Kong. Especially recently with the elimination of quota to the US market, the management of the supply chain is critical.Originality/valueThis paper fulfils an identified information/resources need and offers practical help to industrial practitioners on then supply chain management for the Hong Kong textile and apparel industry.

This study examines how Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies enhance supply chain resilience (SCR) in manufacturing firms by testing the mediating roles of supply chain agility (SCAG), supply chain adaptability (SCAD) and the moderating effect of customer integration (CI). Grounded in the Resource-Based View (RBV) and Dynamic Capabilities View (DCV), the research conceptualizes digital technologies—such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data analytics, and artificial intelligence (AI)—as both strategic resources and enablers of dynamic capabilities in turbulent environments. Survey data were collected from 273 manufacturing firms in Turkey, a context shaped by geopolitical and economic disruptions, and analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results indicate that I4.0 technologies positively affect SCR directly and indirectly through SCAG and SCAD. However, while agility consistently strengthens resilience, adaptability shows a negative mediating effect, suggesting context-specific constraints. CI significantly amplifies the positive impact of I4.0 on SCR, underscoring the importance of external relational capabilities. Theoretically, this research advances supply chain literature by integrating RBV and DCV to explain how digital transformation drives resilience through distinct dynamic capabilities. Practically, it offers guidance for managers to combine digital infrastructure with collaborative customer relationships to mitigate disruptions and secure long-term performance. Overall, the study provides an integrated framework for building resilient supply chains in the digital era.

Big data has revolutionized the industry and has become an important source of competitive advantage and firm performance. In order to be able to leverage big data to achieve higher innovation in the supply chain, a number of complementary resources are essential to achieve the competitive advantage of the incumbent firm. We propose that supply chain innovation is dependent on firm’s big data analytics capabilities and this relationship is mediated by supply chain ambidexterity mitigating capabilities (agility and adaptability) and moderated by technology uncertainty. The data collected from 300 manufacturing firms operating in Pakistan confirm our hypotheses. Based on the results, it is suggested that both types of capabilities necessary for mitigating supply chain ambidexterity are critical for firms to realize better innovation in the supply chain. Furthermore, technology uncertainty moderates the relationship between big data analytic capabilities and supply chain innovation. This study extends the current literature on the importance of digital technologies especially big data analytics capabilities in improving the innovation outcomes of supply chains. This study confirms that big data projects may yield positive outcomes, if supply chain ambidexterity is mitigated through building capabilities of supply chain agility and supply chain adaptability and that uncertainties in technologies surrounding manufacturing firms further strengthen this relationship.

Batu City is one of well known cities in East Java Province which is as center of tourism destination and also as center of apple production. There is growing small scale industry related to apple processed products, such as apple chips. In an effort to support the supply of raw materials and production planning, it is necessary to know the achievement of supply chain performance in a small industry of apples chips in Batu City. The method used is qualitative analysis to know the system of raw material inventory control and production planning system applied and analyze the performance of supply chain management, supply chain mapping with SCOR (Supply Chain Operations Reference) method, measurement of supply chain performance by using measured performance attribute that is Supply Chain Reliability, Supply Chain Responsiveness and Supply Chain Agility with performance metrics of Perfect Order Fulfillment (POF), Order Fulfillment Cycle Time (OFCT), Upside Supply Chain Flexibility, Upside Supply Chain Adaptability and Downside Supply Chain Adaptability. The results of this study indicate that the system of raw material inventory control and production planning system have been applied. Supply chain mapping, performance measurement of supply chain management need to be developed more to improve supply chain management performance in the small industry apple chips in Batu City.

PurposeHealthcare organizations are placing greater emphasis on enhancing supply chain performance to cut costs and boost operational efficiency. Despite the growth of literature on the relevance of contemporary supply chain technologies in enhancing supply chain performance, it is still unclear how healthcare organizations could leverage supply chain analytics through supply chain strategies to improve healthcare supply chain performance (HSCP). This paper attempts to bridge this gap by examining how enhanced HSCP could be achieved through supply chain analytics (SCA) as well as building responsive, resilient, and reconfiguration (3Rs) SCs. The paper further assessed the moderating role of desorptive capacity between SCA and HSCP.Design/methodology/approachThe practice-based view motivated the study. The model underwent validation using primary data collected from 374 managers of healthcare facilities in Ghana. Data analysis was conducted using a structural equation model.FindingsThe findings revealed that SCA significantly drives HSCP, supply chain resilience, responsiveness, and reconfiguration. The findings further showed that the three supply chain strategies (supply chain resilience, responsiveness, and reconfiguration) aid in channeling the effect of SCA to drive enhanced HSCP. Finally, we also observed high levels of desorptive capacity amplifying SCA’s impact on HSCP.Practical implicationsThis paper makes important contributions to both literature and practice by empirically demonstrating how the effect of SCA can be channeled through supply chain strategies (supply chain resilience, responsiveness, and reconfiguration) to enhance SCP at varying levels of desorptive capacity. Practically, our study has demonstrated that SCA is not a “silver bullet” and that it must be integrated with supply chain strategies to reap the full benefits.Originality/valueTo the best of our knowledge, this paper is among the few attempts to empirically validate the relevance of supply chain analytics from the healthcare perspective. Moreover, the novelty of this paper demonstrates the coverage of the newfound mechanism, where supply chain resilience, responsiveness, and reconfiguration mediate and desorptive capacity moderate SCA and HSCP relationship. Finally, the paper questions the use of traditional organizational theories (RBV and DCT) and validates the applicability of a practice-based view as an alternative theoretical lens that could offer more nuanced insights into the unique characteristics and challenges of healthcare supply chains.

Background This systematic assessment of 408 research publications from 2004 to 2024 examines how talent management (TM) improves supply chain optimization (SCO). Objective The main goal is to find and study TM CSFs that affect SCO. The research distinguishes internal elements (consumer expectations, flexibility, and cost reduction) from external aspects (human capital and sustainability) and provides insights into successful TM techniques that enhance supply chain performance. Methods This research examines talent management (TM) and supply chain optimization (SCO) using a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis. The study maps co-occurrence networks and significant themes using VOSviewer and RStudio on 408 Web of Science articles. TM’s influence on SCO is assessed by categorizing key success factors (CSFs) and showing trends, topic clusters, and literature gaps. Results show that strategic TM practices including personnel planning and performance management improve operational efficiency, innovation, and market response. The paper also emphasizes TM integration into supply chain strategy by highlighting TM and SCO developments. Implications This study highlights the relevance of TM in SCO and lays the groundwork for future research on TM and SCO.

This study develops a hybrid model to investigate the factors affecting transnational e-commerce supply chain resilience (TNSCRE) by integrating the Entropy Weight Method (EWM), Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), and Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM). The study identifies 36 critical factors categorized under supply chain adaptability, supply chain efficiency, and supply chain evolution, and five criteria are used to rank these factors. The EWM is used to calculate the relative weights of the criteria, and the SAW method is used to rank the factors based on their weighted scores. The ISM is then used to evaluate the interrelationships among the key factors. The research highlights the significance of several factors, such as the speed of supply chain disruption recovery, interactive collaboration, and response time to supply chain disruption. Sensitivity analysis was performed to assess the robustness of the findings. Finally, a SWOT analysis is conducted to develop a strategic action plan for addressing these significant factors. The study provides a comprehensive understanding of the factors that impact TNSCRE from the perspective of multiple stakeholders. The findings can help e-commerce business owners improve their existing supply chain resilience and achieve sustainable growth in the context of globalization.

Bundling Strategy and Channel Competition in Supply Chains with Complementary Products