Christian Busse

Supplier development for sustainability: contextual barriers in global supply chains

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore contextual barriers to supplier development for sustainability (SDS) in global supply chains and managerial remedies to mitigate such barriers. Design/methodology/approach – A dyadic case study design was adopted with a Western European buyer and six of its Chinese suppliers. The database consists of 41 interviews and 81 documents. Findings – Contextual barriers to SDS in global supply chains derive from complexities in the sustainability concept, socio-economic differences, spatial and linguistic distance, as well as cultural differences between buyers and suppliers. Partial remedies include effective joint communications, an open organizational culture, and the fostering of cross-contextual understanding. Research limitations/implications – The findings contribute to theory development at the intersection of sustainable and global supply chain management research. They help to explain why scarce sustainability-related progress in global supply chains has...

Boundary Conditions: What They are, How to Explore Them, Why We Need Them, and When to Consider Them

Boundary conditions (BC) have long been discussed as an important element in theory development, referring to the “Who, Where, When�? aspects of a theory. However, it still remains somewhat vague as to what exactly BC are, how they can or even should be explored, and why their understanding matters. This research tackles these important questions by means of an in-depth theoretical-methodological analysis. The study contributes fourfold to organizational research methods: First, it develops a more accurate and explicit understanding of BC. Second, it widens the understanding of how BC can be explored by suggesting and juxtaposing new tools and approaches. It also illustrates BC-exploring processes, drawing on two empirical case examples. Third, it analyzes the reasons for exploring BC, concluding that BC exploration fosters theory development, strengthens research validity, and mitigates the research-practice gap. Fourth, it synthesizes the analyses into 12 tentative suggestions for how scholars should subsequently approach the issues surrounding BC. The authors hope that the study contributes to consensus shifting with respect to BC and draws more attention to BC.

The ABC for Studying the Too-Much-of-a-Good-Thing Effect A Competitive Mediation Framework Linking Antecedents, Benefits, and Costs

The too-much-of-a-good-thing (TMGT) effect occurs when an initially positive relation between an antecedent and a desirable outcome variable turns negative when the underlying ordinarily beneficial antecedent is taken too far, such that the overall relation becomes nonmonotonic. The presence of the TMGT effect incites serious concerns about the validity of linearly specified empirical models. Recent research posited that the TMGT effect is omnipresent, due to an overarching meta-theoretical principle. Drawing on the competitive mediation approach, the authors of the present study suggest an antecedent-benefit-cost (ABC) framework that explains the TMGT effect as a frequent but not omnipresent issue in empirical research and integrates a variety of linear and nonlinear relationships. The ABC framework clarifies important conceptual and empirical issues surrounding the TMGT effect and facilitates the choice between linear and curvilinear models. To avoid serious methodological pitfalls, future studies with desirable outcome variables such as, for example, task performance, job performance, firm performance, satisfaction, team innovation, leadership effectiveness, or individual creativity should consider the ABC framework.

Toward a standardized supplier code of ethics: development of a design concept based on diffusion of innovation theory

Supplier codes of ethics have become important instruments for ethical supplier management. They capacitate firms to govern numerous supplier relationships simultaneously toward ethical business conduct. Since many actors nowadays pursue the goal of ethical supplier management, a cascade of codes has emerged. However, this plurality poses multiple problems on its own account, such as lacking effectiveness of some of these codes, restrictions on the development of universally accepted ethical standards, and greenwashing. It also creates operational difficulties and unnecessary procedural costs for firms and is thus inefficient. The aggregated amount of issues suggests the development of a standardized supplier code of ethics as a remedy. Based on diffusion of innovation theory as theoretical lense and as conceptual support, we employ a multi-method research design to develop a design concept for such a standard. We begin with a content analysis of relevant scientific literature on content, adoption, and effectiveness of codes of ethics, in which we also study numerous extant codes and initiatives. It leads to six propositions on key success factors of a standardized supplier code of ethics. We then amend a design science approach to develop a design concept for such a standard that complies with these requirements, with the support of corporate experts from Germany, China, and India. Our results are informative about the content of a standardized supplier code of ethics, and we propose multiple effectiveness- and diffusion-facilitating mechanisms as additional components in the overall design concept. With stakeholders’ further support, the envisioned standard is expected to foster businesses’ corporate social performances around the globe.

Extending the supply chain visibility boundary: utilizing stakeholders for identifying supply chain sustainability risks

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate how buying firms facing low supply chain visibility can utilize their stakeholder network to identify salient supply chain sustainability risks (SCSR). Design/methodology/approach The study employs a design science approach to develop a procedural model for identifying SCSR as a new artifact. A small-scale field-testing study in a food supply chain of a Swiss retail firm demonstrates its applicability and pragmatic validity. Findings When stakeholder knowledge external to the supply chain is regarded as a valuable resource, a generic understanding of a buying firm’s supply chain suffices to identify SCSR hotspots without creating complexity for the SCSR management. Research limitations/implications The paper contributes to the study of SCSR by identifying mechanisms buying firms can employ to identify SCSR hotspots and fostering the nascent understanding of responsibility attribution by stakeholders. Moreover, the emerging theory of the supply chain is enriched by paving a way to extend the supply chain visibility boundary. The procedural model is presumably most useful in contexts of elevated stakeholder pressure and low supply chain visibility. Future research should seek to validate and improve the effectiveness of the newly designed artifact. Practical implications The procedural model is directly applicable in corporate practice to the identification of SCSR. Moreover, its application fosters the understanding of a firm’s supply chain and its stakeholder network. Originality/value SCSR is an increasingly important phenomenon in corporate practice that has received only scarce research attention. The design science approach represents a valuable means for generating theoretical insights and emergent solutions to the real-world problem of SCSR identification.

The dark side of global sourcing: a systematic literature review and research agenda

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present a systematic review of the literature concerning the negative aspects of global sourcing (GS). It complements prior research on the positive aspects of GS, advances theoretical understanding of the phenomenon, and suggests an agenda for future research. Design/methodology/approach: The sourcing, international business and supply chain management literature is systematically reviewed and findings from 83 previous studies are investigated. Findings: Research on the downsides of GS has intensified over the last decade, but the related knowledge has been very fragmented and oftentimes latent. This literature review extracts knowledge around 28 antecedents to GS downsides from the literature and illustrates their potential harmful effects along operational and financial performance dimensions. Findings suggest that future research should focus more on the effects of decision-making biases and the effects of firm-internal barriers. The dynamic and hidden costs of GS should also be scrutinized in more depth. Originality/value: This study is the first systematic literature review of the downsides of GS. It facilitates a more balanced and nuanced picture of GS to help managers make better-informed GS decisions. The review also offers a holistic research framework that opens up avenues for much-needed research into the “dark side” of GS.

Maneuvering through Hostile Environments: How Firms Leverage Product and Process Innovativeness

Is focusing on innovativeness the appropriate organizational response in hostile environments? This study addresses four distinct forms of hostile environments: market decline, restrictiveness, competition, and resource scarcity. The research draws on contingency theory to explain how these forms of hostility affect product innovativeness, process innovativeness, and firm performance. While the extant literature has investigated the effects of hostile environments on performance, little has been done to distinguish between different forms of hostility and, in turn, their potential effect on product and process innovativeness. We argue that investments in product and process innovativeness are either fostered or hindered, contingent on the form of hostile pressures from the external operating environment. These firm responses should in turn suppress the negative effects of hostility on performance. A survey using newly developed measurement scales for hostile environments was used to collect data from 148 small and medium-sized manufacturing plants. The results provide evidence that generally supports our hypotheses. More specifically, the direct effects of the four forms of hostile environments impact product and process innovativeness differently. Likewise, the suppression and consistent mediation effects of product and process innovativeness differ depending upon the type of hostile environment, suggesting that manufacturers consider applying these capabilities contingent upon the type of hostile climate they face. Therefore, to understand how firms leverage product and process innovativeness, hostile environments are best differentiated into categories rather than being aggregated. [web URL: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/deci.12196/full]

Firm-level innovation management at logistics service providers: an exploration

Executives at logistics service providers (LSPs), who would like to manage innovation, are faced with numerous challenges. Since little is known about LSPs’ innovation management and even less about its context dependency, this paper seeks to empirically investigate relevant context factors that influence firm-level innovation management of LSPs. An exploratory case study design was chosen, and numerous facets of LSPs’ innovation management are explored and described based on rich case data. Six important context factors are empirically identified: organisational size, level of dispersion, importance of technology, growth potential, customer dependency, and the innovation mentality of personnel. For each factor, a preliminary conceptualisation was developed and is presented in the paper. The paper is highly relevant to both managers and scholars since various fields of managerial decision-making are explored. Furthermore, comparisons between LSPs are facilitated by focusing on each LSPs specific context.

Innovationsmanagement auf der Unternehmensebene von Logistikdienstleistern

Business Innovation kann in der Logistik in entscheidendem Mase durch Logistik dienstleistungsunternehmen (LDL) gepragt werden. Um prozessuale Perspektiven zu erganzen, erfolgt in dem Beitrag eine Analyse des Innovationsmanagements auf Unternehmensebene bei LDL. Im ersten Hauptteil des Beitrags werden mithilfe einer Strukturierung aus der wissenschaftlichen Literatur, namlich dem Framework von Adams, Bessant und Phelps (2006), Teildimensionen und Gestaltungselemente des Innovationsmanagements auf Unternehmensebene skizziert. Im zweiten Hauptteil des Aufsat zes wird der besondere Kontext, der fur das Innovationsmanagement bei Logistikdienstleistern typischerweise existiert, diskutiert. Der Beitrag erlaubt es Wissenschaftlern und Managern, das Innovationsmanagement von LDL auf Unternehmensebene so zu untersuchen und zu gestalten, dass den spezifischen Gegebenheiten bei LDL Rech nung getragen wird.

Managerial perceptions of energy in logistics: An integration of the theory of planned behavior and stakeholder theory

Purpose Because of the major contribution of logistics to the greenhouse gas effect, logistics research has begun to address the topic of energy, but it has not yet targeted the role of energy within logistical decision-making processes. To facilitate such endeavors, the purpose of this paper is to explore the perceptions of energy which managers in logistics organizations portray. Design/methodology/approach This investigation is based on interviews with 17 managers. The findings are embedded in the theory of planned behavior (TPB) and stakeholder theory (SHT). Findings The study depicts initial insights on which energy-related perceptions exist, how they can be categorized into attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral controls (PBCs), and how different stakeholders seem to affect them. Research limitations/implications This research suggests a tentative comprehensive conceptual framework that describes the role of energy in logistical decision-making processes. The findings on attitudes and subjective norms appear to be unspecific to the logistics domain, whereas some of the PBCs are presumably unique to the logistics context. Future logistics research should hence focus its efforts on the PBCs. Generalizability and completeness of the managerial perceptions must be validated by future research. Practical implications The findings help logistics organizations in scrutinizing managerial perspectives on energy and in developing awareness-raising measures. Originality/value The behavioral perspective applied in this study can complement extant, more technically oriented views. The conceptual framework that integrates the TPB and SHT may also be useful for organizational research beyond the logistics domain.