Jury Gualandris

Do supply management and global sourcing matter for firm sustainability performance?: An international study

Purpose – The aim of this paper is to explore the impact that sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has on company’s sustainability performance (both environmental and social), the direct and the indirect impacts that traditional supply management (SM) has on such performance and the effect that global sourcing exerts on the relationships involving SM, SSCM and firm sustainability performance. Design/methodology/approach – Empirical data were obtained from the fifth edition of the International Manufacturing Strategy Survey. The sample consists of 336 assembly manufacturing companies from 21 countries. Data were collected in 2009. The authors apply a moderated mediation analysis to analyse the role of SM and SSCM, and also perform a multi-group analysis to verify the moderation effect played by global sourcing. Findings – First, SSCM improves sustainability performance (both environmental and social) of the company that implements it. Then, SM plays a complex role, as it fosters the adoption of SSCM ...

Product and process modularity: improving flexibility and reducing supplier failure risk

As the dependence on suppliers intensifies, companies can adopt product and process modularity to reduce the potential negative effects of supply disruptions. Indeed, enabling manufacturing postponement can provide firms with a prompt response; by reducing the complexity of the system and allowing for easier configuration of the production process, the negative impact of a supply disruption, such as supplier failure, can be absorbed. This study provides a framework that relates the adoption of postponement enablers (i.e. product modularity and process modularity) to the reduction of the negative impact of a supply disruption. We attempt to determine whether the direct effect can be explained by the impact of these practices on companies’ flexibility. Based on data collected from 54 Italian manufacturing companies, we show that the adoption of manufacturing postponement enablers directly reduces the negative impact of the occurrence of supplier failure. Furthermore, we show that this relationship can only be partially explained by an indirect path through companies’ flexibility.

Developing environmental and social performance: the role of suppliers’ sustainability and buyer–supplier trust

We explore how environmental and social performance of manufacturing firms can be improved as sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) develops and evolves within a firm from internal to external practices. Importantly, this study considers how key suppliers’ sustainability performance and buyer–supplier trust mediate and moderate such a development. A conceptual framework is developed which relies on resource-based theories and emerging empirical evidence. Then, partial least square methodology is applied on survey data from a sample of Italian manufacturing firms. Results show that manufacturing firms’ sustainability performance improves as SSCM develops; however, while internal practices have a direct impact on performance, the effect of external practices on a manufacturing firm’s sustainability performance is fully mediated by key suppliers’ sustainability performance. Yet, buyer–supplier trust significantly influences the scope of such gains. Since evidence suggests that manufacturing firms are still struggling with how to leverage supply chain innovation potential for sustainable development, this study provides a timely and valuable contribution.

Mitigating the effect of risk conditions on supply disruptions: the role of manufacturing postponement enablers

While previous published studies have evaluated the drivers of supply disruptions, only a few have empirically investigated the role of manufacturing postponement enablers as mitigating practices. This work explores the complex interaction between supply disruptions (i.e. supplier failure, purchase unavailability), risk conditions (i.e. antecedents that positively influence the probability and severity of supply disruptions) and manufacturing postponement enablers (i.e. product and process modularity). Specifically, we aim at understanding ‘when’ manufacturing postponement enablers should be adopted the most and ‘if’ their adoption can fully mitigate the effect risk conditions exert on supply disruptions’ probability and severity. To achieve our objective, we developed a conceptual model, and we tested it using survey data from 54 Italian manufacturing companies. The results show that supply market difficulty and technological uncertainty imply a higher probability and severity of disruptions associated with supplier failure and purchase unavailability. Most importantly, we provide evidence of the role played by product and process modularity in fully mitigating the effect of technological uncertainty on supply disruptions.

Supply risk management and competitive advantage : a misfit model

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a model of congruence for the management of supply risk that is easy to apply, but also accurate. The authors also aim at providing empirical evidence about the relationship between misfit – i.e. the incongruence between a firm’s preparedness in (supply) risk management and the potential riskiness characterising the context – and competitive advantage. Design/methodology/approach – In line with the purpose, literature and field interviews were used to develop a model of congruence in the context of supply risk management (SRM) and operationalise it within a questionnaire. Then, the authors collected survey data to validate the model. Findings – Results show that competitive advantage decreases when the firm’s preparedness in SRM does not match to the pattern of risk conditions (i.e. environmental vulnerabilities). Research limitations/implications – The model of congruence here developed is simple to apply but offer effective decisions support. This study,...

A model to evaluate upstream vulnerability

The current body of literature with regard to supply chain vulnerability pays limited attention to how companies actually evaluate and manage risk. A second limitation is the scarce use of empirical evidence. Aiming at reducing these gaps, this work proposes a new conceptual model by which companies can assess their upstream vulnerability. The development process for the model involved two steps. First, based on a literature review, a draft of the assessment model was designed and operationalised via a questionnaire. Then, to refine the model and to verify its discriminant ability, case studies were conducted. The model is able to effectively compare the riskiness of the context in which a company operates with the firms preparedness in risk management, providing guidance in evaluating and reducing upstream vulnerability.

Exploration and exploitation within supply networks: Examining purchasing ambidexterity and its multiple performance implications

Purpose n n n n nThe purpose of this paper is to introduce and define the concept of purchasing ambidexterity in terms of two dimensions: balance dimension and combined dimension. The study proceeds to empirically examine the multiple performance effects generated for the buying firm and its key suppliers. n n n n nDesign/methodology/approach n n n n nAmbidexterity theory informs the authors’ conceptual model. To test the hypotheses, the authors collected survey data from 95 purchasing functions of medium and large European firms and applied various estimation techniques. n n n n nFindings n n n n nThis research indicates that ambidexterity substantially varies across purchasing functions. Further, it discovers that a purchasing function’s ability to advance the combined magnitude of exploratory and exploitative activities represents an essential determinant of supplier efficiency, supplier product innovation, and buyer financial performance. Notably, this research also discovers that balancing the magnitudes of exploratory and exploitative activities on a relative basis produces negative effects on the innovativeness of the supply network. n n n n nOriginality/value n n n n nAlthough ambidexterity theory has been applied to supply chain management, limited attention has been dedicated to purchasing ambidexterity. This gap led us to study how purchasing impacts the competitiveness of the buying firm and of its supply network by balancing and combining exploratory and exploitative activities. This research is the first to advance the notion of purchasing ambidexterity, unpack its underlying dimensions, and examine its multiple performance implications. Such a conceptual and empirical development presents new perspectives on how purchasing can help the buying firm and its supply network to strengthen their competitiveness.

An empirical examination of the relationship between globalization, integration and sustainable innovation within manufacturing networks

While controlling for supply chain effects, the purpose of this paper is to investigate if globalization and collaborative integration within a firm-wide manufacturing network have significant implications for the adoption of sustainable production (SP) and sustainable sourcing (SS) practices at the plant level.,The authors conceptualize SP and SS as process innovations with moderate degrees of innovativeness and apply “Organizational integration and process innovation” theory to build our conceptual model. Then, the authors use primary survey data from 471 assembly manufacturing plants operating in the US, Europe and Asia to test our hypotheses rigorously.,This research finds that the adoption of SP practices at the plant level is significantly and positively associated with globalization and integration of the firm-wide manufacturing network. On the contrary, the adoption of SS practices is more strongly affected by integration in the external supply chain and benefits from the manufacturing network only indirectly, through the association with SP practices.,Operations management literature devoted to sustainability has studied sustainable practices mostly from a risk management angle. Also, there exists contrasting evidence in the operations strategy literature about the positive and negative effects that globalization of a manufacturing network may have on the adoption of sustainable practices at the plant level. Moreover, several studies show how integration with supply chain partners helps manufacturing plants transition into more SP and SS practices; however, related literatures have neglected that collaborative integration within a firm-wide manufacturing network may also help to develop, or adapt to, new sustainable practices. This research represents a first attempt to resolve discordance and unveil the positive effects that manufacturing networks may have on sustainable innovations at the plant level.