Pamela Danese

Designing CPFR collaborations: insights from seven case studies

Purpose – To comprehend the rationale behind managerial choices that lead companies to implement different types of collaborative planning, forecasting and replenishment (CPFR) collaborations.Design/methodology/approach – Seven case studies of supply networks whose central firms operate in different sectors have been analysed.Findings – Identifies six types of CPFR collaborations, the choice of which can be explained by considering some important contingent factors, such as the CPFR goals, characteristics of the products and markets in which they are sold, supply networks physical and relational structure, and CPFR development stage.Research limitations/implications – Further research developed in other contexts is necessary to refine the domain of applicability of the research findings. The opportunity to use the relationships found in this research as a managerial tool calls for the testing of research findings within larger samples of firms, representative of a broader range of industries.Practical im...

The extended VMI for coordinating the whole supply network

Purpose – To highlight how vendor managed inventory (VMI) can be extended both upstream and downstream in the supply network to co‐ordinate the material and information flows among a number of different suppliers, manufacturing and distribution plants (“extended VMI”).Design/methodology/approach – The research is based on data and information gathered during an in‐depth case study within the supply network co‐ordinated by GlaxoSmithKline, one of the worlds leading research‐based pharmaceutical and healthcare companies.Findings – Defines the peculiarities and the requisites of the extended VMI as to: the information flows supporting the relationships among the supply network members; the information systems, supporting the data collection, management, diffusion and elaboration; the performance monitoring system, highlighting the benefits for each supply network member as well as avoiding opportunistic behaviours.Research limitations/implications – The research intends to offer an original contribution to ...

Collaboration forms, information and communication technologies, and coordination mechanisms in CPFR

Collaborative Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishment (CPFR) programmes seek to improve the ability to anticipate and satisfy future demand by enhancing collaboration among companies within the supply network. Despite the existence of a detailed and comprehensive process model—published by the Voluntary Interindustry Commerce Standards Committee—in practice CPFR can take a number of different forms. This paper aims to investigate differences in CPFR implementation as to the type of inter-company collaboration put into practice, and the Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) and coordination mechanisms adopted to perform CPFR. Moreover, it seeks to analyse the relationships between these dimensions in order to comprehend and explain the rationale behind the managerial choices that lead companies to implement different CPFR configurations. The multiple-case study method is adopted to investigate the research questions. In particular, the implementation of CPFR in seven supply networks is examined. This research identifies six types of collaboration that can be performed to implement CPFR. Then, using this taxonomy as its starting point, it accounts for differences in the adoption of the ICTs and coordination mechanisms necessary to support CPFR. The papers conclusions summarize the researchs main theoretical and managerial contributions.

Modularity and the impact on new product development time performance: Investigating the moderating effects of supplier involvement and interfunctional integration

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of product modularity on new product development (NPD) time performance, and the moderating effects of interfunctional integration and supplier involvement on the product modularity‐time performance relationship.Design/methodology/approach – The paper analyzes data from a sample of 186 manufacturing plants settled in several countries, and operating in mechanical, electronic and transportation equipment sectors. Three hypotheses are tested through a hierarchical regression analysis.Findings – Data analyses show that product modularity has a direct positive effect on NPD time performance, and that interfunctional integration positively moderates the product modularity‐time performance relationship. Finally, this research does not support the hypothesis that a positive interaction effect exists between product modularity and supplier involvement.Research limitations/implications – Future research should replicate and extend the model to samples dr...

Towards a contingency theory of collaborative planning initiatives in supply networks

In recent years there has been increased interest in supply chain (SC) collaboration, as a process that promotes inter-company co-operation in different business areas. This paper focuses on collaborative planning initiatives adopted to support demand and supply planning in supply networks. Since companies implement several different forms of collaborative planning initiatives, this paper intends to examine the relevant contingency effects that lead firms to choose a precise collaborative planning initiative. Ten cases were analysed to investigate the research question. Results found indicate that specific contextual conditions – i.e. goals of the collaboration, demand elasticity, product diversity and supply network spatial complexity – can affect the level of the collaboration in collaborative planning initiatives. Three different levels of collaboration are identified (i.e. communication, limited collaboration and full collaboration) – depending on the level of integration (i.e. whether companies simply exchange data/information, or synchronise and jointly decide their plans) and multiplexity (i.e. the number of business areas involved in the collaboration). It emerges that, while the goals of the collaboration influence the level of integration between companies; the elasticity of demand can determine the level of multiplexity. Furthermore, the research found that product diversity (i.e. whether companies sell different products) and a high supply network spatial complexity could limit the level of multiplexity in the collaboration.

Improving inter‐functional coordination to face high product variety and frequent modifications

In an effort to better respond to heterogeneous customer needs, an increasing number of companies in different sectors deal with the combination of high variety and frequent product changes/modifications. This entails planning, designing, purchasing and manufacturing activities and exacerbates the alignment of Sales, Production Planning and Engineering goals. This paper aims to suggest a way of improving coordination between such functional areas in contexts characterised by high variety and frequent product changes. Based on the data from an action Research study, a method for taking the contrasting requests of Sales, Production Planning and Engineering into account simultaneously and to facilitate the coordination of their activities is developed. It leverages Modular Bills and product modularity to improve inter‐functional coordination. Initial indications are promising. However, given the specific nature of the studied case, further research is required to evaluate the generalizability of the findings.

Sequences of improvement in supply networks: case studies from the pharmaceutical industry

Purpose – The aim of the current study is to develop an understanding of the decisional process that leads a company, at a given point in time, to choose the subsequent supply chain management (SCM) initiative to be implemented.Design/methodology/approach – This research adopts the descriptive case study research design, as defined by Yin and McCutcheon and Meredith. Four supply networks, whose central firms are leading pharmaceutical companies, have been investigated.Findings – At a given time when deciding the SCM initiative(s) to be implemented, external fit and the state of supply network configuration and integration are both important, but for different reasons. In particular, lack of external fit triggers the implementation of SCM initiatives. Sequences of SCM initiatives are the result of a series of successive decisional situations, where the external fit and state of supply network configuration and integration vary each time a new SCM initiative is implemented.Research limitations/implications ...

The moderating role of supply network structure on the customer integration‐efficiency relationship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study whether a fast supply network structure interacts with customer integration (CI) by positively moderating the relationship between CI and efficiency performance.Design/methodology/approach – The authors developed two hypotheses, incorporating dimensions of CI, fast supply network structure and efficiency performance. The hypotheses are tested through a hierarchical regression analysis using data from a sample of 200 manufacturing plants.Findings – CI alone is not enough to guarantee cost reductions because a fast supply network structure acts as a moderator of the CI‐efficiency relationship. The role of this moderator is twofold. On the one hand, it interacts with CI, strengthening the positive impact of CI on efficiency through a positive complementary effect. On the other hand, if the supply network structure is not intended to support fast lead times, the impact of CI on efficiency can be hindered and, in extreme cases, CI can even make efficiency worse.P...

Direct and Mediated Effects of Product Modularity on Development Time and Product Performance

Abstract - Product modularity is considered a crucial driver for the improvement of new product development (NPD) performance, in terms of NPD time and product performance. However, quantitative studies demonstrating these links are scant, and some authors have expressed various doubts on whether a clear relationship between NPD time or product performance and modularity always exists. This paper analyzes the impact of product modularity on these performance dimensions, and the mediating effect of supplier involvement in NPD on “modularity- NPD time” and “modularity-product performance” relationships. Data from a sample of 201 manufacturing plants settled in several countries around the world demonstrate that the impact of product modularity is partially mediated by the involvement of suppliers in NPD. The practical implication for managers is that to fully exploit product modularity benefits, it is opportune to combine modularity with supplier integration practices.

Relationship between downstream integration, performance measurement systems and supply network efficiency

Downstream integration is a key managerial area to improve performance in supply networks. Though most studies agree that downstream integration positively influences performances, the literature also reports cases of failures in achieving significant improvements. This evidence suggests that some factors may act as moderators on the downstream integration-performance relationship. This paper analyses the impact of downstream integration on supply network efficiency and the moderating effect on this relationship of supply network performance measurement systems. Data from a sample of 200 manufacturing plants settled in several countries around the world demonstrate that this moderating effect exists. Therefore, in order to strengthen the impact of downstream integration on supply network efficiency, managers should combine interventions on downstream integration and supply network performance measurement systems, rather than investing and focusing on downstream integration only.