Paul D. Larson

Research Opportunities in Purchasing and Supply Management

Purchasing and supply management (PSM) are crucial for the effective and efficient operation of manufacturing firms, now more than ever. The PSM function has evolved from being routine and mechanical to a function that can deliver true competitive advantage. The trend toward increased globalisation and outsourcing, along with a focus on innovation- and capability-driven supply management, has led to an increased reliance on suppliers. This has significantly enhanced the importance of PSM for manufacturing companies. The heightened significance in practice has been paralleled by an increasing attention of researchers in developing theories and chronicling best practices. At the same time, the rapid rate of change represents both daunting challenges and exciting opportunities for research in PSM. It is the goal of this article to highlight such challenges and discuss ensuing opportunities in PSM research. This objective is accomplished via the nominal group technique involving a panel of leading scholars in the purchasing and supply management field. As such, the article presents a synthesis and discussion of important research themes, poses a set of intriguing research opportunities, and serves as a motivation for future investigation.

Single Sourcing and Supplier Certification: Performance and Relationship Implications

Abstract Relationship marketing remains a hot topic among marketing scholars and practitioners. However, in industrial channels, the most compelling developments in relationship marketing are being initiated by buyers, i.e., customers—rather than suppliers or “marketers.” Single sourcing and supplier certification are two prominent programs of this type. This study looks at the impact of single sourcing and supplier certification on buyer/supplier relationships and purchasing performance. A mail survey was sent to 1,000 purchasing professionals to study industrial buying in the context of component rebuys (items that are inputs to the buying firm’s production process and are not new to the buyer). The results suggest that single source and certified suppliers offer higher quality at lower total cost to the buyer. Moreover, these suppliers are linked to higher levels of buyer/supplier cooperation, but no increase in buyer dependence on the supplier.

Supply Chain Management: Definition, Growth and Approaches

(1998). Supply Chain Management: Definition, Growth and Approaches. Journal of Marketing Theory and Practice: Vol. 6, Supply Chain Management Sponsored by SYNCRA Software, Inc, pp. 1-5.

Building humanitarian supply chain relationships: lessons from leading practitioners

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to advance thought and practice on supply chain relationship building, in the context of humanitarian logistics, drawing on lessons from leading practitioners.Design/methodology/approach – The presentations were treated like data, enabling grounded research concerning practitioners. The presentations were recorded, transcribed, vetted, and imported into qualitative software (NVivo8) to facilitate further analysis, which led to testable propositions.Findings – Three themes emerged, centered around relationship benefits, challenges, and advice on relationship building. Advice from the practitioners led to 11 propositions.Research limitations/implications – While the presentations were treated as interview data, there was no opportunity to probe statements made by the speakers. Also, speakers were the sole representatives for their organizations. Finally, the findings cannot be generalized beyond the types of situations and organizations represented at the conference.Pr...

Relationships between inventory, sales and service in a retail chain store operation

Effective inventory management is critical to retailing success. Surprisingly, there is little published empirical research examining relationships between retail inventory, sales and customer service. Based on a survey of 101 chain store units, this paper develops and tests a series of hypotheses about retail inventory. Seventy‐five percent of the store owners/managers responded to the mail survey. As expected, significant positive relationships were found between inventory, service and sales. Specifically, support was found for the theory that inventory is a function of the square root of sales. Also, greater product variety leads to higher inventory, and service level is an exponential function of inventory. Finally, demand uncertainty was found to have no apparent effect on inventory levels.

Psychic Stock: An Independent Variable Category of Inventory

The supply‐side or demand‐servicing functions of inventory are well‐known in the inventory, logistics, and retailing literature. However, this literature has yet to develop the demand‐stimulating function of inventory. This article introduces the concept of psychic stock, defined as retail display inventory for stimulating demand. Psychic stock is a minimum inventory level, which is modelled by a partitioning of psychic, cycle, and safety stock.

Buyer‐Supplier Co‐operation, Product Quality and Total Costs

While the purchasing literature notes the importance of quality, it reports little empirical study into causes and consequences of supplier product quality. Develops, tests and finds empirical support for the following propositions: higher levels of buyer‐supplier co‐operation lead to higher product quality, and lower total costs; higher product quality yields lower total costs. These results are based on survey responses from over 500 members of the National Association of Purchasing Management (NAPM), who purchase components for manufacturing firms.

Total cost/response rate trade-offs in mail survey research: impact of follow-up mailings and monetary incentives

Abstract This article reports results of a mail survey experiment in which several response-inducement methods were manipulated. The experiment assesses the impact of follow-up mailings and monetary incentives on total cost/response rate trade-offs. Experimental findings lead to a number of recommendations for researchers and managers who conduct mail surveys. First, follow-up mailings and monetary incentives should be used to maximize response rate. Second, given a limited budget for survey administration, follow-up mailings are preferred over monetary incentives. Third, if there is limited time for survey administration, monetary incentives may be preferred over follow-up mailings. Finally, follow-up mailings have the added benefit of enabling nonresponse bias estimation.

Logistics improvement programs: The dynamics between people and performance

Looks at the impact of performance improvement initiatives on logistics people, as well as performance. Two of the most popular programs – EDI and outsourcing – have profound impact on people in logistics. Both outsourcing and EDI require cooperative relations to reach their full potential. However, based on a mail survey of Canadian logisticians, there is not necessarily a link between use of these programs and cooperative relations between shippers and carriers. Thus, there is a pressing need in logistics to better understand (and manage) the impact of outsourcing and EDI on people.

Not‐for‐profit supply chains in interrupted environments

Purpose – This paper primarily aims to address the following research question: Are techniques and practices developed for uninterrupted, for‐profit supply chains adaptable to the not‐for‐profit (NFP), interrupted context? In other words, can the managerial tools of business logistics be used in humanitarian relief logistics?Design/methodology/approach – A combination of grounded research and case‐based research methods is used. Grounded research methods involve coding interview data to enable constant comparison of the data with emerging categories. Three managerial representatives of a single case organisation, the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), are interviewed.Findings – MCC is a small NFP organisation operating in interrupted environments. As a matter of strategy, it pursues economic and social objectives. Strategic partnerships with “like‐minded” organisations are critical to achieve these objectives. To assess its achievements, MCC needs a wide range of performance measures.Research limitations/...