Valeria Mininno

Risk management in ERP project introduction: Review of the literature

In recent years ERP systems have received much attention. However, ERP projects have often been found to be complex and risky to implement in business enterprises. The organizational relevance and risk of ERP projects make it important for organizations to focus on ways to make ERP implementation successful. We collected and analyzed a number of key articles discussing and analyzing ERP implementation. The different approaches taken in the literature were compared from a risk management point of view to highlight the key risk factors and their impact on project success. Literature was further classified in order to address and analyze each risk factor and its relevance during the stages of the ERP project life cycle.

Supplier selection using a multi-criteria decision aid method

Abstract An ever-increasing trend in todays industrial firms is to exploit outsourcing for those products and activities deemed to be outside the companys core business. Given the financial importance and the multi-objective nature of supplier selection decision, in this paper an effort is made to highlight those aspects that are crucial to process qualitative and quantitative performance measures. In this paper, the contribution of a multi-criteria decision aid method ( promethee/gaia ) to such problems is investigated, together with how to allow for a simultaneous change of the weights (importance of performance criteria), generating results that can be easily analysed statistically, performing an innovative sensitivity analysis. By way of example, the model is applied to a mid-sized Italian firm operating in the field of public road and rail transportation. The whole suppliers selection model presented ( promethee/gaia techniques plus high-dimensional sensitivity analysis) seems to be a useful additional tool inside the final choice phase of a supplier selection process. Finally, potential issues for future research are presented.

Risk assessment in ERP projects

Conducting Risk Management of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) projects is an ambitious task. ERP projects are complex undertakings for business enterprises, as the associated risk factors include myriad technological, managerial, psychological and sociological aspects. Moreover, such factors are often tightly interconnected and can have indirect effects on projects. Such features make Risk Management more difficult, uncertain and important than in traditional projects, especially in the Assessment stage. The aim of this paper is to propose an innovative technique to support Risk Analysis in order to provide a better, more structured and systematic understanding of the major relations amongst various risk factors, on the one hand, and between risk factors and the specific effects associated with ERP projects, on the other. A real case study regarding a multinational company and involving a panel of experts and practitioners is presented to illustrate application of the method.

Internal, vertical and horizontal logistics integration in Italian grocery distribution

Notes that logistics costs in the grocery sector, in Italy, are about 25,000 billion lire and that in order to reduce these costs logistics integration has to be improved between institutions of the distribution channel. Focuses on two of the main institutions of the grocery distribution channel: branded product industry and large‐scale trade. Referring to these institutions and to the logistics functions they carry out, analyses integration areas in order to identify some organizational and managerial solutions for improving interfunctional and interorganizational co‐ordination. In particular, divides these solutions into three main groups according to the level of integration they refer to: internal integration (inside each business), vertical integration (between businesses located at different stages of the channel) and horizontal integration (between different businesses located on the same level of the channel). Internal and horizontal integration are the prerequisites for achieving vertical integration and consequently for achieving synergies between the institutions involved.

Modelling and assessing ERP project risks: A Petri Net approach

Risk management of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) projects is largely recognized as a very complex task both by academics and practitioners. Strict interconnections among risk factors often occur so that indirect effects on the overall project performance are very likely. Unfortunately, the implications of interdependency are usually underestimated by project managers and decision makers since they are difficult to include in any risk assessment logic. This work shows how Colored Petri Nets (CPNs) can be used to model risk factors in ERP projects in order to deal with the problem of interdependence in risk assessment. The technique is presented through an application to a real case study. Findings highlight the importance of interdependence and the indirect links for an effective ranking of risks. Furthermore, results emphasize the valuable support of CPNs in risk factor modelling since they allow both a more structured and systematic risk analysis and a more accurate planning for effective risk treatment actions.

Supply Chain Management: a review of implementation risks in the construction industry

Purpose – The purpose of the present study is to analyze the development of supply chain management (SCM) introduction in the construction industry, investigating the risk factors affecting the implementation of SCM principles.Design/methodology/approach – To achieve the research objective a literature review approach was adopted, which involved the selection and classification of about 140 research articles. Papers were critically classified and analyzed according to a risk management (RM) perspective.Findings – Results from the literature review identified a lack of construction supply chain risk management (CSCRM) literature which is mainly conceptual and descriptive and focused especially on the risk assessment phase. A total of 13 common risk factors are identified in literature and critically analyzed considering eight key perspectives. These stress the attention on the project planning phase and confirm the main contractor as the main promoter for the SCM practice.Research limitations/implications ...

A peer IF-TOPSIS based decision support system for packaging machine selection

Selecting the appropriate manufacturing machine is a very important and complex problem for firms which usually have to deal with both qualitative and quantitative criteria and involve different decision makers whose knowledge is often vague and imprecise. This paper proposes a peer-based modification to intuitionistic fuzzy multi-criteria group decision making with TOPSIS method (peer IF-TOPSIS) and applies it to a packaging machine selection problem. Intuitionistic fuzzy weighted averaging (IFWA) operator has been selected both to obtain the group opinion on the relevance of the single decision makers and to aggregate individual opinions of decision makers for rating the importance of criteria and alternatives. A case study illustrates the application of the modified IF-TOPSIS method in order to select a Vertical Form Fill and Seal (VFFS) for Double Square Bottom Bag (DSBB) machine in food packaging.

Configurations for logistics co‐ordination

This work presents the results of the survey “Organisational structures and logistics in the branded product history of the grocery section in Italy” developed with the aim of pointing out the organisational structures for the logistics co‐ordination of successful firms. Starting from a review of the literature on the main logistics organisation theories, this paper presents an organisational analysis of 118 industrial firms, working in Italy in the grocery sector, carried out for the main logistics activities. On the basis of this anlaysis, a classifying model of the organisational configurations presently adopted in Italy for internal integration is proposed. According to the model, six different organisational solutions have been singled out: integrated logistics, partially integrated logistics, bipartite logistics, distribution logistics, manufacturing logistics, and split logistics.

A HYBRID FUZZY-PROMETHEE METHOD FOR LOGISTICS SERVICE SELECTION: DESIGN OF A DECISION SUPPORT TOOL

Among the traditional logistics services, transportation is one of the most commonly outsourced activities. Nevertheless the carrier selection process is critic presenting its own peculiarities which should be accurately managed. This paper presents a hybrid multi-criteria/fuzzy method for the selection of the carrier among a number of pre-selected logistics service providers. The method was developed and applied to the case of Power-One Inc., a multinational company in the Power-electronic market. Finally, an automated system supporting the decision making process was designed to support users.

Supply chain implications for one-off luxury products: cases from the yacht industry

Purpose – The paper seeks to investigate the applicability of strategic supply chain management (SCM) models in one-off luxury contexts such as the yacht industry, where durable products are manufactured with project configuration. Design/methodology/approach – A literature review was assessed in order to identify contingency-based SCM models. Then, multiple case-study analysis was performed to explore how these models are adopted in practice for drawing strategic SCM directions. Data arose from a number of interviews to the top-management of four world-leading yacht-building companies. Findings – The findings of explorative case studies suggest the implementation of various strategic SCM strategies in order to fit the requirements of the market (e.g. protect critical resources, implement a customized leagile production strategy, enhance SC flexibility). In this direction, specific SCM practices are already adopted by investigated firms. Research limitations/implications – A call to develop specific strat...