Towards the integrative supply chain model

Abstract

Although empirical studies show that supply chain integration is associated with high levels of business and operational performance, some authors argue that there is no need to pursue total end-to-end supply chain integration and different or relationship-by-relationship approaches are needed. This paper introduces the first step in the development of the business process model, which might facilitate the building of closer relationships among businesses and therefore endorse supply chain integration. The aim of this paper is to determine whether there is some generic set of supply chain processes, which support material and information flows in a dyadic relationship. Through the literature review, two supply chain process frameworks (SCPFs), namely supply chain operations reference and global supply chain forum, have been identified together with nine evaluation criteria. Evaluation results provide evidence on the generic set of supply chain processes together with the insights into specific advantages and common shortcomings of these two widely recognised SCPFs.

Keywords:

• supply chain management
• supply chain process frameworks
• evaluation criteria
• integrative supply chain model

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council for funding this research through the Cranfield Innovative Manufacturing Research Centre and also to the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments.