DOI10.1007/s12159-008-0002-5
ORIGINALPAPER
Supplychainmanagementandhypercompetition
HerbertKotzabÆDavidB.GrantÆChristophTellerÆArniHalldorsson
Received:23January2008/Accepted:16July2008/Publishedonline:16August2008ÓSpringer-Verlag2008
AbstractFirmsnowadaysfacesignificantchallengesintheiroperatingenvironments,whichhavebeencharacter-isedintwodifferentways.Fromastrategicmanagementperspectivetheseenvironmentsareinastateofhyper-competitionwhilefromalogisticsorsupplychainperspectivetheseenvironmentsrequiremarketresponsive-nesspredicateduponagilesupplychains.However,firmsmustalsorelyonmanyinter-organisationalrelationshipstoensureefficientandeffectivemovementswithintheirsup-plychains.Thispaperdiscussestherelationshipsamongtheseconceptsandproposesaresearchframeworkcom-biningaspectsofthehypercompetitionandresponsivenessandagilityviewpoints.
KeywordsSupplychainmanagementÁ
HypercompetitionÁNetworkmodelÁLogisticsstrategy
1Introduction
Sincetheearly1990sfirmshavefacedsignificantchal-lengesintheiroperatingenvironments,includingstagnantordecreasingmarketvolumes,shorterproductandtech-nologylifecycles,andmoredemandingconsumersandcompetitiondrivenbypricethatforcesparticipantstorationaliseresourceswhereverpossible(e.g.humanresourcesorlogistics).Theseenvironmentshavebeencharacterisedintwodifferentways.
FromastrategicmanagementperspectiveD’Aveni[1]characterisessuchenvironmentsasbeinginastateofhypercompetition.Hypercompetitionisaconditionofrapidlyescalatingcompetitionbasedonprice-qualitypositioningandfirst-moveradvantagetoeitherprotectorinvadeestablishedproductorgeographicmarkets,andwhichrequiressubstantialfinancialresourcesinthefirmand/orallianceswithotherfirmstoutilisemoresubstantialfinancialresources.
FromalogisticsorsupplychainperspectiveChristopher[2]characterisessuchenvironmentsasrequiringamarketresponsivenessthatcallsfortheestablishmentofagilesupplychains.Agilesupplychainsareabletoadaptmuchfastertomarketchangesintermsofproductvolumeandvarietytomeetcustomerneeds.
However,supplychainmanagement(SCM)isnotrestrictedsolelytoafocalfirmduetoincreasedglobal-izationandlengthysupplychains.Firmsmustrelyoninter-organisationalrelationshipstoensuretheefficientandeffectivemovementofproductsandsupplies,money,andinformationtoallrelevantpartiesinthesupplychain.ThispaperdiscussestherelationshipsamongtheseconceptsandproposesaresearchframeworkcombiningaspectsofD’Aveni’s[1]hypercompetitionandChristo-pher’s[2]responsivenessandagilityviewpointsby
H.Kotzab(&)
DepartmentofOperationsManagement,CopenhagenBusinessSchool,2000Frederiksberg,Denmarke-mail:hk.om@cbs.dk
D.B.Grant
LogisticsInstitute,UniversityofHull,HullHU67RX,UK
e-mail:d.grant@hull.ac.uk
C.Teller
InstituteforRetailStudies,UniversityofStirling,StirlingFK94LA,UK
e-mail:christoph.teller@stir.ac.uk
A.Halldorsson
SchoolofManagement,UniversityofSouthampton,SouthamptonSO171BJ,UK
e-mail:A.Halldorsson@soton.ac.uk
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Table1Strategicandmanagerialissuesforenvironmentallevelsofturbulence[8]TurbulencelevelEnvironmentalturbulenceStrategic
aggressiveness
1RepetitiveSlowStable
2ExpandingFastincrementalReactiveBasedonexperience
Basedonprecedents
OrganisationalresponsivenessManagertypeLeadershipKeyknowledge
StabilityseekingRejectschangeCustodianPolitical
Internalpolitics
IncrementalEfficiencydrivenAdaptstochangeController
3ChangingPredictableincrementalAnticipatoryBasedon
extrapolationIncrementalMarketdriven
BasedonobservableopportunitiesEnvironmentdriven4
Discontinuous
Logist.Res.(2009)1:5–13
5Surprising
DiscontinuousandunpredictableEntrepreneurial
Creative
BasedoncreativityDiscontinuousNovelEnvironmentcreatingSeeksnovelchangeCreatorVisionaryEmergingpossibilities
SeeksfamiliarchangeSeeksrelatedchangeGrowthleader
EntrepreneurCharismatic
Globalenvironment
RationalInspirational
InternaloperationsHistoricalmarkets
positingtwoquestions.Firstly,underwhatconditionsmightinter-organisationalrelationsandsupplychainpro-cessesovercomeresponsivenessandhypercompetitivechallenges?Secondly,oncetheseconditionsareknownhowmightafirmdesignandmanageitsinter-organisa-tionalrelationsandsupplychainprocessesinordertosurviveinsuchanenvironment?Wefirstdiscussaspectsoftheturbulentbusinessenvironmentthatfirmsnowface.
2Theturbulentbusinessenvironment
Businessenvironmentschangeddramaticallyduringthe1990s.Stagnantanddecreasingmarketvolumeshadmajorimpactsonprofitmarginsinvariousindustriesduringthe1990s.Forexample,netprofitmarginsofgroceryretailersinmanycountries,excludingtheUnitedKingdom,areinadiscouragingrangebetween-0.5and?1.5%[3].
Thenatureofcustomersandconsumersalsochangedduringthattime.Changingconsumertastes,increasedconsumersophistication,smallerhouseholdsizesandthegrowthofolderconsumersegments,interalia,havepre-sentednewchallengesformanufacturersandretailers[4].Manyindustrieshavealsoexperiencedapowershiftfrommanufacturerstoretailers,mainlyduetotheincreasingsizeofseveralretailplayers[5,6].Wal-Mart’ssalesin2000ofnearlyUS$194billionwereaboutfivetimeshigherthanProcter&Gamble’ssalesofapproxi-matelyUS$40billioninthesameyear[7].
Therateofchangehasincreaseddramaticallyduringthelasttwentyyearsandhasdevelopedincreasedbusiness‘turbulence’[8].FivelevelsofturbulenceandtheirimpactonorganisationsarepresentedinTable1.Turbulencelevels
4and5aremoredemandingandrequireorganisationalstrategiestobemoreentrepreneurialandcreativeandtoconsiderrestructuringinternalandexternalorganisationalrelationships,particularlysupplychainrelationships.
Theincreaseintherateofchangeandthustheconceptoftimeasregardsthischange,productlifecyclesandsoonalsoaffectsmodernbusinessesandsupplychains.Fineintroducedtheterm‘clockspeed’todescribeanindustry’sevolutionarylifecycle,whichisafunctionofthespeedatwhichproducts,processesandorganisationalstructuresareintroduced[9].Asanindustry’sclockspeedincreasescompetitiveadvantageisdifficulttosustain.Finearguedthattheultimatesourceofsustainablecompetitiveadvan-tageisacompany’sabilitytomanageitssupplychain,i.e.beingmarketresponsiveinatime-consciousandturbulentenvironment.
Table1alsoillustratesanincreasedcomplexityinmodernbusinessenvironments,whichalsohasconse-quencesforthemanagementofsupplychains.Lewinarguedthereareparallelswithcomplexityinnaturalsci-ence.Traditionalbusinesshierarchieswithcommandandcontrolstructuresminimiseinteractionsamongactorsinanorganisation’senvironment,whichinturninhibitscrea-tivity[10].Lewinconsideredmanagementshouldbeguidedbycomplexityscienceandrecognisethatrelation-shipsareanorganisation’sdesiredoutput,fromwhichcreativity,cultureandproductivityemerge.Thus,tradi-tional,linearandmechanistichierarchiesofbusinessaregoingtobereplacedmoreandmorebydecentralizedandmodularnetworksthatarecooperative-oriented,autono-mousandindirectlycoordinated[10].
Beyondtheseperspectivesofrapidandsignificantchangeand‘displacementcompetition’whereafirmcan
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Logist.Res.(2009)1:5–13onlygainmarketsharebydecreasingacompetitor’smar-ketshare,thedevelopmentofinter-organisationalrelationshipsandsupplychainprocessesshouldenablefirmstoobtainacompetitiveadvantage[6,11].SuchanorientationisreadilycharacterisedbytheconceptofSCM;whichisrecognisedasanecessarystrategicweaponforensuringafirm’scompetitiveadvantageandisconsideredamanagement-drivencompetency[12].Wenextdiscussaspectsofhypercompetition.
3Theoryandaspectsofhypercompetition
Therearetwodifferentmeaningsforhypercompetition.Firstly,thetermdescribesanintensiverivalryandrapidlychangingconditioninmarketsorindustries.AccordingtoD’Aveni[1]thisphenomenacanbeidentifiedinalmosteveryindustryfromconsumergoodstotelecommunica-tions.Secondly,itpresentsaconceptualmodelforthestrategicbehaviouroffirmsandinter-organisationalrela-tionshipsfromamanagementpointofview.Inbothcasesitisnecessarytoknowhowtocopewithhypercompetition.Thetheoryofhypercompetitionarguesthatfirmsoper-ateinfourdifferentcompetitive‘arenas’withintheirrespectiveindustries[1]:1.
Costandquality:Afirmcanhaveeitheralowcost-lowqualityproductorahighcost-highqualityproduct.Overtimealowcostproducerwillincreasequalityandahighcostproducerwilldecreaseprices,thustherewillbeconvergenceinthemindsofthecustomerandapossibleperceptionthattheproductisacommodity.
2.
Know-howandtiming:Afirm’sknowledgebaseandthetimingofproductreleasescanbeveryimportanttoitssuccess.Procter&GambleandIBMaretwofirmsthathaveusedtheirstrongpatentportfoliostogarnerextrarevenuesofuptoabilliondollarsayear.
3.
Strongholds:Thesearemarkets,geographicalorproduct,whereafirmisverystrongandwhichprovideasourceofcontinuoussalesandprofits.Thesealmost-proprietarymarketsprovidecertainprofitsandcashflowstoallowthefirmtoattackacompetitorinitsmarket.
4.
Deeppockets:Hereafirmwillhavealargeamountofcashreservestohelpitintimesofchange,introducenewproducts,enternewproductmarketsandattackcompetitors.
Havinganadvantageinallfourarenasdoesnotneces-sarilyprovideacontinuouscompetitiveadvantage;theyareonlytemporarysourcesofadvantageinhypercompetitivemarketssincecompetitorsineverymarketwillalsoseektoimprovethequalityoftheirproducts,reducecostsand
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Table2Competitiveadvantageinhypercompetitivesituations[13]FirmsseekcompetitiveadvantagethroughMarketmoves
Lowprice(cost)ordifferentiationstrategiesFirst-moveradvantageortimingDevelopingnewproductsornewmarketsBuildingbarriers
Resource-basedadvantageorknow-howStrongholdsDeeppockets
Scale
createtheirowncashreservesthroughmergersandalli-ances[1].
WeconsidertheelementsofthesefourarenasfitintotwoofJohnsonandScholes’[13]genericstrategyoptions,marketmovesandbuildingbarriers,thatfirmscanadoptinordertogaincompetitiveadvantageasshowninTable2.Marketmovesrelatetobeingmarketresponsivewhilebuildingbarriersrelatetoestablishingnear-monopolisticoroligopolisticmarketbehaviour.TheformeroptionfitswithChristopher’s[2]conceptofmarketresponsivenessoragility,however,thelatteroptionreducesmarketrespon-siveness.WenextconsideraspectsofSCMaffectedbyhypercompetition.
4SCMandhypercompetition
ThelogisticsandSCMliteraturedistinguishesbetweenaninstitutionallevel(whoperformslogistics/SCM)andafunctionallevel(howislogistics/SCMperformed).Anothercharacteristicistheapplicationofasystemsview,i.e.systemsthinkingthatsupportstheintegrationofallactivitieswithinalogisticssystemorsupplychain[12].Thismeansthatindividualcomponentsinsuchsystemsshouldnotbetreatedinisolationsincetheyareinter-related[14].Fromaninstitutionalpointofview,onecandistinguishbetweenmicro-andmacro-logistics/SCMsys-temsdependingontheunitofanalysis[15].
Someauthorsarguethatafirm’ssupplychainfunctionsshouldbeconsideredasmicro-systems[12].However,weconsiderthesesystemsaresubsystemsofmacro-systems,suchastechnologicalinfrastructure(e.g.trafficsystems,IT-systems).Asmicro-systemsarealsolinkedtooneanother(e.g.rawmaterialsuppliers,manufacturer,retailer,andthird-partylogisticsproviders)thereisalsothenotionofameta-systemthatfocusesonthecoordinationoflogisticsandsupplychainsystemsindifferentfirms.Here,competitivesettingssuchashypercompetitionseemtoapplynotonlytomicro-systemsbutalsotometa-systems.
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8Sternetal.[16]recognisedthatamarketingchannel,oressentiallyasupplychain,istheresultofdifferentenvi-ronmentalintercourse.
Achangeinoneenvironmentalfactorwillconsequentlychangetheoverallsetting,includingdesignandmanage-mentofasupplychain.ThissituationhasbeenneglectedbymanySCMresearchers,whoputmoreemphasisondiscussingSCMfromtheviewpointofthesupplychain,butnotfromthecompetitivebackgroundofthesupplychainandtheindividualfirm[17,18].
Further,theformationoflong-termrelationshipsiscontingentonvariousinterrelationshipswithinthewiderenvironmentofthesupplychain,especiallythenatureofcompetitioninaparticularindustry.Thus,tobemarketresponsiveinhypercompetitiveenvironments,afirmcanconsiderusingdifferentiationstrategiesforexistingprod-ucts/logisticsservicesormarkets,beingthefirstmoverinaparticularmarket,orintroducingnewproducts/logisticsservicesinexistingornewmarketsinordertobuildcompetitiveadvantage.Deeperandmoremeaningfulrelationshipswithinthefirm’ssupplychainwillberequiredtodoso.
Therearetwotensionsbetweenthevalueorpushchainanddemandorpullchainstrategicpositionsthatdevelopedduringthe1990sandprimarilyrelatetocostandvalue,respectively.Oneistheleanproductionposition,whichconsidersvaluecreationfromthecustomer’sperspectivebutfocusesontheproductandwastethatsurroundsactivitiesrelatedtotheentireproductionsystem[19].TheleanpositionisbasedonOhno’sworkinJapaneseauto-mobilemanufacturing,andrepresentsanefficiencyapproachtowardslogisticsorSCactivitiesandencom-passestechniquesusedinjust-in-time(JIT),totalqualitymanagement(TQM)andmaterialsresourcesplanning(MRP)environments.
Incontrast,theagilepositionisaflexibleapproachtologisticsorsupplychainactivitiesthatenablesrapidresponseandchangeandhasitsoriginsinflexiblemanu-facturingsystems.Itencompassescustomerdemandandinvolvementindesigningandimplementingproductman-ufacturingandsupplychains[2,20].Empiricalexamplesofagilesupplychainsareefficientconsumerresponse(ECR)systemsinthefoodsupplychain[21].
Althoughtheoreticaldiscussionsofbothleanandagilepositionsweredevelopedduringthelast15years,theyarenotentirelynewconcepts.Bucklin’stheoryofchannelstructuredevelopedinthe1960sisbasedontwosimilarconcepts:postponementandspeculation[12,22].Someauthorshaveattemptedtochooseanddefendeitheranagileorleanpositionarguingthatthetwoconceptsappearincompatible.ThedifferencebetweenthetwopositionswassuccinctlydescribedbyChristopher:‘‘agilityisneededinlesspredictableenvironmentswheredemandisvolatile
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Logist.Res.(2009)1:5–13
andtherequirementforvarietyishigh.Leanworksbestinhighvolume,lowvarietyandpredictableenvironments’’[2,p.39].
Bothenvironmentalsituationsmaybepresentwithinonesupplychain.AclassicexampleiscottonsweatersproducedbyBenetton[2].Benettonmass-producescertainstylesofsweatersinordertodecreasecostsofproductionandtheyareuncolouredandunprinted.Colourdyeingandprintingofthesweatersoccursjustbeforetheygotomarkettotakeadvantageofcurrentfashiontrendsinindividualmarkets.
Thisapproachcombinesthebenefitsofbothlean/agileandspeculation/postponementstrategiesandisshowninFig.1.Thedecisionpointwherealeanorpushstrategychangestoanagileorpullstrategyhasbeentermedthe‘decoupling’point.Itisthepointordepthinthesupplychainwhere‘‘realdemandismadevisible…reflectstheongoingrequirementinthefinalmarketplaceasclosetoreal-timeaspossible’’and‘‘shouldalsodictatetheforminwhichinventoryisheld’’[2,p.41].Indeed,someauthorshaveconsideredpositionsbothinamanufacturingsettingandtermedtheresultantpositionas‘leagile’[23].
Theadoptionofbothleanandagilestrategiesinonehybridsupplychainandthelocationofthede-couplingpointwillvarywithdifferentproductandsupplychains[20].Flowofproductuptothedecouplingpointmaybeforecast-drivenwhereasflowofproductafterthedecou-plingpointshouldbedemand-driven[2].
Ahybridsupplychainscenariothatallowscompatibilityoftheleanandagileconceptsandwhichsuggestsstrategiesofcostreductionandmarketresponsivenessshouldalsobecompatibleunderahypercompetitivesupplychainsce-nario.Thus,theconceptofanagileSCbeingmarketresponsivenessanddemanddrivencanbecombinedwithmarketmovestrategiesinahypercompetitiveenvironmentthatistimeandcost-driventoeffectivelyestablishanongoingcompetitiveadvantage,asopposedtoashort-termadvantagewithinasolelyhypercompetitivecontext.
Wepositthemainquestionsformanagers,whosefirmsoperatemoreandmoreinresponsiveandhypercompetitivemarkets,as:•
Whataretheconditionsunderwhichinter-organisa-tionalrelationsandsupplychainprocesseshelptoovercomeresponsivenessandhypercompetitivechallenges?
•
And,whenknowingtheseconditions,howshouldfirmrelationsandsupplychainprocessesbedesignedandmanagedinordertosurviveinaresponsiveandhypercompetitiveenvironment?
Toaddressthesequestionswenowintroduceacon-ceptualframeworkshowingtherelationshipbetweenresponsivenessandhypercompetitionthatextendsthe
Logist.Res.(2009)1:5–13Fig.1Decouplingpointanalysis—anFMCGexample[19]
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domainofthesupplychaintoa‘meta-level’.Thismeta-leveldomainandourframeworkconsiderhowlogisticsandsupplychainsystemsareinfluencedrelativetotech-nological,infrastructure,political,socialandeconomicenvironmentalfactors.
5Inter-organisationalstructuresandaframeworkforhypercompetitionandSCMThechangingbusinessenvironmentimpactsorganisationalstructures.Withinatraditionalbusinesssetting,firmsaretypicallyperceivedassingle,self-containedunitswithclearanddeterminateinternalandexternalboundaries,e.g.setbyphysicallocationfactorsorlaws[24].Theseboundarieshavealsobecomemoreblurredintoday’scompetitiveenvironmentasshowninFig.2.
Traditionalhierarchieswiththeircommandandcontrolstructuresaremoreandmorebeingreplacedbydecen-tralized,modular,cooperative-oriented,autonomousandindirectlycoordinatednetworks,inconcertwithLewin’s[10]suggestions.Suchneworganisationalconstructionsovercomediscrepanciesandbordersinspace,timeandbehaviourfasterandbetterthanconventionalstructures.Fortheborderlessorganisation,Chandler’sruleof‘struc-turefollowsstrategy’[25]mightbebetterthoughtofas‘structurefollowsflexibilityandinnovation’,duetosuchchangingandunstableconditions.Withinthegroceryindustry,Wal-MartandProcter&Gamblehavealreadydevelopedagoodexampleofaborderlessorganisation,whereinternal(functional)andexternal(organisational)boundariesweresetaside[21].
Twopredominanttheoriesineconomics,strategyandorganisationaretransactioncosteconomics(TCE)andthe
resource-basedviewofthefirm(RBV).Theyapplythenotionofthefirmasthelevelofanalysis.Thebodyofliteraturewithinbothmarketingandlogistics/SCM,how-ever,seemstoverifythattheboundariesofthefirmaremuchmoreblurredthansuggestedbyTCEandRBV.Theincreasingdivisionoflabourinasupplychaingovernedbyahybridformofgovernancemechanism[26]hasbeenrecognisedasameansofcompetitivenessthroughtermssuchas‘strategicsourcing’[27]and‘cooperatetocom-pete’[28].Andyet,wecanarguethesetermsmaybeconsideredmorecommonlyasSCM.
ThepredominantviewsonSCMrelatetotheintegrationofbusinessprocesses[29]andrelationshipmanagement[17]inasupplychaintoachievecompetitiveadvantage.Althoughthelevelofanalysishasmovedawayfromthefirmtowardsinter-organisationalrelationshipsbothTCEandRBV[30]andthemeansofcreatinganddevelopingresourcesandcapabilities[31]canstillbeappliedtoachieveimprovement.
Thewidercontextofthesupplychainornetwork,par-ticularlyitsadaptationinorganisingeconomicactivitiesundertheconditionofhypercompetition,hasyetbeennotexplicitlydiscussed.AllSCMmodelsassumecompetitionasagiven—a‘ceterisparibus’presumption.However,asFine[9]andDawson[8]botharguedfirmsaresetindynamicenvironmentsandchangeaccordingtotheirinfluences,i.e.today’smarketsarechangingrapidly.
Halldorssonetal.[32]arguedthatSCMitselfisnotatheory,butshouldbeunderstoodandexplainedbyrefer-encestoexistingtheoreticalframeworksofeconomics,strategicmanagement,distributionchannels,andorgani-sations.ThisviewconsidersSCMasanintersectionoftheoriesfromvariousdisciplinesthatpresentstrategicimplicationsforparticularmanagers[33].Table3presents
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someofthesetheoreticalapproachesfromvariousdisci-plinesandtheirconsequencesforhypercompetition.
Hypercompetitionaddsanewdimensiontoeachtheo-reticalapproach.Webelieveresearchinterestliesbothwithhowhypercompetitionconstrainsaparticulartheoryandhowproblemsolvingcapacitycanbeenhanced.Researchoutcomeswouldincludeinvestigatingnewattri-butesthatnotonlyhavetheoreticalimplications,butalsogeneratenewopportunitiesofactionsformanagers.
Theconditionsofhypercompetitionandmarketrespon-sivenesshelpustoquestionnotonlyhowclearbutalsohowstableinter-organisationalrelationshipsare.TCEdirectsthefocustotheextantnatureofinter-organisationalrelationships,i.e.the‘nutsandbolts’orcontractualconsiderations,whileRBVdirectsthefocustowardsissuessuchaswhatcompe-tenciesarenecessarytocompeteinhypercompetitivemarketsbutmoreimportantlyhowtopreventerosionofcurrentcompetenciesundertheseconditions.Also,towhatextentisthenetworkorganisationisaprecursororahurdle,respec-tively,forhypercompetitiveandresponsivemarkets.
Consideringonlymarketingandlogistics,hypercompet-itiveconditionsmobilisefocustowardsissueswherewearenotonlyabletodiscussthefunctionalperspectiveofasupplychain,butalsothestabilityofitsfunctionalityandthegenerativemechanismsforsuccessfulrelationships.Further,conditionsofhypercompetitionattackthepresumptionofthesupplychainasanopensystembyquestioningnotonlytheboundariesofthesystem,butwhatismoreimportanthowtoestablishinterfacesbetweentheseparticularenvi-ronmentalconditionsandtheindividualsupplychain.
Ourassumptionsarebasedonanormativemodelinordertorecommendwhy,whenandhowtodesigninter-organisationalrelationship-basedmanagementdecisionsunderhypercompetitionforstrategicmanagementinfirms.ThetheoreticalgroundingofourresearchisintheoriesthatreflectupontheboundariesofthefirmsuchasTCE,RBVandanetworkapproach(cf.Table3).
Figure3depictsthesetheoreticalapproachesinaproposedhypercompetitionandSCMnetworkframework.Forthelasttwodecades,muchefforthasbeenputintotheunderstandingandexplainingindustrialmarketsasasetofinterdependent,inter-organisationalrelationships.Ourframeworkconsiderstheseprocessesofexchangeandadaptationbetweenfirmsbutextendstheanalysistoinclude
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Logist.Res.(2009)1:5–13
Table3Theoreticalapproachesversushypercompetition(adaptedfrom[32])EconomicandorganisationalperspectivesversushypercompetitionTheoreticalapproach
Transactioncosteconomics(TCE)
‘Traditionalview’Whyfirms?
•Mostefficientboundariesofthefirm•Typeofgovernancestructure•Vertical/horizontalintegration
Resource-basedview(RBV)
Whydofirmdiffer?•Firmheterogeneity•Dynamiccapabilities
Networkapproach(NP)
Describingattributesofinter-organisationalrelationships
Developmentandmanagementofinter-organisationalrelationships
ConsequencesforhypercompetitionHowstaticareboundariesofthefirm?
11
Howunambiguousaretheboundariesofthefirm?
Vertical/horizontalcompetition
Howtodevelopandpreservecore
competenciesunderhyper-competition?Whatcharacterisesthecorecompetencebehindthehyper-competitivefirm?Donetworksexistinhyper-competitiveenvironments?
Areinter-organisationalrelationshipstobe‘‘developed’’ex-ante,oristheirnaturemuchmore‘‘emergingcontinuously’’
Logistics/SCM-perspectivesversushypercompetitionTheoreticalapproach
Marketingchannelsperspective
‘Traditionalview’
Achannelisasetofinterdependent
organisationsinvolvedintheprocessof
makingaproduct/serviceavailableforuseorconsumption
Whichfunctionhastobeperformedbywhominordertomaketheproduct/serviceavailable?
Logisticssystemsperspective
Theholisticviewonbusinesslogisticshelpstoovercomeinstitutionaland/orfunctionalbarriersinsolvinglogisticalproblemsInsuchasetting,logisticssystemaredefinedassetsofelements(parts,components)whichareinarelationshipwheretheelementsreceiveaninput(e.g.costs)andtransformthisinputtoanoutput(e.g.service)
Agilesupplychains
AnagileSCisflexibleintermsofbothmanufacturingandlogisticsactivitiesAnagileSCisdemand-driven
ConsequencesforhypercompetitionandSCM
Whatarethemajordriversforasuccessfulchannelsetting?
Howstablearethesefunctions?Whataretheboundariesofthesystems?
Howdowehavetosetupsuchsystemsunderhypercompetition(questionofinterfaces?)
HowdoweachievecostreductionsinaflexibleSCenvironment?
HowdowesetupandmanageaSCtoberesponsivetodemandandcompetition?
understandingthedesignandmanagementofinter-organi-sationalrelationshipsinasituationofhypercompetition.Wearguethatelementsofhypercompetition,manifestedbytheirTCEandRBVcharacteristics,impactasupplychainnetworkcontaininginter-organisationalrelationships.Thisimpactisacrossallparticipantsinthenetwork,notjustthefocalfirm,andisthus‘meta-level’initssignificance.Therefore,afocalfirmshouldconsiderthestateofhyper-competitionacrosstheirnetworkinordertoeffectivelydesignandmanagetheserelationships.Thatshouldincludeconsiderationofthemarketmoveandbuildingbarriersele-mentspresentedinTable2.Further,thequestionsbehindsuchconsiderationshouldinclude,interalia,thequestions
exhibitedinTable3asconsequencesforhypercompetitionfromthevariousperspectives.
AsnotedinourdiscussionsabovethisintegrativeandenvironmentalapproachhasnotseenmuchinvestigationinthelogisticsandSCMdisciplines.Thus,aresearchagendatoempiricallytestthisframeworkshould:(1)
determinewhichelementsofhypercompetitioninafocalfirm’senvironmentarerelevanttothefirm’snetwork;
determinewhetherrelevantelementsarenecessaryantecedentstoestablishinginter-organisationalrela-tionshipswithothernetworkparticipants;and
(2)
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12(3)
examineafocalfirm’slogisticsandsupplychainprocessestodeterminehowitsnetworkcanbemoreresponsiveinahypercompetitivesituationusingleanandagileconcepts,particularlydecouplingpointanalysis.
Bothaspectscouldbeinvestigatedatthesametime,andweseeexploratoryresearchasbeingafirststeptoinves-tigatethislittle-researchedphenomenaanddeterminehowmanagersviewtheimpactofhypercompetitionandmarketresponsivenessontheirfirmandenvironment,thelatterincludingvariousnetworkstakeholderssuchassuppliers,customersandcompetitors.Suchexploratoryresearchshouldtaketheformofqualitativeinvestigationbyinter-views,focusgroupsorcasestudies.
6Conclusions
TheobjectiveofthispaperandourproposedresearchframeworkhasbeentoextendandcomplementthatpartoftheSCMliteratureconcernedwithstrategyandthedesignandmanagementofinter-organisationalrelationships.WeacknowledgethatwhileSCMhastocopewithfluctuationsindemand(e.g.thebullwhipeffect),theinterfacewiththenatureofcompetitionorinthiscasehypercompetitionasanenvironmentalconditioninaresponsivemarketandaparticularsupplychainmustbemademoreexplicit.References
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