Exploring the consequences of judgmental and quantitative forecasting on firms' competitive performance in supply chains

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the impacts of different forecasting methods (judgmental, quantitative and mixed forecasting) on firms' supply chains and competitive performance.

Design/methodology/approach

Working with three groups of manufacturing companies, we explore the consequences of judgmental, quantitative and mixed forecasting methods on firms' competitive performance in supply chains. The validity of constructs and path relationships was examined using structural equation modeling (SEM).

Findings

Our findings indicate that supply chain efficiency influences both cost reduction and customer satisfaction. In addition, the three dimensions of supply chain performance are shown to be direct antecedents of competitive performance. Our empirical results reveal that although all studied forecasting methods meaningfully influence supply chain performance, the mixed method, compared to the other two methods, has greater capabilities to enhance supply chain performance.

Originality/value

This research provides originality and insight into supply chain practices through forecasting methods to improve competitive performance.

Citation

Salehzadeh, R., Tabaeeian, R.A. and Esteki, F. (2020), "Exploring the consequences of judgmental and quantitative forecasting on firms' competitive performance in supply chains", Benchmarking: An International Journal, Vol. 27 No. 5, pp. 1717-1737. https://doi.org/10.1108/BIJ-08-2019-0382