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The purpose of this paper is to construct a model of hierarchical manpower systems which follow proportionality policies in recruitment and promotion of their staff, ostensibly with a view to safeguard the career interests of their existing employees.

The manpower systems are modeled as Markov systems, and their inherent characteristics and long‐term behavior are studied.

Significantly it is shown that such proportionality systems do not compromise on flexibility in the long term, and can also provide an additional means of controlling the blend of manpower in the system. The theoretical results were tested with real‐world data, and a good degree of conformity was observed between the theoretical predictions and the actually observed behaviour.

The model can also be applied to organizations which outsource a part of their work, the outsource workforce being notionally being considered as recruits to the system.

Outsourcing of work is being practiced on an ever‐increasing scale nowadays, and becoming, at times, even controversial, and as a consequence, an increasing number of organizations are resorting to protectionist policies; the model in this paper provides a theoretical framework in which to view and analyze this phenomenon.

The earliest known instance of scholarly writing on logistics (in 1901) is actually located in agribusiness. While case illustrations of productivity improvements in logistics in agribusiness have routinely featured in the academic literature since then, such efficiency gains are rarely cast in a broader, strategic perspective – a somewhat surprising omission. Consequently, this study seeks to clarify the relationship between logistics and generic business strategy in dairy organisations/industries by using the New Zealand dairy industry as a case in point. (The focus is more on operations than on distribution and service). We first clarify that the New Zealand dairy co‐operatives and the (export‐oriented) New Zealand dairy industry as a whole, have generally followed a strategy of cost leadership. We then review the various ways in which efficiency has been realised in logistics in the industry, and especially dwell on how the structure (e.g. co‐operative ownership, vertical integration) of the dairy industry has supported and/or hindered the focus on cost leadership. We also examine the extent to which our analysis of supply‐chain efficiency extends to other dairy organisations/industries.

This paper aims to examine the opportunity for third-party logistics providers (3PLs) to develop further value-added services for their clients, focused on purchasing. The provider perspectives on third-party purchase (3PP) services are examined in conjunction with their business environment, with a survey informed by transaction cost economics.

New Zealand 3PL providers were surveyed, and 166 responses were received. Structural equation modeling was used to test the conceptual model.

From the perspective of 3PL providers, uncertainty, frequency and transaction size, but not asset specificity, are significantly associated with client value from a 3PP service. While asset specificity in investments is not required by 3PLs, they need a high frequency of orders, sufficient order size and low levels of uncertainty as supporting conditions for the development of 3PP services.

The sample focuses on 3PL providers and therefore does not address the behavioral characteristics of users or customers of the services.

This study shows that 3PP services may be further developed by 3PL providers to improve the value offered to their clients.

In recent years, the COVID-19 pandemic has become one of the most impactful disruptions which has imposed high levels of uncertainty on supply chains around the world. Supply chain integration (SCI) is highly recommended as an underlying mechanism that can facilitate the development of resilience and robustness as two dynamic capabilities. They can in turn positively influence firm performance and success during the disruptive conditions of COVID-19 era. The study aims to examine whether SCI as an enabler of resilience and robustness can improve firm performance during COVID-19 pandemic.

A theoretical model is developed to elaborate the relationship between SCI dimensions, resilience and robustness and firm’s operational and financial performance during the COVID-19 pandemic. A survey method is then used to empirically examine the model using a sample of 94 companies in the food industry in the province of Tehran, Iran, during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study makes several contributions. It provides a novel theoretical model on the relationship between SCI, resilience and robustness and firm performance and tests this model in a less-studied yet critical context (i.e. Iranian food industry) and during a disruptive era (i.e. COVID-19 pandemic).

The results support the positive effect of three SCI dimensions of internal, product and process integration on operational and financial performance during corona virus pandemic. Furthermore, internal and process integration have positive effects on resilience. Internal, product and process integration have positive effects on robustness. In addition, resilience mediates the effects of internal and product integration on both operational and financial performance, whereas robustness mediates the effect of internal and product integration on financial performance.

This study was conducted in the Province of Tehran. To test and generalize the results, it is recommended to conduct this study in other places and countries.

These results highlight the importance of SCI dimensions as vital enablers of resilience and robustness and their consequent impact on firm’s performance during the COVID-19 pandemic.

To explore the paths by which coordination investments with suppliers and customers relate to improvements in delivery speed, delivery reliability, and manufacturing lead‐time.

Regression analysis of data on supply chain coordination investment and delivery performance from 243 manufacturers from 13 countries.

Results provide evidence of direct relationships between supplier coordination investment and manufacturing lead‐time, and between customer coordination investment and delivery speed and delivery reliability. Moreover, they suggest that customer investment mediates the relationship between supplier investment and delivery reliability, and that supplier investment mediates the relationship between customer investment and manufacturing lead‐time.

To achieve sustainable improvements in multiple aspects of performance, management may need to invest in coordination with partners both upstream and downstream in the supply chain.

This appears to be the first study to provide evidence of both direct and mediated relationships between supplier and customer coordination investment, and delivery performance.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the uptake of supply chain integration (SCI) principles internationally and the resultant integration maturity.

A rigorous supply chain diagnostics methodology called the Quick Scan is used to assess the integration maturity of 72 value streams located in New Zealand, Thailand and the UK.

The majority of the organisations studied are struggling to turn the SCI concept into reality. Supply chains on average are poorly integrated. However, there exist a handful of exemplar cases that provide guidance; levels of integration maturity appear not to differ internationally.

Only three nations are compared, hence the sample is not fully representative of all countries and industries. There is a significant gap between supply chain rhetoric and practice; clear guidance on how to enable effective integration is required. National settings do not appear to affect the extent of application of supply chain management concepts.

SCI is a very difficult undertaking. Indifferent practice is the norm. If organisations can attain even the middle ground of internal integration they will outperform many of their competitors.

The paper presents an international benchmark of SCI maturity involving three triangulated measures of supply chain performance.

The purpose of this paper is to answer the question, “How do international new ventures (INVs) from emerging economies become responsive to the demands of their international customers?”

The authors propose a model of international responsiveness that incorporates founding team experience, international firm experience, international strategic orientation, and investment in international supply chain and test the model using data from 293 INVs from three leading emerging economies: China, India, and South Africa.

Results show that for INVs from emerging economies international strategic orientation mediates the relationship between international firm experience, investment in international supply chain, and international responsiveness. In addition, the authors identify a significant difference in the effects of international strategic orientation on international responsiveness among subgroups of INVs.

Given the specific context of the sample, this study provides unique managerial insights for entrepreneurs planning to internationalize their new ventures from emerging economies.

The paper adds originality and value by extending research on international responsiveness, bridging two disciplines, and using a unique international, multi‐country sample.

Construction sustainability (CS) is a strategic reaction to the sustainability expectations of the construction industry's external stakeholders. The extant literature has viewed the environmental, social and economic dimensions of CS as having independent effects on financial performance. Due to the influence of common stakeholders, however, interactions in these dimensions will be present in their effect on financial performance. Accordingly, this study identifies the mechanisms of the interactions between the three CS dimensions and how they jointly affect financial performance.

Content analysis of GRI reports of 60 large construction organisations, followed by a hierarchical regression analysis was used to identify the interactions between environmental, social and economic CS in their effect on financial performance.

Economic CS was found to indirectly, and not directly, affect financial performance, the effect being mediated by both environmental and social CS. Environmental CS was found to have a strong negative effect on financial performance, whilst social CS was found to have a strongly significant positive effect on financial performance.

The motivation for engaging in CS is that investment in economic CS will have a positive effect on both environmental and social CS outcomes, which, in turn can have a combined effect on financial performance.

This is one of the first studies investigating the effect of interactions between the environmental, social and economic CS dimensions on the financial performance of construction organisations. It is also one of the first studies that applies a sociotechnical framework to this relationship.

Supply chain integration (SCI) is a set of practices driven by many factors and circumstances. The purpose of this paper is to examine firms’ internal and external drivers of SCI, evaluate the impact of the integration on firm performance, and further investigate the moderating role of organizational culture in strengthening the relationships between firms’ drivers and SCI.

For the purpose of this study, manufacturing firms were identified as the focal firms in supply chains, and thus data were collected through a survey of 223 Indonesian-based manufacturing firms. Two informants from each firm became the respondents. Structural equation modeling was used to analyze the data.

This study confirmed the positive relationship between SCI and firm performance. The results also indicated that internal driver, or specifically firms’ customer orientation (CO), triggered the initiation of SCI. Organizational culture, in terms of external focus, positively influenced the relationship between CO and SCI.

This study illustrates the important role of organizational culture in determining the shape of the relationship between firms’ drivers and SCI. The results of this study enhance the understanding of SCI, especially related to types of organizational culture that could promote the integration.

This study brings a different dimension of SCI as this study provides evidence from a developing country, which might implement different practices as compared those of developed countries. This study provides a measure of internal drivers, which has not been empirically investigated. The new measure was tested and validated using a rigorous process, and thus could be employed in other studies with different settings.

This paper surveys the literature on supply chain integration (SCI) to identify the state of research in the various types of studied industries and manufacturing environments. The purpose of this paper is to identify academic discoveries that could provide offshore wind projects with means to overcome their current supply chain challenges.

A comprehensive literature review was conducted involving 162 articles published in 29 peer-reviewed journals. The papers were analyzed in terms of the dimensions of SCI, research methodology, unit of analysis, level of analysis, type of industry and manufacturing environment being studied, integrative practices, integrative barriers and the link between SCI and performance.

While SCI has been evolving to become an influential topic in the field of supply chain management, scholars have overlooked industrial contingencies by ignoring the differences between the studied industrial contexts, especially project-based manufacturing environments. The present review also reveals that no study of SCI has been conducted on the construction of renewable energy projects. Another finding is that case studies and research articles using networks as a unit of analysis are underrepresented.

This is the first work to advocate for an industrial contingency approach in the analysis of SCI. Thus, it proposes the offshore wind farm-construction industry as a potential study subject to broaden the knowledge in SCI in project manufacturing environments.