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This paper reports on a benchmarking study carried out on supply chain management (SCM) activities of manufacturing organisations in New Zealand. The purpose of the paper is to report the current state of the play in this area. A postal survey was carried out to ascertain the status of SCM adoption in New Zealand, and identify the issues in SCM that are significant for New Zealand manufacturers. The findings suggest that although there is awareness of the SCM concept in New Zealand, the adoption of the newer concepts of SCM is not very far advanced.

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of integration capabilities on reverse supply chain (RSC) adoption and, consequently, RSCs' effectiveness. Thus, supply chain (SC) integration capabilities and their types in relation to internal, supplier and customer integration capabilities are investigated.

In this paper a quantitative survey was conducted with Malaysian manufacturers with a certified the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001 environmental management system. The entire population was utilized through census sampling; 150 useable survey responses were received. The partial least squares technique was used for the data analysis.

The results indicate that internal integration improves external integration. In addition, supplier and customer integration have a positive direct effect on the adoption of RSC activities. Though internal integration has no significant direct effect on the adoption of RSC activities, it has an indirect impact through both supplier integrative capabilities and customer integrative capabilities.

The findings of this study suggest that the managers of manufacturers whose internal integrative capabilities are the base and whose SC integrative capabilities and external integrative capabilities are reinforcing SC integrative capabilities should adopt RSC activities.

The paper offers in-depth insight into this issue and has shed light on the ambiguities in the literature regarding the role of SC integration in RSC adoption.

The authors apply social network theory and natural resource–based view to empirically examine a model of the relationships among business networking (BN) orientation, green operations practices and performance. A firm must achieve appropriate internal green operations practices to capitalize on its external BN orientation and thus be able to establish a competitive advantage and superior performance.

Using survey data from 132 ISO 14001–certified manufacturing firms in Malaysia, all of which participate in environmental programs and sustainability activities, the authors explore the effects of two BN orientation facets (customer-oriented and supplier-oriented) on green operations practices (green purchasing, eco-design and regulatory practices) and their subsequent influence on environmental and economic performance.

Structural equation modeling outcomes confirm only one BN orientation facet positively affects green operations practices, nor do the advantages affect economic performance directly. The results illustrate how environmental outcomes mediate the links between green operations practices and economic performance.

Drawing on social network theory and natural resource–based view, authors propose internal green operations practices as a channel through which external BN orientation induces firm performance. Internal green operations practices determine a firm's ability to exploit its external BN orientation to achieve operational competencies and lead to superior performance. Rather than focusing on the social connections generated by external BN orientation itself, the authors recommend that firms address the core competencies contributing to their green operations practices and engage in network building.

To develop and test a reliable and valid supplier selection measurement scale that can be applied in different geographic regions, namely, the USA and Europe.

A three‐factor supplier selection measure is developed via extensive literature review and practitioner interviews. Psychometric properties of the survey instrument are evaluated using data from the ISM‐US sample via exploratory factor analysis. Based on the results, the survey instrument is modified and the revised instrument is mailed to a larger sampling group (APICS‐US and APICS‐Europe). Confirmatory factor analysis is used to validate the proposed three‐factor supplier selection construct and to test its validity across national boundaries.

This study demonstrates that underlying the documented supplier selection criteria is the need to assess a supplier's quality and service capabilities as well as its strategic and managerial alignment with the buyer.

Although the research design incorporates extensive literature reviews, it does not capture every aspect of complex supplier selection criteria. Future efforts should establish a valid, reliable instrument for the underlying constructs.

This study provides supply management professionals with guidelines for analysing selection decisions, and also shows that the underlying dimensions of supplier selection are applicable for both US and European firms.

This study contributes to the literature by answering the following two questions: what exactly constitutes effective supplier selection and what are the appropriate measures for selecting key suppliers?

The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of information sharing capability on buyer‐supplier relationships and firm performance. It is proposed that information sharing capability, the integration of a firm's information/decision systems and business processes with those of supply chain partners, is an antecedent of collaborative buyer‐supplier relationships, defined in terms of supply chain and relationship architecture. Further, it is proposed that these relationships positively impact a firm's market and financial performance.

This research uses multiple linear regression to analyze a set of survey data from the USA, Europe and New Zealand.

Results demonstrate positive relationships between information sharing capability and buyer‐supplier relationships, and between relationships and performance.

Information sharing capability and buyer‐supplier relationships are complex, multi dimensional constructs. While this research highlights their role in driving performance, further study is required to more fully capture their impact and to understand the implications for situational factors such as industry sector and transaction type.

Results from the study provide academics and policymakers with insights into key information sharing constructs related to the development of buyer‐supplier relationships. These provide guidance in developing the infrastructure to support such relationships.

This study adds to the extant literature by examining the dimensions of information sharing related to buyer‐supplier relationships and performance.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate which firm‐level antecedent – resource‐based capability or inter‐organizational coordination – contributes to a firm's supply chain management (SCM) focus.

A conceptual framework of antecedents of SCM focus and several research hypotheses posit that for a thorough understanding of the behavior of an organization in the supply chain, it is necessary to consider two sets of antecedents simultaneously. Hypotheses are tested using confirmatory factor analysis and multiple linear regression on a set of survey data collected in the USA, Europe and New Zealand.

The analysis of survey data validates the major premise that inter‐organizational coordination plays an important role in explaining the SCM focus of a firm. Research results validate the positive relationships between the proposed antecedents and a firm's SCM focus.

Although the research design incorporates extensive literature reviews, it does not capture every aspect of complex inter‐organizational coordination. Future efforts should establish a valid, reliable instrument to measure the underlying constructs.

This study shows that a firm possesses inimitable internal resource‐based capabilities and external coordination mechanisms that are unique to each firm. Each of the resource‐based capabilities helps to integrate the various internal functional areas within an organization to increase efficiency and reduce waste. The external coordination mechanisms help a firm to link its processes seamlessly with upstream and downstream supply chain members. The paper also shows that product innovation is the only resourced‐based capability that predicts SCM focus when inter‐organizational coordination mechanisms are considered.

The paper contributes to the extant literature by integrating the traditional resource‐based view of a firm with inter‐organizational coordination to examine crucial factors that precede a firm's SCM focus. Both perspectives have considerable merit, so for a thorough understanding of a firm's SCM focus, it is necessary to consider these factors simultaneously.

This paper aims to explore whether firms that integrate only with partners adjacent to them in the supply chain exhibit different patterns of supply chain practice and performance than those that also integrate with partners more distant in the supply chain.

Cluster analysis of survey data is used to partition firms based on the span of the supply chain involved in their integration efforts.

Firms with a broad span of integration have a greater focus on alignment with suppliers and customers, and have more of a supply chain focus than those with a narrow span. They also demonstrate higher levels of performance attributable to supply chain relationships.

Results highlight the importance to supply chain professionals of taking a broad view of the supply chain rather than focusing only on first tier suppliers and customers. They also suggest the importance of exploring opportunities to facilitate broader participation in supply chain integration efforts.

Past research has identified the importance of supply chain integration without addressing the importance of how much of the supply chain should be involved in such efforts. This study provides empirical support for the need to involve partners across the supply chain.

Faced with increasing pressure to improve responsiveness to rapidly changing market needs, firms must respond to the challenge of how to improve supply reliability and quality, while simultaneously reducing costs. This has led to an increase in outsourcing and the adoption of supplier alliances with key suppliers. While much has been written about when and how to form such alliances and the benefits of doing so, little evidence exists of how alliance adopters differ from non‐adopters in their attitudes towards managing suppliers and their efforts to manage quality in the supply process. This study presents results of a survey of supply management professionals that examines attitudes of adopters and non‐adopters of supplier alliances to supplier and quality management. Results indicate that significant differences in attitudes exist between alliance adopters and non‐adopters, and that differences have a direct and significant impact on key measures of a buying firm's business performance.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the direct influence of three types of operations management practices, namely total quality management (TQM), lean manufacturing (LEAN), and supply chain management (SCM) on operational performance.

Cluster analysis is used to classify data collected from Thai manufacturing firms into three business strategy clusters of cost leadership, differentiation, and focussed strategy. Next, multiple-regression analysis was used to test the relationships between operations management practices and performance in each of the three strategy clusters.

Results show that all three operations management practices were significantly associated with performance including the interaction of TQM and SCM. Also, the interaction of LEAN and SCM significantly affected performance for firms pursuing focussed business strategy.

Manufacturers in developing nations can use this result to deploy appropriate operations management practices to enhance their competitive edge.

This study explores the cross-functional alignment between strategies and practices, which have been transferred from developed to developing countries.

The purpose of this paper is to examine how corporate entrepreneurship, social capital and resources contribute to the implementation of supply chain management (SCM) practices in Association for Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) automotive industry.

A conceptual framework of antecedents of SCM practices and several research hypotheses were proposed. Hypotheses were tested with data from original equipment manufacturers suppliers in the ASEAN automotive manufacturing industry. Confirmatory factor analysis and multiple linear regressions were used to test the hypotheses.

The analysis of survey data suggests that corporate entrepreneurship theory and social capital theory play a key role in motivating and preceding SCM practices. However, traditional resource-based explanations of SCM decisions by western manufacturing firms do not always apply to ASEAN automotive suppliers.

This paper may have excluded some crucial constructs that affect SCM practices. This study also suffers from the common limitations of empirical research, including the reliance on a single respondent. Prior studies suggest that firms with better resources are likely to create more effective SCM operations. This study contributes to the literature by adding behavioral explanations to the research stream. That is, drawing on corporate entrepreneurship and social capital theories, the authors’ link firm behavioral factors to their resources and thus help explains SCM practices.

This study provides some notable managerial implications. The study shows that to implement successful SCM practices, emerging ASEAN automotive suppliers should exploit both the internal and external antecedents of SCM. Internal antecedent in the form of corporate entrepreneurship that measures a firm's innovativeness and proactiveness, and external antecedent in the form of social capital that measures a firm's relationships with its supply chain members are important factors that affect SCM practices. Also, these factors are important in counteracting the adverse forces of the environmental uncertainty to improve performance.

These findings extend prior research by establishing the importance of the relationships between SCM practices and its antecedents. Also, this is one of the few studies that specifically examined the ASEAN automotive industry.