Operations and Supply Chain Management Commons^™

International Energy Geopolitics, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Overview of international energy geopolitical trends. Emphasizes the importance of the Persian Gulf, South China Sea, East China Sea, Russia, and the Arctic to U.S. and international economic and strategic developments. Stresses the continuing importance of fossil fuels in domestic and international energy consumption, the variety of energy sources being used by various global regions, the potential for military conflict over access to natural resources, and how emerging energy leaders will determine global energy, environmental, and international security developments.

Strategic Excellence In Post-Digital Ecosystems: A B2c Perspective, Edin Güçlü Sözer, Mustafa Emre Civelek, Murat Çemberci

Zea E-Books Collection

The basic production of the digital economy is knowledge. As it becomes more important, traditional factors like labor and capital become less so. As technological innovation changes the nature of employment, the conversion of labor to consumption becomes increasingly difficult. E-commerce is the most important driving force of the digital economy. Using technology and information networks effectively allows brands or companies to effect rapid changes in competitive markets. The emergence of neo-consumers calls for a higher order of information exchange and interaction. Companies must reasses their complete business processes in a holistic way to ensure market prominence in an economy …

The Ambivalent Effect Of Complexity On Firm Performance: A Study In The Global Service Provider Industry, Marcus M. Larsen, Stephan Manning, Torben Pedersen

Management and Marketing Faculty Publication Series

Prior literature is ambivalent about whether organizational complexity has positive or negative effects on firm performance. Using rich data on global service providers, we explore this ambivalence by disentangling performance consequences of different types of organizational complexity. We show that complexity arising from the coordination of different services and operations negatively influences profit margins through increased coordination costs, whereas complexity coming from the sophistication of particular services may positively influence margins through informational advantages. We also investigate the moderating effects of process commoditization and client-specific investments. Our findings point to critical performance dilemmas facing global service providers in a highly …

A Comparative Analysis Of Three Major Transfer Airports In Northeast Asia Focusing On Incheon International Airport Using A Conjoint Analysis, Tae Won Chung, Yong Joo Lee, Hyun Mi Jang

Finance and Supply Chain Faculty Scholarship

Due mainly to the privatization and commercialization of airline companies and deregulation of the aviation rules, the demand for air transport has continuously been increasing. Airport authorities state that transfer passengers, who contribute to the large portion of the airports’ profits, are gaining much more importance, particularly in the Northeast Asia region where the air transport industry is very vital. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the competitiveness of IIA (Incheon International Airport) with other major airports located in Northeast Asia in passenger transfers made between Southeast Asia and China to North America using Conjoint Analysis. Results have indicated that …

Geopolitics Of Rare Earth Elements, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

Rare earth elements (REE) contain unique chemical physical properties such as lanthamum, are found in small concentrations, need extensive precise properties to separate, and are critical components of modern technologies such as laser guidance systems, personal electronics such as IPhones, satellites, and military weapons systems as varied as Virginia-class fast attack submarines, DDG-51 Aegis destroyers, the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, and precision guided munitions. The U.S. has some rare earth resources, but is heavily dependent on access to them from countries as varied as Afghanistan, Bolivia, and China. Losing access to these resources would have significant adverse economic, military, and …

Sewing Garments, Sowing Lives: Two Generations Of Migrant Workers' Back And Forth To The Chinese Coast, Alice Tzou

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Migrant workers in China have been at the center of popular news media and scholarly attention for three decades, since they started to migrate to work in factories on the coast in the post-1978 Economic Reform era. As western and central China has developed and work opportunities have arisen in these migrant-sending regions, internal migrants have started to return home. Push and pull factors of internal migration have been reversed. Poverty and lack of job opportunities used to be the push factors; they are now replaced by new push factors—long hours of work and long-distance travel to and from the …

Incoterms® Use In Buyer-Seller Relationships: A Mixed Methods Study, Thomas J. Schaefer

Dissertations

The negotiation and communication of logistics management decisions between buyers and sellers of goods is critical for effective supply chain management. Incoterms® rules, a set of three character acronyms, are often used by buyers and sellers to communicate each party’s logistics management responsibilities when transacting goods. Inappropriate application of Incoterms® rules can lead to miscommunication of logistics responsibilities and expose either party to unanticipated costs and risks. This three-part mixed methods research explores the circumstances that contribute to errors in logistics management decision communication within buyer-seller dyads, the consequences of these errors, and methods to improve logistics management decision communication. …

Sustainable Tourism Study Through Solimar International, S Silongwengjia

Capstone Collection

This inquiry explores a pragmatic approach of sustainable tourism and its application as a transformative development instrument. It seeks a general understanding of the global tourism sector, looks specifically at an individual tourism enterprise, Solimar International, and examines rural tourism, and its proposed standards. It discusses the opportunities and threats to the culture, ecology, and livelihoods of the residents of destination tourism and the unique experience to geotravelers. It analyzes the theoretical development history of tourism and the integrated approach of Solimar International as a leading agency in the tourism industry sector. And it seeks to understand a new type …

At The Intersection Of History, Diplomacy, And Domestic Affairs: Vietnam’S Difficult Position In The South China Sea Dispute, Michael Lanin

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Connecting the entirety of Southeast Asia to the Indian and Pacific Oceans, the South China Sea is among the world’s most vital commercial and strategic arenas. Robust shipping lanes funnel several trillion dollars in trade through the South China Sea annually; and lucrative fisheries and potentially vast hydrocarbon resources fill its waters. The South China Sea also hosts a tremendously complex geopolitical puzzle which hinges on overlapping maritime sovereignty claims made by Vietnam, China, Philippines, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Brunei. The ensuing multilateral dispute has escalated tensions in the region, leading to intense militarization, diplomatic gridlock, and trivialization of international law. …

Centers Of Excellence: Management Within Multinational Corporations, Thomas Coughlan, Gary Bernstein

WCBT Faculty Publications

As organizations expand geographically, and especially when expanding globally, they often find it necessary, or more effective, to develop Centers of Excellence (CoE). If properly structured these centers can reduce cost, improve efficiency, leverage organizational assets, and often improve levels of organizational innovation. This is the next installment in a series of articles started in the first issues of the JMI exploring these very challenging issues (Coughlan & Bernstein, 2015). In this installment the authors will specifically address issues surrounding leadership, integrated governance model, standardization, continuous improvement, business continuity, and managing through hard target metrics. This article assumes that the …

The International Business Risk Of Terrorism: A Pragmatic Framework For Assessing Its Impact On The U.S.-Based, Small- To Medium-Sized Enterprise’S Supply Chain Operations, Scott A. Lemons

The Hilltop Review

Purpose - Subject paper examines the international business risk of terrorism’s impact on the focal firm’s supply chain operations, as proliferated by the acceleration of globalization, via a fundamental review of pertinent country- and firm-level considerations shaped by global environmental factors. Subsequently, a managerial risk assessment and mitigation planning framework is presented for the supply chain executive’s pragmatic use.

Design/methodology/approach – Broad evaluation of contemporary viewpoints precedes a risk assessment and mitigation planning framework from the supply chain executive’s point-of-view.

Findings – While observed research found the probability of the risk of terrorism to be low, the severity (impact) of …

How Hybrids Manage Growth And Social-Business Tensions In Global Supply Chains: The Case Of Impact Sourcing, Chacko G. Kannothra, Stephan Manning, Nardia Haigh

Management and Marketing Faculty Publication Series

This study contributes to the growing interest in how hybrid organizations manage paradoxical social—business tensions. Our empirical case is ‘impact sourcing’ – hybrids in global supply chains that hire staff from disadvantaged communities to provide services to business clients. We identify two major growth orientations - ‘community-focused’ and ‘client-focused’ growth - their inherent tensions and ways that hybrids manage them. The former favors slow growth and manages tensions through highly-integrated client and community relations; the latter promotes faster growth and manages client and community relations separately. Both growth orientations address social-business tensions in particular ways, but also create latent constraints …

The Strategic Potential Of Community-Based Hybrid Models: The Case Of Global Business Services In Africa, Stephan Manning, Chacko G. Kannothra, Nichole K. Wissman-Weber

Management and Marketing Faculty Publication Series

As a latecomer economy, Africa faces persistent difficulties with catching up in global markets. This study examines the strategic potential of community-based hybrid models, which balance market profitability with social impact in local communities. Focusing on the global business services industry in Kenya and South Africa, and the practice of ‘impact sourcing’ – hiring and training of disadvantaged staff servicing business clients – we find that while regular providers struggle to compete with global peers, hybrid model adopters manage to access underutilized labor pools through community organizations, and target less competitive niche client markets. We further identify key industry, institutional …

The Influence Of The Electric Supply Industry On Economic Growth In Less Developed Countries, Edward Richard Bee

Dissertations

This study measures the impact that electrical outages have on manufacturing production in 135 less developed countries using stochastic frontier analysis and data from World Bank’s Investment Climate surveys. Outages of electricity, for firms with and without backup power sources, are the most frequently cited constraint on manufacturing growth in these surveys.

Outages are shown to reduce output below the production frontier by almost five percent in Africa and by a lower percentage in South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Middle East and North Africa. Production response to outages is quadratic in form. Outages also increase labor cost, reduce exports …

Contract-Boundary-Spanning Governance Mechanisms: Conceptualizing Fragmented And Globalized Production As Collectively Governed Entities, Jaakko Salminen

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

Conceptualizing how private actors can and should control their supply chains is a tricky question with both economic and legal dimensions. The topic is of extreme importance in today's global economy. On the one hand, this importance is highlighted by events such as the catastrophic and deadly collapse of the Rana Plaza factory building in Bangladesh and the economic fiasco of the Olkiluoto 3 nuclear power plant construction project in Finland, both arguably caused by the lack of effective supply chain governance. On the other hand, the potential benefits of successful supply chain governance, shown by examples such as open …

The Importance Of Cross-Cultural Management In International Business: China And The United States, Natalie (Tilly) Barnett

Scripps Senior Theses

Attention to cross-cultural management in today’s globalized workplace and marketplace is paramount to professional success. In this exploration I examine the nuances of Chinese business practices and organizational culture as well as their likely points of divergence from American traditions. The variance between organizational culture across national borders is often significant and, as demonstrated by the cases herein, can prove to be either an opportunity to succeed beyond expectation or fail to the same extent.

An Exploratory Analysis To Understand Organic Food Market In The United States In Comparison To Europe, Alfiya Ansar, Ismet Anitsal, M. Meral Anitsal

Atlantic Marketing Association Proceedings

To meet the increasing continuous demand of food, many techniques are used for mass production food but these techniques in turn have diminished the quality of many products. The negative effects associated with such production methods make them controversial in nature and thus requires discussion. One such method is the use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO), which involves genetically modifying the Deoxyribose Nucleic Acids (DNA) of plants or animals of interest to introduce certain traits such as resistance to pests or diseases. Food allergies are on a rise and researchers estimate that up to 15 million Americans suffer from vast …

Green Supply Chain Management In Chinese Electronic Manufacturing Organisations; An Analysis Of Senior Managements’ Perceptions., Eoin Plant, Yusen Xu, Gareth R.T. White

Articles

Green supply chain management and reverse logistics has emerged as a key area of research interest. Recent environmental regulations have also stimulated interest in this field. However, information sharing is a pre- requisite to efficient and effective logistics utilisation. Manufacturing organisations in China were argued to be 10-20 years behind their Western counterparts in relation to information sharing in their supply chains (Li and Yuan, 2009). This barrier needs to be addressed if China is going to maintain and grow its manufacturing position in the world, attempt to address green supply chain issues and their negative externalities. A systematic literature …

The New Panama Canal In A Global Context, Herman L. Boschken

Faculty Publications, School of Management

Without the "container revolution" (1970-present) and its redesign of seaport and maritime-trade infrastructures, globalization as we know it would not exist. With the recent enlargements of the Panama and Suez Canals, many new implications for U.S. economic trade are unfolding. This presentation at the Commonwealth Club of California, outlines recent changes in world trade and infrastructure development, and poses five factors that will likely determine winners and losers in the unfolding developments of this highly competitive world trade-route system.

The Business Of Beds: An Exploration Of Hotel And Hostel Business Strategy, Robert B. Bunda

Honors Scholar Theses

At their cores, hotels and hostels are similar in that they provide a place for travelers to stay. Despite this core similarity, the structures of the two industries are radically different. The hotel industry began in the Middle Ages and has given rise to massive multinational companies, many managing more than four thousand hotels. In stark contrast, the hostel industry began in 1909 and is mostly comprised of independently owned and operated guesthouses, with the largest global chain comprising of less than twenty properties. This study first defines the hotel and hostel industries and examines the different experiences they offer …

The Future Of International Trade: Sustainability Is Key, Singapore Management University

Perspectives@SMU

What can multinational companies do to ensure that international trade flourishes in years to come? Gerry Craggs, the Far East managing director of steel trading company Stemcor, says that companies like his need to focus on developing sustainable trading policies rather than immediate gain. "Sustainable trading is not driven by short term profit but by providing optimal medium and long-term supply chain solutions that benefit all participants," he told Perspectives@SMU on the sidelines of the 5th anniversary celebration of the university’s International Trade Institute (ITI). Craggs is also Chair of the International Trading Concentration Sub-Committee at the institute that consists …

Organizational Learning And Capabilities For Onshore And Offshore Business Process Outsourcing, Jonathan W. Whitaker, Sunil Mithas, M. S. Krishnan

Management Faculty Publications

This paper identifies and analyzes firm-level characteristics that facilitate onshore and offshore business process outsourcing (BPO). We use organizational learning and capabilities to develop a conceptual model. We test the conceptual model with archival data on a broad cross section of U. S. firms. Our empirical findings indicate that firms with experience in onshore information technology (IT) outsourcing and capabilities related to IT coordination applications and process codification are more likely to engage in BPO, and firms with experience in internationalization are more likely to engage in offshore BPO. We also find that IT coordination applications have a greater impact …

Offshoring, Outsourcing, And Strategy In The Global Firm, Stephen Tallman

Management Faculty Publications

Offshore outsourcing of many of the activities of the firm has become a major issue of concern in welfare economics, politics, business management, and international business scholarship. From both practical and scholarly perspectives, though, we must recognize that this is not a new phenomenon, and that neither outsourcing nor offshoring is necessarily the problem that has been represented in the popular and scholarly press (Contractor et al., 2010: Engardio, 2006). The production of goods in locations other than those in which they are sold has been an established strategy of multinational firms for decades--as has the subset of situations in …

Perspectives On Quality Coordination And Assurance In Global Supply Chains, Ling Li, John N. Warfield

Information Technology & Decision Sciences Faculty Publications

The 2007 recall of Berko Electric Toe-Space Heaters made in the US, the recall of backpack blowers made in Japan, the recalls of toys and pet food produced in China have exposed the potential of global supply chain disruptions. This product recall storm leads to the issue of quality assurance in global supply chain management. Product recalls indicate that manufacturing companies are particularly vulnerable to ensure quality when they source via a global supply chain with poor visibility. Obviously, a supply chain cannot afford this kind of sourcing and supply structure that threatens the supply-chain integrity. This special issue on …

Measurement Issues Arising From The Growth Of Globalization, Susan N. Houseman, Kenneth F. Ryder Jr.

Presentations

No abstract provided.

Two Models Of Virtual Transfer Pricing Mechanisms In Global Supply Chain, Kun Liao, Ke (Grace) Ke, Eldon Johnson, Yan Wang

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of Business

Supply chain is a network of financial flow while contract is a primary way of recognizing and distributing profits between buyer and supplier in a supply chain. Virtual transfer pricing defined in this study is the mechanism of using contract bundles within a global supply chain to maximize profit. We propose two virtual transfer pricing models.

Utilisation Of Foreign Trade Zones In The Global Supply Chain: An Exploratory Study, Hokey Min, Thomas E. Lambert

Management Faculty Publications

Foreign Trade Zones (FTZs) are considered duty-free areas and, thus, not governed by the usual customs and tariff controls. In other words, the merchandise permitted in the FTZ may be stored, sold, exhibited, labelled, repacked, assembled, distributed and mixed with other merchandise without paying customs duty until merchandise is released from the zone. Deferred customs duties in the FTZs can contribute significantly to the profitability of the Multinational Firms (MNFs) that get involved in global supply chain activities. Thus, the utilisation of FTZs is believed to have a positive impact on export/import operations and the location decisions of MNFs. Despite …

Cyber Transportation Logistics: Architecting A Global Value-Chain For Services, Yupo Chan, Jaouad Boukachour, Chia-Chu Chiang, Madan Mohan Dey, Charles-Henri Fredouët, Hing-Po Lo, Farhad Moeeni, Albert K. Toh

Faculty Publications

In today’s global economy, products and services are provided across international borders. The sourcing of these products and services becomes an integral part of international businesses. Information, communication and transportation technologies (ICTT) have made this job significantly more streamlined. However, there is an advantage that big companies, such as Wal-Mart, have over small and medium size ones. While the big companies have the ICTT resources to source globally at will, small and medium enterprises (SME) are much less prepared to do so, resulting in a large competitive disadvantage. By contrasting SMEs with their more successful “big brothers,” we highlight the …

Trust-Driven Joint Operations Practices To Achieve Mass Customization: A Comparative Study For U.S., Chinese And Japanese Companies, Kun Liao, Thomas W. Sharkey, Mark A. Vonderembse, T. S. Ragu-Nathan

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of Business

This study builds a model of trust, based on joint operational activities and mass customization using theories of social capital and the resource-based view of the firm. Based on 208 responses from suppliers in the U.S. and China, this study empirically supports the notion that trust positively drives manufacturer-supplier activities in operations. It also supports the claim that joint operations activities contribute to mass customization capabilities in a significant way. Moreover, the level of trust and the degree of joint activities are different for the four types of suppliers used in the study: U.S. brands produced in North America, Japanese …

Trends And Effects Of Third-Party Logisitics In Global Logistics Operations, Kai-Yu Ho

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this research is to determine how third party logistics is playing an essential role in global logistics operations. The development of third party logistics has become one of the main streams in the development of the global economy.