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The emergence and application of 3D Printing (3DP) is changing the way products are developed and reach the customer, allowing for unprecedented customisation options. Past research has focussed on the modus operandi of the technology, providing indications for wider future adoption. 3DP is predicted to complement current production processes and is anticipated to have a profound effect on the value chain and, therefore, on supply chain (SC) management. Management-related 3DP research has, however, been largely fragmented in terms of analysing the strategic deployment of 3DP and the corresponding effects on performance objectives. The aim of this paper is to identify, define and exemplify typical 3DP deployment strategies pursued.

The approach taken is a critical literature review, synthesising and interpreting past research on cross-industry deployment of 3DP, including illustrative examples. This enabled the development of a framework of current stage knowledge.

Building on past research, the authors propose a conceptual framework to be used as a classification system for 3DP operations, based on process and SC level configurations across different industries. They discuss the potential impact on operations performance objectives and then highlight research gaps, proposing specific research avenues to enhance understanding of the effects of 3DP adoption on SCs.

The proposed framework outlines strategic guidelines for 3DP and provides practitioners with the range of strategic options available for 3DP deployment and anticipated impacts on performance.

The framework can be used to map 3DP deployment at an operational level and identify the likely impact on performance objectives. Relevant implications and a future research agenda are explored.

This study aims to examine the interrelationships among business process management (BPM), supply chain collaboration (SCC), collaborative advantage and organisational performance.

Data were collected from 204 manufacturing firms in Thailand, and the interrelationships proposed in the framework were tested via structural equation modelling.

This study highlights the role of intra- and inter-organisational practices and clearly demonstrates the joint role and impact of BPM and SCC, respectively. The results provide empirical evidence that BPM improves both organisational performance and collaborative activities. Also, SCC and collaborative advantage can have indirect positive impacts on organisational performance.

This work could be expanded by adopting a supplementary dyadic or extended supply chain (SC) approach and could also consider contextual factors, which were outside of the scope of this study.

The BPM approach has a positive impact on organisational performance, which is essential for collaborative activities between a firm and its SC partners. Further, effective BPM and SCC practices lead to enhanced performance and collaborative benefits. Practitioners should be better able to define and measure specific actions relating to their BPM and SCC practices.

This paper stresses the need to consider the interrelationships between BPM, SCC, collaborative advantage and organisational performance for both direct and indirect effects. Rather than focusing only on improvement at individual firm level, SCC is vital to compete in the market. Improving the effectiveness of SC allows higher organisational performance levels than those that could be achieved in isolation.

Managing attractiveness is a constant challenge to mobilize relationship-specific investments, especially in a business environment increasingly enhanced by social media (SM) activities. There is limited knowledge on how SM activities contribute to supplier attractiveness, so decisions about strategizing with SM and consequent resource allocations become highly uncertain. The purpose of this paper is to examine how suppliers’ SM activities influence supplier attractiveness.

Altogether, 57 senior managers were interviewed: 32 semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with senior managers in strategic decision-making roles regarding SM on the supplier side, along with 20 senior managers responsible for purchasing or looking after supplier development; one-to-one interviews were complemented by a focus group with 5 senior managers on the buyer side.

The study reveals an inverse U-shaped relationship between the intensity of the supplier’s SM activity and its attractiveness and offers a set of propositions about the influence of SM on supplier attractiveness, with special regard to the perceived risks of increased transparency and becoming “too social” on SM.

The study highlights SM management results for supplier attractiveness and their impact areas on business growth and supply chain development.

This paper provides in-depth insights into the role of SM in managing supplier attractiveness. Various effects of SM activities are identified that aim to contribute to the body of literature on supplier attractiveness as well as SM management in buyer–supplier relationships.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate how organisational learning (OL) can occur through process improvement (PI) activities, leading to sustained improvements over time in the context of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The authors study PI practices in six engineering-oriented SMEs via interview-based case studies. The authors draw from a range of literature and use an OL conceptual framework informed by Crossan et al.’s (1999) 4I framework as an analytical lens.

The OL perspective provides new insights to conceptualise the nature of PI as a multi-level practice in SMEs. Effective PI practices within SMEs are shown to be consistent with OL concepts, enabling firms to translate individually identified improvement opportunities into organisational-level changes that result in sustained benefits. A new conceptual model is presented that explains how SMEs can learn through improvement activities. The key role of management support, both operational and strategic, is highlighted. It is necessary for management to provide sufficient PI opportunities to enable and sustain beneficial learning.

The study is based on a sample of engineering-oriented SMEs located in the UK. Further case-based, longitudinal, and survey-based research studies with firms of different types will enhance the generalisability of the findings, allowing the confirmation and extension of the new conceptual model.

The findings provide a theoretically underpinned framework for achieving OL in engineering-oriented SMEs through PI activities. The new model highlights the key mechanisms that enable learning from improvement activities. The findings highlight the key role played by management in introducing additional learning opportunities in the form of new business that requires exploratory learning. Without this, the reduction in improvement opportunities reduces the benefits that can be realised from PI.

OL provides a multi-level perspective to understanding how smaller firms are able to undergo systematic improvements and the support required to continually improve.

Although supply chain management is now an established field, the distinction between supply chains and supply networks is relatively immature and requires further investigation. The purpose of this paper is to clarify the distinction between supply chains and supply networks.

Based on a review of the literature and assisted by input from academic experts during a relevant supply chain management workshop, this paper critiques seminal and extant theoretical developments in the field of supply chain management.

The main contribution of this paper is the development of an outline classification of relevant dimensions where the concepts of supply chain and supply network are compared and their distinctive features are highlighted. The paper identifies strategic opportunities emanating from considering both the supply chain and supply network, and the associated levels of engagement with active and inactive members in terms of, inter alia, complexity, members’ interdependencies and risk resilience.

The paper highlights many theoretical and practical implications following a detailed analysis of an engagement-based portfolio of relationships within complex supply systems. The systematic clarification of these two concepts and their boundaries result in the provision of original insights which will assist the future research agenda of the academic community.

The purpose of this paper is to explore supply chain collaboration issues in the extended enterprise (EE) to develop a more complete understanding of the nature and effectiveness of collaboration in the transition towards, but also within, the EE paradigm.

The paper presents results from a three‐company case study focusing on the civil aerospace industry, with all companies taking part in an EE. The research involved obtaining and systematically analysing a diversity of interview data and company documents to assist in the development of theory, which was subject to a systematic validation process.

The authors propose a taxonomy, which, first, assists in understanding the transition towards the EE and supports a distinction between sets of factors that affect the effectiveness of collaboration, termed the “contractual” and “engaging” factors. Second, it assists in understanding the dynamic, complex nature of the EE paradigm and suggests a further breakdown of the “engaging” factors into “enabling” and “enhancing” sub‐sets.

The taxonomy assists in comprehending the EE concept and can also help to provide a road map in the transition towards and development within this paradigm. The description of the factors and their interrelationships suggest key areas that managers may wish to consider to enhance the effectiveness of collaboration among participant organisations.

This is an empirically‐based paper that presents new understanding about the EE paradigm, focussing especially on the effectiveness of collaboration among members, and using a multidisciplinary approach which draws upon strategic, operations and knowledge management fields.