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The purpose of this paper is to analyse supply chain network management (SCNM) in the context of emergency preparedness management (EPM). The results of this study revealed that civil-military relations are essential for EPM to function as a coordinated approach to safety and security, and are necessary to respond effectively to complex emergencies and mitigating threats to developed countries. Civil-military relations are still a concern in the context of communication, the exercise of authority, and the coordination of emergency supplies (ES) to emergency operations.

This qualitative study is based on field observations, with attention focused on the EPM of Sweden, Finland, and Poland. The analysis of a broader SCNM through EPM was supported by semi-structured interviews among civil-military actors in Sweden, information collected from informal conversations known as “hanging out”, and secondary materials. Empirically, the analysis included a variety of civil-military relationships and identified implications for management, policy, and planning that are applicable to developed countries.

The management of civil-military relations is a meaningful resource when used as an overall approach for safety and security. The integration of civil-military relations in EPM in the planning of ES is a long-standing and complex matter. The management of Swedish civil-military relations in EPM is recognising that implications for management are imbedded in continuous policy changes in, for example, the Swedish policy history. Civil-military relational complications that arise in the field of operations are impossible to anticipate during emergency planning, as those complications are grounded in policy changes.

Escalating threats to developed countries are highlighted. The study underlines the primary measures used in studying military involvement in EPM. An understanding of SCNM as a choice for management can be obtained in future research that focuses on a broader role of the military in EPM. Sweden has emphasised a clearer role for the military by reactivating total defence planning and by evolving common practices and processes with civil actors in civil defence. Meanwhile, Poland and Finland are increasing their focus on supporting the management of civil-military policies on safety and security regarding communication, authority, and developing coordination. Consistent with findings from previous reports on SCNM, civil-military relations are essential for EPM. This study confirmed the importance of civil-military coordination, the management and practice of authority, and shared forms of communication.

This article aims to address the need for a more structured partnership between civilian and military healthcare, particularly in the context of cross-border threats in the EU. While both systems are driven by the same goal of providing high-quality healthcare services and achieving optimal patient outcomes, they operate under different national approaches and resources.

Two recent crises are presented as examples that highlight the necessity of cooperation between civilian and military medical systems. The Covid-19 Pandemic and the Ukrainian Conflict are described based on the experience gathered by the author as a member of the NATO Centre of Excellence for Military Medicine and form the base to shape a broader perspective on the future of civil-military interaction in healthcare at the European Union level.

The ability to deliver coordinated responses during crises depend on the level of interoperability, preparation and mutual understanding. To improve synergies, a structured partnership should be established, prioritizing common standards of care and shared best practices. Integrating military and civilian healthcare pathways can be especially beneficial in situations where patients are moved from the point of injury or sickness across different military and civilian structures to receive the most appropriate treatment and rehabilitation for their conditions.

The relationship between military and civilian healthcare systems is often discussed at multinational level, but a clear focus is lacking concerning their shared mission, distinct functions and potential for cross-border collaboration.

The research areas of humanitarian supply chain (HSC) and disaster and humanitarian operations (DHO) have evolved through the use of managerial models. Recent studies, however, point to the need for the empirical validation of such managerial models in real-life scenarios. Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the validation of recent managerial models based on empirical data of two disasters in Haiti: the earthquake in 2010 and Hurricane Matthew in 2016.

This research developed two case studies from the perspective of the Brazilian Navy (BN), a part of the Brazilian Armed Forces that led the United Nations Mission for Stabilization in Haiti (MINUSTAH) in both disasters. The case studies focused on empirically validating managerial models for stakeholder identification, stakeholder satisfaction, response processes, strategies for collaboration and the integration of these models.

The results revealed that compared to the response to the earthquake in 2010, the response to Hurricane Matthew in 2016 was superior. The collaborative strategies of the BN and other stakeholders used after the earthquake were more reactive, while the strategies after Hurricane Matthew aimed more at planning and anticipating adverse situations.

This research reinforces the investigated managerial models and indicates their suitability as planning tools for practitioners of HSC and DHO, which is essential for the further development of academic contributions related to integrating the models into more robust solutions.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to a greater understanding of the challenges of civil military logistical cooperation, coordination and collaboration in humanitarian relief logistics.

Systematic literature review of academic journals.

This paper has four main findings. First, a categorisation of humanitarian logistics literature is achieved through a systematic review. Second, a classification of military involvement in humanitarian relief logistics is presented. Third, the research substantiated systematic differences in the kinds of military cooperation not only due to stage of operations but also depending upon whether the disaster is “natural” or “manmade”. Fourth, the research identifies the challenges of civil military logistical cooperation, coordination and collaboration and posits recommendations to overcome the identified challenges.

This paper represents an exploratory study and provides the basis for further research on cooperation, coordination and collaboration between military and civilian agencies in humanitarian operations. The paper sets a research agenda for academics.

This paper is the first to offer practical guidance to military commanders and managers of humanitarian agencies on solutions and recommendations to overcome the challenges to civil military logistical cooperation/coordination in humanitarian operations.

The area of civil military logistical cooperation/coordination has received limited consideration within the humanitarian aid logistics literature to date. This paper is designed to redress this shortfall. As a result, it is hoped that it will act as a catalyst for further research and to widen and deepen the resultant debate with a view to improving the outcome for those affected by current and future disasters.

Crisis management increasingly requires coordination and collaboration between multiple organizations. This means that inter-organizational boundaries have to be spanned by dedicated organizational members (i.e. boundary spanners). This paper aims to describe which features facilitate the work of boundary spanners in crisis management.

A case study, consisting of 26 interviews, has been conducted in the Netherlands to explore how civilian and military representatives effectively spanned inter-organizational boundaries.

Five features are identified that enable boundary spanners to improve crisis management coordination and collaboration. Boundary spanners are likely to be successful when they (1) serve long terms, (2) are sensitive to partners' concerns, (3) have considerable discretion, (4) are politically skilled and (5) prove influential in their own organization.

Crisis organizations can extend boundary spanners' term length, broaden their discretionary space and give them more influence to facilitate their work. Additionally, in the selection process, it would be well to choose organizational members who display a sensitivity to the interests of crisis partners and possess political skill.

Multiple studies have reiterated the key role of boundary spanners in enabling crisis management coordination and collaboration. Yet, this study is the first to provide a systematic analysis of key features that help boundary spanners to reach this goal.

The purpose of this research is to understand whether an organization knows if it is ready to respond to a disaster and whether it has the capabilities to deliver relief. Our initial motivation was to identify unique resources possessed by the United States Navy (USN) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) due to their unique and critical capabilities for humanitarian operations. The recent frequency of disasters around the world suggests these events will continue to create demand for relief capabilities. For this reason we need to understand readiness metrics not just for USN and USMC but for humanitarian organizations (Hos) in general.

We survey relevant literature for understanding how HOs define and develop readiness metrics and associated factors. We studied documents including peer-reviewed scholarly articles, government documents, white papers, research papers and Department of Defense (DoD) briefings. We study literature that is significantly written for DoD, one, the vast experience of USN and USMC and two, the lessons learned have been documented. The literature offers substantial information on what readiness means and why it is important. This documented information is critical because it is known to the researchers in humanitarian operations that data is hard to come by.

The framework for readiness proposed at the end of this article is context the emergency responder probably uses in an informal fashion. The validation of readiness framework, we find exists in the supporting literature we review.

The understanding of readiness metrics for humanitarian operations for the organizations we study may offer insight into other HOs. The insights we gain may not be pivotal or counterintuitive to the conclusions based on commonsense. However, they are supported by the literature review. We formalize the concept based on conclusions of a set of diverse set of researchers and practitioners such as academic scholars, DoD personnel and government officials involved in humanitarian missions, USAID representatives that are repeatedly tasked for being ready, military and government officers from host and foreign countries and many more.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the needs of the supply-chain (SC) network when coping with permanent and temporary demands, this paper analyzes the Swedish emergency preparedness SC network. This network comprises planning procedures and resources, as well as numerous organizations and other participants in civil society that take part in the system to cope with threats and ongoing crises. Planning constitutes a critical infrastructure because the system must develop the ability to shift SC functions from permanent to temporary networks in ongoing crises and war.

A research study is performed based on data gathered by three qualitative methods concerning the SC network of emergency preparedness planning.

This study demonstrates the relevance of a wide empirical field challenging several theoretical perspectives of the SC network in preparedness planning and the shift to ongoing crises. Further research targeting key capabilities is needed to further improve understanding of the challenges for developed countries in managing potential threats and crises.

Actors taking part in the preparedness system have found it challenging to coordinate. Due, in part, to the lack of a common threat profile, key capabilities remain outside preparedness planning, e.g., military, commercial and voluntary actors as well as unclear and inconsistent regulations. Thus, building the SC network demonstrates the need to target the military, the voluntary and commercial sectors and their ability to develop the networks in preparedness planning. In a reformed system, all actors must strengthen civil defense in an all-hazard approach, which in planning encompasses the entire threat scale, demonstrating key functions and the ability to shift to temporary networks responding to ongoing crises, including war.

The purpose of this paper is to identify how coordination has evolved in humanitarian logistics (HL), what were the triggers for change and how have they been facilitated.

This paper applies a systematic literature review of academic journals.

This is the first paper to discuss the concepts of network orchestration and choreography in a humanitarian context. The research revealed that network coordination has moved on in the commercial sector to include orchestration and now, choreography concepts which have not been tested in HL literature. This reveals a lag exists between HL research and practice.

This paper represents an exploratory study and provides the basis for further research on the concepts of orchestration and choreography in HL. The paper sets a research agenda for academics.

This paper is the first to discuss the concepts of network orchestration and choreography in a humanitarian context.

The areas of orchestration and choreography have received limited consideration within the humanitarian aid logistics literature to date. This paper is designed to redress this shortfall. As a result, it is hoped that it will act as a catalyst for further research and to widen and deepen the resultant debate with a view to improving the outcome for those affected by current and future disasters.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the need for an entity to manage airborne relief when a nation’s civil aviation authorities are overwhelmed or incapacitated due to a major rapid-onset disaster.

The paper examines why relief airflow management was so vital during the 2010 Haiti earthquake and how this management was accomplished. The author uses a case study methodology that includes interviews with logistics and aviation experts within the humanitarian and military communities involved in the Haiti relief effort.

The research highlighted an airflow management capability gap within the humanitarian community. The author sets forth several possible alternatives for resolving this gap.

The research is a single case study of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. While performing a multiple case study may have provided more widely applicable conclusions, this case study provides in-depth information applicable to the worst of disasters, where an airflow management capability is most likely to be needed.

While host nation civil aviation authorities retain responsibility for airspace/airflow management after a disaster, these can oft be overwhelmed by the volume of airborne relief flooding the area. Without an entity to assist the affected nation with airflow management, smooth logistical flow of relief goods to those in need can be catastrophically impeded.

Little research exists on disaster relief airflow management or the legitimate need for this capability to be developed within the humanitarian community.

The purpose of this study is to analyse the crisis network response of European countries and the role played by defence organizations (DOs) during the early response phase of the pandemic, here set to encompass 75 days.

Published materials – reports, news and communications – provided by authorities and DOs were used. Some of the authors actively participated in national pandemic response networks. An exploratory approach and qualitative content analysis were applied. The data were collected in national languages from 13 European countries, and they were coded and analysed using the actors, resources and activities (ARA) framework.

This study identified three main categories of activity structures in which the DOs interacted with civilian members of response networks, health-related services, logistics services and public support services. These networks among actors were found within formal response systems and emergent networks. The DOs engaged as actors that provided a range of services when civil authorities could not cope with the huge demand for specific services and when resources were scarce in the initial response phase.

This study contributes by filling an important research gap with regard to the civil-military relations associated with the use of DO resources in the civil response to the pandemic crisis in Europe, which is described as an untraditional response. The ARA network approach provides a framework for arranging ARA and extends the wider civil-military network to expand the formal networks of the early crisis response. The study lays knowledge about the co-operation between civilian and military actors in different contexts and provides a broader understanding of the roles that DOs played in the response operations.