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The purpose of this paper is to study whether a fast supply network structure interacts with customer integration (CI) by positively moderating the relationship between CI and efficiency performance.

The authors developed two hypotheses, incorporating dimensions of CI, fast supply network structure and efficiency performance. The hypotheses are tested through a hierarchical regression analysis using data from a sample of 200 manufacturing plants.

CI alone is not enough to guarantee cost reductions because a fast supply network structure acts as a moderator of the CI‐efficiency relationship. The role of this moderator is twofold. On the one hand, it interacts with CI, strengthening the positive impact of CI on efficiency through a positive complementary effect. On the other hand, if the supply network structure is not intended to support fast lead times, the impact of CI on efficiency can be hindered and, in extreme cases, CI can even make efficiency worse.

Efficiency maximization requires levering simultaneously on CI and the supply network structure, rather than investing and acting on CI only. Managers should carefully weigh up the supply network structural context before embracing a CI program, because adopting CI in a wrong context could amplify a series of problems (e.g. nervousness of plans) and offset CI benefits in terms of efficiency.

This study provides an original contribution to the literature on the relationship between CI and efficiency by adopting a contingency perspective, namely assuming that the relationship between supply chain practices and performance is contingent upon how supply networks have been designed. Accordingly, this research questions the assumption that CI always improves efficiency, by analysing the complementary effect between CI and a fast supply network structure. This provides a number of original implications for the interpretation of the relationship between CI, supply network structure and efficiency.

This paper aims to investigate the moderating effects of the role a plant plays in a manufacturing network on the relationships between its level of integration with other plants in the same manufacturing network (referred as “internal manufacturing network integration” in this paper), its interactions with suppliers/customers (referred as “external supply chain integration” in this paper), and its operational performance.

This paper is based on the data from the sixth version of International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS VI). Specifically, this paper uses a subset of the IMSS VI data set from the 606 plants that identified themselves as one of the plants in a manufacturing network.

The results demonstrate plant role has a moderating effect on the relationship between internal manufacturing network integration and external supply chain integration, but not on the relationship between external supply chain integration and operational performance. Our research also highlights that plant role moderates the mediating effect of external supply chain integration on the relationship between internal manufacturing network integration and operational performance. More importantly, it indicates that if a plant wants to significantly increase its operational performance, it will have to strengthen its linkages with supply chain partners, no matter which role it plays in manufacturing network.

This paper supplements the existing research by developing further understandings on the relationship between internal manufacturing network integration, external supply chain integration and operational performance. Specifically, it examines the influence of plant role on such relationship and reveals the essence about in what context (in terms of plant characteristics) internal manufacturing network integration influences the operational performance of a plant in a manufacturing network through external supply chain integration.

This paper aims to deliberate about the problem of tight and seamless integration in a supply chain by conceptualising and understanding how looseness and its creation represent an effective supply chain design.

This research is grounded in system theory and industrial network research, while the case study of a textile and garment supply network coordinated by a third party in Mexico empirically illustrates how looseness in the supply chain may be created. The information gathered through in-depth interviews with critical informants at Aztex and three of their suppliers, visits in situ and secondary information, was organised with the template analysis technique and interpreted from three different but complementary perspectives, system theory, supply chain coordination modes and industrial networks, to establish the particularities of the triad model.

The study shows that supply chain integration may take place in a variety of forms, and that new theoretical perspectives are required to understand how the looseness in the connections among actors contributes to the flexibility and efficiency of the chain. Additionally, the analysis of the case puts forward the trader’s crucial role as linking pin between suppliers and customers in the specific context of the garment sector.

Additional cases and triangulation of information from traders, suppliers and customers would contribute to explore in more detail how integration takes place not only in the textile and garment industry sector but also in other industries.

A rational explanation of why establish full integration across several tiers of suppliers and customers is too difficult to attain is given to managers. They may recognise that tight couplings will be necessary and possible only with strategic counterparts; meanwhile, others are more suitable to be delegated to a third party.

The economic and industrial stability and progress of low-cost sourcing countries depends on the selection of international purchasers. The advancement of triangle manufacturing facilitated by a trader may become another criterion to drive the selection towards a region. In the case of Mexico, this adds to the near sourcing advantages of the country.

The research confirms that there is no unique global mode of supplier integration and suggests that different approaches are viable as long as the objectives of operational efficiency, good customer service and flexibility are satisfied.

The aim of the current study is to develop an understanding of the decisional process that leads a company, at a given point in time, to choose the subsequent supply chain management (SCM) initiative to be implemented.

This research adopts the descriptive case study research design, as defined by Yin and McCutcheon and Meredith. Four supply networks, whose central firms are leading pharmaceutical companies, have been investigated.

At a given time when deciding the SCM initiative(s) to be implemented, external fit and the state of supply network configuration and integration are both important, but for different reasons. In particular, lack of external fit triggers the implementation of SCM initiatives. Sequences of SCM initiatives are the result of a series of successive decisional situations, where the external fit and state of supply network configuration and integration vary each time a new SCM initiative is implemented.

The research is descriptive. Further research is required to develop a theory on the sequences of SCM improvement initiatives.

Managers contemplating the implementation of SCM interventions should consider the current performance conditions for competitiveness and compare them with the measured supply network performances, decide what SCM initiatives should be implemented after considering the current state of the supply network configuration and integration and performance dimensions to be improved, and measure the impact (positive and negative) of the implemented initiatives on supply network performance to evaluate whether or not to implement further initiatives. Moreover, if managers are able to forecast the potential performance trade‐off associated with the implementation of the selected SCM interventions, long‐term improvement programmes encompassing further SCM initiatives over time can be planned to counteract the trade‐off penalty.

This study refines current literature on the sequences of improvement in supply networks, by demonstrating that the state of supply network configuration and integration is not enough to explain the decisional process that leads a company to follow a well‐defined sequence. The paper also explores how the external fit affects the adoption of the following SCM initiatives, thus proving that SCM sequences cannot be considered context‐free.

This study investigates the extent to which structural equivalence between acquiring and target firms is associated with post-merger and acquisition (M&A) performance—a relationship that is proposed to be moderated by industry-level vertical relatedness between acquiring and target firms.

Applying social network analysis and regression, this study analyzes a buyer–supplier relationship network dataset of 279 M&A deals completed between 2010 and 2017 to test the hypotheses. Structural equivalence is measured as the proportion of common customers and suppliers between an acquiring firm and a target firm.

Supporting a view about the importance of supply chains in explaining M&As outcomes, the results suggest that the structural equivalence in the supplier network is positively associated with post-M&A firm performance. The results also show that the effect of the structural equivalence in the customer network is moderated by vertical relatedness between two merging firms (i.e. structural equivalence contributes to post-M&A performance when vertical industry relatedness is high).

This study contributes to the M&A and supply network literature by investigating the performance implications of structural equivalence in supplier and customer networks, demonstrating the importance of taking a supply chain view when explaining M&As outcomes. Specifically, the authors suggest considering structural equivalence as a new type of relatedness between merging firms (i.e. relatedness in network resources in explaining post-M&A performance). It also indicates how industry-level vertical resource relatedness, which is about relatedness in internal resources between the two firms, could interact with firm-level network resource relatedness, which is about relatedness in external supply chain resources between the two firms, in affecting post-M&A performance.

The purpose of the paper is to develop a conceptual framework for improving the effectiveness of risk management in supply networks following a critical literature review.

A critical review of 91 scholarly journal articles published between 2000 and 2018 supports the development of an integrated conceptual framework.

The findings emphasize that supply chain integration (SCI) can have both a positive and negative impact on the effectiveness of risk management in supply networks. It is possible to have a positive effect when SCI can be used to develop competencies in joint risk planning within the organization and with wider supply network members and, in turn, to develop collaborative risk management capabilities. Supply network characteristics can influence whether and the extent to which SCI has a positive or negative impact on risk management effectiveness.

The conceptual framework can be used to empirically assess the role of SCI for effective risk management. Dynamic evaluation of the effectiveness of risk management and potential redesign of the supply network by considering other contingent factors are some future research avenues.

There is a need for developing specific competencies in risk planning within organizations and joint risk planning with supply network members which, in turn, can help develop collaborative risk management capabilities to improve the effectiveness of risk management in supply networks. Network characteristics will influence whether and the extent to which SCI results in the effectiveness of risk management.

Moving beyond recent (systematic) reviews on supply chain risk management, this study develops a novel conceptual framework interlinking SCI and the effectiveness of risk management while considering network characteristics.

The financial supply chain, running parallel to the flow of goods and information, is common to all economic supply networks, and its integration with the physical supply chain is therefore a critical and ubiquitous aspect of supply chain integration (SCI) largely ignored in the literature. This paper aims to develop a model of physical and financial SCI, which is based on a process view from both buyers' and suppliers' perspectives, and explores the role of banks in enabling SCI.

The paper reports an exploratory study of the role of banks in improving SCI, by presenting a case study analysis of two international banks.

The findings show that banks can support buyers and suppliers by contributing to the enablers of SCI, namely coordination, collaboration, information sharing and information visibility.

The research is limited in that it is explorative; further studies are required in order to quantify the impact of banks' interventions on SCI.

Improved SCI requires an understanding of the flow of physical and financial resources across supply networks. Banks can help buyers and suppliers develop a more holistic understanding of the supply chain, thus improving integration and optimising working capital.

The paper presents a process model of physical/financial SCI which uniquely recognises the role of banks in enabling buyers and suppliers to improve SCI, synchronisation and performance.

This paper's aim is to develop an understanding of how responsiveness in a supply network may be approached from a combined relationship marketing (RM) and supply chain management (SCM) view in a complete seafood supply network context.

The paper takes the form of a case study of the upstream part of an integrated supply network from broodstock to predominately export sales.

Developing responsiveness involves two types of competence; technically generating value through the supply network through product transformations and knowing what the end‐user perceives as value. SCM is proposed as generating value through technical product‐transforming processes while RM as facilitating customer sensing through developed conceptions of value perception in the context of business relationships. Intertwining SCM and RM competencies to achieve responsive product supply is proposed by using Alderson's largely unnoticed transvection understanding of complete marketing channels.

The paper is a novel combination of business management fields evoking differences and complementarities to develop business relationships through intertwining RM and SCM to secure value realisation from an end‐user perspective from a multi‐tier supply network perspective. In business practice this approach provides a mindset and some developed models useful in both strategic planning of a company's role in a wider supply chain setting as well as guidance regarding the purpose of cross‐functional teamwork in operations.

The idea of implementing supply chain management (SCM) principles for the construction industry was embraced by construction stakeholders to enhance the sector's performance. The analysis from the literature revealed that the implementation of SCM in the construction industry enhances the industry's value in terms of cost-saving, time savings, material management, risk management and others. The construction supply chain (CSC) can be managed using the pull or push system. This chapter also discusses the origin and proliferation of SCM into the construction industry. The chapter revealed that the concept of SCM has passed through five different eras: the creation era, the use of ERP, globalisation stage, specialisation stage and electronic stage. The findings from the literature revealed that we are presently in the fourth industrial revolution (4IR) era. At this stage, the SCM witnesses the adoption of technologies and principles driven by the 4IR. This chapter also revealed that the practice of SCM in the construction industry is centred around integration, collaboration, communication and the structure of the supply chain (SC). The forms and challenges hindering the adoption of these practices were also discussed extensively in this chapter.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a more precise conceptual understanding of the interplay between food product traceability and supply network integration.

A resource‐based network approach was used to create a framework with empirical evidence from a fresh strawberry product case.

A conceptual model describes product traceability as interacting with different organizational and informational resources.

This is a preliminary model that substantiates a cross‐functional approach teamwork‐based to developing product traceability.

The study shows developing food product traceability as a complex undertaking dependent on information connectivity including a technical aspect of supply chain integration, and different forms of knowledge, an organizational aspect of supply chain integration.