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1 – 10 of over 21000
Article
Publication date: 1 December 2001

William B. Wagner and Srinath Gopalakrishna

Industrial marketers must handle the problem of working in an environment characterized by supply shortages occurring on a regular basis. As customers continue to demand more…

1952

Abstract

Industrial marketers must handle the problem of working in an environment characterized by supply shortages occurring on a regular basis. As customers continue to demand more, tolerance for supply delays and out‐of‐stock situations has decreased. Customer service has taken on an increasingly important role and suppliers must do a better job in understanding the cause and impact of shortages when and if they arise. Accordingly, customer relationships must be reexamined. Discusses key issues for suppliers to consider in managing the marketing mix in shortage situations. Industrial marketers are developing and using new and better techniques to deal with the inevitability of shortage conditions that confront all companies regardless of size, industry or geographical location. Specifically, this paper overviews the basic principles of relationship marketing as they apply to shortages. It offers suggestions on how industrial suppliers can manage their marketing efforts more effectively when materials, parts, components or other supplies are short.

Details

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing, vol. 16 no. 7
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0885-8624

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Energy Economics
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83867-294-2

Article
Publication date: 28 September 2022

Victoria Ahlqvist, Nonhlanhla Dube, Marianne Jahre, Jin Soo Lee, Tsegaye Melaku, Andreas Farstad Moe, Max Olivier, Kostas Selviaridis, Joe Viana and Christine Aardal

This paper links supply chain risk management to medicine supply chains to explore the role of policymakers in employing supply chain risk management strategies (SCRMS) to reduce…

1079

Abstract

Purpose

This paper links supply chain risk management to medicine supply chains to explore the role of policymakers in employing supply chain risk management strategies (SCRMS) to reduce generic medicine shortages.

Design/methodology/approach

Using secondary data supplemented with primary data, the authors map and compare seven countries' SCRMS for handling shortage risks in their paracetamol supply chains before and during the first two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Findings

Consistent with recent research, the study finds that policymakers had implemented few SCRMS specifically for responding to disruptions caused by COVID-19. However, shortages were largely avoided since multiple strategies for coping with business-as-usual disruptions had been implemented prior to the pandemic. The authors did find that SCRMS implemented during COVID-19 were not always aligned with those implemented pre-pandemic. The authors also found that policymakers played both direct and indirect roles.

Research limitations/implications

Combining longitudinal secondary data with interviews sheds light on how, regardless of the level of preparedness during normal times, SCRMS can be leveraged to avert shortages in abnormal times. However, the problem is highly complex, which warrants further research.

Practical implications

Supply chain professionals and policymakers in the healthcare sector can use the findings when developing preparedness and response plans.

Social implications

The insights developed can help policymakers improve the availability of high-volume generic medicines in (ab)normal times.

Originality/value

The authors contribute to prior SCRM research in two ways. First, the authors operationalize SCRMS in the medicine supply chain context in (ab)normal times, thereby opening avenues for future research on SCRM in this context. Second, the authors develop insights on the role policymakers play and how they directly implement and indirectly influence the adoption of SCRMS. Based on the study findings, the authors develop a framework that captures the diverse roles of policymakers in SCRM.

Details

International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management, vol. 53 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0960-0035

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 16 February 2023

David Francas, Stephan Mohr and Kai Hoberg

Disruptions and shortages of drugs have become severe problems in recent years, which has triggered strong media and public interest in the topic. However, little is known about…

Abstract

Purpose

Disruptions and shortages of drugs have become severe problems in recent years, which has triggered strong media and public interest in the topic. However, little is known about the factors that can be associated with the increased frequency of shortages. In this paper, the authors analyze the drivers of drug shortages using empirical data for Germany, the fourth largest pharmaceutical market.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors use a dataset provided by the German Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (Bundesinstitut für Arzneimittel und Medizinprodukte [BfArM]) with 425 reported shortages for drug substances (DSs) in the 24-month period between May 2017 and April 2019 and enrich the data with information from additional sources. Using logistic and negative binomial regression models, the authors analyze the impact of (1) market characteristics, (2) drug substance characteristics and (3) regulatory characteristics on the likelihood of a shortage.

Findings

The authors find that factors like market concentration, patent situation, manufacturing processes or dosage form are significantly associated with the odds of a shortage. The authors discuss the implications of these findings to reduce the frequency and severity of shortages.

Originality/value

The authors contribute to the empirical research on drug shortages by analyzing the impact of market characteristics, DS characteristics and regulatory characteristics on the reported shortages. The authors’ analysis provides a starting point for better prioritizing efforts to strengthen drug supply as it is currently intensely discussed healthcare authorities.

Details

International Journal of Operations & Production Management, vol. 43 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-3577

Keywords

Abstract

Details

Energy Economics
Type: Book
ISBN: 978-1-83867-294-2

Article
Publication date: 1 November 2019

Abdul Lateef Olanrewaju and Arazi Idrus

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of the affordable housing shortage in the Greater Kuala Lumpur from the suppliers’ perspectives.

1739

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of the affordable housing shortage in the Greater Kuala Lumpur from the suppliers’ perspectives.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data were collected through a cross-sectional survey questionnaire comprising 21 determinants and 111 experts in the housing industry.

Findings

The affordable housing shortages are consequences of regulations and policies on land allocations, building materials and the affordable housing market. The government should provide more lands to the developers or the government should directly build affordable housing on their lands. To lower the cost of construction, the government should reduce the importation tax and procedures, and the housing industry should find alternative building materials.

Originality/value

Theoretically, the research provided fresh insights into the causes of housing shortages and reasons for the increase in housing prices. The results will be useful to policymakers towards affordable housing delivery and to the developers and contractors on measures to increase profit margins and increase housing supply.

Details

Property Management, vol. 38 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0263-7472

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 May 2014

Adelina Gnanlet and Hyun-cheol Paul Choi

Hospitals procure high volumes of medical supplies through large distributors in order to leverage economies of scale. However, when shortages hit, hospitals incur high penalty…

Abstract

Purpose

Hospitals procure high volumes of medical supplies through large distributors in order to leverage economies of scale. However, when shortages hit, hospitals incur high penalty costs by purchasing from secondary markets. In this paper, the authors counter the hospital's typical purchasing strategy that a collaborative relationship with a large, Tier I medical supply distributor is beneficial under all conditions. The paper finds that during shortages the more beneficial strategy is for the hospital to add a medium-sized, Tier II distributor who offers a transactional relationship and is willing to provide a “preferred allocation” in return for a pre-committed annual purchase contract. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors assume availability of order volume to be a stochastic process and formulate the problem as a two-stage stochastic programming model, with optimal allocation in the second stage. The authors analyze the first-stage objective function using full-factorial numerical experimentation and perform a complete search for optimal volume mix. In addition, the model accounts for purchasing relationship, shortage cost, and varying price discount schedules.

Findings

Under no shortage situation, hospitals purchase its entire order volume from Tier I distributor. However, during shortages, for any increase in preferred allocation from the Tier II distributor, hospitals purchase high volumes from the Tier II distributor except when preferred allocation and availability is high. The paper finds that the average cost savings for the use of preferred allocation is 16.14 percent.

Originality/value

Existing purchasing literature focusses on the benefit of using single/multiple homogenous distributors under all conditions. In this paper, the authors examine the benefit of using non-homogenous distributors under conditions of shortage when one of them is willing to provide preferred allocation under varying price discount schedules.

Details

Management Decision, vol. 52 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0025-1747

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 18 April 2023

Emilia Vann Yaroson, Liz Breen, Jiachen Hou and Julie Sowter

Medicine shortages have a detrimental impact on stakeholders in the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC). Existing studies suggest that building resilience strategies can mitigate…

Abstract

Purpose

Medicine shortages have a detrimental impact on stakeholders in the pharmaceutical supply chain (PSC). Existing studies suggest that building resilience strategies can mitigate the effects of these shortages. As such, this research aims to examine whether resilience strategies can reduce the impact of medicine shortages in the United Kingdom's (UK) PSC.

Design/methodology/approach

A sequential mixed-methods approach that involved qualitative and quantitative research enquiry was employed in this study. The data were collected using semi-structured interviews with 23 key UK PSC actors at the qualitative stage. During the quantitative phase, 106 respondents completed the survey questionnaires. The data were analysed using partial least square-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM).

Findings

The results revealed that reactive and proactive elements of resilience strategies helped tackle medicine shortages. Reactive strategies increased relational issues such as behavioural uncertainty, whilst proactive strategies mitigated them.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that PSC managers and decision-makers can benefit from adopting structural flexibility and proactive strategies, which are cost-effective measures to tackle medicine shortages. Also engaging in strategic alliances as a proactive strategy mitigates relational issues that may arise in a complex supply chain (SC).

Originality/value

This study is the first to provide empirical evidence of the impact of resilience strategies in mitigating medicine shortages in the UK's PSC.

Details

Benchmarking: An International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print no. ahead-of-print
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-5771

Keywords

Book part
Publication date: 25 May 2021

Anne Marie Thake

Purpose: The main objective of this study is to provide an overview of the extent of labor and skills shortages that exist in the information and communication technology (ICT…

Abstract

Purpose: The main objective of this study is to provide an overview of the extent of labor and skills shortages that exist in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector in Malta and gain insights into the dependency on foreign labor. Methodology: This study draws upon primary data generated from two research instruments, namely in-depth interviews and an online questionnaire. Various in-depth interviews were conducted with key institutional actors. In addition to the interviews, six locally based companies were requested to complete an online questionnaire. Secondary data from ICT surveys, official documents were consulted. Findings: Findings emerged from this study relate to each of the four seminal thematics, namely, demand and supply, rationale for employing foreign labor, wages, and challenges of foreign labor employment. Practical Implications: This study examined the current contribution of foreign labor in the ICT sector. Unsustainable growth in the ICT sector creates a demand for skilled labor which is currently not locally available. Significance: ICT is one of the most rapidly developing economic sectors in Malta. Labor shortages can slow down economic growth, if not addressed. The annual number of ICT graduates is insufficient. For this sector to continue to thrive and further consolidate itself within the Maltese economy, there will be a continued dependency on the importation of highly skilled foreign labor.

Article
Publication date: 18 July 2016

Paul H. K. Ho

With many large-scale infrastructural and residential projects in Hong Kong, the construction industry is suffering from serious labour and skill shortages. The purpose of this…

5797

Abstract

Purpose

With many large-scale infrastructural and residential projects in Hong Kong, the construction industry is suffering from serious labour and skill shortages. The purpose of this paper is to identify practicable strategies for resolving these problems, assess the effectiveness of these identified strategies and finally develop a conceptual labour supply model.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected qualitatively and quantitatively through discussion forums and questionnaire surveys. Comprising 30 expert members, two discussion forums were held to identify both practical response strategies and conceptual labour supply framework. Based on ten identified strategies, surveys were then conducted in the form of a web-based questionnaire. In total, 2,900 respondents were invited to take part and 438 questionnaires were completed. Grounded theory approach was adopted to develop a labour supply theory.

Findings

In total, three identified strategies which could deliver quick results to the industry were increasing worker wages, importing foreign workers and engaging employers to provide training. Other identified strategies were also effective over the medium and long terms.

Practical implications

Many of the identified solutions are enforceable. These are not only applicable to Hong Kong, but also transferable to other countries where voluntarily based measures under the free-market economy do not work in an effective manner.

Originality/value

Unlike previous studies largely relied on voluntarily based measures, most of the identified strategies in this study are enforceable to ensure its effectiveness. In addition, based on the grounded theory approach, this study has developed a conceptual model for analysing labour supply issues in both local and overseas situations, thus contributing to the new knowledge in this area.

Details

Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, vol. 23 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0969-9988

Keywords

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