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The purpose of this paper is to explore the evolving nature of supply chain management customised executive education over the past decade and present a conceptual framework for curriculum development and design.

The paper adopts a combination of methods utilising both in‐depth interviews with academics and practitioners and a single longitudinal case study based on records of 197 customised executive education programmes delivered since 2000.

The findings show that the needs of practitioners have evolved from acquiring competency‐based training to obtaining support for wider strategy deployment and change management programmes within organisations. Moreover, the design and delivery of programmes have developed over the period considering the requirements for experiential learning, project work involving deeper faculty engagement, pre‐ and post‐course project activity, supported by internet‐based learning portals.

The authors' research provides evidence that the nature of supply chain executive education has changed and that further research is needed to explore the implications for the delivery of programmes.

The adoption of the framework will provide course directors and programme managers involved in supply chain management executive education with insights for successful design and execution of programmes. Similarly, the framework can support decision‐making processes conducted by organisations commissioning customised executive education programs.

Although there is a body of research relating to curriculum development and design generally, there is little empirical research focusing on supply chain management executive education.

Motivated by a lack of studies in graduate level supply chain education, this research aims to explore trends in supply chain‐related graduate programmes in Europe and to propose a framework for designing such programmes.

The authors determine “knowledge” and “skills” areas applicable to supply chain management (SCM) education and analyse supply chain‐related graduate programmes published by the European Logistics Association in 2004. They revisit the same programmes in 2011 to determine the recent situation and the trends. The authors use cluster analysis to reveal the similarities and differences among these programmes.

The authors find two distinct clusters: focused and diversified. Focused programmes offer modules in knowledge and skills areas apart from SCM at a negligible level and place more emphasis on SCM in 2011 when compared to 2004. Diversified programmes show a similar increase in the emphasis on SCM with more variety in the knowledge and skills areas.

The authors' findings are based on SCM programmes delivered in Europe and over two discrete time periods. Future research should seek to extend this analysis to other continents with larger samples and incorporate the industry perspective to determine the potential gap between what programmes offer and what industry requires.

SCM‐related graduate programmes continue to redefine themselves. Clustering predominantly serves the universities in re‐assessing and re‐engineering their programmes, helps prospective graduates in their selection process and assists managers in their recruitment practices.

This paper establishes a baseline for assessing SCM‐related graduate programmes with respect to the knowledge and skills they offer and introduces a framework that may serve as a starting point for the design and positioning of such programmes.

The impact of supply disruptions from unplanned events can cause goods shortage, limited responsiveness and high opportunity cost thus compromising development aid programmes' achievement targets. These situations force humanitarian aid agencies to develop new strategies for effectively managing their supplies. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the foundation of humanitarian supply chain resilience through the development of an adapted Kraljic portfolio model.

Action research was used to adapt and validate the Kraljic portfolio model to the development aid context. The research team worked with a humanitarian aid agency in developing criterions and used Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP) in weighting those key criterions.

The adapted portfolio model was able to evaluate purchases done by the aid agency by incorporating different perspectives related to the strategic importance of purchase and supply vulnerability. In particular, development aid programmes require large supplies annually. Better classification offers improved visualisation of purchases, leading to a more precise adoption of mitigation strategies and policies to minimise supply disruption risks.

Adapting the Kraljic portfolio model is a stepping-stone to building humanitarian supply chain resilience. The proposed humanitarian supply chain resilience framework is based on the foundation that current humanitarian supply chain needs to be re-engineered. In order to re-engineer, the supply base strategy must first be revisited.

Many aid agencies do not have a holistic view on their purchases and commonly apply a transactional classification of purchases that only considers the consumption values. Purchasing strategies mostly focus on cost minimisation, whereas risk mitigations have been disregarded. The proposed portfolio model overcomes these drawbacks. Societal impact may be limited but development aid agencies will be able to offer more reliable aid delivery as part of their mandate.

The proposed portfolio model is among the first tool to guide humanitarian aid agencies to develop procurement strategies to alleviate supply disruptions and increase development aid programmes resilience.

The purpose of this paper is to utilize quality function deployment (QFD), Benchmarking analyses and other innovative quality tools to develop a new customer‐centered undergraduate curriculum in supply chain management (SCM).

The researchers used potential employers as the source for data collection. Then, they used QFD and benchmarking to develop a Voice of Customer matrix. Using information from the matrix, a new customer‐oriented SCM undergraduate programme was designed.

The researchers outline a practical solution to the problem of designing academic programmes which satisfy the main expectations of potential employers (customers).

The study is specifically concerned with the design of an SCM curriculum, but the researchers argue that the design methodology could be applied in other academic contexts.

The application of QFD and benchmarking as a joint analysis tool is an interesting approach in education because the information is analysed from different perspectives simultaneously. The new programme successfully meets customer/employer expectations and requirements.

This study demonstrates the effective application of quality design tools to enhance academic programmes. The approach can clearly be extended to other areas for the design of specific courses and programmes. The most important needs in programme design are those of identifying the programme's main customers and of clarifying their expectations.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework for analysing how humanitarian organisations (HOs) address different expectations regarding sustainability.

Quantitative and qualitative content analysis is used to assess the annual reports (ARs) of HOs for their discussions on sustainability overall, and in relation to contextual expectations, subsystems and supply chains, organisational structure and strategy.

HOs address sustainability primarily from the perspective of contextual expectations from society and beneficiaries. Some fits between supply chain design and societal expectations are attended to, but fits between programmes and contextual expectations are not discussed explicitly.

ARs express what organisations want to portray of their activities rather than being direct reflections of what occurs in the field, hence the use of ARs for the study delimits its findings. However, HOs rarely publish sustainability reports.

Even though there is a general pursuit of the elusive aim of aid effectiveness, organisational structures need to be further aligned with societal aims as to support these.

Beneficiaries are still seen as external to the humanitarian supply chain and humanitarian programmes, though their role may change with the introduction of more cash components in aid, voucher systems, and ultimately, their empowerment through these.

The suggested conceptual framework combines elements of contingency theory with a prior four perspectives model on sustainability expectations. The framework helps to highlight fits between the humanitarian context, operations and programmes as well as misalignments between these.

With the growing acceptance of logistics and supply chain management (SCM) as critical business concerns, there is an emerging realisation that more investment is needed to develop appropriate managerial skills and competencies for supply chain managers. This paper explores the challenges for management development that arise as organisations seek to bridge the gap between current capabilities and those required for future success.

Three constituencies were of interest to our research: providers of education and training, students and participants on programmes, and corporates who purchase programmes. A triangulated research approach was employed in order to capture the views of each of these constituencies. This comprised a focus group, interviews and surveys, and a case study of logistics/SCM development at one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies.

The key knowledge areas and competencies/skills required by logistics and supply chain managers are identified. Preferred teaching approaches are also identified, as are optimum approaches for career development. The subtle yet significant differences that exist among the three constituencies in the various areas and approaches are highlighted. The results thus constitute a tentative skills profile for the logistics and supply chain manager of the future.

The research provides a multi‐stakeholder insight, set in the context of the key business transformations which are shaping logistics and SCM practice, into the development of the supply chain manager of the future. Practical recommendations emerge for all stakeholders in logistics/SCM development practice. Recommendations for further research are also made, particularly for (from a methodological perspective) more case study research, and (from a research focus perspective) research into learning styles and also linking individual, organisational and supply chain learning.

In the past decade, there has been a dramatic decline in agricultural employment in Bulgaria and several reports have pointed at supply chain modernisation and poor milk quality as the main reasons for the dramatic decline in the number of farms. However, to date the policy debate is been based on ad hoc claims, while there is relatively little micro-level evidence. The purpose of this paper is to analyse the determinants of structural change in the Bulgarian dairy sector in the period 2003-2009.

This paper analyses the determinants of structural change in the Bulgarian dairy sector in the period 2003-2009, using a unique panel survey of 296 farm households in the North and South Central Region of Bulgaria. In order to control for sample attrition bias, the authors use a two-step Heckman model of farm survival and growth model.

The data confirms the rapid outflow of agricultural labour from dairy farming activities: 55 per cent of the farm households supplying milk to a dairy company in 2003 stopped supplying in 2009. The main reasons for quitting are ageing of the household, health problems and an increase in off-farm employment alternatives and not supply chain modernisation and milk quality standards. The institutional innovations which are associated with integration in modern supply chains, such as the provision of farm assistance programmes, have a positive impact on small farms’ growth.

The study is one of the first to use panel data to analyse the impact of standards on the survival and growth of small farms in value chains. The authors analyse the determinants of farm survival and growth in the Bulgarian dairy sector in the period 2003-2009, using panel surveys of 296 dairy farm households in the North and South Central Region of Bulgaria and panel data from interviews with dairy companies. The findings are relevant beyond the Bulgarian dairy sector as supply chain modernisation and changes in quality regulations are taken place in many other transition and developing countries.

Despite HIV being reported as one of the major global health issues, availability and accessibility of HIV services and supplies remain limited, especially in low- and middle-income countries. The effective and efficient operation of HIV supply chains is critical to tackle this problem. The purpose of this paper is to give an introduction to HIV supply chains in low- and middle-income countries and identify research opportunities for the operations research/operations management (OR/OM) community.

First, the authors review a combination of the scientific and grey literature, including both qualitative and quantitative papers, to give an overview of HIV supply chain operations in low- and middle-income countries and the challenges that are faced by organizing such supply chains. The authors then classify and discuss the relevant OR/OM literature based on seven classification criteria: decision level, methodology, type of HIV service modeled, challenges, performance measures, real-life applicability and countries covered. Because research on HIV supply chains in low- and middle-income countries is limited in the OR/OM field, this part also includes papers focusing on HIV supply chain modeling in high-income countries.

The authors conclude this study by identifying several tendencies and gaps and by proposing future research directions for OR/OM research.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first literature review addressing this specific topic from an OR/OM perspective.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the supply chain management (SCM) skills that support the sensing and seizing of opportunities in a changing business environment.

Based on the previous literature on the T-shaped model of SCM skills, data were collected through a mail survey among Australian business executives. The resultant skill sets are grouped along factors that support the sensing vs seizing of opportunities.

Interestingly from an SCM perspective, functional logistics-related skills are important to maintain competitiveness but are not the ones contributing to a firm’s ability to sense opportunities and threats, and to seize opportunities in a changing business environment. The authors, therefore, support the notion that supply chain managers should be managers first. Factual SCM knowledge is the solid basis, but otherwise only an entry requirement in this field.

Problem-solving skills, along with forecasting and customer/supplier relationship management, stand out as important components that support the ability of supply chain managers to sense and shape opportunities and threats in a turbulent business environment. This focus would tend to suggest the importance of supply chain integration and collaboration as management approaches. Other SCM skills from warehousing and inventory management to transportation and purchasing are more prevalent for maintaining competitiveness.

The results of the survey and the consequential analysis indicate that the content of tertiary-level educational programmes should be significantly reviewed to deliver two distinct (but partially overlapping) streams that focus on the generalist and functionalist managers who must work together in the management of the increasingly global and complex supply chains.

Functional skills often form the basis of training and education programmes for supply chain managers. Whilst these form the solid foundation for their jobs, they are entry requirements at best. In a changing business environment, other skills are needed for success. Given that turbulence is becoming the norm rather than the exception, this finding necessitates rethinking in training and education programmes, as well as in the recruitment of supply chain managers.

Testing the T-shaped model of SCM skills from a dynamic capabilities perspective, the results of the factor analysis lead to a regrouping of skill sets in terms of sensing and seizing opportunities in a turbulent business environment.

Supplier selection problem is the key process in decision making of supply chain management. An effective selection of vendors is heavily responsible for the success of any organization. Vendor selection problem (VSP) reflects a more practical view when the decision makers involved in the problem are present on different levels. Moreover, vendor selection consists of various random parameters to be dealt with in real life. The purpose of this paper is to present a decentralized bi-level VSP where demand and supply are normal random variables and objectives are fuzzy in nature. Decision makers are present at two levels and are called as leader and follower. As the next purpose, this paper extends and presents a solution approach for fuzzy bi-level multi-objective decision-making model with stochastic constraints. Different scenarios have been developed within a real-life case study based on different sets of controlling factors under the control of leader.

This study uses chance-constrained programming and fuzzy set theory to generate the results. Stochastic constraints are converted into deterministic constraints using chance-constrained programming. Decision variables in the bi-level VSP are partitioned between the two levels and considered as controlling factors. Membership functions based on fuzzy set theory are created for the goals and controlling factors and are used to obtain the overall satisfactory solutions. The model is tested on a real-life case study of a textile industry and different scenarios are constructed based on the choice of leader’s controlling factors.

Results showed that the approach is quite helpful as it generates efficient results producing a good level of satisfaction for the decision makers of both the levels. Results showed that on choosing the vendors that are associated with worst values in terms of associated costs, vendor ratings and quota flexibilities as controlling factors by the leaders, the level of satisfaction achieved is highest. The level of satisfaction of solution is lowest for the scenario when the leader chooses to control the decision variables associated with vendors that are profiled with minimum vendor ratings. Results also showed that higher availability of materials and budget with vendors proved helpful in obtaining quota allocations. Different scenarios generate different results along with different values of satisfaction degrees and objective values which shows the flexible feature of the approach based on leader’s choice of controlling factors. Numerical results showed that the leader’s control can be effectively incorporated maintaining satisfaction levels of the followers under various scenarios or conditions.

The paper makes a certain contribution toward the study of vendor selection existing in a hierarchical manner under uncertain environment. A wide set of data of different factors is needed which can be seen as a limitation when the available time is short for the supplier selection process.

VSP which is generally adopted by most of the large organizations is characterized with hierarchical decision making. Moreover, dealing with the real-life concern, the data available for some of the parameters are not complete, representing an uncertainty of parameters. This study is quite helpful for decentralized VSP under uncertain environment to reduce the costs, improve profit margins and to create long-term relationships with selected vendors. The proposed model also provides an avenue to explore the decision making when the leader has control over some of the decision variables.

Reviewing the literature available, this is the first attempt to present a multi-objective VSP where the decision makers are at hierarchical levels considering uncertain parameters such as demand and supply as per the best knowledge of authors. This research further provides an approach to construct scenarios or different cases based on the choice of leader’s choice of controlling factors.