Supply-Chain-Management-Project-for-MBA-Students, Logistyka, Logistics and Supply Chains
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Linköping Studies in Science and Technology
Dissertations, No. 1148
The Role of Top Management in
Supply Chain Management Practices
Erik Sandberg
2007
Department of Management and Engineering
Linköpings universitet, SE-581 83 Linköping, Sweden
© Erik Sandberg, 2007
“The role of top management in supply chain management practices”
Linköping Studies in Science and Technology, Dissertation No. 1148
International Graduate School of Management and Engineering, IMIE Dissertation No. 112
ISBN: 978-91-85895-34-2
ISSN: 1402-0793
Printed by: LiU-Tryck, Linköping
Distributed by:
Linköping University
Department of Management and Engineering
SE-581 83 Linköping, Sweden
Tel: +46 13 281000
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Acknowledgements
Since I started my PhD studies in March 2003, I have had a great time. I consider myself lucky to
have had a work I really enjoy, and people around me that I like. It is, however, now time to
finish my PhD studies and there are several people I would like to express my gratitude to. As the
structured researcher I have become, I have divided them into three categories. The first category
consists of friends and colleagues at the university:
•
My supervisors Mats Abrahamsson, Håkan Aronsson and Per Åman for all guidance and
support with my manuscript.
•
Fredrik Stahre, Dan Andersson and Maria Huge Brodin for giving extra comments when
most needed.
•
Kristina Dalberg for all help with the layout.
•
“Grabbarna på Logistik”, i.e. my PhD colleagues at the logistics division. Thanks for all
discussions about everything and anything.
•
All other colleagues in the Logistics Marketing Group.
The second category consists of Vinnova, the sponsor of my research, and the respondents to my
survey and interviewees at my case companies. Thanks for taking your time – I have learned a lot
from you!
The third group incorporates my friends and family. Thanks for all great family sessions at
Revsudden, vacations, dinners and board game battles with friends that have helped me to relax
and forget about my work. The most important person of all is, however, my wife Emma. You
have been there for me all the time throughout my PhD journey, and have given me such great
support. I love you!
Erik
Linköping in October 2007
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ABSTRACT
Supply chain management (SCM) has been discussed by researchers as well as business
practitioners for more than two decades now, but still surprisingly little of this philosophy can be
seen in today’s business practices. One important enabler for taking the SCM philosophy from
theory into practice that is often mentioned, but not investigated in-depth, is top management
support. The role top management plays in a company’s SCM practices could be an important
piece of research that is not yet in place in the big SCM puzzle. The purpose of this dissertation is
therefore to describe and explain the role of top management in a company’s supply chain
management practices. The purpose is approached with the aid of two studies, where the second
is partly built upon the findings from the first. The first study is an explorative, broad survey
study aimed at investigating how companies’ SCM practices, here limited to include a focal
company’s logistics collaboration with suppliers and customers, are performed. In the second
study, which is an explanative, multiple case study, the role of top management is investigated
more in detail.
The empirical foundation for the survey study is a questionnaire that was constructed based on
SCM literature. The questionnaire was sent in November 2004 to 482 logistics managers at
Swedish manufacturing companies and a response rate of 177 usable questionnaires (37.8%) was
achieved. Apart from purely descriptive statistics such as mean values, standard deviation and
frequencies, other tests were used such as factor analysis, cluster analysis, analysis of variance
(ANOVA), and cross tabulations with χ-square tests. The results are summarised into five major
findings, concluding that (1) existing collaborations are mainly performed at an operational level
in the companies, (2) there are differences in the focal company’s attitude and behaviour
depending on if the collaboration partner is situated downstream or upstream in the supply chain,
(3) increased intensity in the collaboration results in more positive effects, (4) top management
involvement is an important driver for increased intensity of the collaboration, and (5) top
management involvement in a dyadic collaboration is an important driver for increased
collaboration with supply chain members on the other side of the focal company.
The empirical basis for the multiple case study is three companies considered to be best practice
within SCM. In total 15 focused, open-ended interviews with members of the top management
teams were conducted during winter 2006-2007. All interviews were typed and transcribed, and
objective case descriptions with citations were thereafter written. The analysis includes separate
analysis of each case as well as cross case analysis. The SCM framework that was used in the first
study was complemented with a framework on business strategy theory in the second study.
More specifically, the analysis incorporates the positioning perspective, the resource based view,
and Mintzberg’s view on the strategy formation process.
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