Volume 5• Number 1 • January - June 2012
AN EVALUATION OF THE VARIABLES AND
TERMINOLOGIES EMPLOYED IN THE CONSTRUCTS
OF SCM PRACTICES
Eliciane Maria da Silva
Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP)
eimsilva@unimep.br
Mario Sacomano Neto
Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP)
msacomano@unimep.br
Sílvio Roberto Ignácio Pires
Methodist University of Piracicaba (UNIMEP)
sripires@unimep.br
ABSTRACT: The main aim of this study was to conduct a meticulous analysis of which words or terms are
used in the variables that best represent the concepts of SCM practices. The research conducted can be classified as being of a descriptive, exploratory and qualitative character. The search of the articles was made in
the Scopus and Web of Science. The final sample was composed of 51 articles, drawn from 18 periodicals. For
analysis, the definition of a construct was taken as the base, its relation with manifested variables and words or
terms most used and coherent with the definition of the concepts and the contexts in which these terms were
applied. A total of 639 variables that defined constructs, were transcribed. Similarity is noted in the employment of their variables and common use of words in the definition of the concepts. However, the constructs
possess different nomenclatures. Therefore, confusion is present in the studies analyzed. The study sought to
contribute to greater discernment of the concepts, making a critical reflective understanding of the practices
in the area. It was raised in the subsections of the discussions that the authors used the same terms in different
contexts. It was pointed out the future prospects for formation of the concepts, showing how such constructs
are being modified and perfected by means of the introduction of theories, such as the theory of Transaction
Cost Economics, the Resource-Based View, Agency Theory, and Knowledge-Based Theory.
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and business performance (e.g., Bozarth, Warsing,
Flynn, & Flynn, 2009; Flynn, Huo, & Zhao, 2010;
Fynes, Voss, & Búrca, 2005b; Li et al., 2006; Tan, Kannan, Hsu, & Leong, 2010). Consequently, there has
been an evolution and dissemination of concepts in
the area, whose studies use a large number of variables relating to the supply chain and business performance, besides employing different nomenclatures for the definition of similar concepts.
1. INTRODUCTION
In the last few decades, the literature about Supply
Chain Management (SCM) has frequently advocated that the level of integration, upstream and downstream integration, in a supply chain is an important
factor in a company’s business strategy, as highlighted in Frohlich and Westbrook (2001), Li et al. (2006)
and Mackone-Sweet and Lee (2009). Thus, a high
level of integration in the supply chain can lead to
better performance, which requires joint execution
of activities, functions and management throughout the supply chain (Narasimhan & Jayaram, 1998;
Vickery, Jayaram, Droge, & Calantone, 2003). Various studies have sought to identify the impact of
joint practices in the supply chain on operational
Additionally because SCM is truly a functionspanning discipline, research streams are developing within the journals in several different disciplines (eg. Operations, Marketing, Logistics). The
increased research attention, when combined with
research streams in several functional areas, is lead-
1
2
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ing to an increase in the quantity of terms, concepts,
models, and taxonomies used in literature. And because authors in one discipline may not be familiar
with the research in other disciplines, confusion and
a lack of consistency has developed within our literature. This problem can also exist in practice as
well, as different firms within a supply chain may
use their own internally and culturally developed
terminologies, concepts, and acronyms as they try
to increase collaboration within their supply chains.
The use of many different terms could be hindering
the effective implementation of supply chain practices within a firm and between firms in the supply
chain. Therefore, it is important to try and develop
taxonomies that can be more widely used by academics and practitioners to advance this area. In this
sense, meticulous analysis of terms and constructs
makes a relative contribution to this field of study.
At present, there has also arisen some research concerned with creating taxonomies (classifications) of
the concepts in the area. However, the number of
studies is still relatively limited. For example, Mckone-Sweet and Lee (2009) developed a taxonomy
of strategies, involving concepts of organizational
capabilities (employing concepts of co-ordination,
planning, involvement of suppliers and consumers), and internal capabilities (using information
technology), in an empirical study of 212 firms. The
taxonomy developed was composed of three levels
of implementation of organizational capabilities and
information technology. The results revealed that
these two practices are complementary, and, when
employed jointly, they contribute to improvement
in performance, especially in the dimensions of cost,
quality, delivery and flexibility. Nevertheless, such
study only went into depth on these two themes (organizational capabilities and internal capabilities),
analyzing the taxonomy for three implementation
levels. Also, they used traditional performance measurements in manufacturing strategy. On the other
hand, in the study by Arzu Akyuz and Erman Erkan
(2010), a literature review is presented about performance measurements in the supply chain. Such
study contributed to the taxonomy of concepts,
made a detailed description of the 24 articles selected and brought prospects for future research. These
authors classified the articles evaluated into six subgroups with common themes. The discussions dealt
with current problems of performance measurement
systems, the requirements of adequate metrics, the
importance of Balanced Scorecard and the SCOR
model, and the importance of alignment in the per-
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
formance measures in the supply chain. Among the
conclusions and suggestions for future research, the
cited study reinforces that it is evident that there is
immaturity in the models and frameworks developed, and that more research effort is necessary in
this area.
In turn, Vanpoucke, Boyer and Vereecke (2009) created a taxonomy with three types of information
flow strategies among firms, through analysis of 112
strategic alliances among suppliers and consumers
linked to a main company. Among the results, it is
revealed that the integration of information in strategic alliances is not very advanced, as the firms do
not invest in technology to integrate information,
and there is no single integrated system. Despite
bringing significant contributions to academia and
management practice, their study goes deeply into
only one Supply Chain Management subject, that is,
the integration of information among firms in strategic alliances.
Although there is growth in research, there are evident gaps in the creation of taxonomies of concepts
in the Supply Chain Management area, bearing in
mind the amplitude of the themes researched in various publications, such as: supplier evolution system (Chow et al., 2008; Dabhilkar, Bengtsson, von
Haartman, & Ahlström, 2009; Narasimhan & Das,
2001; Narasimhan & Jayaram, 1998), supplier development support (Carr & Kaynak, 2007; De Toni
& Nassimbeni, 2000; Sambasivan, Loke, & AbidinMohamed, 2009), supplier relationships or partnership (Chen, Paulraja, & Lado, 2004; Narasimhan
& Das, 2001; Sodhi & Son, 2009), communication
methods (Carr & Kaynak, 2007; S. W. Kim, 2009;
Paulraj, Chen, & Flynn, 2006), customer integration
(McKone-Sweet & Lee, 2009; Narasimhan & Kim,
2002; Robb, Xie, & Arthanari, 2008), among others.
Consequently, due to the amplitude of the themes,
there is also a dearth of research providing greater
understanding of the concepts. Such research motivated the development of this study which seeks to
answer the following questions:
• Which current practices are most employed in
empirical studies of the contemporary Supply
Chain Management area? Which variables best
define (or represent) the concepts in this area?
In order to answer these questions, the main aim of
this study was to conduct, in an exploratory manner,
a meticulous analysis of which words (or terms) are
used in the variables that best represent the concepts
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
of SCM practices. For this, a deep analysis was made
of research regarding practices and performance in
the supply chain. Matitz and Vizeu (2010) reported
that the concepts are mentioned and conveyed in
the form of terms, creating a dynamic specialized
vocabulary for the area, it being the responsibility
of the science to clarify the concepts that are part of
the definition of other concepts, seeking integration
among different theoretical levels. Furthermore, it
is reinforced by the referred authors that these concepts can create communicative problems when the
same term is utilized simultaneously by frameworks
of distinct references. Besides this, it is necessary to
consider the possibility of concept change, as knowledge of this phenomenon is perfected or modified.
The contribution of this work is centered on obtaining
a clearer definition of the concepts of Supply Chain
Management practices from the studies researched,
grouping them into broader, deeper concepts.
This study also contributes to methodological analysis by selecting and evaluating the most used and
coherent terms in defining the constructs and subconstructs into of the contexts in which these terms
were applied. Although there are various articles
that mention SCM practices and performance, no
taxonomy has been found of the concepts in the area
with analysis similar to that presented in this article.
2. RESEARCH DESIGN
The research conducted can be classified as being of
a descriptive, exploratory and qualitative character,
as it involved the analysis of words (or main terms
used in Supply Chain Management) found in the
concepts.
The search of the articles was made in the databases,
Scopus and Web of Science using the Boolean expression, “Supply Chain Management and Performance”, writing these words together and research-
3
ing from 1997 to 2010, since it is the period that practically characterizes the emergence and expansion of
the SCM concept in the literature. In the first search,
2,386 articles were found. Such publications were selected for analysis of the content of the summaries,
of the validation of the concepts and methodological
technique employed.
As regard to the analysis of the content of the summaries, we selected the articles that investigated the
effects of the supply chain practices on performance.
In sequence, we analyzed the full article and investigated if these articles validated the performance
and supply chain practice concepts by statistic techniques, for example Confirmatory or Exploratory
Factorial Analysis. Then these validated constructs
and its variables were transcribed to an electronic
spreadsheet for the data analysis. After the selection
of the articles, the final sample was composed of 51
articles, drawn from 18 periodicals (Table 1).
For analysis of the main terms most used in SCM,
the definition of a construct was taken as the base,
its relation with manifested variables and words or
terms most used and coherent with the definition of
the concepts.
According to Hair Junior et al. (2005), the construct
represents a concept defined in theoretical terms,
which, however, cannot be measured directly or
perfectly, but must be approximately measured
by variables (or indicators). These authors further
argue that the constructs of the first order are subdimensions of a broader more general construct, or
one of the second order. In a complementary manner, Matitz and Vizeu (2010) define that concepts of
a high degree of abstraction are called constructs,
as they are constricted from concepts of a lower
level of abstraction. Moreover, the cited authors
clarify that the concepts are conveyed by means of
words (or terms) that confer to them communicative materiality.
4
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
Table 1: Periodicals comprising the sample
Number of
articles
Periodical
Benchmarking
1
Decision Sciences
2
European Journal of Purchasing & Supply Management
1
IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management
1
Information and Management
1
International Journal of Hospitality Management
1
International Journal of Operations & Production Management
4
International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management
2
International Journal of Production Economics
5
International Journal of Production Research
3
Journal of Operations Management
13
Journal of Purchasing and Supply Management
2
Journal of Supply Chain Management
3
Knowledge and Process Management
1
Omega-International Journal of Management Science
4
Production Planning and Control
1
Supply Chain Management - an International Journal
5
Transportation Research Part E: Logistics and Transportation Review
1
Terms that most appeared in each construct were selected and transcribed to an electronic spreadsheet,
all the variables used in the definition of the constructs in each article published. In this sequence, a
meticulous analysis was made of each variable, finding terms of greatest use and coherence in the formation/definition of the constructs. A total of 639 variables that defined constructs of Supply Chain Management practices were transcribed. The analysis of
these variables resulted in the selection of the words
or terms most employed in the studies researched
in accordance with contexts in which these word or
terms were used. Also, the constructs were grouped
according to first and second order with similar definitions so that they could be understood and named
by means of more general, deeper concepts (Table
2). The constructs analyzed, despite being similar
in the construction of their variables, possessed different nomenclatures, which, at first, proves that
the area is still quite incipient in the formation of its
concepts, thereby making this an exploratory study.
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
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Table 2: Result of the analysis of the main terms that define SCM concepts
Development of
suppliers
Supplier
performance
evolution
General
concepts
Second-order
Constructs /
Authors
Purchasing
Practices [7]
Supplier Capability [2]; Supplier performance
evaluation [7] ; Formalized vendor rating/ranking
procedures [5]; Performance Evaluation [24]
Sourcing Decisions [2]
Supplier development support [23]; Supplier evolution system [3]; Supplier evaluation [28]; Supplier Management [41];
Operational
link [5]
Product/process development Supplier [5];
Supplier assistance and training [5]; Company’s
integration with suppliers [9, 33]; Co-operation
[18] ; Direct involvement [6];
Purchasing/supplier involvement [10];
Supply chain
Integration [9]
Supplier development support [23] ; Supplier
involvement—product development [20]; Supplier
management [41]; Supply chain practices [30]
Supply chain
Integration [9]
Communication
e Supply Chain
Integration –
SCI [42]
Management of supplier-customer relationships
First-order constructs/Authors
Supply chain
practices [30];
Supply Chain
colabboration
(SCC) [49; 50]
Company’s integration with customers [9, 38];
Customer integration [42]; Integration and customer service mgt. [30] ; SCM integration [9, 33];
Supplier integration [42]; Customer Involvement
[40]; Customer relationships [29]; Integration
[27]; Joint partnership management [34]; Level
of strategic purchasing [4]; Logistics integration
[20] ; Long-term orientation [15, 51]; Operational
coordination [26]; Purchasing integration [7];
Purchasing/supplier involvement [10]; Satisfaction
level [16]; Strategic purchasing [3, 4, 20, 29, 43];
Strategic supply management (SSM) [25]; Supplier
management [41]; Supplier communication (sc)
[4]; Supplier involvement in product development
[5]; Supplier involvement—general purposes [20];
Supplier relationship strategies [36]; Supplier relationships [29, 43] [28] ; Supply chain coordination
[17]; Supply chain integration [1, 2, 8, 17, 42];
Supply chain management practices [34, 37]; Trust
[19] ; Two-way communication [20, 31; 50]; Information sharing [17, 49, 50, 51]; Goal congruence
[50]; Decision synchronization [50]; Incentive
alignment [49; 50]; Resource sharing [50]; Collaborative communication [50]; Joint knowledge
creation [50]
Words or terms in the definition of the constructs/Authors
Certification [3, 5, 7, 24]; Demand [28]; Design [7, 28, 30] ; Evaluate [3, 6, 8, 23, 24] ; Feedback [6, 23, 24] ; Formal system [3] ;
Improve and performance [3, 4, 6] ; Inspection [28, 41] ; Modularization [7] ; On-time delivery [28, 37] ; Performance [3, 4, 5, 6,
15, 20, 24, 31, 40]; Quality [2, 5, 15, 20, 28, 30, 31, 41]; Price [28];
Reputation [28]; Reliability [2, 5, 28]; Schedule [7] ; Service [4, 5];
Technological [5]
Design [7, 9, 10, 15, 18, 19, 20, 31, 33, 39, 40]; Develop and product [5] ; Evaluate or evaluating [23] ; Feedback [23]; Information
sharing [15, 26, 30, 39]; JIT [30, 37, 39]; Problem [7, 23, 39] ;
Support or assistance [5, 10, 14, 23, 40]; Technical expertise or
technical support or technical assistance or technical skill [5, 23, 24,
50]; Tool [5]; Training [6]
Close relationship [43]; Communicate or communication or communicating [3, 4, 9, 17, 20, 29, 30, 31, 34, 37, 38, 39, 42, 43];
Competitive strategy [15, 20]; Cooperate [43]; Corporate strategy
[15, 20, 43]; Cross-functional or cross-organizational [3, 12, 20, 27,
42; 50]; Demand forecasts [42; 49, 50, 51]; Design and buyer or
design and costumer [18, 19, 26, 40]; Design stage [42]; Develop
and costumer [29, 40]; Face-to-face planning/communication [4,
43]; Feedback [9, 15, 28, 30, 31, 38, 40, 42]; Information sharing
or sharing system or exchange information [2, 7, 8, 9, 23, 26, 34,
36, 37, 38, 42, 43]; Integrated part [43]; Integration [20]; Inventory
[42, 49; 50, 51];Key supplier or limited pool of suppliers or major
supplier [3, 4, 15, 20, 21, 23, 25, 30, 31, 42, 43, 51]; Long-range
plan or long term [3, 4, 10, 11, 20, 22, 41, 43; 49, 51]; Major customer [42]; Modularization [5]; Network [42]; New product [3, 7, 20,
29, 36]; Ordering [42]; Partnership [43]; Process of procurement
and production [42]; Production capacity [42]; Production plan
[42]; Scheduling or production schedule [7, 29, 42]; Shares point
of sales (pos) information [42]; Sharing [8, 40]; Sharing of market
information [42]; Strategic goals [15, 20, 43]; Strategic need [13,
30, 37]; Strategic partnership [7, 9, 33, 42]; Strategic planning or
strategic plan strategic plans [3, 4, 10, 15, 20, 25, 43]; Strategic role
[15, 20, 43]; Technologies or technology [7, 9, 33]; Tool [19]; Trust
[7, 13, 34]; Trust [19]; Warehousing [20]; Relevante information
[50]; timely information [50]; accurate information [50]; complete
information [50]; confidential information [50]; agreement on the
goals [50]; importance of collaboration [50]; improvements that
benefit [50]; layout collaboration [50]; promotional events [50; 51];
product assortment; [50]; co-develop systems [50]; share costs [50];
share benefits [50]; share any risks [50]; incentive commensurate
[50]; collaborative processes [50]; share technical supports [50];
share equipments [50]; pool financial and non-financial resources
[50]; frequent contacts [50]; open and two-way communication
[50]; informal communication [50]; different channels to communicate [50]; discussion rather than request [50]; acquire new and
relevant knowledge [50]; assimilate and apply [50]; customer needs
[50]; jointly learn [50]
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
6
Table 2 (Continuation)
technology of information and communication
•
•
Supply chain
concerns [30]
SC IT Capabilities
[40];
Outsourcing
Outsourcing decision
factor [36]
Part characteristics [36]
Outsourcing drives [47]
Antecedents of Supply
Chain Learning [39]
Applied SCM Process
Knowledge [39]
Resources and capabilities in supply chain
Environmental Knowledge [39]
Knowledge-sharing
routines [48]
Learning [48]
SC Organizational
Capabilities [40]
Supply Chain Learning
[39]
Coherence and information systems
[30]; IT use for exploration [26, 40];
Advanced communication methods
(ACM) [23, 51]; E-procurement
technology [44]; Exploitation [26,
40]; Information technology [15, 20];
Information sharing [45]; Integrative
information technologies [12]; Internal
integration across the supply chain
[9, 33]; IT use for exploration [26];
Operational coordination [26]; Strategic
coordination [26], Supply chain
management practices [37]; Traditional
communication methods (TCM) [23],
Leveraging the internet [51]
Communicate [23]; Communicate [23]; EDI [8, 12, 23, 29, 32, 44];
EDI Capabilities [46]; Extranet [44]; E-mail [44]; Electronic Catalogs [44]; Electronic File Transferring [44]; Electronic Market [44];
Forecasts [45]; Information sharing [15, 26, 30, 39, 51]; Information
systems [12, 20, 30]; Integrate or Integrating or integration [9, 12,
26, 30, 33, 35, 37, 39]; Integrated or integration [20, 26, 40]; Internet
Auctions [44]; Inventory or raw material and finished good inventories or work-in-process inventories [45, 51]; Long-term strategic
plans [45]; New product [26, 45]; Search internet [44]; Strategic
planning [26]; Technology [15, 20]; Trust [30]; Video Conferencing
[44]; Purchasing material and services [51]; Selling products and services [51], material requirements planning (MRP) systems [51], ERP
systems [51], collaborative planning, forecasting, and replenishment
(CPFR) [51], activity-based costing (ABC) accounting methods [51]
Cost related outsourcing [47]; Flexibility
related outsourcing [47]; Innovativeness
related outsourcing [47]; Motives [36];
Part characteristics [36]; Quality related
outsourcing [47]; Supplier operating
capabilities [36]; Supplier relationship
strategies [36]; Time related outsourcing
[47]; Supply network structure [51]
Common work [36]; Core competencies—low cost [47]; Cost [36];
Cycle times [36]; Design [36]; Engineering/design [36]; Focus [36];
Higher volumes [36, 47]; Innovation [47]; Lead time [36]; Legal
costs [47]; Logistics costs [47]; Low wage countries [36]; New
technology [36]; Outsourced parts [36, 51]; Production plans [36];
Production processes [36]; Purchasing materials [36]; Quality [36];
Responsiveness [36, 47]; Specific labor [47]; Technology expertise
[36]
Applied SCPK-customers [39]; Applied SCPK-suppliers [39]; Behavior
control [48]; Commitment [39]; Communication [39]; Coordination [40];
Customer involvement [40]; Design
effectiveness [30]; Extent of use of integrative [39]; Interfirm social enforcement [48]; Joint decision-making
[39]; Knowledge-sharing routines
[48]; Learning encouragement [39];
Learning from the interfirm relationship [48]; Learning structure/
system/process [39]; Mechanism
within supply chain [39]; Operations
and distribution [30]; Output control
[48]; Planning [40]; Quality and service [30]; Relationship specific assets
[48]; Shared culture [39]; Supplier
involvement [40]; Trust [39]; Winwin approach [39]
Customer [39, 40, 48]; Delivery [39, 40]; Design [30, 39, 40]; Distribution [40, 48]; Forecasts [30, 39, 40]; high-quality products [30];
high-quality services [30]; Innovation [39, 40, 48]; inventory [30];
key customers [30]; key suppliers [30]; Know-how [40, 48]; lowpollution [30]; Marketplace [40, 48]; Performance [30, 40, 48]; promised delivery date [30]; Sharing information or Exchange Information
[39, 48]; timely [30]
Supply chain competence [30]
Note: [1] Vickery et al. (1997); [2] Narasimhan and Jayaram (1998); [3] Carr and Pearson (1999); [4] Carr and Smeltzer (1999); [5] De Toni and
Nassimbeni (2000); [6] Krause et al. (2000); [7] Narasimhan and Das (2001); [8] Dong et al. (2001); [9] Narasimhan and Kim (2002); [10] Carr an
Pearson (2002); [11] Kaynak (2002); [12] Vickery et al. (2003); [13] Kannan and Tan (2004); [14] Tracey et al. (2004); [15] Chen et al.(2004); [16]
Lin et al.(2005); [17] Kannan and Tan (2005); [18] Fynes et al. (2005b), [19] Fynes et al. (2005a); [20] Paulraj et al. (2006); [21] Li et al. (2006); [22]
Sengupta et al. (2006); [23] Carr and Kaynak (2007); [24] Krause et al. (2007); [25] Yeung (2008); [26] Sanders (2008); [27] Germain et al. (2008); [28]
Karim et al. (2008); [29] Robb et al. (2008); [30] Chow et al. (2008); [31] Paulraj et al. (2008); [32] Sharma et al. (2008); [33] Kim (2009); [34] Sodhi
and Son (2009); [35] Iyer et al. (2009); [36] Dabhilkar et al. (2009); [37] Hsu et al. (2009); [38] Kim et al. (2009); [39] Sambasivan et al. (2009); [40]
McKone-Sweet and Lee (2009); [41] Ou et al. (2010); [42] Flynn et al. (2010); [43] Fantazy et al. (2010); [44] Quesada et al. (2010); [45] Wiengarten
et al. (2010); [46] Tan et al. (2010); [47] Kroes et al. (2010); [48] Hernández-Espallardo et al. (2010); [49] Wiengarten et al. (2010); [50], Cao e Zhang
(2011); [51] Cook et al. (2011)
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
Definitions of the general concepts of SCM practices
Through theoretical review, analysis of the constructs of the first and second order and main words
common to the variables used by the authors researched, it was possible to group the constructs
into six general concepts, as presented in the first
column of Chart 2: (a) Supplier performance evolution; (b) Development of suppliers; (c) Management
of supplier-customer relationships; (d) Information
and communication technology; (e) Outsourcing; (f)
Resources and capabilities in supply chains. Below,
the definitions of such concepts are presented.
a) Supplier performance evolution. This concerns
the process of selection and evaluation of performance. The purchasing function is responsible for
executing these activities in conjunction with other
areas, such as quality and finance. However, each
sector has its specific way of making the performance evaluation. In the performance evaluations,
quantitative tools, dialogues with suppliers and indepth analysis of performance are used. Reports,
quarterly and annual evaluations are expected, as
well as recognition of the best supplier performances (Carr & Kaynak, 2007). In the performance evaluations, capabilities are often measured in terms of
cost, quality, reliability and flexibility (Narasimhan
& Jayaram, 1998). In a complementary manner, Narasimhan and Das (2001) state that the evaluation of
the suppliers concerns having the ability to modify
a product when necessary without excessive cost or
time penalties, responsiveness to schedule delivery
change, besides the skill to alter the production mix
and possess capacity for modularization of suppliers’ products.
b) Development of the suppliers. It is understood
as ample technical support for the key suppliers,
for example, investment in equipment, personnel
training, feedback from results, visits to the suppliers’ factories, and certification of the suppliers (Carr
& Kaynak, 2007). In turn, Carr and Pearson (2002)
named the construct, purchasing/supplier involvement, which indicates the involvement of suppliers
in the product and design process, in the support
to the suppliers for innovations in the development
of new products, involvement of the suppliers in
multi-functional groups.
c) Management of the supplier-customer relationships. This concept has a broad definition, which
may mean longer term interaction with greater
7
synergy between the suppliers and contractors, involving economic and behavioral questions, for example, confidence and capital investment (Narasimhan & Das, 2001). Yeng (2008) named this strategic
supply management construct, which is a long-term
undertaking, planned to create a database of accredited suppliers that will lead to benefits in supply
management. Sodhi and Son (2009) present the following practices for definition of joint partnership
management between the supplier and contractors:
existence of well-defined guidelines and responsibilities with specific partners, participation of suppliers in decision-making processes, existence of a
regular communication system, and the system of
division of risks and benefits. Paulraj et al. (2006)
named the concept of supply integration, which
represents critical integration of various key functions of the organization and occur through use of
the integration of information (organizational systems and communication from both sides), multifunctional teams, logistical integration, among others. The cited authors complement that the concept
involves strategic initiatives, and a long-term relationship with a limited number of suppliers. Nowadays, some authors call the management practices
of the supplier-customer relationships in broader
constructs of supply chain integration (SCI) (Flynn
et al., 2010) and supply chain collaboration (SCC)
(Cao & Zhang, 2011; Wiengarten et al., 2010). The
terms collaboration and integration are related and
often used interchangeably (Wiengarten et al., 2010).
The SCI concerns strategic collaboration with partners in the supply chain and collaborative management of the processes among the firms and in intraorganizational terms. The definition of the construct
includes the importance of strategic collaboration,
mutual achievement of strategic objectives, confidence, increase in the duration of contracts and encourages the settlement of conflicts, integration of
information, rewards and risks. Such integration involves a variety of activities aimed at administrative
tasks of transport and materials. It is to be stressed
that the construct, SCI is of the second-order, involving the sub-constructs, customer integration, supplier integration and internal integration (Flynn et
al., 2010).
On the other hand, SCC is defined as a partnership
process where two or more autonomous firms work
together closely to plan and execute supply chain operations toward common goals and mutual benefits.
Supply chain collaboration has seven interconnect-
8
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ing components: information sharing, goal congruence, decision synchronization, incentive alignment,
resources sharing, collaborative communication,
and joint knowledge creation (Cao & Zhang, 2011).
d) Information and communication technology.
These are technologies that facilitate the flow of information among participants and thus facilitate integration of the internal functional processes and integration among the firms (Vickery et al., 2003). They
involve traditional technologies, such as, telephone,
fax (Carr & Kaynak, 2007) and more recent technology like EDI (Carr & Kaynak, 2007; Iyer et al., 2009;
Vickery et al., 2003), ERP (Carr & Kaynak, 2007), ecommerce, application softwares based on the Internet (Iyer et al., 2009) and JIT, flexible manufacturing systems (Robb et al., 2008). Mckone-Sweet and
Lee (2009) and Sanders (2008) present the concept,
exploitation and exploration for the employment of
capabilities in Information Technology (IT). Exploitation means the use of IT to improve operational
efficiency, for example, via information exchange,
processing of production orders and inventory control. On the other hand, the term exploration concerns the use of IT to learn about the environment
and discover new ways of creating value in the supply chain, such as: becoming acquainted with and
making the markets uniform in order to seek new
potential sources, and aid the process of collaboration with suppliers and clients.
e) Outsourcing. In the sample researched, two studies were found that analyze the relation between
outsourcing and performance: the studies of Dabhilkar et al. (2009) and Kroes and Ghosh (2010).
Both studies define outsourcing based on the theory
of make-or-buy decisions, employing the theories
of the Transaction Cost Economics and ResourceBased View. Kroes and Ghosh (2010) add two more:
the Agency Theory and the Knowledge-Based Theory in the context of the supply chain. In summarized
form, according to Dabhilkar et al. (2009), and Kroes
and Ghosh (2010), the Theory of Agency means the
employment of outsourcing as a decision to delegate
responsibility to another organization (agent) that
can create a product or service more effectively than
the main firm (Kroes & Ghosh, 2010). Regarding the
Economics Theory of Transaction Costs, the adoption of outsourcing results in reduction in firm size,
that leads to an overall reduction in transaction costs.
Such a theory specifies the economic conditions that
an organization should manage when it produces a
product/service internally and externally (Dabhilkar
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et al., 2009; Kroes & Ghosh, 2010). Williamson (1975)
states that the decrease in transaction costs (or scope
of the firm) occurs by means of uncertainties, frequency and specificities of the assets. The vertical
integration can be explained by the different types
or attributes of the transactions that lead to different
forms of governance. The more complex and uncertain the attributes, the greater the possibility of vertical integration of the firm. In the ambit of the theory
of Resource-Based View, the key resources and core
business of the organization are evaluated, which
must be conducted internally as a counterpart to
other activities, for which outsourcing should be
employed (Dabhilkar et al., 2009; Kroes & Ghosh,
2010). Finally, the study of outsourcing employing
the theory based on knowledge refers to how much
knowledge (internal or external) generates competitive advantage for the purchasing firm (contractor)
(Kroes & Ghosh, 2010).
f) Resources and capabilities in the supply chain.
This construct is employed in the articles researched
involving three main sub-concepts: resources, learning, knowledge and capabilities.
Learning in the supply chain, according to Hernández-Espallardo et al. (2010), represents the knowledge and the capacity to create by means of learning originating from the supply chain’ relationship.
They are key resources that add value to the processes or products, strategic significance and competitive advantage. The outcome of the knowledge
gathered regarding the client’s needs is generally
due to the greater proximity to the final market, offering a more precise definition of the current demand and its dynamic, facilitating the suppliers’
decison-making in the market. The competitiveness
of the chain can evolve by means of the division of
knowledge, presenting improvements in terms of
service cost, cycle time, co-ordination of activities,
and, consequently, competitive advantage. Hernández-Espallardo et al. (2010) use two main concepts:
(a) output control, referring to the evaluation that
the client makes of the performance/results of the
suppliers or manufacturers in terms of the achievement expected for certain outcomes and progress in
the achievement of objectives, and; (b) behavior control, which concerns the exchange of opinions between clients and suppliers or manufacturers with
the aim of improving their activities. Sambasivan et
al. (2009) use the same thought when defining learning in the supply chain. According to these authors,
the learning originates from the stimulus given
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
to the members of the supply chain to share new
knowledge and ideas, as well as from the existence
of structure, processes and systems for the exchange
of new ideas. On the other hand, Mckone-Sweet
and Lee (2009) agree with the traditional perspective of the resources and capabilities (Amit & Schoemaker, 1993). These authors defined that “resources
are defined as productive factors that a firm uses to
achieve its business objectives, capabilities refer to
a firm’s ability to deploy these resources to affect a
desired end” (McKone-Sweet & Lee, 2009, p.4). The
conceptual framework developed by Mckone-Sweet
and Lee (2009) propose six dimensions of capabilities related to the supply chain strategy concept, in
which four dimensions refer to concept of organizational capabilities (coordination, planning, supplier
involvement and customer involvement) and two
dimensions refer to information technology capabilities (IT for exploitation and an IT for exploration).
When dealing with knowledge applied to the supply chain, Hernández-Espallardo et al. (2010) define
it as the transfer and internalization of it among
firms. It means the division of the knowledge related
to routines, so as to define regular patterns of business interaction, allowing the transfer, rearrangement or creation of specialized knowledge. Sambasivan (2009) introduced the concept of knowledge of
the environment, which concerns firms identifying
9
risks and uncertainties in the external environment.
Such authors argue that the uncertainties have been
recognized as one of the root causes of the difficulties in co-ordinating efficiency in the supply chain.
Although there is an effort to improve the demand
forecast, there are challenges in the competitive environment that affect the performance of forecasts,
such as: proliferation of products, short-life products and global expansion of markets and suppliers.
Finally, the concept of organizational capabilities,
employed by Mckone-Sweet and Lee (2009), concerning the capabilities the organization possesses
for co-ordination and planning in the supply chain
through the involvement of suppliers and clients .
This concept can also be based on the term, competence. Chow et al. (2008) adopt the supply chain
competence construct that refers to the capacity of
the supplier to respond to market uncertainties and
has skills for operations in the supply chain. Such
skills include sales forecasting, inventory planning,
supply chain speed and data accuracy.
The six general constructs are illustrated in Figure 1.
Next, discussions are presented regarding the variables (or terms) most used and of greatest coherence
for definition of the six constructs, as well as pointing out emerging theories in their formations.
Figure 1: SCM practices from 1998 to 2010: general concepts and some second-order constructs
10
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
Discussions of the results and perspectives for the
concepts of SCM practices
variables most used by the researchers to measure
this construct.
a.) Supplier performance evolution The term, quality
was the most frequently used by the authors in the
definition of this concept. Although this term has a
broad range of definitions, some researched studies
(por exemplo, Chow et al., 2008; De Toni & Nassimbeni,
2000; Paulraj et al., 2006; Paulraj et al., 2008) do not
conceive of quality in a specific manner. Others, like
Karim et al. (2008), conceive of its definition using
quite traditional approaches, for example, quality of
the product and reliability of the technical specifications.
This construct is mostly related to Supply Chain
Management practices. Basically, it involves cooperation, training and support in developing products, processes, and purchasing and delivery systems, with the suppliers. Thus, these practices vary
from the development of products to the collaborative practices and co-ordination of the logistics and
the supply chain.
Besides the criterion, quality, it is possible to identify that the evaluation of suppliers occurs via other
variables, according to the employment of words in
common in the definition of this concept (reliability,
certifications, distribution, among others) (Table 2).
Kim et al. (2010) developed a framework for evaluation of the suppliers in the chain based on the European Foundation for Quality Management. Among
the authors’ arguments for the framework for evaluation of the suppliers is the measurement of intangible results. Such authors argue that the intangible
results are key drivers of innovation and core values in the new economy. Besides this, the authors
cite that the evaluation criteria must consider the
specific nature of each supply chain: the mutuality,
the dynamic relations and joint effort for solution
of problems. They also consider that the key points
of evaluation of suppliers are leadership, commitment, co-ordination, confidence, communication,
techniques for conflict settlement, and capabilities.
In Table 2, it can be noted that these terms are not
presented in the variables of the studies researched.
The variables that measure this concept are aimed
at traditional variables and do not denote a partnership relationship in the supply chain. Future studies
could include the terms and concepts approached
by Kim et al. (2010) in order to evaluate a long-term
relationship between contractors and suppliers. This
result shows how quality occupies an important role
in the evaluation of supplier performance.
b) Development of suppliers: In this construct,
design was the most used variable in the works researched, meaning the involvement of suppliers in
the product development process. They also mentioned support, technical assistance and just-in-time
(JIT) as terms related with development of the supplier base. In Table 2, it is possible to observe the
c) Management of the supplier-customer relationships: Table 2 highlights the words of greatest use in
the definition, among which there are key suppliers
and communication. Moreover, in the definition of
this concept, one can observe words used more than
once by different authors. The word, feedback can
be used to represent various meanings. For example,
it is used in the supply (or exchange of opinions) of
results of performance on the product’s quality process or product development between suppliers and
contractors (Karim et al., 2008). Also, it can be used
to represent an exchange of information (opinions)
about performance in general, within the concept of
inter-organizational communication (Paulraj et al.,
2008). The same occurs with the practice of multifunctional groups that can be employed as much to
give support to strategic objectives aimed at innovation or total quality management (Vickery et al.,
2003) as to integrate communication among the different hierarchical levels and work units (functions
and processes) (Germain et al., 2008).
The term, information sharing is also used for information exchange in the process of new product development, to obtain knowledge about stock levels, delivery
periods and production schedules (Hsu et al., 2009).
Furthermore, in the definition of this construct, it is
possible to include variables of the constructs, strategic purchasing, communication and supplier relationship. Although some authors have employed
these constructs separately (for example, Carr &
Smeltzer, 1999; Fantazy et al., 2010), the understanding of such concepts involve very similar subjects.
For instance, in the definition of strategic purchasing, it is well established that the organization includes guidelines for the purchasing function in the
strategic planning, as well as long term planning for
material and service purchases, besides the fact that
the purchasing function possesses specific strategic
planning (Carr & Smeltzer, 1999; Fantazy et al., 2010;
Paulraj et al., 2006).
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
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In the supplier relationship, there appear variables of
the integration of systems and production planning,
adaptations in the production process, work in conjunction focusing on cost reduction and involvement in the
product development process (Dabhilkar et al., 2009),
besides product development with suppliers and integration of the production planning decisions. Robb et
al. (2008) include frequent communication with suppliers and a strong relationship with most of them. Karim
(2008) employs the inspection of products, integration
of information to improve the quality of the product,
awareness of the quality of the products supplied and
use of feedback from suppliers to develop new products. Fantazy et al. (2010), in turn, emphasize developing the relationship with a reduced number of suppliers, or the main ones, to improve the quality of the product and develop partnership programs. At this point, it
is perceived that the use of the variable, “involvement of
the suppliers in the strategic planning” is also included
in the concept of strategic purchasing.
In turn, the concept of communication involves integration of the main suppliers for frequent exchange
of information that is accurate and reliable. It also
involves frequent face-to-face communication with
the suppliers, besides engaging them in the strategic
planning process (Carr & Smeltzer, 1999; Fantazy et
al., 2010). The use of the variable, information exchange or information integration is also employed
in the concept, relationship with suppliers.
Furthermore, in the construct, communication and
supplier relationships, similar variables (or the same
main words and terms) of the construct, supply chain
integration (SCI), are frequently employed. Flynn
et al. (2010) report that the critical elements of the
SCI have a broad focus, able to involve integration
of flows of materials or parts of products, or even the
flow of information, resources and money. In defining the SCI, such authors consider the manufacturers (involving the internal integration), extending to
the integration of suppliers and consumers.
In bearing similarities in the definitions and employment of the variables, this study suggests a general
definition of this construct because of involving subconstructs of the constructs, strategic purchasing,
supplier relationship, communication and supply
chain integration. Thus, the construct would also involve the relations with clients, besides suppliers, as
presented by Flynn et al. (2010).
d) Information and communication technology:
Some recent studies analyze the effects of technolo-
11
gies involved in this construct on the performance of
the firm, based on the theories of Transaction Cost
and the Resource-Based View. For example, Tan et
al. (2010) validated the construct EDI capabilities and
studied its alignment with objectives of information
integration and business performance. Thus, future
studies could employ these theories in other emerging technologies, such as e-commerce, e-sourcing,
e-procurement and electronic auctions.
Also, as it deals with emerging technologies, more
studies are necessary for validation of specific concepts of practices in the supply chain functions and
information technologies in order to analyze their
effects on the efficiency of the supply chain processes. Among the studies researched, there was only
Quesada et al. (2010) that validated IT constructs,
aimed at e-procurement, procurement practices and
purchasing performance.
e) Outsourcing: In this concept, the use of the following are recent: theories of Transaction Cost
Economics and the Resource-Based View (RBV),
Agency Theory, Networks and Knowledge-Based
View. The perfection of the construct, outsourcing,
in these approaches, can lead to contributions for the
operations area. In the studies evaluated (Table2),
few terms in common are employed, although the
studies involve similar theoretical fundamentals.
For example, in evaluating aspects of outsourcing
in the RBV, Dabhilkar et al. (2009) use variables that
measure the capabilities of the suppliers when the
outsourcing is aimed at large volumes, design/engineering, operations in countries with low salaries
and little purchasing of materials. In turn, Kroes and
Ghosh (2010) verified access to specific labor and/or
technological expertise, the permanence of resources to focus on core competencies and acquisition of
new technologies.
In addition, researches evaluating strategic alignments and performance, on the basis of these four
theories, are still limited, requiring greater standardization of these concepts in the context of the
supply chain.
f) Resources and capabilities in the supply chain:
According to the articles analyzed, the theory of the
Resource-Based View (RBV) in the supply chain is a
field of knowledge quite recent in the area of SCM,
and is still little explored. In the review of the articles, 19 variables were found, in which only 9 words
were commonly used by the authors (Table 2). This
reveals that the definitions of the concepts and their
12
Silva, E. M., Neto, M., S., Pires, S. R. I.: An evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the constructs of SCM practices
use in this line are still not established, that is, are
undergoing formation and present an incipient
character. For a deeper fundamental understanding, it is suggested that future studies involve the
three sub-concepts found in the literature: Learning,
Knowledge and Capabilities.
Additionally, a clearer definition of the difference
between supply chain practices and capabilities
would be welcome. Wu et al. (2010) defined that operational practices are fairly standardized activities,
programs, or procedures that are developed to address the attainment of specific operational goals. On
the other hand, operation capabilities are “firm-specific sets of skills, processes, and routines, developed
within the operations management system, that are
regularly used in solving its problems through configuring its operational resources” (Wu et al. 2010,
p. 726). Therefore, the capabilities term has presented some subdivisions, such as the concepts of
operational capabilities and competitive capabilities. Kim (2006; 2009) advocated that non-imitable
internal resources and capabilities generate superior
rents and provide intensive competitive capabilities.
Kim (2009) developed four competitive capabilities
constructs for supply chain strategy: cost leadership,
customer service, marketing technology and differentiation. Although there are studies focused on the
capabilities concept, definitions from of the operations and supply chain field are still scarce.
Conclusions and limitations of the study
In the analysis of the constructs and sub-constructs of
the SCM practices, similarity is noted in the employment of their variables and common use of words (or
terms) in the definition of the concepts. However, the
constructs possess different nomenclatures. Therefore, confusion is present in the studies analyzed.
This article proposed to conduct a meticulous analysis in order to identify which practices in the supply
chain were most employed in the area, by the identification of the words most employed and greatest
coherence in the definition of concepts. From analysis
of the articles, constructs of the first and second order
were also found. Such constructs and terms were regrouped into six concepts of supply chain practices
defined in a broader, deeper form, according to the
grouping of the constructs and systematization of the
terms develops in Table 2.
The naming of six broader constructs (supplier performance evolution, supplier development, man-
ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
agement of relations: supplier-customer, information and communication technology, outsourcing
and resources and capabilities) provided a greater
understanding and a more appropriate positioning
of the concepts.
The study sought to contribute to greater discernment of the concepts, making a critical and reflective
understanding of the practices in the area by conducting a deeper evaluation of the variables and terminologies employed in the articles studied. In the
subsections of the discussions it was observed that
the authors used the same terms in different contexts,
what is relatively common in the area of operations
management, in which there is multidisciplinarity
of knowledge, skill and functions. The article also
sought to contribute by pointing out the future prospects for formation of the concepts, showing how
such constructs are being modified and improved
by the introduction of theories, such as the theory of
Transaction Cost, the Resource-Based View, Agency
Theory, and Knowledge-Based Theory.
On the other hand, the study also presents some limitations. The first concerns the exploratory method
of data analysis, which consisted in the meticulous
evaluation of the terms and variables employed in
the constructs, without the use of more technologically advanced methods and resources, as the terminological confusion was present at the theoretical base. Therefore, the Zipf´s bibliometric law (for
example, Bence & Oppenheim, 2004) was not totally
used in this study due to complexity of the concepts.
Also, the six more general constructs of Supply
Chain Management practices named in this work
are not exhaustive for all the practices in the area, as
two databases were used as criterion for selection of
the articles (Scopus and Web of Science), and the Boolean expression, “Supply Chain Managemen and performance” was entered in the search box. In addition,
the six constructs were not tested in this article by
means of empirical research in the true sense of the
word, although the sample of articles selected are all
empirical studies.
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ISSN: 1984-3046 • Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management 5 (1), pp 1 - 15
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AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY
Eliciane Maria da Silva is Assistant Professor in Methodist University of Piracicaba. She holds a PhD degree
in Production Engineering at the Engineering School of São Carlos (EESC), University of São Paulo (USP).
Her areas of interest are operations strategy, supply chain management, best practices and performance measurement.
Mario Sacomano Neto is Assistant Professor in Methodist University of Piracicaba. He holds a PhD degree in
Production Engineering at the Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR) and was visiting scholar at the
University of Chicago (2001). He holds a Master degree in Production Engineering at the Engineering School
of São Carlos (EESC), University of São Paulo (USP) and is graduated in Administration.
Sílvio Roberto Ignácio Pires is graduated and has a master and doctoral degree in Production Engineering
and more than twenty five years of professional experience as manager, consulting and professor of operations and supply chain management in Brazil, Switzerland, Spain, and France. Alongside he has been working for companies as Volkswagen, International Paper, SAP, Embraer and Vallourec-Mannesmann.