Supply chain integration and firm competitive capability : an empirical study of the Thai automotive industry | |
| Author | Sakun Boon-itt |
| Call Number | AIT Diss. no.SM-06-10 |
| Subject(s) | Business logistics--Thailand Automobile industry and trade--Thailand |
| Note | A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | In a competitive global marketplace, it is necessary for firm to develop effective supply chain management involved in producing and delivering a final product from suppliers to end customers. Currently, a prerequisite for successful supply chain management (SCM) is the integration of information flow, material flow, and all the business processes within a supply chain network. However, firms typically tend not to be able to select a level of supply chain integration appropriate to circumstances and uncertainties they face. This research systemically investigates the causal relationships between supply chain integration and firm competitive capability. It aims to identify the most appropriate levels of supply chain integration under different circumstances using multiple regression analysis and Chow test technique. To this end, valid and reliable measures of supply chain integration, environmental uncertainty, and firm competitive capability were developed. The instrument development process included structured interviews and pre-test, a pilot study, and a large scale survey which yielded 15 1 responses from the Thai automotive industry. The findings of this research pinpoint the impact of level of supply chain integration on firm competitive capability. An appropriate level of supply chain integration (internal, supply, and customer integration) leads directly to a higher level of firm competitive capability. The findings reveal that although environmental uncertainty influences the relationship between the level of supply chain integration and firm competitive capability, it does not have any direct impact on the level of supply chain integration. The results of this study have several implications for practitioners. First, practicing managers could use the approach used in this research to identify the key dimensions of supply chain integration that a firm could implement. Second, the research highlights the importance of environmental uncertainty in implementing supply chain integration. Third, the research identifies and confirms the relationship between the level of supply chain integration and firm competitive capability in the context of the Thai automotive industry. Practicing managers in this industry could use the results of this research to select an appropriate level of supply chain integration in pursuit of their competitive capabilities. These empirical results suggest that firms must focus on supply chain integration practices that are necessary to support both current and future objectives, and how their investments in supply chain integration could support these objectives. A number of recommendations are made for future research, including development and validation of a more appropriate environmental uncertainty construct; testing the relationships between levels of supply chain integration and firm competitive capability by including more items across constructs and more contingency factors; and extension the research to understand how firms systematically develop or implement supply chain integration in specific situation or context, by conducting a number of case study |
| Year | 2006 |
| Type | Dissertation |
| School | School of Management (SOM) |
| Department | Other Field of Studies (No Department) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Master of Business Administration (MBA) (Publication code=SM) |
| Chairperson(s) | Paul, Himangshu |
| Examination Committee(s) | Tang, John C.S.;Krairit, Donyaprueth;Voratas Kachitvichyanukul;Gupta, Omprakash K. |
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Faculty of Commerce and Accountancy Thammasat University |
| Degree | Thesis (Ph.D.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 2006 |