Exploring the Effects of Digital Supply Chain Platform and Entrepreneurial orientation on Supply Chain Viability and Business Performance
: Resource Orchestration Theory and Dynamic Capabilities View

  • Qi Liu

Student thesis: Doctoral Thesis

Abstract

Since 2020, global supply chains (SCs) have experienced unprecedented disruptions due to COVID-19, presenting new challenges in manufacturing and decision-making, and galvanising digital supply chain platform (DSCP) adoption and entrepreneurial orientation (EO) to building supply chain viability (SCV). This research develops actionable strategies for SCV development, exploring EO’s importance in SC disruptions (SCDs) and resource management. This research examines the relationship between EO and SCV, and whether EO facilitates effective DSCP implementation for SCV development. Through resource orchestration theory (ROT), the research posits that EO and DSCP serve as strategic imperatives for building SCV, with EO particularly playing a mediating role in the DSCPSCV relationship. Based on dynamic capabilities view (DCV), this research conceptualizes SCV as a specific form of dynamic capabilities and introduces six pivotal constructs of SCV, categorized under sensing (i.e., SC scanning and planning), seizing (i.e., SC coordination and adaptation), and transforming (i.e., SC reconfiguration and redesign). In line with DCV, the research investigated the empirical links between these aspects of SCV and firms’ FP and OP. The research used mixed-methods, combining quantitative questionnaire surveys and qualitative case studies exploring the role of EO and DSCP in the COVID-19 context, and their unique roles in SCV development, as well as the underlying elements essential for building SCV. Structural equation modelling analysed survey data from 363 Chinese manufacturing firms, and interviews with four case companies’ senior management team members were scrutinized through qualitative content analysis. The quantitative results underscored the positive and significant impact of EO on all dimensions of SCV, although DSCP itself did not directly contribute to SCV. The analysis further revealed EO’s mediating role in linking DSCP and SCV. Furthermore, the findings indicated that while SC scanning and planning did not positively influence either financial or operational performance, activities related to SC coordination and adaptation positively affected both. SC reconfiguration positively influenced both OP and FP, whereas SC redesign was found to enhance operational performance but did not yield a positive effect on financial metrics. The qualitative results unearthed the underlying elements of SCV within the framework of sensing, seizing, and transforming: understanding inventory and supplier statuses, fostering long-term relationships, implementing contingency measures, practicing adaptive inventory management, and diversifying the SC. EO proved valuable during the pandemic in shaping anticipatory and proactive stances, notably in areas like risk identification and management, sourcing alternative suppliers, and innovating sales channels. DSCP allowed firms to build real-time access to critical information such as inventory levels, production schedules, and order status during the COVID-19 crisis, but faced limitations and relative ineffectiveness in enhancing decision-making quality, its predominant focus on internal operations, and its limited scope in offering a comprehensive view of the SC. This research increases understanding of SCV in the COVID-19 context, and defines it as a form of dynamic capabilities, with three integral aspects (sensing, seizing, and transforming), involving scanning, planning, adaptation, coordination, redesign, and reconfiguration activities. This study finds that EO can help build SCV during disruptive events like COVID-19 and mediate between DSCP and SCV, challenging the conceptualization of DSCP as an isolated solution. The findings of this research also have several significant implications for practitioners operating in a post-COVID-19 business environment. These insights empower professionals to anticipate and navigate potential challenges associated with the utilization of digital supply chain platforms (DSCPs), thus facilitating more informed decision- making in leveraging digital resources effectively, especially in post COVID-19 era. Managers can leverage EO to enhance SCV with entrepreneurial and digital resources, considering factors like supplier readiness for successful implementation. This approach ensures better integration with supply chain partners. Additionally, SCV can significantly improve both OP and FP, justifying investments in SCV. To optimally benefit from SCV, companies must adapt their internal operations to environmental shifts and proactively identify and seize new opportunities, utilizing these to maximize their potential advantage and ensure sustainability in a constantly changing environment. These findings can help managers rethink their supply chains, providing a clearer understanding of the ways in which global supply chains are expected to alter in the postCOVID-19 context. For instance, several changes-including alterations in the supply network, closure of operations among existing supply chain partners, reduced sourcing options, and lack of pre-preparedness-underscore the urgent necessity for supply chain restructuring. Such changes are crucial for businesses aiming to thrive in the post-COVID19 landscape and to enhance their survivability against future disruptions akin to the recent pandemic.
Date of Award23 Jul 2024
Original languageEnglish
Awarding Institution
  • University of Roehampton
SupervisorWantao Yu (Director of Studies) & Oznur Yurt (Co-Supervisor)

Keywords

  • Supply chain viability
  • COVID-19
  • digital supply chain platform
  • entrepreneurial orientation

Cite this

'