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Sourcing complexity in the Chinese manufacturing sector: An assessment of intangible factors and contractual relationship strategies

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  • Subramanian, Nachiappan
  • Rahman, Shams
  • Abdulrahman, Muhammad D.

Abstract

Over the past three decades original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) located in China and elsewhere have been aggressively sourcing from Chinese suppliers. This has significantly contributed toward the complexity of global supply chains. Generally, both tangible and intangible factors contribute to the complexity, with intangible factors being relatively more dominant compared with the tangible factors. Through an extensive literature review we identify several intangible factors associated with people, culture, and infrastructure; as well as policies and regulations on sourcing complexity. We investigate the impact of these factors and elements on sourcing complexity, using a sample of 101 OEMs based in China. Using importance–complexity matrix analysis we identify lack of knowledge, quality issues, price erosion, increases in comparative price levels, supply risk and demand volatility as critical intangible elements. We suggest appropriate supplier contractual strategies such as collaborative relationships as we predict that contractual relationships that benefit by trust, shared knowledge, skill development and direct purchase from suppliers or through international procurement offices would suppress or greatly diminish most of the intangible sourcing complexity elements.

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  • Subramanian, Nachiappan & Rahman, Shams & Abdulrahman, Muhammad D., 2015. "Sourcing complexity in the Chinese manufacturing sector: An assessment of intangible factors and contractual relationship strategies," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 166(C), pages 269-284.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:proeco:v:166:y:2015:i:c:p:269-284
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpe.2015.03.012
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    Cited by:

    1. Lorentz, Harri & Kumar, Mukesh & Srai, Jagjit Singh, 2018. "Managing distance in international purchasing and supply: a systematic review of literature from the resource-based view perspective," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 339-354.
    2. Weili Yin & Wenxue Ran, 2023. "Explaining Firm Performance During the COVID-19 With fsQCA: The Role of Supply Network Complexity, Inventory Turns, and Geographic Dispersion," SAGE Open, , vol. 13(2), pages 21582440231, June.
    3. Neale G. O’Connor & Yan Du & Zhilin Yang & Mohammadreza Akbari, 2023. "Managing from a distance in international purchasing and supply," Operations Management Research, Springer, vol. 16(2), pages 594-619, June.
    4. Tran Manh Ha & Doan Ngoc Thang, 2023. "Economic sanction and global sourcing complexity: A cross‐country analysis," The World Economy, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(4), pages 1017-1050, April.
    5. Kavilal, E.G. & Prasanna Venkatesan, S. & Harsh Kumar, K.D., 2017. "An integrated fuzzy approach for prioritizing supply chain complexity drivers of an Indian mining equipment manufacturer," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 204-218.

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