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Micro-Foundations of Supply Chain Integration: An Activity-Based Analysis

Author

Listed:
  • Muhammad Usman Ahmed

    (School of Management, University of Michigan Flint, 303 E. Kearsley St, Flint, MI 48502, USA)

  • Mark Pagell

    (School of Business, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4 D04 V1W8, Ireland)

  • Mehmet Murat Kristal

    (Schulich School of Business, York University, 4700 Keele St, Toronto, ON M3J 1P3, Canada)

  • Thomas F. Gattiker

    (College of Business, Boise State University, 1910 University Drive, Boise, ID 83725, USA)

Abstract

A large body of literature has studied supply chain integration (SCI) at the macro (firm or dyad) level. However, the micro-foundations of SCI that highlight the range of different activities and choices firms have in implementing integration have not been studied. This paper identifies and analyzes integrative activities or practices that form the micro-units of firm-level SCI. Qualitative analysis yields nine elements of integration that emerge from the large number of integrative practices. In doing so, the paper maps out the structure of the broad SCI construct and discusses the theoretical repercussions of this new approach. New theoretical insights and research directions are identified based on this new micro-level activity-based view of SCI. This paper shifts the focus from where integration is done (customer vs. supplier integration) to what integration entails. SCI has become a very broad construct over time. This paper is a significant and systematic step in unraveling the structure of this broad conceptual domain. It improves nascent ideas about the multiple dimensions of integration by identifying elements based on a comprehensive list of different integrative activities that firms undertake.

Suggested Citation

  • Muhammad Usman Ahmed & Mark Pagell & Mehmet Murat Kristal & Thomas F. Gattiker, 2019. "Micro-Foundations of Supply Chain Integration: An Activity-Based Analysis," Logistics, MDPI, vol. 3(2), pages 1-17, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlogis:v:3:y:2019:i:2:p:12-:d:217762
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    References listed on IDEAS

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