Supply Chain Information Systems Strategy

Question: Discuss about the Supply Chain Information Systems Strategy. Answer: Introduction: Walmart, the largest retailer in the world, derives most of its competitive advantage from its supply chain. The company, however, acknowledges that for sustainability and optimization of the benefits emanating from the chain, it is important to collaborate with other stakeholders. This vision resonates with Procter and Gambles long-term investment in collaborative supply chain management as a way of building trust and maximizing profits[1]. However, these efforts are being held back by a lack of deeper understanding of the dynamics of supply chain collaboration among managers and stakeholders. Therefore, research was needed to overcome this challenge. Fawcett, Jones, and Fawcett (2012) conducted a study about supply chain trust and collaborative innovation between PG and Walmart[2]. The aim of the research was to determine the managers and key stakeholders understanding of the nature of trust. The study undertook to establish whether managers from either company were fully aware of the desired nature of trust which they ought to build and how it can impact their co-operation. The study also aimed at increasing their understanding of the critical aspects of trust building. By doing this, the study will identify the strengths and the flaws of the current collaborative supply chain between PG and Walmart and make recommendations that increase collaboration and innovation. The research was conducted by Stanley Fawcett, Stephen Jones, and Amydee Fawcett. The three are business management scholars at renowned American universities. However, the three researchers were contracted by the Kelley School of Business, Indiana University[3]. The University is one of the leading research partners of PG and has been accredited with some studies that have helped the company continue to grow. Indiana University has also carried out several studies touching on Walmart. This is, therefore, the reason why it was chosen in this case involving the two companies. The research was used to identify the critical pillars of building supply chain trust between the two companies. The findings of the research were used to indicate the level of awareness among managers of the two companies in relation to supply chain cooperation. This indeed helped the managers to identify ways of improvement through building trust and efficiency in the supply chain. Considering that PG is one of the leading suppliers of a wide range of brands found on the shelves of Walmart, this study would help the company increase their supplies on a platform of improved trust, collaboration, and innovation. Walmart would also benefit in equal measure. The research was conducted using a two-stage qualitative methodology. This approach involved conducting a thorough literature review in an exploratory framework. In this regard, the study evaluated key issues such as interpersonal and firm-based trust[4]. Secondly, interviews were used to evaluate the level of understanding on supply chain alliance and the growth of supply chain collaboration frameworks among companies[5]. To maintain consistency, semi-structured questionnaires were used to all the interviews. These statistics were tabulated in the end with the major variables and indicators aligned in line with the respondents' feedback. This would help in data integration and analysis in the end. The findings of the research indicated that 55% of the companies had limited information regarding trust and collaborative information on a double-edged setting. The results showed that most companies adopted limited trust. They preferred a one-way flow of trust at the expense of mutual trust. The findings also indicated that managers had little information on how to build trust and collaboration, with most of them citing the supply schedule and pricing as the key aspects. On the other hand, the outcome also indicated that managers had little practical experience and the resources necessary for constituting supply chain trust and collaboration[6]. The study thus came up with a trust matrix against which the key variables were measured. The study recommended a trust maturity framework that would help cure the current disparities and increase performance based on supply chain trust. Overall, this research is straightforward and tackles the key aspects in the most comprehensive way. Although there is little statistical data, the study exhausts the key concepts relevantly and brings out the intended outcome. The results reflect what had been identified in the hypotheses. On the other hand, the study stays in line with the problem and solution model by giving a breakdown of the complex issues and then merging them with the respective remedies. In entirety, this study would help Walmart and PG to assess their chain relationship and apply improvement measures[7]. It is an ideal blueprint for the maximization of benefits beyond the obvious in any supply chain. Bibliography Delbufalo E, Outcomes of inter?organizational trust in supply chain relationships: a systematic literature review and a meta?analysis of the empirical evidence (2012) 17 Supply Chain Management: An International Journal 377 Du, Timon C., et al. "Willingness to share information in a supply chain: A partnership-data-process perspective." Information Management 49.2 (2012): 89-98. Fawcett SE, Jones SL and Fawcett AM, Supply chain trust: The catalyst for collaborative innovation (2012) 55 Business Horizons 163 Qrunfleh S and Tarafdar M, Supply chain information systems strategy: Impacts on supply chain performance and firm performance (2014) 147 International Journal of Production Economics 340 Ramanathan U and Gunasekaran A, Supply chain collaboration: Impact of success in long-Term partnerships (2014) 147 International Journal of Production Economics 252 Stadtler, Hartmut. "Supply chain management: An overview."Supply chain management and advanced planning. Springer Berlin Heidelberg, 2015. 3-28.