ICT‐enabled coordination of dynamic supply webs

Abstract

Increasingly, two key trends – value‐ and cost‐conscious customers, and globalization of markets and supply sources – are shifting the competitive focus from the competitive advantage of firms to competitive advantages of entire supply chains. At the same time, the possibilities for flexibility and coordination inherent in modern information and communication technologies are making it possible to design and follow a much greater variety of organization and governance strategies for delivering customer value. Contributes primarily to the development of general principles for ICT‐enabled redesign of supply chains. Rather than examine the individual impact and design implications of each new ICT innovation, proposes principles of abstraction that can be used to frame supply‐chain redesign options and decisions. Concludes with how these principles lead to flexibility in the design of various supply chain options, thereby providing cost and value advantages for the supply chain.