Panos Kouvelis, Chester
Chambers & Haiyan Wang talk with
ScienceWatch.com and answers a few questions about
this month's Fast Breaking Paper in the field of Economics
& Business.
Article Title: Supply chain management research and
Production and Operations Management: Review, trends, and
opportunities
Authors:
Kouvelis, P;Chambers, C;Wang, HY
Journal: PROD OPER MANAG
Volume: 15
Issue: 3
Page: 449-469
Year: FAL 2006
* Washington Univ, John M Olin Sch Business, St Louis, MO
63130 USA.
* Washington Univ, John M Olin Sch Business, St Louis, MO
63130 USA.
(addresses have been truncated)
Why do you think you paper is highly
cited?
This paper serves two useful purposes. First, it summarizes and categorizes
the research on supply chain management (SCM) that has appeared in the
journal Production and Operations Management. This is a useful
service for researchers and practitioners alike as it makes it easier to
identify existing research that may be pertinent to one’s current
project.
However, the larger contribution of this work is that it reviews literature
from a wider array of journals on several emerging areas within the larger
body of SCM research. Specifically, we provide review and discussion of
emerging topics including: supply-chain coordination using information
sharing and contracts; the coordination of online and offline procurement
and distribution; product design for postponement and product variety; and
operational hedging and risk management in supply chains.
We discuss both published and working papers in an effort to stimulate
thought and research in these critical areas of our field. The fact that
the paper is cited frequently apparently reflects the fact that we’ve
"struck a nerve" in that the areas which we perceive as being ripe for new
research are of particular interest within the field.
Does it describe a new discovery, methodology, or
synthesis of knowledge?
This particular work does provide a synthesis of knowledge in the sense
that it brings together ideas expressed in works from a wide range of
operations management, industrial engineering, and management science
journals in an effort to expose gaps in the existing literature.
Would you summarize the significance of your paper
in layman’s terms?
Again, the primary significance of this work is that it highlights areas of
SCM research where the existing body of work has fallen short of providing
practitioners and researchers what they seek in the way of insights and
ideas. Traditionally, operations management researchers have been
unquestionably brilliant in their handling of concrete issues such as
optimal inventory levels to balance risks and costs. On the other hand, the
modern operations manager now finds himself in a world full of more complex
problems. He now needs to consider the behavior of agents outside of his
view and control. He also needs to manage increased globalization in the
face of risks that are multi-dimensional to a degree absent in earlier
times. We discuss a few of these issues and hopefully, highlight a few
ideas that may lead to more profound research in the near future.
How did you become involved in this research, and
were there any problems along the way?
Originally, this work was the idea of the managing editor of the
Production and Operations Management Journal, Kalyan Singhal. He
invited this review of works in the SCM area from the journal that he
founded. Unfortunately, to that point the volume of work in this area
within that journal was surprisingly sparse. We identified this as an
opportunity to expand on the original mission to attempt to offer some
observations about the leading edge and the future of the field that will
hopefully stimulate more work.
Where do you see your research leading in the
future?
" The fact
that the paper is cited frequently
apparently reflects the fact that
we’ve "struck a nerve" in
that the areas which we perceive as
being ripe for new research are of
particular interest within the
field.."
We are each currently involved in several new works that deal with the
topics raised in this review piece. The works that we currently have under
review include several papers which deal with optimal contracting within
supply chains that involve outsourcing, information sharing, and
coordination. We also have works under review which deal with the economics
of approaches to sourcing that take advantage of electronic capabilities
such as e-catalogues, e-RFP’s (Electronic Requests for Proposals),
and reverse auctions for procurement of raw materials and goods. Other
works that we currently have under review focus on operational hedging
within a global context. These works typically combine tools from both the
Economics and Operations Research literature including Game Theory, Real
Options Analysis, and Dynamic Programming.
Do you foresee any social or political
implications for your research?
Again, this review piece was meant to stimulate ideas and works in emerging
areas of SCM. While it is not reasonable to say that social or political
changes will stem directly from a review and idea-piece, there is no
question that emerging works which deal with the issues that we raise will
have a dramatic effect on the world over time. SCM involving healthcare and
global aid will be quite important. Other issues involving response to
supply chain disruptions such as natural disasters and armed conflicts will
also certainly be quite important. We only hope that we will have
contributed to these discussions in some small way through this modest
work.
Panos Kouvelis
Emerson Distinguished Professor of Operations and Manufacturing
Management
John M. Olin School of Business
Washington University
St. Louis, MO, USA
Chester Chambers
Assistant Professor
Edwin L. Cox School of Business
Southern Methodist University
Dallas, TX, USA
Haiyan Wang
John M. Olin School of Business
Washington University
St. Louis, MO, USA