International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

Stephen Pettit; Anthony Beresford

2009 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030910985811

Purpose – Critical success factors (CSFs) have been widely used in the context of commercial supply chains. However, in the context of humanitarian aid (HA) this is a poorly addressed area and this paper therefore aims to set out the key areas for research. Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on a conceptual discussion of CSFs as applied to the HA sector. A detailed literature review is undertaken to identify CSFs in a commercial context and to consider their applicability to the HA sector. Findings – CSFs have not previously been identified for the HA sector, an issue addressed in this paper. Research limitations/implications – The main constraint on this paper is that CSFs have not been previously considered in the literature as applied to HA. The relevance of CSFs will therefore need to be tested in the HA environment and qualitative research is needed to inform further work. Practical implications – This paper informs the HA community of key areas of activity which have not been fully addressed and offers. Originality/value – This paper contributes to the understanding of supply chain management in an HA context.

Carol Reade

2009 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030910985820

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between employee sensitivity to terrorism and employee attitudes in supply chain firms located in an environment with ongoing terrorist threat. Implications for human resource management in supply chain firms and future directions for research are discussed. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on questionnaire data collected from 898 managers in Sri Lanka. Included in the paper are manufacturing and service firms that constitute integral parts of global supply chains such as garment and textile firms, software solutions firms, and import‐export trading firms. Correlation analysis is used to examine the relationship between variables. Findings – The results generally indicate a statistically significant negative relationship between employee sensitivity to terrorism and employee attitudes toward the organization, team, and job. Results vary by sector and industry, with a comparatively strong negative association between employee sensitivity to terrorism and employee attitudes in the service sector, particularly among employees in import‐export trading firms. Originality/value – This paper is among the first to examine the relationship between terrorism and employee work attitudes in supply chain firms. While the direct effects of terrorism on the supply chain have been well documented, such as disruption to the physical distribution of goods, much less is known about the indirect effects of terrorism on supply chain performance.

Richard Oloruntoba; Richard Gray

2009 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030910985839

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore, analyse and discuss the published concepts of “the customer” and “customer service” in the context of managing international emergency relief chains. Design/methodology/approach – This is a literature‐based approach that extends concepts usually applied in a commercial context to the area of humanitarian aid and emergency relief chains in particular. Findings – Based on the most common associations of the terms in the literature, the paper proposes adopting a customer and customer‐service perspective in managing international emergency relief chains. An understanding of the various perspectives of customers described in this paper provides a starting point in the development of emergency relief chains that can deliver customer service and satisfaction to all concerned. Practical implications – As managers of emergency relief chains strive to improve the performance of their organizations and supply chains in a highly challenging environment, the paper provides a useful and enhanced understanding of the roles that the “customer” and “customer service” play in their operations strategies. Although it is sometimes assumed that all participants in emergency relief chains are highly co‐operative, this is often not the case. Therefore, the concept of “humanitarian competitive advantage” is also presented to enable a better practical focus for managers of emergency relief chains. Originality/value – The paper is believed to be the first to apply the terms “customer” and “customer service” systematically in a humanitarian context and thereby propose a customer service perspective in emergency relief chains.

Gyöngyi Kovács; Karen Spens

2009 International Journal of Physical Distribution & Logistics Management

doi: 10.1108/09600030910985848

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the challenges of humanitarian logisticians with respect to different types of disasters, phases of disaster relief and the type of humanitarian organization. A conceptual model is constructed that serves as a basis to identify these challenges. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based on a country as a case, namely Ghana. Structured and unstructured data are collected in a workshop with humanitarian logisticians, and complemented with presentations of humanitarian logisticians, as they perceive their challenges. Disaster statistics and country profiles are used as secondary data. Findings – The paper shows that some disasters defy a categorization between natural and man‐made causes. Challenges of humanitarian logisticians depend not only on the disaster at hand, but also on the local presence of their organization. The most emphasized challenge is the coordination of logistical activities. Challenges can be managed better if attributing them to different stakeholder environments. Research limitations/implications – Applying stakeholder theory to logistics, this paper provides a greater understanding for the challenges of humanitarian logisticians. Practical implications – A stakeholder categorization of the challenges of humanitarian logisticians helps to find potential collaboration partners as well as to mitigate these challenges. Originality/value – Humanitarian logistics is a rather new field in logistics literature. What is more, there is a lack of empirical cases in the field. This paper proposes a conceptual model based on an actual empirical case.