Processes Integration and e-Business in Supply Chain Management

Turbulence and competitiveness define the current global business environment. Firms need to develop high quality products and services quickly and at lower costs than competitors by improving their internal operations as well as focusing on core activities while outsourcing non-core activities. This increasing competition forces firms to integrate their suppliers and customers into the overall value chain processes. To achieve this integration, sharing relevant information among components of the supply chain becomes crucial. Moreover, in these situations, information and communications technologies play a central role by allowing information sharing among suppliers and customers through facilitating information availability and reducing the bullwhip effect and improving quality. The purpose of this paper is threefold. Firstly, it intends to provide an extensive theoretical framework on Supply Chain Management process integration. Secondly, e-business is presented as a SCM integration processes enhancer, and thirdly, some practical implications for managers are provided.