Developing supply chain strategies based on the survey of supply chain quality and technology management

A two-stage framework is developed on supply chain quality and technology management. This is based on a survey of the perceptions of practicing managers from Hong Kong’s business corporations. The two-stage process involves empirical assessment of strategic supply chain quality and technology variables, and then using quality function deployment to deploy them to improve the competitiveness of the supply chain. This will help to achieve synergy among suppliers by focusing on the critical strategic variables to achieve sustainable competitiveness. Introduction The traditional focus of supply chains was on transaction and delivery. In today’s faster-paced markets, the focus has shifted to meet market demands correctly, rapidly, and profitably. With materials flowing downstream from suppliers, manufacturers, warehouses, stores to customers, and information flowing in both directions, supply chains must maintain and sustain technology-based and quality-driven capabilities in order to minimize systemwide costs, reduce lead time and transit time, and improve customer service levels. To this end, supply chains must be managed effectively. Swaminathan et al. (1998) defined supply chain management as: . . . a network of autonomous or semiautonomous business entities collectively responsive for procurement, manufacturing and distribution activities associated with one or more families of related products. In many situations, operating activities must be carried out across functions within organizations, across company boundaries, and across national borders (Lockamy et al., 2000). Supply chain management, as a result, is a holistic and strategic approach to demand, operations, procurement, and logistics T h e r e s e a r c h r e g is te r fo r th is jo u r n a l is a v a i la b le a t http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregisters T h e cu r r e n t i s s u e a n d fu l l t e x t a r c h iv e o f t h is jo u rn a l i s a v a ila b le a t http://www.emeraldinsight.com/0265-671X.htm