Supply chain management in the US and Taiwan: An empirical study

This study uses an empirical survey of middle-line managers in the US and Taiwan to study the association of supply chain management components and organizational performance. Through structural equation modeling, critical components of supply chain management are found to have considerable effects on organizational performance. The findings of the study are summarized as follows: Supply chain competencies have positive effects on organizational performance in both the US and Taiwan. Supply chain competencies are developed around quality and service, operations and distribution, and design effectiveness. The goal of supply chain competencies is to satisfy customer requirements. Supply chain practices, which are made up of supply chain features, integration, and customer services, have direct impact on organizational performance in Taiwan, but they have only indirect impact in the US. Supply chain practices and competencies are significantly associated in both the US and Taiwan. However, supply chain concerns and practices are associated in the case of the USA only. These results help middle-line managers in both the US and Taiwan to know which components and practices of supply chain management to focus on to improve organizational performance. They also show some of the similarities between the two regions and note differences that may be situation-dependent. However, what is measured here is the perception of middle-line managers. The actual practices may be different from these perceptions. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.