An integrated model of supply chain quality management, Industry 3.5 and innovation to improve manufacturers' performance - a case study of Vietnam

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) play an inviolable role in social and economic growth in developing countries. Although SMEs are flexible in operation, they bear disadvantages such as accessing financial resources, recruiting talents, and limited managerial capacities. Digitalisation is, therefore, more challenging for these companies. Following an open-end approach for theory development, the paper generalises empirical evidence of a medium-sized manufacturer to a conceptual model and an implementation pathway to fast-track digital transformation. The company successfully adopted multiple SCQM systems and Industry 3.5 in a relatively short period. Knowledge management is the key to optimise knowledge flow and facilitate digital transformation. The paper contributes to the supply chain management literature by proposing an SCQM and Industry 3.5 integration model and proposes a pathway for such integration in developing markets. This approach has been proved to be an efficient way to fast-track integration and provide significant organisational benefits to the companies.

Automated summary

This paper explores the challenges faced by SMEs in the process of digital transformation and proposes a pathway to accelerate this transformation from the perspective of knowledge management. The results of the study show that adopting an integrated model of supply chain quality management and Industry 3.5 can bring significant organizational benefits to companies.