Marketing and supply chain management: a collaborative research agenda

Marketing and supply chain management:a collaborative research agenda

Diane H. Parente

Sam and Irene Black School of Business, Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, Erie, Pennsylvania, USA

Peggy D. LeePenn State Great Valley, Malvern, Pennsylvania, USA

Michael D. IshmanNiagara University, Niagara University, New York, New York, USA, and

Aleda V. RothCollege of Business and Behavioral Science, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA

AbstractPurpose – This paper aims to establish a two-part research agenda for marketing in supply chain management (SCM) through the application of aninterdisciplinary model, using marketing, operations, logistics/purchasing, and information technology as the nodes for a model.Design/methodology/approach – After generating a list of the highly ranked and relevant journals in each of the four disciplines, an exhaustivesearch was conducted of the literature published from January 1999 through December 2002, using the keywords supply chain and supply chainmanagement. The keywords were searched for in any field (i.e. title or abstract). The authors also conducted a Delphi study of experts to identifyrelevant journals in each field. The resulting articles were sorted by topic and mapped to one of the other remaining three functional disciplines. Thisyielded six intersections between functions, three of which are examined in this manuscript as dyads with marketing. Thus, it was possible to identifycurrent overlap in topics researched and potential areas of overlap, representing opportunities for collaboration between the disciplines.Findings – For simplicity and focus, this paper presents only marketing SCM research. The mapping process yielded: topics that are being researchedfrom the marketing perspective but not in the IT, logistics, or operations perspectives; topics that are being researched from the IT, logistics, oroperations perspectives but not from the marketing perspective; and similar (or identical) topics that are being researched from both the marketing andthe IT perspective, the marketing and logistics perspective, and the marketing and operations perspective. Based on these mappings, aninterdisciplinary research agenda for marketing SCM researchers was derived.Research limitations/implications – Using an automated extraction of articles from published databases by using keywords may presentinconsistencies. The authors have attempted to minimize the inconsistencies by documenting the process and cross-validating the work in each functionwith at least two of the research team independently extracting, categorizing, and mapping the articles. Another limitation that arose was in terms oflanguage. Since the research team consisted of researchers from different functional areas, it had to address semantics issues as the study wasconducted. The authors also limited the initial endeavor to mapping only as a dyad and only using dichotomous variables. Future work on this modelmay include an ordinal ranking system or multi-function mapping.Practical implications – This work presents a useful model for determining an interdisciplinary research agenda in marketing. Since business and supplychain integration are increasingly important, concepts in business, academic research should take an interdisciplinary approach, providing the prospects forricher and more applicable results. Interdisciplinary research can also help to combat the silos that people tend to work in, creating new knowledge.Originality/value – This paper provides the example of a model for determining an interdisciplinary research agenda. Supply chain management hasbeen co-opted by almost every business discipline. There is much to be learned by working together to bring new ideas and knowledge to bear on theissues related to managing the supply chain.

Keywords Supply chain management, Serials, Research, MarketingPaper type Literature review

An executive summary for managers and executive

readers can be found at the end of this article.

Introduction

Supply chain management has been defined in many ways. It is

an integrated philosophy, spanning boundaries in the

organization and crossing departments without regard to the

functional silos that have existed for many years. When we

realize the importance of managing the total flow of products or

services and all that comes before and after, we understand the

extraordinary impact of the supply chain on today’s business.As a result of perhaps understanding, as well as not

understanding, the supply chain, both practitioners and

academics have appropriated the supply chain. Practitioners

organize their companies with supply chain management

residing within marketing or operations. Some firms have a

logistics department or organize supply chain management as

a separate functional entity.

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

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Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing

23/8 (2008) 520–528

q Emerald Group Publishing Limited [ISSN 0885-8624]

[DOI 10.1108/08858620810913335]

Received: November 2005Accepted: September 2007

520

Academics have embraced the study of supply chain

management in much the same way. With respect to academicresearch, marketers began to look at the distribution of

products to the customers, called it logistics, and made it intoan area of study within marketing. Operations managers

identified the importance of the pre-transformation function,specifically the shipment and storage of raw materials, and

added it to the areas of interest within operationsmanagement research. Finally, the development ofsophisticated software to schedule production, shipments,

inventory, and inbound materials, effectively covering bothpre and post-transformation business functions, created

enormous interest on the part of information technologyresearchers.It is no wonder that supply chain management has been

appropriated by each of these disciplines either directly or

indirectly. Marketing, logistics, operations, and eveninformation technology have each claimed ownership tosome degree in the business function that spans from the

raw materials through the transformation and beyond tocustomer delivery. Supply chain management, as individual

pieces in the processes and linkages between the processes,commands significant attention for both practitioners and

researchers alike due to the impact on the organization. Thelinkages in the supply chain, how they work, and how well

the firm accomplishes them, are the bases for internal firmcapabilities that create competitive advantage for firmstoday.In this paper, we present a research agenda for marketing

on supply chain management. The derivation of the agenda is

based on an interdisciplinary model for supply chainmanagement research initially presented at the annual

Decision Sciences Institute conference in November, 2001.The model uses marketing, operations, logistics/purchasing,

and information technology, and the resulting intersections asthe basis for study. We argue for an extensive study of theliterature in each of the six intersections areas and have

reviewed the literature relevant to Marketing in this paper.The review was conducted by identifying key topics in each

area, and establishing common and disparate topics in each ofthe paired functions. We then propose using the results of the

functional and topical review to establish a two-part agendafor marketing. This includes both collaborative researchbetween marketing and the other three functions, as well as

areas in which other functions are currently doing researchthat could also be done by marketing.In the next section, we discuss the general description of the

model and the research design. In section 2, we discuss the

four functional components of the model and provide a briefdescription of the definition of supply chain management

from each of the discipline perspectives. We then follow theresearch design and introduce the academic journals and the

supply chain research in each discipline that has beenpublished from January 1999 through December 2002. Wemap each of the articles in the marketing journals to one of

the remaining three areas and also map the SCM articles ineach of the three areas back to marketing. In section 3 we

discuss each of the six intersections or dyads betweenfunctions, identify the “current” overlap in topics being

researched, and follow with the areas of “potential” overlap.In each of the three intersections with marketing, we addressthe key question of this research: is the intersection “null” or

should there be collaboration between the functional

disciplines? We then establish a specific interdisciplinary

agenda for SCM research in marketing. We conclude with

discussion and limitations.

An interdisciplinary model of supply chainmanagement research

The Interdisciplinary model of supply chain research is

conceptualized in Figure 1. Since the linkages in the supply

chain flow from raw material to after-sales service, supply

chain management may take on intra and inter-functional as

well as inter-organizational dimensions. In this paper, we

choose to focus on the supply chain and its linkages without

regard to the intra or inter-organizational components.Given the organizational scope and the topical extent of

supply chains and the linkages in them, the purpose of our

overall study is to organize interdisciplinary opportunities for

research in supply chain management. The breadth and

depth of topics related to supply chain make this a significant

task.One could argue that marketing is pervasive in a business.

Indeed, from the industrial marketing perspective, that may

well be true. Industrial marketing managers (product

managers) are typically responsible for net income. A look

at the income statement reveals that the line items from

revenue to net income address virtually all expenses in a

business. We have confined our discussion in this paper to

establishing a two-part research agenda for marketing. We are

motivated in this research by the challenge of interdisciplinary

research and the diverse perspectives needed to organize a

research agenda.Thus, we pose several research questions:

. What is marketing doing in SCM research? Is the

inclusion of supply chain into the marketing arena (both

academic and industrial) supported by publication in the

marketing journals? For example, we would expect that

marketing journals would include many articles related to

supply chain if, in fact, it was an accepted area of

marketing.. How does it relate to what others are doing? Since we have

identified supply chain as an interdisciplinary area of

study, how does the supply chain research in one area

relate to the research in other areas? Is there cooperation,

collaboration, or no relationship at all? In order to answer

this question, we need to investigate the major journals in

information technology, logistics, and operations. We

should find overlapping topics in the other disciplines’

Figure 1 Interdisciplinary model of supply chain research

Marketing and supply chain management

Diane H. Parente, Peggy D. Lee, Michael D. Ishman and Aleda V. Roth


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journals if supply chain research in one area relates to that

in another.. Does it matter? As in all research, we must ask a

fundamental question as to the importance of having an

interdisciplinary approach to supply chain research.

Narrowly focused research has traditionally served well

in other areas of advancing knowledge. Why, then, is the

topic of supply chain research different?

In the event that supply chain research is different and, in

fact, interdisciplinary, we can ask additional research

questions. In this manuscript, we ask these questions

specifically of marketing:. What is the content of the intersections between the

marketing and each of the other disciplines? If we are

interested in the intersections and the perspective of each

of the four functions, we need to identify the topics of

interest from each perspective and map each of the topics

to the other three.. Is the intersecting set null? What are the contents of the

intersections between marketing and IT? Between

marketing and logistics? Between marketing and

operations? Are there areas of common interest or are

there none?. Can we establish a collaborative research agenda? The

topics that are being researched from two perspectives

should be opportunities for immediate collaborative

research. Additionally, we may be able to identify topics

that are currently viewed from a single perspective outside

of marketing but should be researched from a marketing

perspective.

Model description

The initial model shown in Figure 1 is a first step in the

interdisciplinary model. Since it is the linkages that are of

interest in our definition of SCM, the model is refined to

include the linkages, as shown in Figure 2. The four functions

are pictured at the corner points and the six dyadic

relationships are shown on the lines connecting the

functions. The “intersections” identify the areas of common

research.The model (shown in Figure 2) illustrates the

interdisciplinary perspective of SCM research. As an

example of the intersecting boxes, in Figure 3, the shaded

areas represent the current overlap on supply chain

management research. These are topics that represent

immediate opportunities for collaborative research. The

“boxes” of interest in this manuscript are highlighted with a

heavy black line.The topics that remain in either the unshaded portion of

the boxes at the top or bottom in Figure 3 represent

opportunities for one discipline to borrow the topics currently

researched in the other. These topics have been identified in

marketing as supply chain research that involves or is relevant

to, say, information technology. However, the information

technology literature has not addressed this particular supply

chain topic. Thus, the topic presents a future opportunity for

interdisciplinary collaboration in supply chain research

between marketing and information technology research.

Figure 2 Model of linkages with marketing

Figure 3 Example of intersections




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The same observation is true for both logistics and operations

management research.In summary, the contents of the three shaded boxes with

heavy black lines in Figure 2 will form the basis for an

interdisciplinary agenda for marketing and supply chain

research that will be an extension of topics identified by theother three disciplines. The bottom three clear boxes (i.e. IT/

Mktg) represent opportunities for marketing researchers inSCM to identify new topics and outlets for their own

research. The six clear boxes within the heavily outlined boxes

represent future collaboration opportunities. Therefore, bypopulating this model with the topics identified in an

evaluation of the literature, we can construct an

interdisciplinary research agenda for marketing in supplychain management.

Functional foundation of the model

In this section, we discuss the four functions that form thefoundation for our interdisciplinary model: marketing,

logistics, operations, and information technology. For each

function, we present a common view of supply chainmanagement as defined across the disciplines under study.

Historically, logistics has focused on the integration of

business processes within the supply chain from rawmaterials to transformation, marketing from transformation

to end user, operations at the midpoint or transformation

phase and information technology linking all the supply chainactivities together through information exchanges. A more

holistic approach, consistent with today’s global market place,

defines supply chain management (SCM) as focusing on theoperation of the entire network of businesses that transform

inputs (e.g. raw materials and information) into finished

products and services, and delivers them to their endcustomers. Other elements included are information systems

integration and the coordination of planning and controlactivities (Lummus et al., 2001, p. 428).From a marketing perspective, SCM refers to the

management of both internal and external customerrelationships, referred to in the literature as customer

relationship management. This can include the distribution

channels by which goods and services reach end users.Marketing is primarily concerned with the upstream processes

and relationships, all directed toward satisfying the consumer.

Not surprisingly, the SCM topics in the marketing journalsare mostly about channels, including channel climate, power,

governance, performance, and customer and marketing

relationships. In addition, articles on information sharing,e-commerce, and supply chain design and flexibility were

included in marketing journals.Logistics authors have chronicled the prevalence of SCM in

organizations, moving from tactical issues such as reverse/

green logistics practices and mass customization to supplychain strategy, design and integration. Electronic commerce

and e-supply chains are also popular topics in logistics

journals. Logistics practitioners and academics are no longerbeginning to view SCM as a technique for managing a

functional area; but as a management strategy and philosophy.Of particular interest in the operations literature is that

much of the work is done in the front end of the supply chain,

consistent with the traditional interests of operationspersonnel both in industry and in academe. Many of the

topics found in the operations journals related to the

transformation process side or operational aspects of the

supply chain.In IT research we have a supply chain that deals with the

processing and exchange of data into information, then

knowledge, and finally, wisdom/judgment, as well as a reverse

flow (Tuomi, 1999). We can use this hierarchical model for

collaborative and participative problem solving within and

between organizations (Numamaker et al., 2000). In other

words, IT indirectly facilitates the effective and efficient

movement of data/information/knowledge and wisdom

between and within Porter’s primary activities (see Figure 4).

Model of linkages

The next step is to populate the interdisciplinary model with

research studies. First, we must identify the supply chain

management topics in each of the four functional areas.Our goal in this first step is to generate a list of supply chain

management research articles in highly ranked or relevant

journals in each functional area. In order to populate the

interdisciplinary model, we first conducted an exhaustive

search of the literature in each functional area (marketing,

logistics, operations management, and information

technology). We began the search in each area by

identifying relevant and respected journals. In addition to

ANBAR, the ranking system of Emerald Management

Reviews, formerly ANBAR, rankings (Emerald, 2003), a

review of Cabell et al.’s (1999), and within discipline articles

ranking journals, we conducted a Delphi study of experts to

identify relevant journals in each field. We then searched for

“supply chain management” (SCM) or related terms in any

field (i.e. title or abstract) and the functional area (i.e.

marketing) in the journal title field. We rationalized the list of

“top” journals to the journals discovered during the search

and composed the final list of journals in each area. The list of

articles identified in the search was reduced to only those in

the final journals. Table I is a list of the journals selected from

marketing. First, we counted the number of articles in each

journal over the period under study. We did not include

introductory articles within a journal. We included all articles

(over five pages), and the number and percent of the articles

that were related to supply chain. We also identified the

number of articles that were mapped from the SCM articles

in the marketing journals to each of the other three

disciplines. As Table I shows, approximately 7 percent of

the total articles were related to the supply chain.

Figure 4 Informational exchange linkages




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Next, we identified the main topic in each article, sorted thearticles by topic, and mapped each of the topics to one of thethree remaining functional disciplines. See Table II for anexample list of topics, articles and mapping for the SCMresearch in marketing journals. Of the total 46 supply chainarticles, we mapped the majority (34) to logistics.Next, we identified the journals in each of the other three

disciplines, logistics, IT, and operations, using the samecriteria. Table III identifies the journals used in the study inIT, logistics, and operations. We then identified the SCMarticles in each of these journals and mapped the articles thatwere relevant to marketing. Table III shows the total numberof articles in each journal, the number and percentage ofarticles related to the supply chain, and the number of articlesmapped to marketing.We then matched both sides of the analysis. As an example,

we aligned the articles in the marketing journals that mappedto IT and the articles in the IT journals that mapped tomarketing. The topics that match are areas for collaborativeresearch and are shown in Table IV.While there is certainly a measure of subjectivity in the

analysis, we attempted to minimize by having at least two ofthe researchers follow the protocol established for articleidentification. We then resolved the differences throughdiscussion as to classification of the articles.We then identified the SCM topics that are being

researched from the perspective of the other discipline, sayIT, and mapped to marketing that are not being researched inmarketing. These topics appear in Table V and representpotential areas for research in marketing journals.This process yields the following:

. Topics that are being researched from the Marketingperspective but not the IT, logistics, or operationsperspectives.

. Topics that are being researched from the IT, logistics, oroperations perspectives but not the Marketing perspective.

. Similar (or identical) topics that are being researched fromboth the marketing and IT perspective, the Marketing andthe logistics perspective, or the marketing and theoperations perspective.

Items 1 and 2 populate the white portions of the model (seeFigure 2) while Item 3 populates the shaded portion of themodel. Further description of the white area on the upperportion of Figure 2, reveals that topics in this area appear inmarketing journals. They relate to SCM and involve the IT,logistics, or operations aspects of SCM. Items in the bottomportion appear in IT journals, relate to SCM, and involve theMarketing aspect of SCM. The topics that are listed in theshaded portion of Figure 2 are the topics that are similar to ormatch the corresponding marketing/IT and IT/marketing

topic lists (or marketing/logistics and logistics/marketing or

marketing/operations and operations/marketing). Simply put,

the topics in the shaded portion of the intersections are

currently interdisciplinary SCM research topics. The topics in

the white portions, by definition, are candidates for an

interdisciplinary research agenda.

SCM research agendas in marketing

The model presented is a framework for identifying future

research direction. In the marketing discipline, we find that

these intersections are populated. This means that there are

topics that are currently being researched from both sides of

the Marketing dyads. Since we do not find common authors

publishing in both fields’ journals, we can conclude that

researchers from one side of the dyads are not collaborating

with researchers from the other side of the dyads. In fact, as

we previously stated, the topic names may be different and

not easily recognizable by the researchers. Although this is

easily resolved, as an example, in the Marketing journals, we

see articles related to the Internet while in the IT journals, the

topic is referred to as e-commerce.We can see many possibilities for the shaded areas of the

intersections. In our example, the marketing authors may look

toward the IT or other journals as potential outlets for their

work. Additionally, they should look toward collaboration

with ITor other researchers to expand their horizons and add

a different perspective.Not only are we interested in identifying the areas for

collaborative research, we are also interested in establishing

functional research agendas based on the review of SCM. As

noted previously, the white areas in the model of linkages (see

Figure 2) were also populated from our investigation. These

are the topics in SCM research that are being researched in

one functional area (such as marketing) but are mapped to

another (say IT). In the case of our example, we were not able

to find corresponding topics in the IT journals when we

searched for SCM articles. Again, in our example, a research

agenda for SCM by IT researchers would include the topics

currently being researched in marketing.Specifically from our example as shown in Table V, an

interdisciplinary research agenda for marketing SCM

researchers may be derived. Logistics journals have

published articles on product differentiation, customization,

and postponement. In our analysis, we have mapped these

articles to marketing. However, we have not found any SCM

articles in the marketing journals that are in the area of

product differentiation, customization, or postponement.

Thus, these topics could be researched by marketers with

respect to the supply chain. Marketing researchers should

Table I Marketing journals selected for review

Journals selected (abbreviation)

Articles

reviewed

Total of articles

on SCM

Articles on

SCM (%)

Articles mapped

to logistics

Articles mapped

to operations

Articles mapped

to IT

JBIM 122 21 17.25 15 2 2

IMM 222 30 13.51 20 5 5

Academy of Mktg Science 140 8 5.71 7 1

Jnl of Marketing 191 6 3.14 5 1

Jnl of Marketing Research 147 2 1.36 2

Total 700 46 6.57 34 5 7




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review the published research in the logistics journals as a

starting point for interdisciplinary research.Further, in the logistics journals, reverse or green logistics

articles were mapped to marketing. These include such

articles as Daugherty et al. (2001) in which reverse logistics

programs are highlighted as a sales mechanism. This is an

area not discussed in the marketing journals.A number of different research topics were present in the

operations journals that were clearly mapped to marketing.

Topics such as franchises, price negotiations, and pricing, in

general, are fruitful areas for marketing researchers with

respect to the supply chain. Product customization, product

design, and product development are areas that are related to

marketing, specifically with respect to new product

introduction. The impact on the supply chain and the

customer should provide fertile ground for marketing

researchers.

Supply chain coordination and information sharing across

the supply chain are areas that are addressed by operations

researchers and, not obviously by marketing researchers.Finally, the IT research with respect to SCM and mapped

to marketing topics include customer relationship

management and data warehouses. Product positioning is

clearly reflected in the IT journals on supply chain research.

Buyer behavior and product positioning were highlighted in

the IT journals and the topics of the articles mapped them to

marketing.These are but a few ideas toward a research agenda. Refer

to Table V for a complete list of topics.

Discussion and managerial implications

In this paper we have presented an interdisciplinary model of

supply chain research for marketing and three additional

Table II SCM articles in marketing journals

Topics Mapped to Research articles

Information sharing systems IT Ballou, R.H., Gilbert, S.M., and Mukherjee, A. (2000)

Power in interfirm relationships IT Geyskens, Inge, Gielens, Katrijn, and Dekimpe, Marnik G. (2002)

Channel management/B2b IT Webb, K.L. (2002); Mirani, R., Moore, D. and Weber, J.A. (2001)

Communication and conflict IT Webb, K.L. (2002)

Internet IT Boyle (2001); Lancioni, R.A., Smith, M.F. and Oliva, T.A. (2000); Roberts, J.H. (2000);

Pitta (2002)

B2b value chain LOG Evans, J.R. and Berman, B. (2001)

Channel climate/power LOG Kim, K. (2000); Kasulis, J.J., Morgan, F.W., Griffith, D.E. and Kenderdine, J.M. (1999);

Geyskens, Inge, Gielens, Katrijn and Dekimpe, Marnik G. (2002)

Channel management – governance LOG Johnson, J.L. and Umesh, U.N. (2002); Alvarado, U. Y. and Kotzab, H. (2001)

Channel performance LOG Gilmour (1999); Kotzab (1999); Ballou, R.H., Gilbert, S.M. and Mukherjee, A. (2000);

Andersen, B., Fagerhaug, T., Randmael, S., Schuldmaier, J. and Prenningerk, J. (1999);

Webb and Hogan (2002)

Channel relationships LOG Donaldson and O’Toole (2002); Gaski, J.F. and Ray, N.M. (2001); Simpson, P.M., Siguaw,

J.A. and Baker, T.L. (2001); Geyskens, I., Steenkamp, J.-B. and Kumar, N. (1999); Hibbard,

J.D., Kumar, N., and Stern, L.W. (2001); Handfield, R.B. and Bechtel, C. (2002), Weber

(2000); Whipple and Gentry (2000)

Channel relationships – interfunctional LOG Narayandas, D., Caravella, M. and Deighton, J. (2002); Ellinger, A.E. (2000)

Channel relationships/international LOG Paswan and Young (1999); Li, L. and Ng, P. (2002); Czinkota, M.R. and Kotabe, M.

(2000); Liu and Wang (1999); Shamdasani, P., Keh, H.T. and Chan, K.T. (2001)

Design and flexibility in the supply chain LOG Lancioni, R.A. (2000); Christopher, M. (2000)

Framework business processes integration LOG Srivastava, R.K., Shervani, T.A. and Fahey, L. (1999); Lambert, D.M. and Cooper, M.C.

(2000)

Inventory management LOG Weber, M.M. (2000)

Relationship management LOG Giller, C. and Matear, S. (2001); Naude, P. and Buttle, F. (2000); Gilliland, D.I. and Bello,

D.C. (2002); Baker, T.L., Simpson, P.M. and Siguaw, J.A. (1999); Johnson, J.L. (1999)

Service quality LOG Mentzer, J.T., Flint, D.J. and Hult, G.T. (2001); Durvasula, S., Lysonski, S. and Mehta, S.C.

(2002); Panigyrakis and Veloutsou (1999)

Supply chain design LOG Reutterer, T. and Kotzab, H.W. (2000), Lohtia and Subramanian (2000)

Vendor supplier relationships LOG Bask, A.H. (2001); Emerson, C. and Grimm, C. (1999); Webster, F.E. Jr (2000); Goodman,

L.E. and Dion, P.A. (2001); Kalafatis, S.P. (2002); Weber, J.A. (2001)

Buyer supplier relationship commitment OPS Hult, G.T.M., Ferrell, O.C., Hurley, R.F. and Giunipero, L.C. (2000)

Channel relationships OPS Li, Z.G. and Dant, R.P. (1999), Leach, M.P., Mesquita, L. and Downey, W.D. (2001)

Forecasting OPS Moon, M.A., Mentzer, J.T. and Jr, D.E.T. (2000)

Inventory management OPS Vergin, R.C. and Barr, K. (1999)

Production management OPS Ballou, R.H., Gilbert, S.M. and Mukherjee, A. (2000); Hult, G.T.M., Ketchen, D. and Slater,

S.F. (2002)

Note: Full bibliography available upon request




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disciplines (IT, logistics, and operations). We have highlighted

the importance of a multi-disciplinary approach to advancing

knowledge in supply chain research. We began by asking a

number of questions:. Who is doing “what” in SCM research?. How does it relate to what others are doing?

We found in our preliminary investigation of marketing SCM

research that there are a number of topics that are being

researched in two areas. However, a review of the authors

involved leads us to believe that collaboration is limited. It is

possible but we see little evidence of multiple authors working

in different fields collaborating on the same topic.

The topics relate to what others are doing in various fields. In

fact, a preliminary inquiry of the importance of the

collaborative research topics to practitioners revealed that

the topics uncovered by the interdisciplinary approach were

high on the priority list of concerns for industry professionals.

Table III Journals selected for review in IT, logistics, and operations

Journals selected (abbreviation)

Articles

reviewed

Total of articles

on SCM

Articles on

SCM (%)

Articles mapped

to marketing

IT journals

Communications of the ACM (CACM) 357 16 4.5 2

Decision Sciences (DS) 109 13 11.9 1

Information Systems Management (ISM) 113 17 15.0 3

Journal of Global Information Technology Management (JGITM) 40 18 45.0 0

Journal of Management Information Systems (JMIS) 112 7 6.3 1

MIS Quarterly (MISQ) 62 5 8.1 1

IT journal total 793 76 9.5 8

Logistics journals

International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics Management (IJPDLM) 148 86 58.1 17

International Journal of Logistics Management (IJLM) 60 47 78.3 9

Journal of Business Logistics (JBL) 65 31 47.6 2

Logistics Information Management (LIM) 148 25 16.9 –

Supply Chain Management – An International Journal (SCMIJ) 102 20 19.6 3

Transportation Journal (TJ) 64 5 7.8

Transportation Research, Part E (TR-E) 90 7 7.8 1

Logistics journal total 677 221 32.6 32

Operations journals

International Journal of Production Management (IJOPM) 291 36 12.37 4

Journal of Operations Management (JOM) 136 24 17.65 4

Production Inventory Management Journal (PIMJ) 91 10 10.99 0

Production Operations Management Society Journal (POMS) 120 27 22.50 2

IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management (IEEE) 153 9 5.88 0

Management Science (MS) 404 38 9.41 8

Manufacturing Services Operations Management (MSOM) (only 2002) 15 1 6.67

Operations journal total 1,354 151 11.15 19

Table IV Supply chain management collaborative research agendas

Dyad functions Topics

MKTG/LOG Channel interfunctional relationships (e.g. logistics/

marketing interface)

E-commerce/B2B value chain

Relationship management

Customer service quality/fulfillment

MKTG/OPS Channel relationships and satisfaction

Forecasting

MKTG/IT E-commerce/internet shopping

Table V SCM/marketing topics in non-marketing journals

Research agenda for marketing

LOG Product differentiation, customization, postponement

Reverse/green logistics

OPS Franchise and price negotiation

Information sharing

Pricing

Product customization/postponement

Product design, product development

Secondary markets

Supply chain coordination

IT Artificial neural networks/forecasting

Buyer behavior

Customer data warehouses, customer relationship management

Customer service

Product position strategies

Note: Full bibliography available upon request




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We, of course, believe that the interdisciplinary approach

matters in supply chain research. As we completed our study,

we understand more fully that the supply chain touches so

many different functions in the organization that it isimpossible for it to be narrowly focused. Fully populating

the model of linkages will be no small task.We need to identify the specific outcomes of our study with

respect to the model. What is the content of the intersections

between the disciplines? Is the intersecting set null?We were able to populate the intersections of our

exploratory dyads. While we found that the immediate areas

for collaboration somewhat limited, we expect that there will

be other dyads that will be ripe with opportunities.What are the contents of the intersections? Are there areas

of common interest or are there none? Can we establish acollaborative research agenda?The SCM topics that we identified that are currently being

researched in one discipline but not the other are perfecttopics for a research agenda. Collaboration with the other

function would be a good way to “jump start” the research.We have answered our preliminary questions through an

exploratory analysis of the SCM literature related to

marketing. Additionally, we have provided a set of topics in

each of the intersecting areas that are currently beingresearched from two perspectives. These topics could

benefit from a collaborative approach. Finally, we were able

to see how to set the research agenda in supply chain for each

of the four functions studied.What are the real implications of an interdisciplinary

research agenda? In the medical field, both research and

practice look at the “whole” person. The approach has clearlylead to significant advances in medicine. In the information

systems arena, the total systems approach has spawned ERP

systems (enterprise reporting systems). The value to theorganization from the holistic view has been important.The total systems perspective also applies to the supply

chain. The inter and intra-firm relationships that are thesupply chain also illustrate business process thinking

(Koteinikov, 2006). Koteinikov talks about business process

thinking and the idea of looking at the world from a cross-functional perspective. The illustration of the supply chain as

a business process reinforces the multiple discipline research

agenda.If supply chain management research is conducted from a

single perspective, the ability to respond to issues from a

holistic view will not be developed. Using an interdisciplinary

agenda, the frontiers of knowledge on supply chain will beexpanded and the ability to deal with the issues of a cross-

functional process will be increased. Managers will be helped

by researchers by being able to both view and resolveproblems from an holistic perspective. Identifying and

addressing issues from a systems perspective, should give

managers the ability to anticipate both objectives to asituation at hand as well as find solutions to those objections

that meet with the approval of multiple stakeholders.

Limitations and future research

This research has several limitations. Using an automated

extraction of articles from published databases by using

keywords may present inconsistencies. While we have double-checked all categorizations and resolved differences through

consensus, there are still some automated searches that will

not achieve the same article set. We have attempted to cross-

check the categories by having multiple members of our team

assess each article. We have attempted to minimize the

inconsistencies by documenting the process and cross-

validating the work in each function with at least two of the

research team independently extracting, categorizing, and

mapping the articles.Another limitation that arose was in terms of language.

Since our research team consisted of researchers from

different functional areas, we had to address semantics

issues as we conducted the study.We also limited the initial endeavor to mapping only as a

dyad and only using a dichotomous variable. Either the article

mapped to another functional area on a single topic or

keyword, or it did not. Future work on this model may

include an ordinal ranking system or multi-topic mapping.There are a number of areas for future research. While the

research agendas, both current and future, provide a good

foundation, it is necessary to delve even further into each of

the functional areas and dyads in order to be very specific on

the possibilities for interdisciplinary work in supply chain

management. However, as in all research areas, we need to be

sure not to overly blend the streams and thus lose the

specificity of the individual streams and the look at the dyads.

References

Cabell, D.W.E., English, D.L. and Abernethy, B. (1999),

Cabell’s Directory of Publishing Opportunities in Management

and Marketing: 1997-98, Cabell Publishing Company,

Beaumont, TX.Daugherty, P.J., Autry, C.W. and Ellinger, A.E. (2001),

“Reverse logistics: the relationship between resource

commitment and program performance”, Journal of

Business Logistics, Vol. 22 No. 1, p. 107.Emerald (2003), “Emerald management reviews”, available

at: http://giorgio.emeraldinsight.com/vl ¼ 4718470/cl ¼ 14/

nw ¼ 1/rpsv/reviews/journals.htm (accessed December 10,

2003).Koteinikov, V. (2006), “Business process thinking: shift from

traditional mindset”, available at: www.1000ventures.com/

business_guide/process_thinking.html (accessed December

10, 2006).Lummus, R.E., Krumwiede, D.W. and Vokurka, R.J. (2001),

“The relationship of logistics to supply chain management:

developing a common industry definition”, Industrial

Management & Data Systems, Vol. 101 Nos 8/9, pp. 426-33.Numamaker, J.F. Jr, Briggs, R.O., De Vreede, G.J. and

Sprague, R.H. Jr (2000), “Special issue: enhancing

organizations’ intellectual bandwidth: the quest for fast

and effective value creation”, Journal of Management

Information Systems, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 3-9.Tuomi, I. (1999), “Data is more than knowledge: implications

of the reversed knowledge hierarchy for knowledge

management and organization memory”, Journal of

Management Information Systems, Vol. 16 No. 3, pp. 103-17.

Corresponding author

Diane H. Parente can be contacted at: [email protected]




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Executive summary and implications formanagers and executives

This summary has been provided to allow managers and executivesa rapid appreciation of the content of the article. Those with aparticular interest in the topic covered may then read the article intoto to take advantage of the more comprehensive description of theresearch undertaken and its results to get the full benefit of thematerial present.

In the field of medicine, both those involved in research andpractice look at the “whole” person and this interdisciplinaryapproach has clearly led to significant advances in medicine.Similarly, in the information systems arena, the total systemsapproach has spawned ERP (enterprise reporting) systemsthat have been valuable from an holistic view to theorganization.In supply chain management, however, both practitioners

and academics have appropriated the supply chain.Practitioners organize their companies with supply chainmanagement (SCM) residing within marketing or operations,with some firms having a logistics department or organizeSCM as a separate functional entity. Academics haveembraced the study in much the same way.With respect to academic research, marketers began to look

at the distribution of products to the customers, called itlogistics, and made it into an area of study within marketing.Operations managers identified the importance of the pre-transformation function, specifically the shipment and storageof raw materials, and added it to the areas of interest withinoperations management research. Finally, the development ofsophisticated software to schedule production, shipments,inventory, and inbound materials, effectively covering bothpre and post-transformation business functions, createdenormous interest on the part of information technologyresearchers.It is no wonder that SCM has been appropriated by each of

these disciplines either directly or indirectly with marketing,logistics, operations, and even information technology eachhaving claimed ownership to some degree in the businessfunction that spans from the raw materials through thetransformation and beyond to customer delivery.Supply chain management, as individual pieces in the

processes and linkages between the processes, commandssignificant attention for both practitioners and researchersalike due to the impact on the organization. The linkages inthe supply chain, how they work, and how well the firmaccomplishes them, are the bases for internal firm capabilitiesthat create competitive advantage for firms today.In presenting the case for a more collaborative appraisal of

different disciplines, Diane H. Parente et al. say that if supplychain management research is conducted from a singleperspective, the ability to respond to issues from a holisticview will not be developed. Using an interdisciplinary agenda,the frontiers of knowledge on supply chain will be expanded

and the ability to deal with the issues of a cross-functional

process will be increased.Managers will be helped by researchers by being able to

both view and resolve problems from an holistic perspective.

Identifying and addressing issues from a systems perspective

should give managers the ability to anticipate situations as

find solutions that meet with the approval of multiple

stakeholders.The authors present an interdisciplinary model of supply

chain research for marketing and three additional disciplines

(IT, logistics, and operations), highlighting the importance of

a multi-disciplinary approach to advancing knowledge in

supply chain research. The interdisciplinary approach matters

in supply chain research as the supply chain touches so many

different functions in the organization that it is impossible for

it to be narrowly focused.After asking “Who is doing what in SCM research?” and

“How does it relate to what others are doing?” they found in

their preliminary investigation of marketing SCM research

that there are a number of topics that are being researched in

two areas. However, a review of the authors involved

indicated that collaboration is limited, with little evidence of

multiple authors working in different fields collaborating on

the same topic.The topics relate to what others are doing in various fields.

In fact, a preliminary inquiry of the importance of the

collaborative research topics to practitioners revealed that the

topics uncovered by the interdisciplinary approach were high

on the priority list of concerns for industry professionals.Fully populating their model of linkages between the

various disciplines is recognized as being no small task.

Specific outcomes of the study with respect to the model need

to be identified. What is the content of the intersections

between the disciplines? Is the intersecting set null?The authors were able to populate the intersections of their

exploratory dyads. While they found that the immediate areas

for collaboration somewhat limited, they expect that there will

be other dyads that will be ripe with opportunities. They ask:

What are the contents of the intersections? Are there areas of

common interest or are there none? Can we establish a

collaborative research agenda?The SCM topics identified that are currently being

researched in one discipline but not the other are perfect

topics for a research agenda. Collaboration with the other

function would be a good way to “jump start” the research.In future it will be necessary to delve even further into each

of the functional areas and dyads in order to be very specific

on the possibilities of interdisciplinary work in SCM –

without overly blending the themes and consequently losing

the specificity of the individual streams.

(A precis of the article “Marketing and supply chain management:

a collaborative research agenda”. Supplied by Marketing

Consultants for Emerald.)




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Marketing and supply chain management: a collaborative research agenda