Logistics and extended enterprises

Author: (USA) Boyson
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-10-01
Features: This book studies real-world cases of leading global enterprises to answer how companies should best apply supply chain management practices to overcome internal and external obstacles, thereby becoming efficient extended enterprises. The authors obtained firsthand data for this research through interviews, field investigations, group discussions, and focused surveys of over 600 companies across many industries. The book summarizes the core findings and conclusions of the research using a case study approach. This book is the result of the Logistics Application Research Project, which lasted four years and cost $1 million. Supply chain management has become a necessary condition for corporate competition in the global economic environment. Written by members of the Supply Chain Management Center at the University of Maryland, this book is the first to study organizational structure from the perspectives of supply chain management and logistics/transportation management. It provides examples of successful global supply chain implementation and explains the crucial role logistics plays in this process. Against the backdrop of logistics and supply chain management, the book analyzes the definition and evolution of extended enterprises, examines internal logistics and supply chain management, as well as partnerships in strategic alliances, and finally proposes how to achieve true extended enterprises through self-diagnosis and benchmarking. This book not only offers conceptual tools but also analytical methods, which are essential for implementing global supply chain management and developing world-class logistics. It can serve as a reference textbook for undergraduate and graduate students in supply chain management and logistics management-related fields at universities, as well as a reference book for professionals in enterprises and institutions engaged in supply chain management and logistics management.