The economic theory of international supply chains: a systems view

Casson, M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2907-6538 and Wadeson, N. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8140-9307 (2013) The economic theory of international supply chains: a systems view. International Journal of the Economics of Business, 20 (2). pp. 163-186. ISSN 1466-1829 doi: 10.1080/13571516.2013.783514

Abstract/Summary

This paper offers an integrated analysis of out-sourcing, off-shoring and foreign direct investment within a systems view of international business. This view takes the supply chain rather than the firm as the basic unit of analysis. It argues that competition in the global economy selects supply chains that maximise the joint profit of all the firms in the chain. The systems view is compared with the firm-centred view commonly used in strategy literature. The paper shows that a firm’s strategy must be embedded within an efficient supply chain strategy, and that this strategy must be negotiated with, rather than imposed upon, other firms. The paper analyses the conditions under which various supply chain strategies - and by implication various firm-level strategies - are efficient. Only by adopting a systems view of supply chains is it possible to determine which firm-level strategies will succeed in a volatile global economy.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/29785
Identification Number/DOI	10.1080/13571516.2013.783514
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Arts, Humanities and Social Science > School of Politics, Economics and International Relations > Economics Henley Business School > International Business and Strategy
Uncontrolled Keywords	International, Strategy, Supply Chain, Offshoring, Outsourcing, Coordination
Publisher	Routledge
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