مانیتورینگ زنجیره تامین
Abstract
1- Introduction
2- LLP and 4PL provider-From an inter-organizational perspective
3- Competitive advantage of LLP and 4PL provider-A case study
4- Conclusion
References
Abstract
In the past three decades, many firms have chosen to outsource logistics operations management to specialized suppliers called logistics service providers (LSPs). This managerial reality has been described and analyzed extensively in academic studies in marketing, strategic management and logistics management. More recently, a new generation of providers, called LLPs (lead logistics providers) and 4PL (fourth party logistics) providers, have radically altered the logistics industry. They notably offer complete logistics service without necessarily possessing the physical assets (means of transport, warehouses, etc.). These providers are gradually becoming orchestrators within supply chains. This article explores this little known reality that portends a strategic disruption, based on a case study of a global LSP.
Introduction
The logistics industry has undergone an unprecedented evolution for at least three decades, in terms of geographic reach (initially Europe, North America, and Asia, and more recently North Africa and South America) and of transformation of the role of logistics. Transport or warehousing specialists have long been considered more than simple executors of logistics operations for their clients. In the current economic system, particularly since the 1980s, many transport actors have become pivotal to contemporary logistics plans. By expanding their offer of value-added services, these logistics service providers (LSPs) even enable numerous shippers in industry and large retailing to implement their development strategies at the national and international levels. The LSP traditionally fulfils the function of logistics intermediary by arranging storage, order preparation and final delivery of products for its customers. It is ideally placed to organize pooling of logistical resources, and thus help supply chains achieve substantial economies of scale and scope. Studied extensively for years in academia (Fulconis, Paché & Roveillo, 2011), the LSP sector has witnessed the rise of an innovative category that disrupts the previous business models: lead logistics providers (LLPs) and fourth party logistics (4PL) providers. The latter result from a process of slow complex maturation punctuated by a series of organizational innovations. Arthur Andersen Consulting, which became Accenture, was the first to introduce the notion of 4PL provider, in the mid1990s. Since then, the literature has avidly embraced this subject. As orchestrators, LLPs and 4PL providers organize and coordinate flows of products for shippers, by mobilizing the logistical capacities of a large number of subcontracting firms. Whereas the managerial literature has quickly grasped this phenomenon, the emerging character of this new generation of LSP, marked by dematerialization of logistical services, remains largely unknown and underexplored. The objective of this paper is to shed light on the ongoing evolution of the role of LSP through an organizational and strategic approach toward steering of businessto-business logistical flows (section 2), and to analyze the competitive advantage of LLP and 4PL provider, supported by a case study (section 3). The conclusion applies the metaphor of improvisation within jazz ensembles to highlight the originality of the current evolutions in supply chain monitoring.