اثر صلاحیتهای فردی، شبکه و همکاری در سیستم مدیریت زنجیره تامین

The role of human capital as a source of competitive advantage has long been recognized; however, there has been little research into the competencies required in the supply chain management system. This paper strengthens the ties between supply chain and human resource management by examining the competencies inherent in successful supply chain management systems. Using structural equation modeling we assess the linkages between individual, network and inter-organizational competencies, investment in strategic partnership and firm performance. The findings reveal that both organizational awareness (competency at the individual level) and supply network competency (competency at the organizational level) have significant and positive effects on collaborative awareness. The importance of inter-organizational competencies is supported by the significant positive effect that collaborative awareness has on investment in strategic planning. Implications for human resource managers and supply chain managers are also provided.

It has become increasingly important to build organizational competencies that enable employees to combine and leverage their individual knowledge for greater organizational advantage (Athey and Orth, 1999). An area where these bundles of knowledge, skills and abilities that are key to developing and realizing organizational goals would appear to be particularly relevant is supply chain management which, when utilized effectively, can be used strategically to create added value to the firm (McCarter and Northcraft, 2007). To date, there has been little research into the competencies required of successful supply chain systems. This is probably due in no small part to the lack of literature linking the operations management and human resources (HR) fields (Ahmad and Schroeder, 2003 and Koulikoff-Souviron and Harrison, 2007). As Scarbrough (2000) has pointed out, there have been few studies of the implications for organizational or employee practices of supply chain relationships, despite its growing importance. Although historically separate fields, supply chain management and human resource management are “intimately tied together” in practically all business environments (Boudreau et al., 2003, p. 179). One of this paper's contributions is to strengthen the ties between supply chain and HR management by examining the competencies inherent in successful supply chain management systems that would encourage investment in strategic partnership with suppliers. At the individual level, the importance of supply chain management professionals' competency in effective supply chain management has been restricted to case studies. An empirical study designed to validate competency embedded in human resource would be valuable to provide a foundation for understanding this subject and provide implications to supply chain and human resource management practitioners. Supply chain managers must routinely share information, develop relationships, cooperate, and use collaborative skills with suppliers and internal and external customers. Internally, they must understand, collaborate and resolve differences with the various business functions within their own company. This study draws on knowledge management literature on competency to develop a definition of organizational awareness competency at the individual level within a firm. Little empirical analyses have investigated competencies at different levels as an important strategic tool in supply chain management. We have identified three key areas where these competencies are necessary: at the individual supply chain manager level; within the supply network itself; and the collaboration requirements with suppliers. Although the latter component has been researched with some frequency, the competencies required of the supply chain manager and that of the network itself have yet to receive much attention (Gammelgaard and Larson, 2001). Thus, the second contribution of this paper is to investigate the competencies required at the “front end” of the supply chain management system. Stank et al. (2001) suggest that both internal and external collaboration are necessary for successful supply chain performance. The combination of the organizational awareness on the part of the supply chain manager and the competency of the supply network should result in a trusting, long-term relationship with the supplier, a term we call collaborative awareness in this paper. Successful supply chain relationships should consist of partners that are willing to provide assistance to one another without exception; it is a relationship both parties are committed to and satisfied with. A relationship such as this, built on trust and commitment, should in turn result in an investment in strategic partnership, wherein suppliers are included in planning, problem solving, continuous improvement and product development processes. Development of a partnership with suppliers is widely recognized today as a potent tool for supply chain improvement. Until now, there has been little insight into how supply chain professional competencies are associated with partnership development. Successful supply chain managers collaborate often with other functions and engage in joint problem solving of operational issues and strategic issues, which facilitates inter-organizational partnership to take place and to be effective. This paper will make a third major contribution by examining the competencies required in successful strategic partnership development, and will extend the competency literature to include inter-organizational competencies.

This paper reinforces the importance of the management of human capital in the strategic performance of the firm. A firm's competitiveness is tied to enhancing its human capital through the development of the competencies of its employees and by creating unique, distinctive and difficult to imitate core competencies. HR professionals engaged in the strategic management of the firm's human resources should consider employees as strategic asset and a critical investment in a firm's performance, and create an atmosphere in which these competencies can thrive. Furthermore, it is becoming increasingly important to build organizational and process competencies that will enable employees to combine and leverage their individual knowledge for greater organizational advantage and HR must play a key role in developing these competencies.