Strategic buyer-supplier relationships, information technology and external logistics integration

The advent of vertical disintegration coupled with the globalization of markets has brought about increased attention to how firms coordinate flow of materials and information across their supply chain partners. The current research explores the impact of strategic buyer-supplier relationships and information technology on a firm's external logistics integration and agility performance using data collected from over 200 firms. The proposed structural equation model reveals that strategic buyer-supplier relationships and information technology engender external logistics integration, which in turn, affects agility performance of firms. Furthermore, information technology moderates the link between buyer-supplier relationships and logistics integration. Implications for future research and practice are also discussed. May 2007, by the Institute for Supply Management, Inc.™.