Overview and Analysis of Supply Chain Taxonomies and Typologies

In practice, there is not a “one size fits all” supply chain, but they evolve over time and differ regarding several characteristics, e.g., organizational forms and structures, type of companies involved, collaborating processes and digitization. For instance, supply chains of multinational automotive manufacturers consist of thousands of suppliers as well as retailers whereas small manufacturers have rather small supply chains with only a few suppliers. In order structure different types or classes of supply chains, supply chain taxonomies have been designed.

 

Hence, this Bachelor thesis aims at investigating and systemizing existing structuring overviews of supply chains: taxonomies/ typologies/ classification structures (authors use these terms mistakenly interchangeable), which distinguish different types/kinds of supply chains. Established structuring overviews from literature covering company and supply chain collaborations should be researched, explained in detail and compared. This thesis is grounded on existing research results (classifications and reviews) in the area of taxonomies and typologies for supply chain management. First, a literature review in the area of supply chain management and taxonomies should be performed. Relevant literature from the research domains supply chain management, especially coordination and collaborations should be investigated. This will also cover supply chain taxonomies, typologies etc. The identified structuring overviews will be explained in detail and subsequently be analyzed regarding their covered aspects, dimensions and attributes. A morphological analysis should investigate the variety, frequency and depth of different dimensions and their configurations. The summarizing overview of the identified maturity models should be presented in a morphological box (Zwickybox). Furthermore, the identified structuring overviews should be compared and analyzed regarding their combinability benefits and drawbacks.

 

The thesis can be written in either English or German. Since scientific literature and many domain-related terms are primarily available in English, it is recommended to write the thesis in English.

 

If you are interested in this topic, any related topics or have any questions, please send me an e-mail. Then, we can have a meeting to explain and talk about the topic in person.

 

Exemplary literature:

  • Introduction of SCM: Stadtler, Hartmut; Kilger, Christoph; Meyr, Herbert (Hg.) (2015): Supply Chain Management and Advanced Planning: Springer Berlin Heidelberg (Springer Texts in Business and Economics).
  • Harland, C. M., Lamming, R. C., Zheng, J., and Johnsen, T. E. 2001. “A Taxonomy of Supply Networks,” The Journal of Supply Chain Management (37:3), pp. 21–27.
  • Meyr, H., and Stadtler, H. 2015. “Types of Supply Chains,” in Supply Chain Management and Advanced Planning, H. Stadtler, C. Kilger and H. Meyr (eds.): Springer Berlin Heidelberg, pp. 55–69.
  • Gereffi, G., Humphrey, J., and Sturgeon, T. 2005. “The governance of global value chains,” Review of International Political Economy (12:1), pp. 78–104.
  • Lejeune, M. A., and Yakova, N. 2005. “On characterizing the 4 C's in supply chain management,” Journal of Operations Management (23:1), pp. 81–100.