Data-driven capabilities, supply chain integration and competitive performance Evidence from the food and beverages industry in Pakistan

• Published in: British food journal (1966) Vol. 121; no. 11; pp. 2708 - 2729
• Main Authors: Irfan, Muhammad, Wang, Mingzheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Bradford Emerald Group Publishing Limited 23.10.2019
• Subjects: Beverages; Big Data; Competition; Competitive advantage; Consumption; Context; Customer relationship management; Data collection; Developing countries; Distributors; Enterprise resource planning; Food; Food chains; Food processing industry; Food products; Food supply; Franchises; Hypotheses; Information technology; Integration; Knowledge management; LDCs; Logistics; Market potential; Milk production; Multivariate statistical analysis; Radio frequency identification; Suppliers; Supply chain management; Supply chains; Trends; Pakistan; South Asia
• ISSN: 0007-070X; 1758-4108
• DOI: 10.1108/BFJ-02-2019-0131

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to analyze the effects of data-driven capabilities on supply chain integration (SCI) and competitive performance of firms in the food and beverages (F & B) industry in Pakistan.Design/methodology/approachThe authors adopt the structural equation modeling approach to test the proposed hypotheses using AMOS 23. Survey data were collected from 240 firms in the F & B industry in Pakistan.FindingsThe results revealed that SCI (i.e. internal integration (II) and external integration (EI)) significantly mediates the effect of data-driven capabilities (i.e. flexible information technology resources and data assimilation) on a firm’s competitive performance. In addition to the direct effects, II also has an indirect effect on competitive performance through EI.Practical implicationsThe study has several implications for managers in the context of big data application in food supply chain management (FSCM) in a developing country context. The study posits that firms can achieve excellence in performance by governing data-driven supply chain operations. The study also has implications for distributors and importers in the F & B industry. The cloud-based sharing of data can improve the operational performance of channel members while reducing their overall cost of operations. In practice, food franchises largely get the advantage of shared resources of their suppliers in managing orders, payments, inventory and after-sales services.Originality/valueThe study is novel and deepens the understanding about the use of big data in FSCM keeping in view the industry trends and stakeholder’s priorities in a developing country context.