Critical Success Factors for Horizontal Logistics Collaboration

Lisbeth Broede Jepsen

A chapter in Innovative Methods in Logistics and Supply Chain Management: Current Issues and Emerging Practices, 2014, pp 459-477 from Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management

Abstract: Research in transport and logistics has primarily focused on vertical collaboration (e.g. customer-supplier collaboration), whereas horizontal collaboration between e.g. competitors, has received only limited attention (Vanovermeire et al., 2013). Literature on collaboration has emphasized motivations, opportunities, antecedents and outcome (Cruijssen et al., 2007), but researcher have paid far less attention to the developmental processes of horizontal collaboration, i.e. the process through which collaborations are initiated, formed, and operated (Das et al., 2002). Furthermore, an investigation of critical success factors such as shippers' willingness and motives, their challenges, the selection of partners and the role of the network broker in regard to the initiation and creation of horizontal collaboration have been largely neglected in previous logistic research. The purpose of this case study is therefore to bridge these gaps and investigate the critical success factors during the early development stages of a horizontal logistic collaboration. The research question guiding this paper is: RQ1: What can be learned about critical success factors during the early development stages of a horizontal logistic collaboration? This study contributes to theory generation suggesting a five-stage process for horizontal collaboration underlining the critical success factors during this process. Especially, the role of the network broker has been found essential for the successful creation of a horizontal collaboration. This study is an example of real-life collaboration between producers, which have resulted in the development of new green transport corridor. Therefore, this case provides valuable new learning about the process of creating a horizontal logistic collaboration.

Keywords: horizontal logistic collaboration; critical success factors; five-stages process; network broker (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/209243/1/hicl-2014-19-459.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:zbw:hiclch:209243

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from the Proceedings of the Hamburg International Conference of Logistics (HICL) from Hamburg University of Technology (TUHH), Institute of Business Logistics and General Management
Bibliographic data for series maintained by ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics ().