A research on the antecedents of operational performance in supply chain management

Many operation initiatives, practices, and perspectives have been derived from providing a competitive advantage by responding to changing customer needs with lower costs, higher quality products,s and shorter periods. In academia and practitioners, three essential elements of particular interest are supply chain management, strategic agility, and operational performance. Therefore, investigating the factors affecting the operational performance of logistics supply providers contributes to the logistics and supply chain literature. Based on dynamic capabilities theory, this study examines the sequential relationships between supply chain management, strategic agility, and operational performance of logistics suppliers. The sample of the research consists of middle and senior managers of logistics enterprises operating in the Mediterranean region (Adana, Burdur, Hatay, Isparta, Mersin, Osmaniye, Kahramanmaraş, Antalya) within the body of UTIKAD (Association of International Forwarding and Logistics Service Providers). For this purpose, an online questionnaire was applied to middle and senior managers of 79 logistics service provider companies operating within the UTIKAD Mediterranean Regional Representative Office. Responses were provided to 361 of the questionnaires sent. According to the research findings,; Three sub-dimensions of supply chain management (collaboration with suppliers, logistics, information flow, and information sharing) have been found to have a direct and significant effect on strategic agility. Another result of the research is that strategic agility has a positive and significant impact on operational performance. According to another result, the three sub-dimensions of supply chain management (collaboration with suppliers, logistics, information flow, and information sharing) directly and significantly affect operational performance. The study's findings highlight the antecedents that improve the operational performance of logistics supply providers.