interdisciplinary research in supply chain
TRANSCRIPT
Interdisciplinary research in
SCM
S G DeshmukhABV-Indian Institute of Information Technology & Management , Gwalior Workshop on
“Interdisciplinary Research & Decision Sciences in Business Practices”,
DMS, IIT Delhi
4 Feb 2017 1
Speaking points..
Opening remarks..
Various perspectives about interdisciplinary
research..
Funding perspective
Experience sharing & Big Opportunities..
Closing remarks..
2
My presentation based on ..
3
https://www.nap.edu/catalog/11153/facilit
ating-interdisciplinary-research
https://www.abebooks.com/9781412988773/Inter
disciplinary-Research-Process-Theory-Repko-
1412988772/plp
Observations ..1.. Everywhere, digital transformation is making
disruptions
Traditional ways of conducting research and
disseminating outcomes have also changed
The way we communicate and disseminate has
changed.
Contemporary research in SCM is no exception
to this !
Focus on emerging collaborative environment 4
Observations ..2…
Supply Chain Management has matured as a
discipline
Developments in IT have made integration
possible: The fundamental premise on which SCM
is based !!
Basic concerns in SCM : Management of Material
flow, Information flow ,Money flow, Manpower flow
& Energy flow
These concerns are valid in a variety of contexts ,
hence plethora of opportunities available ,
especially in emerging economies like India
Importance of Research in SCM
For advancing the state of knowledge
For gaining acceptance by the academic
community
For enhancing quality of pedagogy (especially
in Business schools)
For increase in reach and visibility
For making some difference & impact since
SCM affects and gets affected by a whole array
of disciplines cutting across the boundaries !6
Research in SCM is guided by
some aspects of boundary
Discipline Boundary (Maths, Computer Science,
HR, Finance !!)
Time or Resource Boundary
Information or Data Boundary (availability, form
and content )
Contextual boundary(guided by the situation)
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Observations
Marketing academics offering customer
focussed solutions
Supply management academics offering
supplier-management focussed solutions
IS academics offering system connectivity –
focussed solutions
Source: Sanders NR . Zacharia ZG & Fugate BS, 2013, The Interdisciplinary future of supply chain
management research, Decision Sciences, 44(3), 413-428
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Why interdisciplinary research?
Voluntary reasons
Compelling reasons ?
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What is happening today..
An increasing focus on interdisciplinary research
SCM , by design provides an ideal platform for this !
An enhanced importance on large scale problems,
rather than techniques; Thanks to data
science/analytics !!
Greater emphasis on collaborative work
Research in SCM : Integrative, crossing various
boundaries and can impact society !
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Observations..
Our thinking & way of working is shaped by
environment and the context within which we
operate
Research in SCM is governed by “Context”!
We are “Textual” rather than ‘Contextual”
Insightful remark by Mr K P Fabian, Ex-ambassador
(4 Aug 2016 at ABV-IIITM Gwalior)
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Research in supply chain
management domain …
Huge scope for integration
Synergization of analytical and evidence
based approach?
Context/culture based?
Applied – Enrichment due to practice and
practitioners
Opportunity to make some contributions to
society ?
Change in focus
Fragmented to Integrated ?
Myopic to long term?
Tool centric to issue centric?
Theory based to implementation based?
Model based to practice based?
Taxonomy for research
Push vs Pull Type of research
Push-Traditional one- academic trying to
push publications
Pull-Contemporary one- driven by customer
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Customer centric research..
KYC – Know your customer
Who is the customer?
Business & society as customers of our
research !
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Interdisciplinary research-
Connotations from literature .. Interdisciplinary research involves variants of the following
“integration” (Wagner et al., 2011),
“convergence” (Fuller, 2011),
“synthesis” (Rafols and Meyer (2010),
“fusion” (Krohn, 2010),
“amalgamation” (Bozeman and Boardman, 2014) ,or
“unification” (Dupré, 2006).
Common among these definitions is an emphasis on the ability to move
beyond single disciplines to address research topics from new perspectives,
theories, concepts and methodologies that together form a body of
knowledge beyond the traditional disciplinary boundaries.
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Interdisciplinary research :
Ancient Indian perspective
Elephant & Six blind men …
source: outboox.com
Interdisciplinary research
Compelling reason?
Research has to attract funding
Funding opportunities are limited
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Interdisciplinary research:
NSF perspective
“Interdisciplinary research is a mode of research by teams
or individuals that integrates information, data, techniques,
tools, perspectives, concepts, and/or theories from two or
more disciplines or bodies of specialized knowledge to
advance fundamental understanding or to solve problems
whose solutions are beyond the scope of a single discipline
or area of research practice.“*
*Committee on Facilitating Interdisciplinary Research, Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public
Policy (2004). Facilitating interdisciplinary research. National Academies. Washington: National Academy
Press, p. 2.
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Interdisciplinary research:
European perspective Horizon 2020 is the biggest EU Research and Innovation programme ever
with nearly €80 billion of funding available over 7 years (2014 to 2020) – in
addition to the private investment that this money will attract. It promises
more breakthroughs, discoveries and world-firsts by taking great ideas from
the lab to the market
European Framework Programme for Research and Innovation “Horizon
2020” presents an instructive example of the deliberations in major
interdisciplinary programmes.
https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/
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Imprint
IMPRINT is the first of its kind MHRD supported Pan-IIT + IISc joint
initiative to address the major science and engineering challenges that
India must address and champion to enable, empower and embolden the
nation for inclusive growth and self-reliance.
IMPRINT provides the overarching vision that
guides research into areas that are
predominantly socially relevant.
http://imprint-india.org/21
Interdisciplinary research:
Experience sharing
Ongoing doctoral work on exploring supply
chain of medical devices /dental implants
Arya V, Deshmukh SG & Bhatnagar NB (2016),Value Creation in Dental
Implant Supply Chain, 10th World congress for oral implantology & AAID
congress, New Delhi , 11-13 Nov 2016
Arya, V, Deshmukh, SG., & Bhatnagar, NB (2015), High Technology Health
Care Supply Chains: Issues in Collaboration. Procedia-Social and Behavioral
Sciences, 189, 40-47
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Medical Device: Dental Implant
Dental Implant is a medical operation used
to restore the functions of damaged or
missing teeth
Importance of dental supply chain and
their characteristics
Dental Implant supply chain encompasses high value and low volume items which are highly customized depending upon the clinical requirements and to restore the functions or the aesthetic requirements.
Some Characteristics are: Highly customized products, highly automated processes
Precision manufacturing requirements
Strictly regulated at manufacturing and clinical end
High Shelf life of the products such as dental implants, prosthetic components
Requires intense RD support, very high initial investment
Issues in supply chain of dental
implants
Lack of affordability, awareness and access of dental implants
is the key issue
Real time customized products through an interactive platform
between manufacturer and the clinician
Information integration issue related to anatomical information
data set which is highly variant according to shape, width and
length of jawbone.
Integrating multiple supply networks in case of partially
outsourced manufacturing. Knowing when and where to
integrate supply chain networks is critical
No standardization in prosthetic components particularly in
case of dental implant
Tools/techniques used Issue Tools used Remarks
Value Creation in medical devices BBN Dynamic model stating real time analysis,
predictive analysis
Problems faced by clinicians in current
practice (technological perspective)
Text Mining Analysis based on text mining resulting
prominent areas need attention
Affordability of medical devices Optimization model Cost analysis and decision related to in house
production/outsourcing, decision regarding
investment in automation of the processes
Enablers and barriers in value creation DEMATEL Causal relations among various factors
creating/limiting value in medical devices
Manufacturing process improvement
related decisions, staggered investment
pertaining to automation
MCDM Process study under different criteria,
highlighting process volatility in lens of
ISO13485 and concluding to process control
under various constraints
Medical device selection for a customized
use
F-GRA Decision making under multi-criteria for
selecting a medical device (clinical
perspective)
Accountability enforcement DSS Dedicated software for enforcing the
accountability at various nodes in the supply
chain of medical implants
Comment..
Interactions with Doctors, paramedical personnel,
patients, equipment suppliers, regulatory bodies
etc. to get an holistic understanding of the issues
Everyone has his/her “Worldview” - sometimes a
limited view just link in the parable of elephant and
blind men !
Reality is different - prudence lies in
comprehending the entire ‘elephant” !!
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Big opportunity 1: SCM in
the context of Smart City
The concept of smart cities has been fairly a new
one in India.
The Government’s announcement to build 100 smart
cities – New impetus to the concept with the idea
being discussed in the public sphere.
The Ministry of Urban Development is anchoring this
initiative
An agreement has been reached with the USA,
Germany Japan and UK to collaborate on the
project.
Parameters of Smart Cities
Competitiveness refers to a city’s ability to create
employment opportunities, attract investments, experts,
professionals and people. The ease of being able to do
business and the quality of life it offers determines its
competitiveness. (Planners view, Business View, IT View)
Sustainability includes social sustainability, environmental
sustainability and financial sustainability (Architects view,
Sustainability view)
Quality of Life includes safety and security, inclusiveness,
entertainment, ease of seeking and obtaining public services,
cost efficient healthcare, quality education, transparency,
accountability and opportunities for participation in
governance (Citizen’s view) 29
Big opportunity 2: SCM in
Swachhata Abhiyan Mission mode project, launched by the prime minister in
Oct 2014
Supply chain of garbage, waste, debris, disposables
etc.
Material flow, information flows
Huge scope for improvement
A social supply chain & Community led supply chain
Reverse supply chain for waste recycle ?https://swachhbharat.mygov.in/
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Pre-requisites for IDR
Change of mindset
Sensitization about
Drivers for research- large scale, societal
challenges
Drivers for outcomes?
Continual ability to learn and adapt to embrace
alternative views/perspectives
Coming out of shell /comfort zones
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Insights .1..
Following insights ,we gained by doing
interdisciplinary research rather than doing in a
conventional, “silo” based approach
Enhanced quality of decision making since a variety of
stakeholders involved
Decision model in SCM is one thing- seeing its
implementation is another thing which makes you satisfied !
Management science is both science and “art” !
Chances of implementing the SCM model are enhanced if
we take the “art” of implementation into account
For this : Interdisciplinary mind set is a “must”32
Insights ..2..
Research is not an end in itself
Research is means to an end!
That “end” is defined by business/society
One should not get carried away by the
“means” !
Keep the bigger picture of “end” in view !
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Summary: benefits of IDR in SCM
IDR generates synergy while grasping variety of
issue sin SCM ,
IDR helps learning and growing of individual
discipline researchers (say "Logistics”, “Materials
Mgmt” , “Finance ” etc.)
IDR facilitates un-covering the areas of unknown
(remember comprehending all areas of SCM is not
easy !!)
IDR helps in enhancing quality of decision making in
SCM34
Closing remarks: Ph D degree ~
Ph D degree: a passport to conduct
research
Typically a Ph D degree does not specify
discipline !!
It is convergence in pursuit of knowledge
Same is the case with interdisciplinary
research !!
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