title: The measurement of internal supply chain integration

authors: Basnet, Chuda

subjects: communications

abstract: Purpose: Internal supply chain refers to the chain of activities within a company that concludes with providing a product to the customer. This process involves multiple functions within companies such as sales, production, and distribution. It is obvious that a company's performance would be enhanced by the integration of these functions. However, there is no consensus yet on how integration is to be defined and measured. The purpose of this paper is to present research that was conducted with the goal of developing an instrument for the measurement of internal supply chain integration. Design/methodology/approach: Scale items were identified from current literature and the resulting survey instrument was sent out to a sample of New Zealand manufacturers. Statistical analysis was conducted to purify and validate the instrument. Findings: In total, three dimensions of integration were identified, labelled coordination, communication, and affective relationship. This paper makes a contribution towards developing a consensus in the understanding and measurement of the integration construct. Research limitations/implications: The selection and exclusion of measurement items for the survey have followed established principles of survey research, but may have been affected by the personal bias of the author. While every attempt has been made to comprehensively capture the state of the research up to the time of the study, there may be some omissions. The sample for the survey was drawn from a database of New Zealand businesses, thus the results are generalizable only to the extent that these businesses represent the population of all businesses. Another limitation is that no prior survey/case studies were carried out to collect practitioner's definitions/measures for integration. Practical implications: The authors hope to have made a contribution here towards building a consensus among practitioners and researchers in defining and measuring internal supply chain integration. For practitioners, the measurement instrument offers a self-assessment tool for internal supply chain integration. This should help them in identifying areas for improvement. Originality/value: The contribution of this paper consists of: development of an instrument for the measurement of integration, validating the instrument against a criterion, and the identification of three dimensions of integration - communication, coordination, and affective relationship. The unique contributions of this paper are the validation of the instrument against a criterion and the identification of "affective relationship" as a dimension of internal supply chain integration.

text: The measurement of internal supply chain integration Purpose: Internal supply chain refers to the chain of activities within a company that concludes with providing a product to the customer. This process involves multiple functions within companies such as sales, production, and distribution. It is obvious that a company's performance would be enhanced by the integration of these functions. However, there is no consensus yet on how integration is to be defined and measured. The purpose of this paper is to present research that was conducted with the goal of developing an instrument for the measurement of internal supply chain integration. Design/methodology/approach: Scale items were identified from current literature and the resulting survey instrument was sent out to a sample of New Zealand manufacturers. Statistical analysis was conducted to purify and validate the instrument. Findings: In total, three dimensions of integration were identified, labelled coordination, communication, and affective relationship. This paper makes a contribution towards developing a consensus in the understanding and measurement of the integration construct. Research limitations/implications: The selection and exclusion of measurement items for the survey have followed established principles of survey research, but may have been affected by the personal bias of the author. While every attempt has been made to comprehensively capture the state of the research up to the time of the study, there may be some omissions. The sample for the survey was drawn from a database of New Zealand businesses, thus the results are generalizable only to the extent that these businesses represent the population of all businesses. Another limitation is that no prior survey/case studies were carried out to collect practitioner's definitions/measures for integration. Practical implications: The authors hope to have made a contribution here towards building a consensus among practitioners and researchers in defining and measuring internal supply chain integration. For practitioners, the measurement instrument offers a self-assessment tool for internal supply chain integration. This should help them in identifying areas for improvement. Originality/value: The contribution of this paper consists of: development of an instrument for the measurement of integration, validating the instrument against a criterion, and the identification of three dimensions of integration - communication, coordination, and affective relationship. The unique contributions of this paper are the validation of the instrument against a criterion and the identification of "affective relationship" as a dimension of internal supply chain integration.

year: 2013

title: Beyond the Screen: Emerging Cinema and Engaging Audiences. [Book Review]

authors: Zalipour, Arezou

subjects: Social Sciences

abstract: This article reviews the book “Beyond the Screen: Emerging Cinema and Engaging Audiences”, by Sarah Atkinson.

text: Beyond the Screen: Emerging Cinema and Engaging Audiences. [Book Review] This article reviews the book “Beyond the Screen: Emerging Cinema and Engaging Audiences”, by Sarah Atkinson.

year: 2016

title: Finding synergistic conservation values? Māori tikanga, science, resource management and law

authors: Simon, Katie

subjects: Indigenous knowledge

abstract: In this doctorate, I provide a balanced and collaborative approach to knowledge/value change between the contesting worldviews of indigenous knowledge and western science, termed 'synergistic'. My search for synergy is comparative and reconciliatory. This endeavours to overcome the popular pre-occupation with conflict and opposition. Rather, both difference and similarity are recognised. Through the comparison of such synergy, I argue that Māori development requires for its further advancement a focus not only on difference and conflict, but also on affinity and convergence.

My primary concern is to establish a better understanding of the synergistic, adaptive strategies or indigenous innovation of Māori kaitiaki, environmental stewards. I investigate conflicting and converging Māori and western scientific conservation and use values in Aotearoa/New Zealand  environmental governance and management regimes under the Resource Management Act 1991, with specific regard to indicator development. The balance of values were compared in ecological environmental governance, from five Aotearoa governmental authorities and three Māori river communities, utilising Māori and western social science methods. My focus on indicators pinpoints contesting knowledge/value change between the marginalisation of indigenous knowledge and dominance of western science. This seeks to highlight the potential viability of Māori kaitiakitanga, stewardship in global and national terms of sustainability.  

However, potential synergy is held back by a prevailing viewpoint of the indigenous worldview as backward, past-oriented and non-synergistic. An oppositional dogma predominates, which is a key problem to overcome. It spans world and national literature, resulting in considerable gaps in knowledge on synergy, conceptually, methodologically, empirically and analytically.  


This is addressed by an authoritative Māori synergistic standpoint from my own cultural lens and decolonised theorising, termed 'nuanced problem solving'. I articulate both worldviews in knowledge/value change through comparative, evolutionary, multi-dimensional, cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary research on synergy. My nuanced problem solving encapsulates the two main parts of the doctorate, whereby synergy is correlated between theory and social practice. Part one deals with value comparison in theory utilising high abstracted concepts and methods at the global level of environmental governance. Part two deals with value balance in social practice utilising medium abstracted and concrete empirical and analytical research at global, national, regional, district and cross-tribal levels of environmental governance. Potential synergy cross-cuts each part from high abstracted thought down and from the practical flax roots up. I argue that Māori advancement fluctuates between them. 

Drawing on cultural and theoretical leanings of the Māori synergistic standpoint, both a strong correlation with existing theory and expanded synergistic theorising was found. Due to the expansiveness of the research, these correlated findings only provide an embryonic understanding of potential synergy.

A postscript describes my other work on synergy with five external agencies concerning foreshore, lakeside, wastewater, land disposal and carbon marketing kaitiakitanga.  I argue that additional research on synergy is needed in order to further advance Māori.

text: Finding synergistic conservation values? Māori tikanga, science, resource management and law In this doctorate, I provide a balanced and collaborative approach to knowledge/value change between the contesting worldviews of indigenous knowledge and western science, termed 'synergistic'. My search for synergy is comparative and reconciliatory. This endeavours to overcome the popular pre-occupation with conflict and opposition. Rather, both difference and similarity are recognised. Through the comparison of such synergy, I argue that Māori development requires for its further advancement a focus not only on difference and conflict, but also on affinity and convergence.

My primary concern is to establish a better understanding of the synergistic, adaptive strategies or indigenous innovation of Māori kaitiaki, environmental stewards. I investigate conflicting and converging Māori and western scientific conservation and use values in Aotearoa/New Zealand  environmental governance and management regimes under the Resource Management Act 1991, with specific regard to indicator development. The balance of values were compared in ecological environmental governance, from five Aotearoa governmental authorities and three Māori river communities, utilising Māori and western social science methods. My focus on indicators pinpoints contesting knowledge/value change between the marginalisation of indigenous knowledge and dominance of western science. This seeks to highlight the potential viability of Māori kaitiakitanga, stewardship in global and national terms of sustainability.  

However, potential synergy is held back by a prevailing viewpoint of the indigenous worldview as backward, past-oriented and non-synergistic. An oppositional dogma predominates, which is a key problem to overcome. It spans world and national literature, resulting in considerable gaps in knowledge on synergy, conceptually, methodologically, empirically and analytically.  


This is addressed by an authoritative Māori synergistic standpoint from my own cultural lens and decolonised theorising, termed 'nuanced problem solving'. I articulate both worldviews in knowledge/value change through comparative, evolutionary, multi-dimensional, cross-cultural and inter-disciplinary research on synergy. My nuanced problem solving encapsulates the two main parts of the doctorate, whereby synergy is correlated between theory and social practice. Part one deals with value comparison in theory utilising high abstracted concepts and methods at the global level of environmental governance. Part two deals with value balance in social practice utilising medium abstracted and concrete empirical and analytical research at global, national, regional, district and cross-tribal levels of environmental governance. Potential synergy cross-cuts each part from high abstracted thought down and from the practical flax roots up. I argue that Māori advancement fluctuates between them. 

Drawing on cultural and theoretical leanings of the Māori synergistic standpoint, both a strong correlation with existing theory and expanded synergistic theorising was found. Due to the expansiveness of the research, these correlated findings only provide an embryonic understanding of potential synergy.

A postscript describes my other work on synergy with five external agencies concerning foreshore, lakeside, wastewater, land disposal and carbon marketing kaitiakitanga.  I argue that additional research on synergy is needed in order to further advance Māori.

year: 2007