## 4 Results and Discussion
### Entropy Calculation  
Tables 3 and 4 synthesize the results of the evaluations conducted by managers and the entropies (the sign minus in the entropy was omitted for clarity), respectively. In the first row of Table 4, together with the name of the focal company, it is possible to find the percentage entropy of each SC. The maximum entropy for all applications is 100 bits.  
Table 5 provides the relationship between the percentage entropy and priorities of the focal company, as well as the number of empty cells in each dashboard. An empty cell means no need to randomly exchange (it is not required or was never required) that kind of information and, consequently, an absence of uncertainty and related complexity.  
The table reveals that companies that prioritize flexibility and dependability have a greater value in planning and scheduling (company B), finance, and technology and innovation (company D). In contrast, one of the companies (company A) that prioritizes cost and quality has a greater value in logistics. The workforce is a less relevant source of uncertainty in the studied sample of companies. Therefore, company A should care about logistics while companies B and D should focus on planning and scheduling and technology and innovation as the main sources of uncertainty.  
Moving to Table 7, the table shows the average entropy per path per company.  
The table reveals that the most significant difference between the average entropies is observed in R2 and R11, corresponding to specially engineered products and deliveries from the manufacturer, respectively. In R2 and R11, companies A and C, prioritizing cost and quality, exhibit notably lower average entropies than companies B and D. This suggests that ensuring flexibility and dependability requires greater organizational complexity in SCM in relation to manufactured products and agile deliveries. Such drivers require greater coordination efforts, which increases complexity. Conversely, companies emphasizing cost reduction and quality assurance tend to employ standardized products and larger transfer batches, which reduce concerns regarding project and product development, as well as agile deliveries, variable batches, and changes in the mix. Such drivers require less coordination effort, which decreases complexity.  
This may not be a coincidence. Future studies should conduct surveys to test the following hypothesis: Companies that prioritize cost and quality generally exhibit an SCM system with lower relative complexity compared to companies that rely on flexibility and dependability for competition.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c c c} \hline \hline \multicolumn{7}{c}{**Group of Information**} \\ \hline
**Company** & **Planning and Scheduling** & **Logistics** & **Workforce** & **Finance** & **Technology and Innovation** & **Total** \\ \hline A & 7.6\% & 5.9\% & 0.9\% & 2.2\% & 3.2\% & 19.8\% \\ B & 11.2\% & 4.0\% & 1.4\% & 6.2\% & 5.2\% & 27.9\% \\ C & 5.3\% & 2.4\% & 1.9\% & 1.2\% & 3.2\% & 14.0\% \\ D & 9.6\% & 2.4\% & 1.9\% & 8.3\% & 9.5\% & 31.7\% \\ Average & 8.4\% & 3.7\% & 1.5\% & 4.5\% & 5.3\% & \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 6: Percentage entropy per group of information and company.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c c} \hline \hline
**Company** & **Industry** & **Competitive Priorities** & **Percentage Entropy** & **Empty Cells** \\ \hline A & Agrifood & Cost/quality & 19.8\% & 29 \\ B & Agrifood & Flexibility/dependability & 27.9\% & 42 \\ C & Metalworking & Cost/quality & 14.0\% & 19 \\ D & Metalworking & Flexibility/dependability & 31.7\% & 39 \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular} Source: Authors’ own creation.  
\end{table}
Table 5: Synthesis of the results.