Supply chain management: success factors from the Malaysian manufacturer's perspective

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to shed the light on the critical success factors that lead to high supply chain performance outcomes in a Malaysian manufacturing company. The critical success factors consist of relationship with customer and supplier, information communication and technology (ICT), material flow management, corporate culture and performance measurement. Questionnaire was the main instrument for the study and it was distributed to 84 staff from departments of purchasing, planning, logistics and operation. Data analysis was conducted by employing descriptive analysis (mean and standard deviation), reliability analysis, Pearson correlation analysis and multiple regression. The findings show that there are relationships exist between relationship with customer and supplier, ICT, material flow management, performance measurement and supply chain management (SCM) performance, but not for corporate culture. Forming a good customer and supplier relationship is the main predictor of SCM performance, followed by performance measurement, material flow management and ICT. It is recommended that future study to determine additional success factors that are pertinent to firms' current SCM strategies and directions, competitive advantages and missions. Logic suggests that further study to include more geographical data coverage, other nature of businesses and research instruments.