R. Germain et C. Droge, EFFECT OF JUST-IN-TIME PURCHASING RELATIONSHIPS ON ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN, PURCHASING DEPARTMENT CONFIGURATION, AND FIRM PERFORMANCE, Industrial marketing management, 26(2), 1997, pp. 115-125
Just-in-time (JIT) purchasing relationships with suppliers involves cl
ose collaboration on product development and specifications, and on bo
th product and information flows. The results of a study of 200 U.S. m
anufacturers demonstrate that the effects of JIT purchasing relationsh
ips are pervasive. First, organizational design changes as JIT purchas
ing increases, and the firm becomes more formalized in performance mea
surement, more integrated, and more specialized. Decentralization occu
rs in line-operating decisions but not scheduling. Second, performance
is enhanced, with weeks of inbound inventory decreasing and both fina
ncial and market performance increasing. However, the configuration of
the purchasing function does not change. (C) Elsevier Science Inc. 19
97.