E-Supply Chain Capability: Theoretical Perspectives and Empirical Operationalization

Information Technology (IT) has been widely employed in supply chain operations, helping companies to respond to clients' needs in real time, facilitate paperless transactions, reach out to difficult-to-access markets, and outperform competitors. This paper presents a theory-driven, validated higher-order construct that measures e-supply chain capability, integrating typical procurement and order-taking functions within an organization's supply chain. It is a response to a call in information systems literature to develop and assess multidimensional IT capabilities. Drawing on tenets from both resource based view and relational view, we developed a conceptual definition of e-supply chain capability. Using structural equation modeling techniques, we constructed a measurement model of e-supply chain capability encompassing four dimensions: communication with customers, order taking, procurement, and communication with suppliers. The new validated measurement model of e-supply chain capability offers opportunities to expand IS research in supply chain management.