Title: Information sharing in a supply chain

Authors: Hau L. Lee, Seungjin Whang

Addresses: Department of Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management and Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. Graduate School of Business, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA

Abstract: Advances in information system technology have had a huge impact on the evolution of supply chain management. As a result of such technological advances, supply chain partners can now work in tight coordination to optimise the chain-wide performance, and the realised return may be shared among the partners. A basic enabler for tight coordination is information sharing, which has been greatly facilitated by the advances in information technology. This paper describes the types of information shared inventory, sales, demand forecast, order status, and production schedule. We discuss how and why this information is shared using industry examples and relating them to academic research. We also discuss three alternative system models of information sharing - the information transfer model, the third party model and the information hub model.

Keywords: bullwhip effect; incentives; information hub; information sharing; supply chain management.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMTM.2000.001329

International Journal of Manufacturing Technology and Management, 2000 Vol.1 No.1, pp.79-93

Published online: 02 Jul 2003 *

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