Title: What determines the range of supply chain integration? Comparison of Korean and Japanese steel firms

Authors: Sung Woo Byun; Young Won Park; Geon-Cheol Shin

Addresses: Manufacturing Management Research Center, Graduate School of Economics, Faculty of Economics, The University of Tokyo, Kojima Hall 5F, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan ' Faculty of Economics, Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Saitama University, 255 Shimo-okubo, Sakura-ku, Saitama, 338-8570, Japan; Manufacturing Management Research Center, Graduate School of Economics, The University of Tokyo, Kojima Hall 5F, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, Japan ' School of Management, Center for Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 130-701, Korea

Abstract: Supply chain strategies depend on competitive environments as well as the nature of the particular business. Consequently, supply chain integration (SCI) strategies should also be evaluated under the conditions a firm is facing. This paper examines the determinants of range of supply chain integration. By comparing the SCI strategies of Korean and Japanese steel firms, the paper shows that SCI should be evaluated in light of supply chain flexibility and uncertainty. Additionally, it is argued that although SCI with customers helps diminish demand uncertainty, it can also bring inflexibility, which is a customer 'lock-in' phenomenon.

Keywords: supply chain integration; SCI; flexibility; uncertainty; Korean steel firms; Japanese steel firms.

DOI: 10.1504/IJTM.2019.097524

International Journal of Technology Management, 2019 Vol.79 No.2, pp.199 - 210

Published online: 28 Jan 2019 *

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