In the preceding five sections, each of the characteristics of a MSC according to the previously developed proposed conceptual framework has been explored within the extant literature in HL. This review has brought fourth evidence of each of the five characteristics in the context of HL, thus indicating that this might be a suitable context for further research, as it seems to be exhibiting all the characteristics of MSCs to varying degrees. HL, as described in literature, has been shown to contain both dynamic and behavioural complexity, matching all five of the previously proposed characteristics. Therefore, the first two research objectives as identified in Chapter 1 have been addressed. A conceptual framework for the management of non-standard SCs has been developed and the resultant characteristics have been investigated with a
particular focus on HL, establishing that HL is a suitable context for MSCs. In the following, key themes from the preceding literature review will be summarised according to the five characteristics of the proposed conceptual framework.
Multitude of Diverse Stakeholder Views: There is a wide range of stakeholders in
HL, with many exhibiting their own motivations and agendas that are not necessarily conform to a humanitarian agenda, thus leading to divisions in what should be aligned SCs. Despite the non-profit environment, there is fierce competition for limited amounts of funding among humanitarian organisations. Particularly striking from a SC perspective is the duality of both customers and suppliers. Customers of HL are both donors and beneficiaries, whereas the suppliers are both donors and regular paid suppliers. Views among these groups are bound to differ widely, as well as their involvement with the SC. The donors’ role is critical as they provide the necessary resources and thus hold influence over the aim and the execution of HL. The beneficiaries are often regarded as passive stakeholders, but should actually be essential in assessing HL performance.
Sociopolitical Impact: Sociopolitical factors can trigger humanitarian missions,
for example in the case of man-made disasters. Demand is furthermore regulated by the governments of affected areas, as they can request aid and grant or withdraw access for humanitarian organisations, all factors that shape HL. On the supply side, governments are generally the biggest donors, providing humanitarian organisations with essential funds for their activities. However, this creates political tensions, as funding is invariably tied to political agendas. Such agendas do not necessarily conform to humanitarian principles. Nevertheless, funding—and by extension the associated political priorities—shape the SC from planning to execution as funds are granted or withdrawn for certain activities. The strong sociopolitical impact thus introduces further uncertainty into HL.
Complexity and Interdependency: HL forms part of a wider system that sits within
the global humanitarian sector. Links are evident both internal to a humanitarian organisations as HL interacts with different departments and levels within the organisation, and externally as the SC depends on a complex network of suppliers and customers. Further increasing complexity is the interplay of strategic and operational phases of a humanitarian response, which necessitates planning that in turn is dependent on information that is difficult or impossible to obtain. The operational environment of HL is extremely dynamic, as it is complex and parts of it change frequently, particularly
as a humanitarian response goes through its lifecycle. Generally, HL SCs are transient and their establishment, as well as disbanding, relies on a range of external factors.
Non-Routine Operations: The extreme uncertainty of the operational environment
plays a major role in making HL non-routine operations. The very reason for their existence is the occurrence of disasters, which is in most cases difficult to accurately predict. Furthermore, the operational environment is characterised by a lack of infrastructure, as well as in many cases social structures, resulting in a need for highly flexible SCs that are able to respond to this lack of routine. In addition, within a non- profit environment, the funding for HL is uncertain and highly changeable, which complicates planning and longer-term investments. Priorities change frequently and often rapidly over the lifecycle of a humanitarian mission, further adding to the non- routine nature of HL and putting the system under pressure to react quickly. To exacerbate the situation, there is often very scarce information on the situation.
No Clear and Quantifiable Specifications: The lack of clear and accurate
information on both the operational environment, as well as the performance of the SC itself, renders an assessment of HL impossible in many cases. Organisational learning, and therefore the further development of HL and humanitarian responses as a whole is inhibited. While part of the unavailability of information is rooted in the high uncertainty, the lack of adequate infrastructure also contributes to it. Crucially for the SC, there is often no accurate demand data. However, an understanding of demand is important for the SC structure, particularly in a quickly assembled transient SC. Furthermore, with a lack of information on the actual performance of the SC, questions of accountability arise. Much of the information that is collected is necessary for purposes of accountability to large donors who wish to assess the effectiveness of their contributions.
Not just the five characteristics of MSCs are evident in HL, but also the links between them, as depicted in Figure 18. Complexity and Interdependency rightly forms the centre of the proposed framework, as all of the issues discussed link back to this underlying cause. There are links apparent between the two characteristics in the dynamic complexity half, mainly the lack of adequate information inhibiting the development of routine operations. The two characteristics in the behavioural complexity half are also linked, as stakeholders cause and shape the sociopolitical impact of HL.
As it has now been established that there is evidence of all five characteristics of MSC in the HL literature. Therefore, the next research objective to be addressed in the
subsequent chapter is to design and carry out empirical research to explore the proposed conceptual framework in the context of HL. Based upon the primary data collected, the framework will then be refined.
Figure 18: A conceptual framework for messy supply chains (author’s own figure)
2.5 Summary
This chapter has provided an in-depth discussion of the various streams of literature that constitute the background of this thesis. By developing a conceptual framework for the study of non-standard SCs and viewing the context of HL through the lens of the proposed conceptual framework, two of the research objectives were addressed in Chapter 2.
First, key concepts were discussed, establishing logistics, SC management, as well as Hl, as these terms will be utilised throughout this thesis. An overview has been given of the debate surrounding the differentiation between SC management and logistics in the commercial realm. It was then established that the difference is less pronounced in the humanitarian context, as HL tends to straddle both concepts in its usage among both practitioners and academics.
Then, non-standard SCs were explored. To start with, there was an overview of various ways of classifying types of SCs, followed by a discussion of SC types that are not adequately captured by existing models. CAS and the study of wicked and messy problems were introduced as ways to address such non-standard SCs. Based upon these approaches, the proposed conceptual framework for non-standard SCs was developed, introducing the concept of MSCs.
The third section of Chapter 2 provided a discussion of the context of this research, introducing the operational environment of HL. This is one potential context within which non-standard SCs could occur. Different types of disasters and their respective impact on HL were covered. Furthermore, operations within humanitarian operations and key actors involved in them were reviewed. A specific was placed upon their specific roles and motivations, which is of particular importance given the critical realist approach taken in this thesis and the importance of individual worldviews within that school of thought.
Finally, theory development in HL was discussed and the proposed conceptual framework for MSCs was reviewed in the context of HL—Multitude of Diverse
Stakeholder Views, Sociopolitical Impact, Complexity and Interdependency, Non- Routine Operations, and No Clear and Quantifiable Specifications. Evidence for each
of the five elements of an MSC was discovered in the extant literature, providing evidence that this could be a context in which to empirically validate the proposed conceptual framework.