Intorduction Assignement Mitigating Supply Chain Disruptions in Retail Discount Department.pdf

Section 1: Foundation of the Study

Background of the Problem

Organizations are facing challenges within their supply chain because of the

global expansion of supply chain networks. The complex competitive environment of

supply chains has drastically increased supply chain disruptions (Shekarian et al., 2020).

Annually, more than 56% of companies globally are challenged with some type of supply

chain disruption (Katsaliaki et al., 2021). The general business problem is the high rate of

supply chain disruptions that affect business performance. The specific business problem

was that some leaders in the retail discount department store industry lack strategies to

mitigate supply chain disruptions.

Problem and Purpose

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore what strategies

retail discount department store industry managers implement to mitigate supply chain

disruptions. The research took place in Northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana and

included four leaders from three retail discount department stores who had successfully

used strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions. The implications for positive social

change include the potential for consumers to maintain or increase productive lifestyles

from increased economic growth in local communities stemming from a decrease in

disruptive supply chains of retail businesses.

Population and Sampling

The population for this qualitative multiple case study was retail leaders from

retail discount department stores located in Northwest Indiana and/or Northern Illinois.

The sampling method that I used was purposive sampling. The participants were required

to have at least 2 years of experience in supply chain with their employer. I gathered data

and information from semistructured interviews with the participants and any available

documents from their companies.

Nature of the Study

Researchers can use one of three methods: quantitative, qualitative, or mixed

methods (Yin, 2018). Researchers use the quantitative method to test hypotheses, ask

closed-ended questions, and conduct numerical analysis (Yin, 2018). A quantitative

approach was not an appropriate choice for this study because neither closed-ended

questions nor a numerical analysis were a suitable approach to addressing the research

question. Rutberg and Bouikidis (2018) suggested using a qualitative approach to ask

open-ended questions to explore complex problems to allow participants to openly share

their perspectives. Based on Ruthberg and Bouikidis, I selected a qualitative research

method for this study to ask open-ended questions to participants relating to retail store

supply chain disruptions. A mixed-methods approach includes both qualitative and

quantitative methods (Rutberg & Bouikidis, 2018). I did not use the quantitative method.

Researchers use the quantitative method to evaluate numerical or statistical relationships;

therefore, the mixed method was not suitable for my study.

I considered the following research designs: (a) ethnography, (b) phenomenology,

and (c) case study. Researchers use the ethnographic design to collect observational and

interview data from a cultural group over a prolonged period (Yin, 2018). I did not use an

ethnographic design because I did not need to collect and analyze data relating to cultural

phenomena. Researchers use the phenomenological design to collect data from a small

group about the essence of their human experiences with a phenomenon over an

extensive period (Yin, 2018). I did not use a phenomenological design because I did not

focus my study on subjective human experience related to a phenomenon over an

extensive period. A multiple case study allows researchers to compare and contrast

similarities and differences across multiple cases (Yin, 2018). I selected a multiple case

design to explore and understand the similarities and differences between the strategies

leaders use to mitigate supply chain disruptions across multiple cases.

Research Question

What strategies do leaders use to successfully mitigate supply chain disruptions in

the retail industry?

Interview Questions

1. What strategies are you using to mitigate supply chain disruptions?

2. What challenges did you have implementing these strategies?

3. How do you measure the effectiveness of the strategies?

4. As a leader, when implementing strategies, what payout did you observe?

5. As a leader, when implementing strategies, what happened to inventory

equilibrium?

6. What information about supply chin disruptions did you gain from

implementation of these strategies?

7. What additional information would you like to share about your

organization’s strategies for mitigating supply chain disruptions?

Conceptual Framework

Von Neumann and Morgenstern developed game theory in the early 1940s. Von

Neumann and Morgenstern (1944) used game theory to study how decisions made by

multiple participants affect each participant’s behavior. Von Neumann and Morgenstern

identified the following key constructs underlying game theory: (a) information sets, (b)

payoffs, and (c) equilibrium. Information sets are data that are available to the player at

the time when a player makes a choice or decision. Payoffs are the expected outcome that

each player would receive from each combination of the strategic choices made by each

player. Equilibrium is a point in the game at which players make decisions and each

player’s decisions create the best outcome for everyone (Roth & Wilson, 2019). Von

Neumann and Morgenstern posited that the key to game theory is that one player’s payoff

is affected by the strategy implemented by the other player or players (Bhuiyan, 2018).

Leaders can utilize the strategic decisions made by participants in game theory, resulting

in positive payoffs to develop strategies to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions.

Using game theory as a conceptual framework for this study provided a view into the

successful strategic decisions that lead to the optimum payoff. Game theory is a lens I

used to evaluate strategic decisions made by participants that lead to successful strategies

to mitigate supply chain disruptions, to gain a better understanding of these decisions as a

researcher.

Operational Definitions

Business ecosystem: Business ecosystems are used by organizations to transcend

the boundaries of the organization to include additional partners to provide increased

value to customers. Organizations use ecosystems to connect with multiple partners to

meet customer needs that one organization is not able to meet by itself (Denning, 2021).

Global supply chain: A global supply chain is a vertical and horizontal network of

connected firms engaged in coordination of production and distribution activities

(Soundararajan et al., 2019).

Nash equilibrium: Nash equilibrium is the point at which the behavior of the

agents creates an outcome that, when achieved, creates the circumstance that no player

can increase their payoff by making a different decision (Einy et al., 2022; Fisher, 1989).

On-time-in-full delivery: On-time-in-full delivery is when all supplier deliveries

are expected to arrive at the facility on time and the deliveries must be for the full amount

ordered (Lukinskiy et al., 2023).

Safety stock: Safety stock is an additional quantity of a product that is stored to

prevent an out-of-stock situation and is insurance against demand fluctuations (Oliver et

al., 2022).

Supply chain disruption: An unexpected event that affects the performance of a

firm in the longer and shorter term (Baghersad & Zobel, 2021).

Supply chain management (SCM): SCM is managing the risks associated with

disruptions caused by natural disasters, human-made disasters, uncertain supply, or

uncertain demand (Sodhi & Tang, 2020).

Supply chain strategy: Supply chain strategy is the organization’s supply chain

team strategic alignment with the business strategies that are cross functional, continuous,

and able to adapt to varying circumstances (Chandak et al., 2019).

Assumptions, Limitations, and Delimitations

Assumptions

Assumptions are subjective and uncertain but assumed to be true without proof

(Yang et al., 2018). The first assumption for my study was that leaders from retail

discount department stores would provide accurate and honest information when

interviewed. Another assumption for this study was that the findings could help in

identifying mitigation strategies to reduce supply chain disruptions for retail discount

department stores.

Limitations

Limitations in a research design represent weaknesses within the study that may

influence conclusions and outcomes of the research (Ross & Zaidi, 2019). The main

limitation of this study was that leaders from the retail discount department stores would

be from Northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana and not from the entire United States.

The second limitation was that the sample size included a small number of leaders from

retail discount department stores. One limitation may have been that for proprietary

reasons, one or more subjects may have been reticent to explicate the information they

revealed, for proprietary reasons. Even so, as long as study subjects answered the

standardized interview questions, the data they reveal should be contributory to study

outcomes.

Delimitations

Delimitations are the boundaries and limits that have been set by the author to

limit the scope of the research (Theofanidis & Fountouki, 2019). A delimitation for this

study was that leaders from the retail discount department store were located in Northern

Illinois and Northwest Indiana. Leaders from retail discount department stores outside of

Northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana were not chosen to participate in this study.

Another delimitation of this study was including only those leaders from retail discount

department stores who had experience with strategies to mitigate supply chain

disruptions.

Significance of the Study

This study might be of value to the practice of business leaders to gain insight into

mitigating supply chain disruptions. Leaders in the retail industry can use this study to

develop strategies and procedures to reduce the impact of supply chain disruptions. Retail

leaders can review information in this study and identify and develop steps to work more

effectively and create steps to mitigate supply chain disruptions.

Contribution to Business Practice

Retail leaders can use knowledge gained in this study to adjust their supply chain

processes. They could also use knowledge gained in this study to improve profitability. In

addition, retail leaders can use the information in this study on equilibrium, the point at

which all players are satisfied with their decisions, to make strategic choices that benefit

the company.

Implications for Social Change

By using effective supply chain strategies, retail leaders can improve job stability

for employees. Job stability could support economic growth in local communities.

Economic growth could lead to a higher quality of life for residents, thereby contributing

to positive social change.

A Review of the Professional and Academic Literature

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore what strategies

retail discount department store industry managers implement to mitigate supply chain

disruptions. The research question was the following: What strategies do leaders use to

successfully mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail industry? The purpose of the

literature review was to gather information and knowledge about the overall research

topic and create a logical foundation for the study. Literature analysis leads to the

development of framework around a subject (Bressanelli et al., 2019).

My literature review strategy included a focused but broad search of various

sources across multiple disciplines: books, articles, scholarly journal articles, and

electronic media. Key sources from the search engines on the Walden University library

research databases included A/B INFORM Complete, Business Source Complete, Sage

Premier, ProQuest, and Emerald Management Journals. The literature review involved

reviewing 173 relevant sources. The study had 135 of the 173 relevant sources published

between 2019 and 2023. The percentage of published articles dated within 5 years of my

anticipated graduation date was 78% of the total. The total number of references in this

study that were peer reviewed is 153, which is 88% of the relevant sources. The key

words used in the search of the literature included supply chain disruptions, supply chain

risk management, supply chain collaboration, and business ecosystems.

The effects of COVID-19 have caused organizations to review their supply chain

practices and procedures. The practices and procedures for supply chains in organizations

have shifted in focus due to the effects of COVID-19 in the world (Sharma et al., 2022).

COVID-19 has caused a substantial shortage of supplies from food to automotive chips

that has caused disruptions in supply chains. Organizational leaders adjust their

approaches to business relationships and processes because of disruptions (Micheli et al.,

2021). Prior to COVID-19, retail leaders were only able to view a supply network at a

Tier 1 level, which is the first level of partnership when conducting business. According

to Solaimani and van der Veen (2022), retail leaders have limited knowledge of the

supply partners in their network outside of the first level. This poses a problem because

the organization leaders fail to understand and have visibility into what other businesses

their first-level partner is depending on to produce the product.

Organizational leaders realized that they needed more visibility into the entire

supply chain network that was responsible for the delivery of products. The COVID-19

pandemic resulted in supply shortages across the world. Understanding the entire network

would assist retail leaders in avoiding the supply chain disruptions. Retail leaders need to

adjust their processes in relation to suppliers and demand planning (Micheli et al., 2021).

Therefore, organizational leaders should adjust inventory purchases to meet demand

forecasts and, if financially feasible, include ample safety stock for unplanned events

resulting from pandemics such as COVID-19.

Organizational leaders’ ability to adjust their strategic plans is important in order

to be able to meet demand forecasts. Prior to COVID-19, retail leaders were content with

receiving product from all over the world and just in time (Zhu et al., 2020). During

COVID-19, retail leaders adjusted their strategies to manage customer demand and

combat supply chain disruptions. With their new strategies, retail leaders sourced more

goods locally, diversified their suppliers, and carried excess inventory (van Hoek &

Dobrzykowski, 2021). Because of the disruptions, retail leaders learned to operate in

business ecosystems. Business ecosystems are the platforms that allow leaders to work

together in partnerships and collaborate to achieve the best possible outcome by ensuring

that each partner is fully aware of the other partner's issues and schedules (Awano &

Masaharu, 2021; Denning, 2021). Ecosystems were organized for organizations to

intentionally generate, facilitate, and benefit from interactions (Denning, 2021). When

using ecosystems, leaders create an advantage for the organizations that are in partnership

through the sharing of information. When the demand in the market changes from one

product to another, that information can be communicated to all of the partners. By

sharing comprehensive information quickly with their network partners, leaders can make

prompt production decisions to efficiently meet customer demand. As demand increases,

leaders can take the necessary steps to ensure additional production, and as demand

decreases, leaders can take the necessary steps to reduce production. Partners can use

ecosystems to enhance communication, improve supply chain efficiency, and avoid

stockouts.

Supply chains are a critical component of retail discount department store

operations and efficiency. Retail leaders can use the supply chain concept to manage

inventories more efficiently together than if the supply chain functions were performed

separately (Munson et al., 1999). Relationships among ecosystem members, partners, and

stakeholders are critical for supply chains to be effective because of the interdependency

of partners and collaborators. Supply chain management is managing the risks associated

with disruptions caused by natural disasters, human-made disasters, uncertain supply, or

uncertain demand (Sodhi & Tang, 2020). Leaders in retail discount department stores

should develop their supply chain teams to maximize product availability according to

customer demand.

Retail leaders should take proactive steps to ensure product availability. These

steps can include setting up an appropriately staffed supply chain team, implementing

effective technology, maintaining strategic supplier relationships, optimizing inventory,

and collaborating on strategic sourcing (Modgil et al., 2021). The focus of leaders in

retail discount department stores changed because of COVID-19. In a research study

conducted by Forehand et al. (2021), some leaders adjusted their focus on items such as

contingency planning, resilience, adaptability, flexibility, and production recovery

planning to improve inventory management and maximize company sales; these actions

may have been consistent with game theory.

Game Theory

Von Neumann and Morgenstern’s (1944) game theory served as the conceptual

framework for this study. Game theory ideas can be traced to the 18th century; in the

1920s, major development of the theory began with the work of mathematician Emile

Borel and polymath John von Neumann (Osborne, 2017). I used game theory as the lens

for this study because managers in an organization, especially in the retail industry, need

to understand how their partner’s decisions affect their ability to manage supply chain

disruptions strategically.

Von Neumann and Morgenstern established the foundations for game theory. In

1944, the publication of the book Theory of Games and Economic Behavior by von

Neumann and Morgenstern was a significant breakthrough for game theory (Binmore,

2021). The foundations for game theory included a mathematical theory of economic and

social organization based on game theory. Game theory has a range of applications from

war and evolutionary biology to economics and business (Zhang, 2022). Game theory

provides an avenue for leaders and organizations to anticipate or estimate decisions that

need to be made that have economic impact. Using game theory as my lens facilitated

comprehension and evaluation of performance outcomes based on payouts and

quantifiable consequences from decisions made by partners.

In the early 1950s, Nash expanded game theory and developed a key concept

called the Nash equilibrium. The Nash equilibrium is the point at which the behavior of

the agents creates an outcome that, when achieved, creates the circumstance that no

player can increase their payoff (Einy et al., 2022; Fisher, 1989). The Nash equilibrium is

built on two principles. The first principle is that each player chooses their action

according to the model of rational choice. Second, every player’s belief concerning other

players’ choices is correct (Sucha et al., 2021). The Nash equilibrium was pertinent to

this study because each leader in the retail discount department supply chain must make

decisions based on their partner organizations’ decisions.

Game theory has several key components: information sets, payoffs, and

equilibrium. Game theory operates with the assumption that those who participate in the

game will operate in a rational fashion when making their decisions (Osborne, 2017). The

strategy in game theory is to get to a point where all players have maximized their payoff

with the decisions that they choose (Sucha et al., 2021). Game theory involves interactive

decision making in which players consider the thinking of the other players before

deciding upon an action or reaction. This rational decision making is key to the payoffs

and ability of players to come to a point of equilibrium in the game.

Game theory is a theoretical framework for social situations amongst competing

players. Game theory produces optimal decision-making of independent and competing

players in a strategic setting. Equilibrium is the point in a game at which players have

made their decisions and an outcome is reached. Leaders use game theory for real-world

scenarios and situations such as pricing competition and product releases to predict their

outcomes. Each decision by the supply chain partners affects the other partner. Any

deviation from a rational decision, positive or negative, from any of the partners has an

upstream or downstream effect. I used the Nash equilibrium in my analysis of the

primary data, as part of the game theory conceptual framework. The Nash equilibrium is

the point where the decisions maximize the benefit for all partners; therefore, partners

have no incentive to deviate from a rational response. The retail discount industry has

many supply chain partners; therefore, it is important that all partners have the proper

incentives not to deviate from their commitments. I used game theory to analyze the point

of Nash equilibrium for retail discount store leaders. Although I selected game theory,

there are other theories that I could have chosen.

Contrasting Theories

I explored contrasting theories to provide a context for using game theory as the

conceptual framework for this study of mitigating supply chain disruptions in retail

discount department stores. The contrasting theories I explored were the resource

dependence theory (RDT), normal accident theory (NAT), and contingency theory of fit

(CTF).

Resource Dependence Theory. Pfeffer and Salancik (1978) formalized RDT

with the publication of The External Control of Organizations: A Resource Dependence

Perspective. The foundation of RDT is that organizations depend on resources and that

resources are generated from the organization’s environment. The organization’s

environment includes not only the organization, but also supply chain partners that

should collaborate with each other.

Collaboration between managers in organizations and their supply partners is an

important part of RDT. This collaboration has a focal point of interchanging resources

between partners to manage the uncertainty in the supply chain (Zhou et al., 2018).

Managers depend on their partners to supply external resources. Minimizing

organizations’ dependence on partners is a focal point of RDT (Craighead et al., 2020).

RDT differs from ecosystems in this respect.

Managers who use the ecosystem concept emphasize the importance of

partnerships and seek to strengthen the communication between partners to gain the best

outcome for all. Relationships between organizations are necessary to access capital and

resources that are not available within the organization. The relationships between

organizations help to minimize disruptions. Retail leaders should obtain resources from

external sources to operate the business, which leads to resource dependence (Craighead

et al., 2020).

RDT is focused on the dependency organizations have on one another for

resources and not on how one business leader’s strategic move affects the opportunities

available to another. I did not use RDT as the conceptual framework for this study,

because the focus of RDT is on the resources and relationships between partners rather

than helping to identify and understand the factors that cause disruptions to the supply

chain process. I also evaluated the normal accident theory.

Normal Accident Theory. In Normal Accidents: Living With High-Risk

Technologies, Perrow (1984) outlined three conditions that will cause a system to be

susceptible to a normal accident. These three conditions are the system being complex,

the system being tightly coupled, and the system having catastrophic potential. Normal

accidents or system accidents are inevitable in complex systems (Perrow, 1999).

NAT supply chains consist of three significant members: the manufacturer, the

supplier, and the customer. Researchers use NAT to focus on understanding the

disruptions that occur in supply chains (Scheibe & Blackhurst, 2018). Perrow (1984)

believed that decreasing the level of interactive complexity could minimize disruption in

the supply chain. The less complex the operational levels, the better the visibility into the

supply chain, which results in less disruption to the supply chain (Scheibe & Blackhurst,

2018). Retail discount department stores are large organizations that are often in

interactive, tightly coupled, complex supply chains. These supply chains have numerous

employees communicating and managing information for and with departments,

suppliers, and customers. It is critical to identify areas of potential vulnerability for the

departments, suppliers, and customers (Ali & Gölgeci, 2019). The focus of NAT is on the

occurrence of the accident/disruption and not how to avoid the accident/disruption. I did

not use NAT as the conceptual framework for this study because the focus of NAT is on

accidents in the supply chain process versus decisions to avoid accidents, disruptions to

the supply chain. I also evaluated the contingency theory of fit.

Contingency Theory of Fit. In 1985, Drazin and Van de Ven introduced the

CTF. CTF is an approach that researchers can use to study organizational behavior to

discover explanations as to how contingent factors such as technology, culture, and the

external environment affect and influence the functioning of the organization (Islam &

Hu, 2012). The contextual factors that affect the way a business is organized is part of

CTF. Leaders in organizations use CTF to organize their business so that it will generate

performance results, dealing with certain contextual factors, which produce what is

classified as a good fit (Romero-Silva et al., 2018). Researchers determined that an

underlying premise for a company to perform well is that context and structure must

somehow fit together (Drazin & Van de Ven, 1985). There are certain organizational

structures, organizational practices, business processes, and business policies that are

more suited to organizational environments according to CTF (Romero-Silva et al.,

2018). The contingency theory is a conditional association that has two or more

independent variables with a dependent outcome. The performance of a business unit can

have various outcomes based on a series of fits relative to different contextual factors

(Romero-Silva et al., 2018). One principle of CTF is that organizations should adapt their

structure, processes, and coordination strategies to fit the degree of uncertainty in their

environment. When uncertainty is high, organizations need more coordination strategies

and processes to choose appropriate courses of action.

Drazin and Van de Ven (1985) indicated that at least three different conceptual

approaches to fit emerged in their research: selection, interaction, and system. The

environment for an organization is considered fit when there is congruence between

context and structure in the selection approach. The environment of an organization is

also considered fit as pairs of organizational contextual–structural factors that affect

performance in connection with the interaction process. Fit for the environment of an

organization is also defined as multiple contextual factors matched up with multiple

structural factors in conjunction with the systems approach (Drazin & Van de Ven,

1985).

I did not use CTF as the conceptual framework for this study because I was using

the qualitative multiple case approach. CTF would be better suited as a theoretical

framework for a quantitative study because various outcomes or a series of outcomes

need to be evaluated. In my study, an important part of evaluating the organization’s

environment was understanding how leaders on the supply chain team strategize to

maximize the organization’s profits.

Retail Industry Strategies

Leaders in the retail industry conduct business through strategies that produce

maximum profits for the organization. There are several strategies that are employed to

maximize the organization’s profit. One strategy is the use of quantity discounts.

Quantity discounts are used as incentives to cause the buyer to purchase more product

(Jadidi et al., 2021). Leaders in the retail industry work with their supply chain partners to

create quantity discount incentives that are optimal for the manufacturer and the retailer.

The quantity discounts that leaders of the supply chains work together to create

have a financial gain for all parties involved (Das et al., 2021; Heydari & Momeni, 2021).

Researchers determined that the coordination strategy between supply chain partners is a

valuable tool for effective supply chain management (Liu et al., 2021). This is a different

strategy from the traditional strategy where each member of the supply chain makes

decisions that only create an advantage for their own organization.

Leaders also collaborate with their partners to determine what is the optimal price

and optimal supply that will maximize profit. This strategy is used by leaders in the retail

industry to sell more product by having the best prices. Leaders in the retail industry

coordinate with their supply chain partners to improve overall supply chain costs (Shah et

al., 2021). The reduction of supply chain cost allows for a reduction in the price to the

consumer. The right combination of price and supply maximizes the organization’s

profit.

Retail industry leaders maximize profits through multiple strategies. In addition to

collaborating with partners, cost reductions, optimal price, and optimal supply, some

retail leaders have implemented a multichannel strategy. Organizational leaders

recognized that the traditional brick and mortar stores were not enough to maximize

organizational profits (Davis-Sramek et al., 2020). Therefore, leaders added online stores

to enhance the customers’ shopping experience.

Enhancement of the customer’s shopping experience was a key aspect for retail

leaders but leaders still experienced challenges. Some retail leaders using the

multichannel strategy recognized that this strategy increased costs and caused some

customer dissatisfaction (Grewal et al., 2021). Researchers determined that the

omnichannel strategy is necessary for the retail industry, but leaders needed to remove

the silos within the channels and work within the channels together (Eriksson et al., 2022;

Gerea et al., 2021). Customer dissatisfaction was a result of the customer’s inability to

buy, return, or pickup from either channel despite the way the purchase was made. Some

retail industry leaders adopted the omnichannel strategy, which is a multichannel sales

approach to facilitate a seamless customer shopping experience.

The omnichannel approach would allow flexibility between channels that was

needed to provide a better customer experience. Leaders in the retail industry incorporate

the omnichannel strategy to enable integration between channels to meet customer

expectations for speed, availability, and consistency (Lim & Winkenbach, 2019).

Researchers determined that a successful omnichannel allows customers to move freely

between the available multichannel of an organization (Davis-Sramek et al., 2020; Shen

et al., 2018). Leaders use this strategy to combine their multichannel offering to

customers into a singular approach that delivers a better value to the customer than what

each channel can offer individually. Retail industry leaders can adjust a fragmented

service process between separate channels into a consistent and coordinated cross

channel structure. Leaders in the retail industry are decision makers.

Supply Chain Managers’ Decision Making

Organizations depend on their supply chain managers’ decision-making skills.

The best defense for retail industry organizations against the changing market dynamics

is having supply chain managers with an effective decision-making process (Khan et al.,

2021). In the retail industry, the supply chain manager’s task is to optimize supply

activities, reduce costs, deliver product expeditiously, and gain a competitive advantage

in the market. Retail industry leaders make many decisions,

Retail industry supply chain managers make decisions quickly and with real-time

data. The decisions that are made affect downstream and upstream processes within the

supply chain. Each decision leaders make helps the organization reduce an issue or can

make the issue worse (Rousseau, 2018). The upstream consequences are unsatisfied

customers whereas the downstream consequences are being out of synchronicity with

supply partners (Min, 2015). Retail industry supply chain managers make decisions on

challenges in manufacturing and logistics as well as changes in consumer demand.

Decision making within the supply chain is a critical component of the supply

chain manager’s job responsibility. Supply chain managers must be able to identify

problems before they arise and act before the problem causes a disruption to the supply

chain. Retail industry supply chain managers use data and operational teams to develop

solutions to issues (Kazancoglu et al., 2021). The supply chain manger has the

responsibility to communicate and educate all team members and outside partners to the

solutions that have been developed.

Supply chain managers in the retail industry use data to make decisions. Data are

important to understand market trends in relation to consumer behavior. Data collection

is a key asset and tool to assist supply chain managers in effective decision making.

Retail industry supply chain managers set-up systems that consistently collect and

analyze data on a daily basis. Some of the processes that supply chain managers use to

collect data, support their ability to make decisions with accurate and up-to-date

information (Kazancoglu et al., 202; Lai et al., 2018). Processing data with up-to-date

information helps to ensure supply chain managers are allocating resources, both internal

and external, to the right products and stores, and helps avoid disruptions to consumer

demand and over allocation from reduction in consumer demand.

The decision-making process for supply chain managers in the retail industry

involves both an internal and external component. The external component is important

as well as the internal component. Supply chain managers collaborate with their external

partners and share data to optimize the supply chain network (Bechtsis et al., 2022). The

sharing of information and collaboration among the parties assists all parties because of

improved demand forecasting, having the right balance among purchasing, ordering, and

storage, and avoiding stockouts (Beheshti et al., 2020). When all parties within the supply

network have the same information and are operating under the same knowledge, a buffer

is created against the volatility of the market.

The decision-making process in the retail industry is complex for supply chain

managers. Not only do the supply chain managers have to account for both internal and

external parties, but also, they should be aware of competing priorities for all parties

involved. Supply chain managers should weigh the pros and the cons of the problems and

solutions and prioritize them (Pereira et al., 2021). This prioritization agreed upon by

internal and external parties allows the supply network to operate efficiently.

Supply chain managers in the retail industry make decisions based on a dynamic

market that changes based on unforeseen factors. In the retail industry, supply chain

managers make decisions and have backup plans to insulate the organization against the

unpredictable (Kumar & Venkatesan, 2021). Supply chain managers in the retail industry

stand by their decisions but adjust, when necessary, to maintain a smoothly running

supply chain. Supply chain managers in the retail industry have many tools at their

disposal for decision making.

The rational decision-making model is a simple tool that is commonly used by

supply chain managers to make decisions (Wemnér & Anderson, 2008). When supply

chain managers use the rational decision-making model in supply chain management,

they follow these steps:

1. Leaders should identify the problem or opportunity.

2. Leaders should identify potential solutions.

3. Leaders should create a gap analysis to explore the work needed to bridge the

gap.

4. Leaders should gather the data and explore alternative solutions.

5. Leaders should analyze what the possible outcomes may be.

6. Leaders should choose the best solution for their individual situation.

7. Leaders should put their decision into action.

Supply chain managers implement rational decision making, which is a more

advanced type of decision-making model that includes emphasis on research and logical

evaluation selecting among choices based on facts and reasoning (Belhadi et al., 2022).

Supply chain mangers are able to make rational, better decisions when using the rational

decision-making process, because it considers many factors and follows a logical

sequence.

Supply chain managers in the retail industry select from the possible choices

learned from rational decision making and begin implementation of the decision. Supply

chain managers account for the complexity of the supply chain network when they move

into the implementation phase (Wieland, 2021). Coordination with internal and external

partners is an important part of the implementation success. Leaders in the retail industry

understand the complexity of implementation and most retailers have attempted to

remove the barriers to implementation through visible participation by senior

management or assigning a vice president of supply chain (Sharma et al., 2022). Retail

industry supply chain managers make decisions to reduce costs, create price advantages,

attract, and retain customers while enhancing the revenue of the organization.

Supply Chain Collaboration and Business Ecosystems

A supply chain is defined as a network of individuals and companies that engage

in creating or delivering a product to the consumer. A supply chain includes the

components of producers, warehouses, vendors, transportation companies, retailers, and

distributors (Shcherbakov & Silkina, 2021). The supply chain functions include product

development, operations, marketing, distribution, and customer service (Geissdoerfer et

al., 2018). In the 2020s, many supply chains are global.

Supply chains can operate on different models according to the structure of the

company. There are several models that organizations can use to be in conjunction with

their structure. One model is the continuous flow model. Another model is the fast chain

model.

The continuous flow model is the traditional model that is used by organizations.

When leaders in organizations are creating the same product with little to no variation the

continuous flow model is a viable choice. This model is normally used for products that

are in high demand and products that do not require redesign (Dolgui et al., 2020). The

fast chain model is a model that works well for organizations that sell products in

response to the latest trends. This model is used by organizations so the organization can

be agile and have the ability to move an idea to a prototype, a prototype to production,

and production to the consumer very quickly. This agility allows manufacturers to ramp

up quickly when demand is strong and ramp down quickly when demand shrinks (Sawik,

2019). Retail leaders should determine which model is best for their organization while

also observing supply chain management best practices.

Supply chain management has best practices. The best practices that have been

identified by researchers are supporting continuous improvement, seeking innovative

technology, and encouraging collaboration among the individual businesses and the

supply chain (Blanchard, 2021). Supply chain collaboration is defined as two or more

autonomous firms working together to plan and execute supply chain operations (Baah et

al., 2021). This two-way, multilevel collaboration is anchored in the sharing of

information on demand, product, market, and trends among partners (Raweewan &

Ferrell, 2018). Supply chain collaboration provides benefits to all the partners. A

cooperative strategy is when one or more organizations or business units work together to

create mutual benefits. Collaborative communication is the message sharing process

among supply chain partners in terms of direction, mode, frequency, and strategy. Supply

chain collaboration is an important part of having a successful supply chain for large

organizations such as retail discount department stores.

Supply chains are an important part of business operations. The supply chain is

the network through which material and information flows. The entities that are part of a

supply chain—suppliers, retailers, carriers, manufacturers, distributors, and customers—

depend on this flow of information (Wu & Zhang, 2022). Leaders use the information to

make decisions and integrate the supply chain effectively so that the right distribution of

the product or service occurs in the right quantities to the right locations at the right time

(Min et al., 2019). Leaders place emphasis on supply chain management due to increased

national and international competition.

Increasing or unmet customer demand has a direct effect on the national and

international competition that leaders of organizations are facing. Customers are able to

choose the organization or source from which they wish to satisfy their need. Leaders are

tasked with maximizing sales by having product in the right place at the right time

throughout the supply chain distribution channels to maximize profits (Davis-Sramek et

al., 2020). Researchers have determined that the previous model of holding additional

inventory ties up funds, space, and inventory; therefore, organizations have moved to

just-in-time inventory models.

The just-in-time inventory model is valuable because of the dynamic nature of the

marketplace. Leaders are aware that the buying habits of customers are constantly

changing; therefore, leaders are no longer holding additional inventory greater than

calculated customer demand. Leaders seek cost improvement when using the just-in-time

model through reduction of warehousing cost, and efficiency improvement (Lyu et al.,

2020). Some retail leaders use the just-in-time inventory model to manage customer

buying habits along with continuously improving processes and technology.

Continuous improvement and technology are considered together with regards to

supply chain management. Manufacturers in the United States are dependent on the

benefits realized through technology to improve supply chain agility, reduce cycle time,

achieve higher efficiency, and deliver products to customers in a timely manner and can

use business ecosystems to facilitate supply chain agility (Fasanghari, 2008). When

leaders in organizations implement technology into their supply chain that leads to

improving the supply chain. Leaders’ use of technology allows organizations to move

information from organization to partners in a more efficient manner. In addition, leaders

also are able to create more accurate demand forecasting, as information on products sold

and inventory levels are managed through technology.

Business Ecosystems

The rise of business ecosystems is impacting all major industries from the media

industry to the mining industry. Business ecosystems have two options, transaction

ecosystems or solution ecosystems. Transaction ecosystems exist when a central platform

links two sides of a market such as buyers and sellers in a digital marketplace. Solution

ecosystems exist when a core firm orchestrates the offerings of multiple complementors

such as product manufacturers in a smart-home ecosystem (Markova, V. & Kuznetsova,

S., 2021). Many organizations listed on the S&P Global 100 companies participate in one

or more ecosystems (Chung et al., 2020). Ecosystems are a priority on the strategic

agenda for many organizations.

Leaders use business ecosystems to help with achieving organizational goals.

Organizational goals that are hard to achieve with one organization are achievable

through ecosystems that engage more than one organization. Value is gained from

business ecosystems because leaders use business ecosystems to open new sales channels

for existing products or services and expand market access into adjacent markets for

existing offerings through the ecosystem partnerships (Basole & Karla, 2012). Leaders

can also use ecosystem partnerships to strengthen the core business through complements

that partners can provide that add value to the organization’s offerings.

Leaders identify the viability of business ecosystems by examining the customer

journey in their industry and defining the points of customer frustration, unmet needs,

and unfulfilled desires that are too much for one organization to solve (Ozel & Hacioglu,

2021). Business ecosystems are effective in markets where there is fragmented demand

or fragmented supply. Ecosystem partners can work together to coordinate profitable

solutions to fulfill the fragmented demand and supply to customers.

Leaders in organizations that participate in business ecosystems must decide what

role they will take responsibility for in the ecosystem, Organizations that use business

ecosystems have several roles that need to be fulfilled. Leaders in organizations have to

choose what role the organization will perform in the business ecosystem, the role of

orchestrator, complementor, or supplier (Dedehayir et al., 2018). Orchestrators have the

position of power and governance within the business ecosystem.

The leader of the organization that takes on the role as orchestrator has the

responsibility to build the ecosystem. The leader will encourage essential partners to join

the ecosystem. The partners will join if they can perceive the benefits or incentives from

the ecosystem (Gueler, & Schneider, 2021). The leader will also have to establish the

right governance for the ecosystem.

The flywheel effect is the concept that a firm always has a mix of variables, that

when properly aligned, they are able to develop momentum, and as a result of the

momentum the variables produce a self-reinforcing virtuous cycle for the organization

(Ganguly, 2020). There are three potential flywheels when using ecosystems, the data

flywheel, growth flywheel, and cost flywheel. The data flywheel provides more and

richer data from the ecosystem, which gives deeper and better insights into the industry.

The growth flywheel uses more users and more partners within the ecosystem thereby

improving the overall value proposition. The cost flywheel spreads the fixed costing

within the ecosystem, which lowers the unit cost pricing.

Researchers determined that leaders of organizations which use business

ecosystems will at some point need to also incorporate digital business ecosystems. A

digital business ecosystem is a technological infrastructure that allows leaders in

organizations to develop, configure, and deliver advanced services efficiently on an

unprecedented scale (Ishfaq et al., 2022; Suuronen et al., 2022). Leaders use digital

business ecosystem platforms to solve technical problems and to provide insight into

manufacturing and production networks within the ecosystem.

Partners can have visibility into the digital business ecosystem platform;

therefore, leaders no longer work in silos. Engaged platform leaders can cultivate mutual

trust among ecosystem members. Digital business ecosystems are only successful if the

members of the ecosystem are engaged in using the platform.

There are three main characteristics—symbiosis, coevolution, and self-

organization—that are born along with the implementation of a digital business

ecosystem platform. Symbiosis influences interdependencies in the digital business

ecosystem such as technologies, processes, and partners. Synergy and cocreated value are

created between partners through symbiosis. Coevolution occurs when leaders of the

digital business ecosystem platform transform the platform form one stage to another.

Self-organization is in reference to the leaders of the digital business ecosystem platform

using the platform to learn and respond to changes in environment events, requirements,

opportunities, or threats (Suuronen et al., 2022). The three main characteristics that are

born along with implementation of a digital business ecosystem will evolve as leaders

make strategic choices concerning the platform.

Leaders make strategic choices when determining how and when to incorporate

digital business ecosystems. The strategic options leaders of organizations have fall into

four categories, digital foundations, production ecosystems, consumption ecosystems,

and digital monopolies (Subramaniam et al., 2019). Leaders use digital foundation

ecosystems to embrace new digital technologies to make changes from traditional

business procedures. Production ecosystems are incorporated to channel product-in-use

information from a digital envelope onto a production ecosystem. Consumption

ecosystems are used by leaders to channel product-in-use information from the digital

envelope onto a consumption ecosystem. Leaders use digital monopolies to aggregate

multiple sources of product-in-use information. Leaders use one of the strategic choices

for a digital business ecosystem to transform the way the organization conducts business.

Leaders in organizations have opportunities to grow their existing ecosystems.

Growth of an ecosystem can occur through geographic expansion, market consolidation,

or scope expansion (Coe & Yang, 2022). Leaders can expand business ecosystems

geographically by increasing global coverage of models and or transferring local models

to additional locations. Leaders achieve market consolidation by gaining share through

acquisitions and extension of offerings through acquisitions. Leaders can also grow

existing ecosystems through scope expansion, staggering expansion into new products

and services.

Supply chain collaboration can be accomplished through business ecosystems. A

successful ecosystem is one in which all partners are satisfied with the outcome and this

alignment between partners represents the point of equilibrium (Adner, 2016). Leaders in

organizations must work to ensure they understand their business ecosystems, and all the

organizations involved must remain active and take leadership roles to ensure

collaboration on the rules of engagement for the ecosystems (Zhang, 2022). The

collaboration includes proactively reaching out to business counterparts on integrating

ecosystems, supporting infrastructure to enable change, and improving strategies.

(Raweewan & Ferrell, 2018). For ecosystems to be effective all the partners involved

must agree to the process. There can be a productive ecosystem if there is agreement and

communication is shared for strategic purposes between partners. Leadership from each

organization has the responsibility of ensuring that their organization is participating in

the ecosystem by the defined rules.

Retail discount department stores can benefit from ecosystems when proper

strategies are implemented. According to Muctor and Micheli (2021), ecosystems provide

benefits to leaders in organizations that take advantage of using them in their strategy.

Leaders can use ecosystems to create expansion of existing offerings in the market.

Ecosystems strengthen an organization’s core business through complements and

ecosystems allow organizations to launch new ventures separate from their core business

(Radziwon et al., 2021). Ecosystems also create relationships with suppliers that allow

them to work together and adjust requests to move product into the appropriate area

where the demand for the product is the highest to mitigate supply chain risks (Stone et

al., 2020). All of these items are advantages of ecosystems realized through collaboration.

Leaders in organizations use ecosystems to examine and identify critical information

pertaining to customers such as unmet customer demand and unmet customer needs.

Ecosystem platforms are suited to consolidate customer demand and increase necessary

products to meet customer demand.

Supply Chain Risk Management

Risk management strategies are an important aspect of managing supply chain

networks. Risk management is the implementation of strategy and plans to manage

supply chain networks through constant risk assessment and reduction of vulnerabilities

to ensure resilience in supply chain networks (Gurtu & Johnny, 2021). The more partners

the more vulnerable the supply chain and the risk of failure of the supply chain is greater

(Gurtu & Johnny, 2021). Supply chain risk management (SCRM) is a phased and

systematic approach for recognizing, evaluating, ranking, mitigating, and monitoring

disruptions in supply chains. SCRM needs to be tailored in conjunction with the

characteristics and objectives of the supply chain (Gaudenzi & Qazi, 2021).

A supply chain is only as strong as the most vulnerable partner of the supply chain.

Identifying risks within supply chains and how risks can affect performance becomes

increasingly critical as supply chains have become complex and vulnerable.

All supply chains do not have the same risk, but they do have some risks in

common. The risks that are associated with supply chain networks fall into four

categories: economic, environmental, political, and ethical (LeBaron & Lister, 2021). The

supply chain risks that cause disruptions to come from various and diverse situations such

as physical damage at production facilities, natural disasters, strikes and labor disputes,

capacity issues, delays, inventory stock problems and incorrect forecasts (Sakib et al.,

2021). Leaders in organizations must manage their supply chain to resist these

vulnerabilities.

Evaluating risk uncertainty is a crucial step for leaders to establish effective risk

management practices for their organization. Researchers determined that best

management practices for supply chain leaders are identifying internal and external

environments, risk identification and assessment, risk treatment, and continual

monitoring and review of risks and their treatment (Dellana et al., 2021; Srivastava &

Rogers, 2022). SCRM and supply chain disruptions are affected by the external

environment.

Supply chain managers work in unison with their partners when taking risks to

find the point of equilibrium for all partners within the supply network. This task

incorporates market data and market intelligence, as well as human factors, such as

judgment, management style, and communication skills (Tseng et al., 2021). Retail

industry supply chain manager’s use intelligent risk, opportunities in which the potential

gain outweighs the harm or loss to the organization, to collaborate with partners to reach

a supply position that benefits all parties (Gurbuz et al., 2022). The leaders within the

entire supply chain network consider the following factors when deciding when and if to

take an intelligent risk:

• Leaders make proactive decisions to avoid the unexpected before it happens.

• Leaders determine what is the appropriate amount of risk to take for their

organization.

• Leaders work to ensure transparency and alignment with key stakeholders

when taking risks.

• Leaders take risks to survive in the short term but have success in the long

term.

Failure by supply chain partners to agree and take intelligent risks can negatively

impact the organization and the markets the organization serves (Bacchetta et al., 2021).

Retail industry supply chain managers and their partners can take intelligent risk to avoid

disruptions in business continuity, product quality and compliance, and reduction of price

competitiveness. Taking intelligent risk allows supply chain managers and their aligned

partners to proactively mitigate risks and avoid cost overruns (O’Hearen, 2022). Supply

chain managers can also take intelligent risk to identify problems before they occur to

plan and implement risk handling activities as needed to mitigate adverse impacts to

achieving organizational goals and objectives.

Supply Chain Disruptions

Disruptions in the supply chain are more likely because of complex coupled

systems. Supply chain disruptions are events that are neither planned nor anticipated that

disrupt the normal flow of goods within a supply chain. Supply chain disruptions can be

caused by catastrophic events or fluctuations that occur in the regular operations (Bier et

al., 2020). Disruptions can occur from natural or fabricated causes. Natural disasters are

disruptions such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, or pandemics. Fabricated disruptions

can be linked to wars, terrorist and cyber-attacks, or mistakes that lead to operational

issues (Iliopoulou et al., 2020; Sabbaghtorkan & Batta, 2020). Common causes of supply

disruptions throughout history are the weather, financial crises, labor disputes,

deregulation, and market expansion or market contraction.

Disruptions cause interventions to supply chains, and the implications from

disruptions are seen on the supply and demand side for organizations. A supplier’s ability

to produce is impacted by the lack of raw materials, funds, labor, or inefficient

production processes caused by natural or fabricated disasters (Gupta & Maranas, 2003).

Organization leaders, from the demand side, face changing customer needs, which also

leads to disruptions along the supply chain (Oke & Gopalakrishnan, 2009). Disruptions to

the supply chain can occur for reasons from insufficient production to natural disasters.

Disruptions can also occur because of customer behavior and changing customer needs.

Leaders in organizations face these challenges and collaborate within the organization to

respond to disruptions.

Collaboration is a strategic response to supply chain disruptions. Duong and

Chong (2020) stated that the supply chain is an integration of businesses and

organizations; therefore, to manage the impact of supply disruptions it is important to

understand the integrations. Researchers concluded that leaders who use the humanitarian

supply chain focus on reduction of lead times as loss of life may come into play, whereas

commercial supply chains focus on reduction of costs (Duong & Chong, 2020;

McLachlin & Larson, 2011). According to Blackhurst et al., 2005, unexpected

disruptions make it more difficult to execute effective supply chain management. These

unexpected disruptions manifest in many forms such as transportation delays, port

stoppages, accidents, part shortages, poor communication, operational issues, and even

terrorism. Disruptions will have a negative effect on organizational performance

(Katsaliaki et al., 2021). Researchers agree that the disruptions can be costly. Researchers

determined that there are two important perspectives for supply chain collaboration when

disruptions occur, demand prediction and consequences of disruptions. Supply chain

disruptions have caused organizations to move toward global sourcing, toward higher

agility, and maintaining lower inventories (McLachlin & Larson, 2011). Because of the

effect that supply chain disruptions can have on organizations, supply chain managers

and their organizations have also moved toward more networked highly dependent

organizations.

As organizations move toward more networked highly dependent the leaders in

the organization face risk. Oke and Gopalakrishnan (2009) determined that leaders of

retail supply chains have specific risk when it comes to supply chain disruptions. These

risks are climate, fabricated disasters, natural disasters, socioeconomic, and loss of key

suppliers. Each of these situations, including events such as pandemics have a disruptive

impact to the supply of goods and services offered by retail stores to their customers.

Supply Chain Strategies During COVID-19

Supply chain disruptions have occurred throughout history. Examples of events

that have caused disruptions are the 9/11 terrorists’ attack and the west coast port lockout

in the USA in California. There was also the SARS outbreak in 2003 and the Union

carbide gas leak disaster in Bhopal, India in 1984. COVID-19 has managed to create the

perfect storm with varying levels of all forms of historical disruption rolled into one

(Dulam et al., 2021). COVID-19 was worldwide and not specific to any geography.

COVID-19 happened quickly, and the origin was not man made (DeLeo et al., 2021).

COVID-19 is a pandemic that affected the entire world. The effects of COVID-19 were

experienced in all areas of life. COVID-19 caused unanticipated disruptions to supply

chains.

Researchers determined that the extraordinary COVID-19 outbreak caused

organizations supply chains across the world to operate in crisis management. The

negative effects of large outbreaks such as COVID-19 are serious because of unique

characteristics, which include long-term damage and downstream impacts on supply

chain networks that affect demand and product availability (Ivanov, 2020). The

slowdown or halt of the transferring of raw materials between businesses posed

significant problems for suppliers and organizations (Correia et al., 2020; Govindan et al.,

2020). COVID-19 had a distinct effect on supply chains and the effect was not like any

that leaders in organizations had previously encountered. Some retail leaders experienced

an interruption to the free flow of products from country to country when some

governments throughout the world implemented lockdown measures because of COVID-

19.

COVID-19 became a catalyst for leaders in organizations to evaluate their supply

chain strategies to determine how to minimize the effect of disruptions like COVID-19.

Studies on COVID-19 show that COVID-19 served as the mechanism for organization

leaders to reconsider their current supply chain plans in an effort to reduce supply chain

disruptions (Butt, 2021; Mollenkopf et al., 2020). Organizational leaders can review their

production plans to enhance production on products that are in highest demand.

Organization leaders can partner with secondary suppliers to hedge against shortages

realized from having only one supplier that may be experiencing trouble. Organization

leaders should forecast sales for unusual situations and determine how to maximize

product during these events. Organization leaders should become more agile to minimize

shortages caused by supply chain disruptions (Butt, 2021; McKibbin & Fernando, (2020).

Organizational leaders adjust their processes and become more agile in efforts to manage

the bullwhip effect.

The bullwhip effect has caused some leaders to experience issues within their

supply chain. Global supply chains leaders sometimes fail to manage the bullwhip effect

caused by the lack of transparency within the supply chain network (Sajjad, 2021). The

bullwhip effect occurs when slight changes in customer demand cause large swings to

supplier’s demand (Hu et al., 2022). When buyer behavior for a product increases or

decreases slightly this could be problematic for supply chain networks that are

intertwined since the move toward globalization. Supply chain network partners need to

share critical information with all of the partners to meet customer demands in an

efficient and effective manner. If the shift in customer behavior is visible to one partner

but not all partners, then customer demand results in excess products or not enough

products in the necessary markets. Supply chain partners while experiencing COVID 19

became aware of the issues around the need for transparency amongst all supply chain

partners. According to Sajjad (2021), the COVID-19 pandemic severely affected the

performance and ability of global supply chains to respond and absorb to supply and

demand shocks variabilities caused by COVID-19 panic buying.

Transition

In Section 1 I introduced the study on how to mitigate supply chain disruptions in

retail discount department stores. Section 1 included the background of the problem, the

problem and purpose statement, the nature of the study, research questions, interview

questions, conceptual framework, operational definitions, assumptions, limitations,

delimitations, significance of the study, and a literature review. In Section 1 I provided

significant information on mitigating supply chain disruptions. In Section 2, I provided

in-depth research on the subject. In Section 3, I expounded upon the findings and results

from the interviews and analysis of the data. In addition, Section 3 includes application of

the research findings to professional practice.

Section 2: The Project

Purpose Statement

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies that

retail discount department store industry managers implement to mitigate supply chain

disruptions. The research took place in Northern Illinois and Northwest Indiana and

included retail leaders from retail discount department stores who had successfully used

strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions. The implications of this study for positive

social change include the potential for consumers to maintain or increase productive

lifestyles from increased economic growth in local communities stemming from a

decrease in disruptive supply chains of retail businesses.

Role of the Researcher

As the researcher in this study, I collected data through semistructured face-to-

face interviews, Microsoft Teams interviews, or Zoom interviews. I documented and

analyzed the data and presented findings objectively. A qualitative researcher provides an

in-depth understanding of the phenomenon being studied by collecting data from

participants’ lived and perceived experiences (Morse et al., 2014). Researchers are

responsible for collecting data from the participants chosen for their study (Noble &

Smith, 2015). My professional experience in relation to the research topic included

working as the director of sales with supply chain management on my job in Chicago,

Illinois. I had no professional contact or business arrangements with the organization or

participants I selected for this study.

I followed the principles of the Belmont Report while conducting this research.

The Belmont Report has three fundamental principles that researchers must adopt to

maintain ethical guidelines (Pritchard, 2021). These three principles are respect for

persons, beneficence, and justice. Respect for persons means protecting people’s

autonomy and treating people with courtesy while maintaining truthfulness. Beneficence

means doing no harm; that is, maximizing the project information but minimizing the risk

to the participants. Justice means using nonexploitative and standardized procedures

when dealing with participants (Pritchard, 2021). I adhered to Belmont Report guidelines.

Researchers must avoid prejudice and biases and have integrity to produce

trustworthy results (Noble & Smith, 2015). Achieving credibility for truthful results is

accomplished through multiple means, truth value, consistency, applicability, and

neutrality. Truth value is achieved when a researcher acknowledges that multiple realities

exist (Noble & Smith, 2015). The researcher must clearly and accurately present each

participant’s perspective. Consistency is achieved when a researcher’s decisions are clear

and transparent (Noble & Smith, 2015). Applicability is the consideration given to

whether the findings can be applied to other groups, settings, or contexts (Noble & Smith,

2015). When truth value, consistency, and applicability have been achieved, then the

researcher has established neutrality (Noble & Smith, 2015). Reflexivity is achieved

when the researcher enlists the help of a peer to review the results to uncover biases or

assumptions of which the researcher is unaware (Noble & Smith, 2015). I separated my

individual experiences, feelings, morals, and beliefs when interpreting participants’

answers to avoid biases. In addition, I followed the concepts of truth value, consistency,

and applicability to obtain neutrality.

Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with supply chain managers

responsible for managing supply chain disruptions in retail discount department stores.

In-depth information that pertains to participants’ experiences and viewpoints on a

particular topic is gained from interviews (Turner & Hagstrom-Schmidt, 2022). The

interviews with participants were voluntary, and the participants could discontinue an

interview at any time. Each participant responded to the same open-ended questions in

the same order. I used a prepared interview protocol to avoid inconsistencies and

omissions. An interview protocol is used as a valid method to measure and map an

individual’s considerations when making complex decisions (De Ceunynck et al., 2013).

As the researcher, I assured the participants of the confidentiality of their answers from

the interview. I used purposive sampling to choose participants for this study.

Participants

Participant selection is an important aspect of a qualitative study. Effective

participant selection is important to obtaining robust results in any qualitative study (Yin,

2018). I used purposive sampling to select participants for my study. A purposive sample

is defined by having a purpose that is relevant to the study (Andrade, 2021). Researchers

use purposive sampling to assist in choosing participants who have experience,

understanding, and knowledge of the research question. Researchers who conduct

qualitative research do not seek to generalize results to a population of interest but aim to

capture a wide and diverse range of perspectives on a phenomenon. Therefore, participant

selection is based on the participants’ ability to provide rich and diverse insights relevant

to the research question (Baumgart et al., 2021). For this reason, I chose to use a

purposive sampling strategy to select participants.

I selected participants for my study who could provide robust information and

knowledge. The criteria for selecting participants for my study were that they (a) must

have a minimum of 3 years of experience as a supply chain manager, (b) must have

information and experience about supply chain disruptions, (c) must have experience in

implementation of successful strategies for preventing supply chain disruptions, and (d)

must have worked in a retail discount department store supply chain.

The process of gaining access to participants begins with Institutional Review

Board (IRB) approval. Access to participants can be challenging. To overcome the

challenge, once IRB approval was received, I reached out by email and phone to potential

participants. To build relationships, I offered participants a 5-minute introductory

Microsoft Teams meeting, Zoom meeting, or phone call. Technological advances in

communication offer new opportunities for conducting qualitative research. Zoom, an

innovative videoconferencing platform, is one of the technological advances that presents

a number of unique features that enhance its potential appeal to qualitative methods

researchers (Archibald et al., 2019).

Research Method and Design

Research Method

Researchers use the qualitative research method when a problem exists and there

is a desire to explore the problem thoroughly. Researchers provide insights on problems

and causation through qualitative research (Maxwell, 2021). A researcher uses qualitative

research to gain knowledge and understanding of a problem by interviewing participants

and learning from their individual and life experiences about the phenomenon (Lanka et

al., 2021; Roberts & Struckmeyer, 2018). Researchers can gain a deeper understanding of

the phenomenon by asking interview participants open-ended questions in semistructured

interviews. Researchers attempt to interview participants in their natural setting

(Anderson, 2017; Busetto et al., 2020). Rutberg and Bouikidis (2018) suggested using a

qualitative approach to ask open-ended questions to explore complex problems to allow

participants to openly share their perspectives. Qualitative research is an exploratory

research method (Mozersky et al., 2020). Researchers heavily weight the views of the

participants in qualitative research. The qualitative research method was the most

appropriate method for this study to explore what strategies leaders use to mitigate supply

chain disruptions in the retail industry.

Quantitative researchers use numerical data and variables for the empirical study

of a phenomenon that has an accumulation of facts and causes of behavior (Duffy, 1987).

Researchers use a quantitative method to test hypotheses, ask closed-ended questions,

and conduct numerical analysis (Yin, 2018). Quantitative research is primarily used to

test hypotheses; therefore, quantitative research is not suited for exploring strategies to

mitigate supply chain disruptions in retail discount department stores (Franz, 2023).

Quantitative research was not a sound choice for this study because neither closed-ended

questions nor numerical analysis were a suitable approach to address the research

question. Mixed methods was also not a sound choice because I did not need a

quantitative arm for this study.

Research Design

I considered the following qualitative research designs: (a) ethnography, (b)

phenomenology, and (c) case study. I selected a multiple case study research design for

this study. I chose a multiple case study over a single case study because a multiple case

study allowed a wider exploration of the research questions and more credibility because

there was more than one participant. The qualitative multiple case study design was

appropriate for this study because I was able to identify strategies to mitigate supply

chain disruptions in the retail industry.

Researchers use ethnographic research design to understand the shared patterns of

behaviors, language, and actions of an intact cultural group over a prolonged frame of

time. This evaluation is done in the participant’s natural environment, and the focus is on

understanding the behaviors of a culture (Asenahabi, 2019; Fetterman, 2019). The pool of

participants in an ethnographic study are of the same race, culture, and location (Bernard,

2013). Ethnographic research design involves creating a descriptive written account of a

culture or group (Yin, 2018). In this study, I was not focused on a culture or race, but I

was focused on mitigating supply chain disruptions in the retail industry; therefore,

ethnography was not the appropriate design for this study.

Researchers use the phenomenological research design to describe the meaning of

people’s lived experiences. Yin (2018) posited that the phenomenological design is used

to collect data from a small group about the essence of their human experiences with a

phenomenon over an extensive period of time. According to Knaack (1984), one of the

purposes of phenomenology is to attempt to understand the structure and meaning of

human experience. I did not use a phenomenological design because I do not plan to

focus my study on human experience related to a phenomenon over an extensive period

of time.

Researchers use case study designs to gather emerging ideas from multiple

sources (Trkman, 2010). Researchers use a multiple case study design to compare and

contrast similarities and differences among cases (Czosnek et al., 2022; Mathews et al.,

2022; Wiklicki & Pilch, 2021). Case studies involve investigation of a phenomenon

within its life context. The information collected is subjective rather than objective;

therefore, the researcher is not able to generalize beyond the knowledge (Singh, 2006).

The multiple case study design was appropriate for this study because I was able to

identify strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions for the retail industry in a

subjective manner by exploring the life experiences of the leaders who participated in this

study.

Some researchers have concluded that a key driver for determining the adequacy

of a sample size in a qualitative study is data saturation (Aguboshim, 2021). The concept

of data saturation involves bringing in new participants continually in a study until a

point is reached when participants do not provide any new relevant data. Researchers

have stated that this point of data saturation is indicated by data redundancy, data

replication, or the point when continuing to gather data produces diminishing returns

(Alam, 2020). Researchers have also determined that what is important to researchers is

not the size of the sample, large or small, but what sample size will generate the best

opportunity for data saturation (Galvin, 2015; Guest et al., 2006). I determined data

saturation for this study as the point when interviews with participants yielded redundant

information.

Population and Sampling

The population for this qualitative multiple case study was retail leaders from

retail discount department stores located in Northwest Indiana and/or Northern Illinois.

The leaders were required to have experience in mitigating supply chain disruptions to

participate in this study. A sample that is too large is unnecessary, and a sample that is

too small is unscientific (Andrade, 2021). The goal of purposive sampling is to develop

and in-depth understanding with the richest evidence possible (Staller, 2021). I used

purposive sampling to engage the retail leaders concerning their knowledge about

mitigating supply chain disruptions in their industry. In purposive sampling, the sample

size is flexible, and it is not predetermined (Staller, 2021). At the time the study took

place, I needed to estimate the size of the sample.

One interview protocol element that helped control the sample size and drive data

saturation was that during interviews, I asked all participants the same questions. Data

saturation is the point in data collection when no additional issues or insights are

identified and data start to repeat, signifying that an adequate sample size has been

reached. At the point when my study participants’ answers did not yield new information,

that is, participants’ responses reflected repeated and redundant information, I achieved

data saturation. I completed four interviews and reached the point where responses were

redundant. Saturation is an important indicator that the sample is sufficient for the

phenomenon being studied (Hennink & Kaiser, 2021). I did not seek approval to add

more interview participants because saturation was achieved.

The interview participants were selected from members of retail discount

department stores’ supply chain teams. I selected participants who were leaders in the

organizations’ supply chain departments and had experience with mitigating supply chain

disruptions within their organizations. The interview in a qualitative study is based on a

topic, focusing on the knowledge of the expert, which is characterized as direct

knowledge in a specific field of action (Doringer, 2021). Participants should have at least

2 years of experience in the supply chain of their organization. I interviewed participants

by phone, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams, whichever was most convenient for the participant.

Advancements in communication technologies are due to the availability of the Internet.

Videoconferencing is used as an alternative to traditional interviews for qualitative

research because of the availability of the Internet. Videoconferencing communication

technology allows real-time, online conversation coupled with the ability to send and

receive audiovisual information (Irani, 2019). Videoconferencing is a useful tool that the

researcher utilizes for interviews while conducting qualitative research.

Ethical Research

Researchers have the obligation of protecting participant identity when

conducting qualitative research. Ethical researchers follow the ethical standards that

require researchers to respect human dignity and ensure the integrity of participants’ data

(Arifin, 2018). Adhering to high ethical standards is particularly important in research

because doing so protects participants and researchers and improves the quality of the

data that are retrieved (Broom, 2006). To demonstrate compliance with research ethics, I

informed participants in this study that there would be no incentives for participating in

this study. It was their right to withdraw from the study at any point for any reason by

simply informing me that they no longer wanted to participate. I complied with the

Belmont Report and Walden ethical policies throughout this research.

I presented the participants in this study with an informed consent form to ensure

that they understood that their participation was voluntary, what their responsibility was

in the study, and what are the risks were for participating in the study. I requested

signatures on the informed consent form from all participants in this study. To maintain

participants’ privacy and confidentiality, the names of companies and participants should

remain anonymous (White, 2020). The names of participants and their organization were

not included in this study. Each participant was assigned an identification pseudonym,

such as P1 or P2.

I stored the participants’ completed informed consent forms and my data

collection logs on a password-protected computer. In addition to maintaining records in

the password-protected computer, I ensured that the stored files were password protected.

I locked documents, flash drives, and files in a file cabinet, and I am the only person with

a key. After 5 years, I will delete all files from the computer, erase any files on flash

drives, and shred any paper documents with a shredding device. The final study includes

my IRB approval number, which is 12-29-22-0017620.

Data Collection Instruments

In qualitative research the researcher is the primary data instrument; therefore, I

was the primary data instrument for this study. As the researcher I was tasked with

remaining unbiased with regards to the data collection from the participants in my study.

Data collection is the process of gathering and measuring information in an established

systematic fashion, from the participants involved in the study, which enables the

researcher to answer stated research questions (Allibang, 2020). According to Yin (2018),

systematic and accurate data collection is essential to research. Methods of data

collection include document review, observation, questioning, measuring, surveys, or

interviews (Degner et al., 2022).

As the researcher, I collected data by conducting semistructured interviews for

this qualitative multiple case study. Semistructured interviews include predetermined

questions and the interviewer has the freedom to slightly modify wording when necessary

(Yin, 2018). It is the job of the researcher to establish trust with the participants to elicit

participants’ honest and thorough answers (Chen et al., 2021). Data collection is a vehicle

by which research questions can be answered through interaction and building trust with

research participants (Bondwe, 2019). The interviews with the participants were recorded

with the permission of the participants. On the informed consent form, participants

acknowledged their agreement to interview recording. Recording the participants

enhanced the reliability and validity of the data. I recorded the interviews with the

participants using Microsoft Teams or Zoom audio recording. I followed a standardized

interview protocol (Appendix A) that contains planned interview questions (Appendix

B).

Data Collection Technique

Researchers use data collection techniques to collect information in a well-

ordered, repeatable, scalable order that embeds opportunities for review of the approach

to allow for improvements. The researcher collects data in a systematic manner,

otherwise the researcher has a challenging time answering questions in a conclusive way

(Cln, 2013). Data gathering is accomplished through multiple procedures, observation,

interviews, and/or surveys. For this study, I used semistructured interviews and analyzed

company documents. I conducted these interviews face to face or via Microsoft teams

following the interview protocol outlined in Appendix A. Researchers use semistructured

interviews with predetermined questions as a guide to maintain a natural flow with

interview participants (Gupta & Pathak, 2018). I used the interview protocol to introduce

the interview and set the stage for the conversation with the participant. During the

interview I watched the participant for nonverbal clues, paraphrased answers to questions

as necessary, and asked follow-up questions to get a more in-depth understanding.

In case studies, semistructured interviews are a primary source of data. This type

of interview is insightful and an efficient means to collect rich, empirical data, especially

when the phenomenon of interest is episodic (Agboola & Scofield, 2018; De Massis &

Kotlar, 2014). Because of the nature of the phenomenon of this study, mitigating supply

chain disruptions in the retail industry, I anticipated the phenomenon to be episodic.

Phenomenological researchers gather data directly from participants who have had direct

experience with the phenomenon. This direct knowledge from participants is an

advantage but direct knowledge is also a disadvantage. The information received by the

researcher is subject to participant bias and participant memory. The researcher has to

rely on the memory and reasoning of the participants. According to De Massis and Kotlar

(2014), participants can suffer from memory failure, inaccurate recall of past events, or

memory distortion. Interviews are a valuable tool for researchers. In qualitative studies,

researchers are aware of the pros and cons of interviews and researchers follow protocols

and ethical guidelines to ensure the accuracy and reliability of their data collection

techniques.

Researchers ensure the accuracy and reliability of data also by using member

checking. Member checking is when researchers ask participants in the study to check the

researcher’s account of their responses for accuracy. Member checking involves taking

findings to participants and requesting them to validate the accuracy of the report

(Candela, 2019). Member checking includes validating if the researcher’s description is

complete and realistic, are the themes accurate, and are the interpretations fair and

representative. Member checking is a crucial step in validation and credibility for a study.

I used member checking to validate the data from the transcribing of the interview, to

ensure the accuracy of the themes and answers to interview questions.

Data Organization Technique

I collected the data, coded the data, and analyzed the data for this study. Thematic

analysis is coding used in qualitative research to find common themes and concepts. This

process involves choosing to use deductive or inductive reasoning, reading data to get a

sense of what is in it, going through data line-by-line to code, and categorizing codes and

determining how they fit into the study. I stored data collection logs on the computer. In

addition to the password-protected computer, the stored files were also password

protected. I will store data for 5 years and, after 5 years, I will delete all files from the

computer.

Data Analysis

Data analysis in qualitative research is a systematic process of searching and

arranging interview transcripts, observation notes, and other material that is gathered by

the researcher for the purpose of increasing the understanding of the phenomenon being

studied. Yin (2018) identified five phases of data analysis. The five phases are a

nonlinear cycle of compiling a database, disassembling data, reassembling data,

interpreting data, and concluding data. For this study I compiled the data, disassembled

the data, reassembled the data, interpreted the data, and then used the data to determine

conclusions. Analyzing qualitative data involves the process of coding or data

categorization. Following this process allows the researcher to reduce the volume of raw

information, identify patterns in the data, draw meaning from the data, and finally build a

logical chain of evidence. QSR International developed NVivo, a computer assisted

qualitative data analysis software. The software moves qualitative data inquiry past

coding, sorting, and retrieval of data (Wong, 2008). I used NVivo software for this study

to assist with the synthesis of the data and to assist with data triangulation.

There are four types of triangulations that can be utilized for qualitative studies.

The triangulation methods are data triangulation, investigator triangulation, theory

triangulation, and methodological triangulation (Noble & Heale, 2019). Data

triangulation is the use of multiple data sources, which includes time, space, and persons,

to corroborate findings and compensate for weaknesses in the data with the strengths of

the other data (Levin & Forward, 2021; Noble & Heale, 2019). Triangulation is used to

increase the validity and credibility of the research (Noble & Heale, 2019). For this study.

I used the data triangulation method by reviewing multiple sources of data. The primary

multiple source of data was semistructured interviews, while the secondary sources of

data were supply chain procurement, sustainability, and general company documents.

Reliability and Validity

Reliability

Reliability is defined by two conditions, according to Krippendorff (2004).

Research is considered reliable when the research responds to the same phenomena in the

same way no matter what the circumstance. Another condition for reliability is the degree

to which members of a defined group agree on the readings, interpretations, and

responses to or uses for given data. Yin (2018) stated a qualitative researcher is able to

address the concerns of reliability of the study by ensuring accuracy and consistency of

the documentation of the procedures and results. Researchers also achieve reliability for a

study through coding themes. This form of reliability requires researchers to efficiently

define the codes so that the codes are able to be applied similarly by another researcher

(Watts & Finkenstaedt-Quinn, 2021).

I used coding to increase the reliability of the study. I gathered the themes from

each participant’s responses and coded them accordingly. The codes used were simple so

that anyone reviewing the information could easily understand and be able to transform

the use of the codes, if necessary. Researchers also conduct audit trails, member

checking, transcript reviews, and interview protocol to increase the reliability of their

research (Yin, 2018). Also, for this study, I used member checking as another way to

check dependability. After conducting semistructured interviews, I documented the

responses from the participants. I returned the documented responses to the participants

for review to make sure the documented responses were interpreted correctly. I

conducted this member checking in conjunction with the semistructured interviews to

enhance reliability.

Validity

The validity of research verifies the accuracy and trustworthiness of the

instrument used and that the results extracted from the research have minimal systematic

errors (Chander, 2018). Yin (2018) posited, verification of the interview information of

research participants can help to establish construct validity. Researchers are able to

establish validity of their research by considering credibility, transferability, and

confirmability of their findings (Amin et al., 2020).

Credibility is established through member checking of data interpretation,

triangulation, participant transcript review, or interview protocol. Member checking will

be utilized in this study to establish validity. I gave the research participants the

opportunity to review the data interpretations and incorporated their feedback.

Transferability is achieved when researchers provide detailed descriptions of the

research study participants and research procedures that were used. Providing this

information allows the reader to determine if they should use the study or not per their

setting (Korstjens & Moser, 2018). Providing detailed documentation of data collection

methods and analyses enhances transferability (Yin, 2018). In this study, I provided a

detailed description of the data collection instrument, data collection technique, data

organization, and data analysis.

Confirmability concerns the extent to which the researcher’s interpretations and

conclusions can be confirmed by others (Nassaji, 2020). To establish confirmability, the

researcher will describe the data and findings in such a way that others can affirm the

accuracy of the data and findings. To accomplish confirmability, researchers can use

audit trails or triangulation. I used data triangulation in this study to enhance

confirmability by using multiple sources for data gathering and tracking data collection.

Data saturation is an important aspect of content validity in qualitative research.

Failure to reach data saturation impacts the quality of the research (Fusch & Ness, 2015).

As the researcher, I conducted semistructured interviews. I coded the results of each of

the interviews. I used coding to assist in determining when no new information was

recorded; therefore, data saturation was achieved.

Transition and Summary

In Section 2, I discussed the role of the researcher, research participants,

explanation for choice of research method, explanation for research design, and research

population and sampling justification. In addition, Section 2 included standards I used to

maintain ethical research, data collection instruments, data collection techniques, data

organization, and data analysis process. I concluded Section 2 with how I achieved data

reliability and validity, and the process for achieving data saturation. In Section 3, I

expound upon the findings and results from the interviews and analysis of the data. In

addition, Section 3 included my application of the findings of my study to professional

practice, implications of my study for social change, and my recommendations for action

and further research, along with the conclusion of the study.

Section 3: Application to Professional Practice and Implications for Change

In Section 3, I provide an overview of my study and presentation of the findings,

and I discuss the potential applications of my research to professional practice.

Additionally, I include implications for social change, along with recommendations for

action and further study. Finally, I present the conclusion and closing statements for my

study.

Introduction

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to explore strategies that

retail discount department store supply chain managers use to mitigate supply chain

disruptions. I conducted semistructured online interviews with four retail discount

department store supply chain managers and directors from Northwest Indiana and

Northern Illinois who had developed strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions for

more than 2 years (see Table 1).

Table 1

Participants’ Demographic Data

Participant

code

Organization

code

Supply chain

experience

(years)

Function in

organization

supply chain

Developed

strategy for

disruptions

(yes/no)

Manager

yes

Director

yes

Director

yes

Manager

yes

Additional sources of data included pertinent company supply chain procurement

policy, company supply chain sustainability reports, and documents from three

companies. There were four themes that emerged from the analysis of the data collected

from the semistructured interviews and review of the additional sources of data. The four

themes that emerged were (a) choosing appropriate inventory control strategies, (b)

determining facility capacities, (c) ongoing evaluation and control of costs, and (d)

monitoring of customer satisfaction (see Table 2).

Presentation of the Findings

The research question for this multiple case study was the following: What

strategies do leaders use to successfully mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail

industry?

Table 2

Themes That Emerged From Interviews

Participant

1. Choosing appropriate inventory control strategies

A. Increase safety stock

B. Add additional supplier

C. Place inventory in high sales area

2. Determining facility capacities

A. Space—onsite

B. Space—offsite storage

3. Ongoing evaluation and control of costs

A. Manage cost

B. Evaluate available working capital

C. Evaluate effect on profit

4. Monitoring of customer satisfaction

A. On time in full

B. Right place right time

Theme 1: Strategic Choices

The leaders from the participant interviews identified one of the themes as

choosing appropriate inventory control strategies. The data gathered from directors and

managers from interviews coupled with company documents revealed that leaders used

three strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail discount industry. The

three strategies leaders used were (a) increasing safety stock, (b) adding an additional

supplier, and (c) and placing inventory in high-sales areas. Leaders implemented these

strategies to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions in the retail discount industry.

Increasing Safety Stock

P1, P2, P3, and P4 acknowledged the importance of increasing safety stock to

mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail discount industry. Increasing safety stock is

the concept of maintaining more product within the store to manage unplanned supply

disruptions. Safety stock is the projected inventory stored above the forecasted sales.

P1 stated that increasing safety stock at the store and at the plants is an effective

way of storing and building inventory in an effort to work through periods of supply

disruptions. Pl also stated, “creating more weeks of stock on hand, then hopefully gives

enough on-hand inventory.” P2, P3, and P4 made general remarks in this area, and their

statements indicated that this is a normal strategy. The strategy requires financial

evaluation and additional space. P2 also referenced that leaders utilize safety stock to

hold inventory at the manufacturing location until a determination is made of the store

location where more inventory is needed.

Adding Additional Supplier

P1, P2, P3, and P4 all recognized the second theme, adding additional suppliers,

to mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail discount industry. P1stated that adding

an additional or secondary supplier is critical to supporting customer needs during

production shortfalls or supply chain failures. P1 also indicated that the buyer must

ensure that the secondary supplier can meet the same specifications as the primary

supplier, depending on the item purchased.

Engaging additional suppliers is a strategy that can be used to increase and

maintain inventory during disruptions. Engaging additional suppliers provides a safety

net if a supplier runs into difficulties. Additional suppliers provide flexibility to deal with

events that are unexpected that could jeopardize capacity. Having additional suppliers is

also a defense against a disruptive event that may be happening to one supplier in one

area but not another supplier in a different area.

Place Inventory in High-Sales Areas

P2 was the only participant who referenced placing inventory in high-sales areas.

P2 stated that “when an item being purchased is selling rapidly and cannot be distributed

to all stores, the item is held offsite.” Holding the item offsite allows decisions to be

specifically made about when to send the item to the stores and what stores will receive

the item. This practice allows the areas with high sales to receive the available inventory.

This also allows inventory to be distributed where needed versus having it in places

where it will not sell.

There was no mention of this strategy by P1, P3, or P4. I considered this strategy

an outlier; therefore, this strategy was not pursued. P1 had more experience than the other

participants and had used more strategies. Because of the number of years of experience

that P2 had in supply chain management, this is a strategy that could be utilized, although

the other participants did not mention the strategy in their interview.

Correlation to Literature

The findings in Theme 1 aligned with the existing literature. The best defense for

retail industry leaders against changing market dynamics is having supply chain

managers with an effective decision-making process (Khan et al., 2021). In the retail

industry, supply chain managers make decisions and have backup plans to insulate the

organization against the unpredictable (Kumar & Venkatesan, 2021). The findings in

Theme 1 corroborate that retail leaders make strategic choices to mitigate supply chain

disruptions.

The findings also validate that there are two main directions that retail leaders

pursue to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions, increasing safety stock or adding

additional suppliers. According to Alikhani et al. (2023), inventory managers use safety

stock as extra stock to use during supply chain shortages or when customer demand is

higher than anticipated. Alikhani et al. also stated that safety stock acts as a buffer

inventory when the supply flow is interrupted or demand is greater than planned. Micheli

et al. (2021) highlighted that retail leaders need to adjust their processes in relation to

suppliers and demand planning. With proactive strategies, retail leaders can source more

goods locally, diversify their suppliers, and carry excess inventory (van Hoek &

Dobrzykowski, 2021).

The findings in Theme 1 affirmed my choice for game theory and not the

contrasting theories, resource dependence theory or normal accident theory. Leaders use

resource dependency theory to focus on the resources required between organizations to

get a job done. Leaders use this theory to evaluate resources and not to solve a problem.

In this study, I explored how successful retail leaders mitigate supply chain disruptions.

All participants (P1, P2, P3, and P4) agreed that leaders must choose a strategic direction

to reduce the effects of supply chain disruptions. All participants (P1, P2, P3, and P4)

also gave answers that focused on mitigating the effect of supply chain disruptions to

maintain customer satisfaction. None of the participants gave answers focused on the

cause of the disruption.

Theme 2: Capacity Review

The second theme that emerged from leaders to mitigate supply chain disruptions

in the retail discount industry was leaders conducting a capacity review. The data analysis

from participant interviews and company documents revealed two areas for capacity

review that leaders use to mitigate supply chain disruptions. The two areas of capacity

review were how much space the organization has (a) onsite and (b) offsite.

Space—Onsite

There was consensus from P1, P2, P3, and P4 on the need to evaluate how much

onsite capacity is available for product storage. P1 stated, “lot of times, vendor is running

short because of lack of capacity within their own plant.” P2 verbalized that “first

challenge is capacity, ensure you have sufficient thruput capacity at your distribution

center (DC) to make sure your supply chain stays fluid.” P3 commented that it is

important to answer the question “How much inventory you can carry?”

Space—Offsite

P2 and P3 gave answers that supported having space offsite. P1 and P4 did not

mention offsite storage in their interview. Both P2 and P3 noted that offsite space is a

viable solution for mitigating supply chain disruptions. P2 stated that their organization

has inventory in shipping “containers stored at offsite locations.”

Correlation to Literature

Theme 2 aligns with existing literature, although there is not much current

literature posted on scholarly websites concerning offsite storage for retail stores. During

COVID-19, retail leaders adjusted their strategies to manage customer demand and

combat supply chain disruptions. The findings in Theme 2 were confirmed in a study by

van Hoek and Dobrzykowski (2021). In this study, van Hoek and Dobrzykowski

concluded that with proactive strategies, retail leaders can source more goods locally,

diversify their suppliers, and carry excess inventory. Leaders in the retail industry

adjusted their behavior because of COVID-19. Holding more inventory was a strategy to

avoid supply disruptions. Leaders were consistent with increasing inventory onsite to

mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions. The findings in Theme 2 corroborate the

choice for game theory and not one of the contrasting theories evaluated for this study,

CTF. CTF is an approach that researchers can use to study organizational behavior to

discover explanations as to how contingent factors such as technology, culture, and the

external environment affect and influence the functioning of the organization (Islam &

Hu, 2012). In their research study in 1985, Drazin and Van de Ven determined that an

underlying premise for a company to perform well is that context and structure must

somehow fit together. In this study, I did not focus on the leader’s ability to have their

organization fit, but rather what strategic choices and decisions need to be made to

mitigate the effects of supply chain disruptions.

Theme 3: Cost Evaluation

The third theme that emerged from leaders to mitigate supply chain disruptions in

the retail discount industry was leaders conducting a cost evaluation. The data analysis

from participant interviews and company documents revealed three areas for cost

evaluation that leaders use to mitigate supply chain disruptions. The three topics for cost

evaluation were (a) managing cost, (b) evaluating working capital, and (c) evaluating

effect on profit.

P1, P2, P3, and P4 all agreed that when making strategic decisions to mitigate the

effect of supply chain disruptions, it is essential to manage the cost associated with the

strategy that is being proposed. P1 responded that when “we are utilizing these different

strategies, there is a differential cost on the books. We could be paying additional cost for

the items, so the question is are those cost worth it?” P2 responded by saying that, as a

leader when managing costs, “I remain within in the cost parameters set forth within my

budget to ensure I meet that number.” P3 responded that managing cost entails “finding

balance between cost and service.” P3 also stated that as a leader they would be willing to

pay for assurance of supply. P4 responded by stating that managing cost requires

determining “what is the cost of losing these orders versus moving heaven and earth to

meet them and is the juice worth the squeeze?”

P1 and P3 both referenced working capital, whereas P2 and P4 did not make

mention of it. Working capital is defined as the sum of accounts receivable and

inventories minus accounts payable and other nonfinancial debts that are due in less than

1 year. Working capital refers to the funds that are available and used for daily operations

of an enterprise (Nicolas, 2022). P1 stated that “increasing safety stocks impacts the

organization by increasing working capital.” P3 responded that working capital has

increased with the increase of safety stock but eventually leaders “will reduce working

capital in the future.”

P2 and P3 both referred to evaluating effect on profit. P1 and P4 did not mention

profit in their interview. Although P1 and P4 did not reference profit, it appeared that this

would be a standard point of decision for any leader in an organization. P3 expressed

during the interview that leaders have “obligations to owners and leadership. Are we

meeting our profitability goals?”

Correlation to Literature

The findings in Theme 3 aligned with the existing literature. Evaluating cost is an

important part of understanding what strategy leaders should implement to mitigate the

effect of supply chain disruptions. Cost consciousness has always been important in the

retail industry.

Prior to COVID-19, leaders had adopted the just-in-time inventory model to

reduce cost (Balkhi et al., 2022). Leaders seek cost improvement when using the just-in-

time model through reduction of warehousing cost and efficiency improvement (Lyu et

al., 2020). The experience of COVID-19 has caused leaders to adjust their strategy. In a

research study conducted by Forehand et al. (2021), some leaders adjusted their focus on

items such as contingency planning, resilience, adaptability, flexibility, and production

recovery planning to improve inventory management. Improving inventory required cost

evaluation. Leaders in the retail industry coordinated with their supply chain partners to

improve overall supply chain costs (Shah et al., 2021). Although leaders adjust their

strategy, they must also understand the financial implications associated with adjusting

their strategy.

Supply chain leaders also worked together to use quantity discounts to create a

financial gain for all parties involved (Das et al., 2021; Heydari & Momeni, 2021). Some

retail leaders used the multichannel strategy but recognized that this strategy increased

costs and caused some customer dissatisfaction (Grewal et al., 2021). All the strategies

participants discussed were to manage cost to help maintain or augment profitability.

Theme 4: Customer Satisfaction

The fourth theme that emerged from leaders to mitigate supply chain disruptions

in the retail discount industry was monitoring customer satisfaction. The data analysis

from participant interviews and company documents revealed two areas for customer

satisfaction that leaders use to mitigate supply chain disruptions. The two topics for

monitoring customer satisfaction were (a) on time and in full and (b) right place, right

time.

P1, P2, P3, and P4 agreed that mitigating the effect of supply chain disruptions is

critical to maintaining customer satisfaction. Maintaining customer satisfaction is

accomplished by receiving inventory on time and in full. On-time-in-full delivery

is defined as all supplier deliveries are expected to arrive at the facility on time and the

deliveries must be for the full amount ordered (Lukinskiy et al., 2023). P1 commented

that, “from an operations standpoint the biggest thing we look at are customer fill rate so

are we able to deliver on our customer po’s.” P2 stated that, “term used by companies on

time in full, inventory needs to be available at the store when the consumer wants to

purchase. In fill rate of 93 to 94 percent or better.” “On time and in full, this is how our

customers judge us,” according to P3. P4 responded that, a benefit of increasing safety

stock was “better on time fill rates.” Participants posited that receiving inventory on time

in full is important.

In the retail industry having inventory in the right place at the right time is

important. P1, P2, and P3 agreed on this principle but P4 did not mention having

inventory in the right place at the right time. P1 stated that, “from a positive standpoint

you can increase customer fill rates and reduce production downtime,” when distributing

product to the right places. P2 commented that, “any delay along that pathway from

origin to discharge to delivery to store can create a bottleneck and resort in possibly

delays in getting inventory to the store for consumers to purchase.” P3 said that the

question must be asked, “are deliveries happening when we want them, and where we

want them to be delivered?” The participants acknowledged the importance of having

inventory at the right place and right time helps with maintaining customer satisfaction.

Correlation to Literature

The findings in Theme 4 on monitoring customer satisfaction aligned with the

existing literature. Customer satisfaction is an important reason leaders implement

strategies to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions. The one concept that was

discovered that is not in correlation to the literature was that customer satisfaction could

lead to reduction of production downtime. P1 stated that, “from a positive standpoint you

can increase customer fill rates and reduce production downtimes.” Increasing customer

fill rates through increased production, to satisfy customers, reduces production

downtime. Customer satisfaction is accomplished by having product delivered to the

stores on time in full.

In the retail industry, having product at the right place on time is essential to the

success of the organization. Leaders make decisions and integrate the supply chain

effectively so that the right distribution of the product or service occurs in the right

quantities to the right locations at the right time (Min et al., 2019). Leaders are tasked

with maximizing sales by having product in the right place at the right time throughout

the supply chain distribution channels to maximize profits (Davis-Sramek et al., 2020).

Leaders can mitigate the effects of supply chain disruptions by having product in the right

place at the right time while also maximizing profits.

Correlation to Conceptual Framework

The findings in the themes align with game theory. Game theory has a range of

applications from war and evolutionary biology to economics and business (Zhang,

2022). The strategy in game theory is to get to a point where all players have maximized

their payoff, with the decisions that they choose (Sucha et al., 2021). Figure 1 and Figure

2 display how the themes align and the decision sequence using Game Theory. Figure 1

follows the series of decisions made when Player 1 chooses to take the route of

increasing safety stock. Figure 2 follows the series of decisions made when Player 1 says

“no” to increasing safety stock, but “yes” to adding an additional supplier.

Figure 1

Game Theory Strategy for Increasing Safety Stock

Figure 2

Game Theory Strategy for Adding Additional Supplier

Game theory begins with multiple players that have a series of choices that they

must make. Supply chain managers implement rational decision making, which is a more

advanced type of decision-making model that includes emphasis on research and logical

evaluation selecting among choices based on facts and reasoning (Belhadi et al., 2022).

Leaders can utilize the strategic decisions made by participants in game theory resulting

in positive payoffs to develop strategies to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions.

In Figure 1 and Figure 2 Player 1 begins with the strategic choice question, titled

Decision 1. Player 1 is faced with choosing the appropriate inventory control strategy to

mitigate supply chain disruptions. The strategy that is chosen by Player 1 is contingent on

the strategy being advantageous for all players in the supply chain. In game theory the

goal of the players is to reach a position of Nash equilibrium which is built on two

principles. The first Nash equilibrium principle is that each player chooses their action

according to the model of rational choice. The second Nash equilibrium principle is that

every player’s belief concerning other players’ choices is correct (Sucha et al., 2021). By

achieving Nash equilibrium, the players have positioned themselves where no player has

a reason to deviate from the strategy.

Figure 1 and Figure 2 are models of game theory and Player 1 must decide

between Strategy 1 and Strategy 2. Strategy 1 entails Player 1choosing the strategic path

of increasing safety stock to mitigate the effects of supply chain disruptions. Strategy 2

entails Player 1choosing the strategic path of adding an additional supplier to mitigate the

effects of supply chain disruptions. Retail industry supply chain manager’s use intelligent

risk, opportunities in which the potential gain outweighs the harm or loss to the

organization, to collaborate with partners to reach a supply position that benefits all

parties (Gurbuz et al., 2022). Player 1 must consider how Player 2 is thinking and what

action Player 2 would consider is a rational choice. Choosing Strategy 1 or Strategy 2

follows the tenet of game theory, as the decision by Player 1 is made based on how

Player 1 believes Player 2 will respond. Strategy 1 was referenced by P1, P2, P3, and P4

and Strategy 2 was referenced by P1, P3, and P4 which would indicate that both

strategies would be a rational choice, which is a Nash equilibrium principal of game

theory.

The remaining decision points are made to continue to move the players to a point

of Nash equilibrium. The decisions made by the Players are based on the information set

that is available at the time the decision is made. The goal of both strategies is to increase

the product delivered in order to mitigate the effects of supply chain disruptions. The

information set available to Player 2 is that Player 1 is requesting an increase in the

amount of product to be delivered. The decision for Player 2 is to determine if Player 2’s

company has the capacity and capability to fulfill the request? Capacity is in reference to

space, on site or off site, product availability, and parts availability, whereas capability

refers to having enough personnel and the proper equipment to get the job done. P1, P2,

P3, and P4 all referenced the need for and importance of on-site storage.

The answer of “yes,” by Player 2 to having capability and capacity to fulfill the

request of Player 1 means Player 1continues with Strategy 1. If Player 2 does not have

the capacity, then Player 1 must shift from Strategy 1 to Strategy 2. This follows the

principals of game theory because each player’s decision affects the other player. Supply

chain managers should weigh the pros and the cons of the problems and solutions and

prioritize them (Pereira et al., 2021). Each decision leaders make helps the organization

reduce an issue or can make the issue worse (Rousseau, 2018). The decisions made by

players during the game have a direct impact on the final decision.

Applications to Professional Practice

I conducted this qualitative multiple case study to explore what strategies leaders

use to successfully mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail industry. The data

gathered from my interviews with the retail industry supply chain leaders as well as

review of company documents provide information about the successful strategies that

some retail industry supply chain leaders use to mitigate the effect of supply chain

disruptions. Through analyses of data collected I found the following two strategies that

play a significant role in mitigating the effect of supply chain disruptions in the retail

industry, by choosing an appropriate inventory strategy which could be (a) increasing

safety stock or (b) adding an additional supplier.

Retail leaders in the supply chain need to plan for disruptions before they occur.

Proper planning means leaders need to implement a strategy to minimize the effect of the

disruption. In the retail industry, supply chain managers make decisions and have backup

plans to insulate the organization against the unpredictable (Kumar & Venkatesan, 2021).

Retail leaders should increase the safety stock, which means carry excess inventory in the

store, to minimize the disruptive effect of supply chain disruptions. Leaders making this

decision put the organization in position to have product when customers want to

purchase despite a supply chain disruption.

A supply chain disruption for one supplier may not exist for another supplier for

various reasons; therefore, it is important to have some diversity in your supply chain

network. Retail leaders sourced more goods locally, diversified their suppliers, and

carried excess inventory (van Hoek & Dobrzykowski, 2021). Diversity in suppliers

means leaders in organization seek to procure goods from multiple channels and suppliers

which includes a focus on minority owned businesses. Adding additional supplier allows

the leader to carry more inventory and allows the leader to have options in the event of a

supply chain disruption. This strategy is yet another effective way to mitigate the effects

of supply chain disruptions.

Implications for Social Change

The strategies identified in the current study have been successful for retail

industry leaders to mitigate supply chain disruptions. General improvements for

individuals, communities, or organizations are possible as referenced from the themes in

this study. The best defense for retail industry organizations against the changing market

dynamics is having supply chain managers with an effective decision-making process

(Khan et al., 2021). The increasing safety stock strategy and adding an additional supplier

strategy identified by participants could guide retail industry leaders on how make

inventory decisions that will mitigate the negative affect of supply chain disruptions.

Participants acknowledged that it is important to have inventory at the store when the

customer wants to purchase. Any delay from product origin to store delivery could cause

a bottleneck in getting inventory to the store for customer purchases.

Leaders that adopt either of the two strategies, increasing safety stock or adding

an additional supplier, will have extra inventory, which allows customer purchases to

occur despite supply chain disruptions. Organizational leaders adjust their approaches to

business relationships and processes because of disruptions (Micheli et al., 2021).

Consequently, the customers were satisfied, and the leader has helped the organization

maintain or increase their profitability. Leaders are tasked with maximizing sales by

having product in the right place at the right time throughout the supply chain distribution

channels to maximize profits (Davis-Sramek et al., 2020). By using effective supply

chain strategies, retail leaders improve job stability for employees. Job stability supports

economic growth in local communities. Economic growth leads to a higher quality of life

for residents, thereby contributing to positive social change.

Recommendations for Action

Results of this study indicated that leaders in the retail industry supply chain can

successfully use different strategies to mitigate the impact of supply chain disruptions.

These strategies include increasing safety stock and/or adding an additional supplier. The

business problem addressed in this study was that some leaders in the retail discount

department store industry lack strategies to mitigate supply chain disruptions. Participants

in this study recommended several strategies to use to minimize the impact of supply

chain disruptions in the retail industry. A review of the findings led to the following

recommendations for action:

1. Retail industry supply chain leaders should determine which strategy works

best for their organization, increasing safety stock or adding an additional

supplier.

2. Retail industry supply chain leaders should take time to do a capacity review

within their organization to determine if on-site or off-site space is available to

store inventory.

3. Retail industry supply chain leaders should do a cost evaluation when

implementing supply chain mitigation strategies to ensure effective cost

management, to ensure working capital is available, and to evaluate the effect

on profitability.

4. Retail industry supply chain leaders should implement strategies that create

customer satisfaction by having inventory for customer purchase on time and

My study will be a guide for leaders to assist them with the strategies and choices

that should be made to be able to proactively mitigate the effects of supply chain

disruptions. I will share a summary of the current study’s results with the interview

participants, and I intend to publish my research findings in the Journal of Supply Chain

Management, and Journal of Operations and Supply Chain Management.

Recommendations for Further Research

Retail industry leaders in supply chain should implement strategies to mitigate the

effect of supply chain disruptions. One limitation of this qualitative multiple case study

was that participants were from a small geographic area, Northern Illinois and Northwest

Indiana. Future researchers should gather data from a larger geographic area. (Almalki,

2016). Future researchers could also conduct a mixed-methods study about how to

mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail industry. Mixed methods research is the

approach that combines both qualitative and quantitative methods into a single study to

provide a broader vision of the problem supply chain disruptions, because a mixed

methods study enables the researcher to integrate qualitative and quantitative data

conceptually and analytically.

Reflections

In this study I focused on exploring strategies leaders in the retail industry supply

chain use to mitigate supply chain disruptions. Before beginning this study, I had no

preconceptions concerning what is the right or wrong strategy for leaders to use to

mitigate supply chain disruptions. My experience in the business world has me

surrounded by supply chain professionals. I work beside these supply chain professionals

in my role as director of sales and customer service. Although I work with supply chain

professionals, I have no personal or professional experience in developing strategies to

use to mitigate supply chain disruptions.

I conducted the research with the intent of learning from leaders in the retail

industry. After obtaining IRB approval, I had to rely on my business relationships to find

willing research participants. This was a revelation for me, as I wondered how a student

who does not work in corporate America engages research participants. The interviews

were rewarding and informative for me. I enjoyed listening to each participant and their

perspective. Each participant answered the seven open-ended interview questions and

then participated in member checking of their transcribed data and my notes on the

essence of their responses. Developing the themes and comparing the interview data were

exciting and absorbing.

This journey has been challenging and rewarding. The encouragement and

direction I received from my chair has been instrumental and inspirational to me. In

sports, players often get the accolades and not coaches. My chair and faculty committee

members have shown me the importance of effective leadership. This journey has

enhanced my knowledge, writing skills, research techniques, and writing skills. I am

equipped to address the subject of how to mitigate supply chain disruptions in the retail

industry from a research and professional point of view.

Conclusion

The strategies supply chain managers use to mitigate supply chain disruptions in

the retail industry are an important aspect for organizations based on the frequency of

supply chain disruptions. Supply chain disruptions occur for various reasons. Supply

chain disruptions can be caused by catastrophic events or fluctuations that occur in the

regular operations (Bier et al., 2020). Leaders in the retail industry should create

strategies to mitigate the effect of supply chain disruptions.

In this study, I analyzed data from four participants that are supply chain leaders

in the retail industry. These four participants had experience in supply chain that ranged

from 8 years to 22 years. Four themes emerged from the data and all participants agreed

that leaders in the retail industry should choose appropriate inventory strategies, such as

increasing safety stock and/or adding an additional supplier, to mitigate the effects of

supply chain disruptions which is a shift from the just in time inventory method. Analysis

of the responses from the leaders in supply chain from the retail industry along with

supporting documents lead me to the conclusion that leaders in the retail industry have

opportunities to implement strategies that will mitigate the effects of supply chain

disruptions.

Intorduction Assignement Mitigating Supply Chain Disruptions in Retail Discount Department.pdf

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