The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/1463-5771.htm

Digital supply chain to unlock new Digital supply

chain to unlock
agility: a TISM approach new agility
Akanksha Choudhury
Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development,
Symbiosis International University, Pune, India
Abhishek Behl Received 31 August 2020
Jindal Global Business School, OP Jindal Global University, Sonipat, India Revised 1 January 2021
Accepted 2 January 2021
Pratima Amol Sheorey
Symbiosis Centre for Management and Human Resource Development,
Symbiosis International University, Pune, India, and
Abhinav Pal
Symbiosis Centre of Management Studies, Symbiosis International University,
Noida, India

Abstract
Purpose – Traditional supply chain arrangements have failed to keep up with escalating customer demands
and breakthrough innovations. The way forward is a flexible yet innovative network that leverages ecosystem
partners and digital tools to unlock new agility. The paper aims at identifying and analyzing numerous critical
success factors (CSFs) that may improve the efficiency of a digital supply chain.
Design/methodology/approach – Twelve CSFs are identified in this paper through an extensive literature
survey. Expert opinion has been considered and the hierarchical structure built using total interpretative
structural modeling (TISM) which highlights the interdependencies between these CSFs. Cross-impact matrix
multiplication (MICMAC) is used to determine the driving and dependence power of each factor.
Findings – This study identified 12 CSFs through an extensive literature survey. The ISM model resulted in
six different levels beginning from redesign organization at the bottom of the structure. The TISM model
explained why redesigning the organization is pivotal to bringing about novel agility in the supply chain.
MICMAC analysis confirmed that the following enhanced the success of a digital supply chain: Sales and
Operation Planning Strategies, Strategic Sourcing Techniques, Smart Manufacturing Processes and
Warehouse Management.
Research limitations/implications – Various other components contributing to the 12 CSFs identified in
this paper may be discovered and detailed in future research. Additionally, further research is required to
expand the existing technology-based services structural model to a more empirical form.
Practical implications – This study offers a comprehensive but not exhaustive list of CSFs essential to
digital supply chain growth. It will enable market experts and leaders to concentrate on key factors leading to
tactical decisions and maximum value for firms.
Originality/value – The paper seeks to add to the body of knowledge on real digitally-led supply chain
transformation, which is still in its early stages. This study is one of the first, if not the first, to examine success
factors critical to the improvement of the performance of the supply chain. It lays the foundation for further
research in this field.
Keywords Digital supply chain, Industry 4.0, Total interpretive structural modeling (TISM), Redesign
organization, Supply chain management, Customer satisfaction
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
Henry Ford’s automotive assembly line model marks the origin of the modern supply chain.
The modern supply chain model has served well and generated unprecedented wealth and
opportunities around the world. But in recent years, the system has been challenged by issues Benchmarking: An International
Journal
such as globalization, product complexity, reduced cycles of product development, mass © Emerald Publishing Limited
1463-5771
customization, diminishing natural resources and the rapid pace of business change DOI 10.1108/BIJ-08-2020-0461
BIJ (Pandey and Singh, 2016). Parkhi et al. (2015) affirm that the needs and preferences of
consumers change rapidly. It is also seen that the supply chain also shifts from a conventional
linear model to a transparent, dynamic and interconnected structure. This transformation of
supply operations could lay the foundation for an organization’s competitive advantage
(Farahani et al., 2015). The growth of new technology along with improved power capacities
and lower processing costs has resulted in increased versatility, interconnectivity and
reshaping of the supply chain.
This paper highlights how conventional supply chains, when transformed into digital supply
chains, can improve firm efficiency, reduce waste and promote higher profits across sectors (retail,
FMCG, manufacturing, finance, health, etc.) in India. We also explore answers to a key research
question: how the digital supply chain acts as an intelligent value-driven network that uses data
analytics to exploit new techniques and methods to generate profit and revenue is an area worthy
of examination. It is also crucial to explore how Industry 4.0 and disruptive technology capture,
collect and analyze information from the supply chain to deliver substantial benefits such as
increase in order fill rate and material availability, improvement in master data accuracy,
reduction in stock, and innovations (Gunasekaran et al., 2017; Hofmann and R€ usch, 2017; Ivanov
et al., 2019; Shahabadkar et al., 2019). To answer this question, we explore twelve critical success
factors (CSFs) associated with the adoption of a digital approach in operational supply chains. We
seek to fulfil research gaps and examine strategies to improve current practices and identify areas
to enhance value chain productivity. Inputs from business management experts have been
sought to achieve study objectives. We employ total interpretive structural modelling (TISM) (a
grounded method approach for theory development) (Dubey et al., 2018) in order to understand
the linkages between the CSF’s and to understand the reason for their associations. Past literature
confirms that while various multi criteria decision-making (MCDM) tools have been used to
understand the relationship between enablers or barriers, there are a handful of those that
contribute in theory development. Dubey et al. (2018) argue that TISM is one such technique that
would contribute not only in exploring the linkages and developing a hierarchical structure, but
also support that with finding reasons by performing qualitative assessment of the linkages. On a
similar note, past studies (Agrawal and Narain, 2018; Awwad et al., 2018; Gezgin et al., 2017;
Abdallah and Nabass, 2018) have analyzed the effects of technology on operational efficiency
using different yet similarly grounded research designs. However, there lies a dearth of studies
that have examined the impact of technology on the various supply chain processes to address
the challenges faced by supply chain leaders in India.
It is also noted that while studies in the past have used theoretical arguments to understand
the relationship between certain constructs, their limitations argue that they present only one
side of the relationship. Most of these studies do not reply on discussions with industry experts
who play a crucial role in initially building a roadmap for evaluating the impact of technology in
the supply chain processes. As a preliminary step, we discussed this concern with industry
experts, and it was found that many organizations either did not have established
transformation processes, or lacked in resources. Many leaders revealed how an initiative to
transform one part of the process failed because it could not be integrated with the other players
in the ecosystem. Hence, this study seeks to answer the following questions: (1) What are the
benefits of advanced technological interventions in the supply chain environment? (2) How can
the enablers of technology adoption of advanced technological interventions for supply chain
transformation be mapped? (3) How can the various players in the supply chain be better
connected through technology to decrease overheads and increase return on investment?
TISM is the most suitable approach to use to seek answers to the above questions and
understand existing relationships between factors through carving out a hierarchical
structure to allow managers to make decisions on the basis of a theoretical framework. It can
explain “what” and “how” of theory development by showing nodes as factors and interlinks
(direct and indirect).
 To address the above questions, we conducted a literature review (Section 2) considering Digital supply
each technology enabler of the entire supply chain. Section 3 defines the area of the study and chain to unlock
identifies the critical success factors (CSFs) of the digital supply chain. Methodology is
discussed in Section 4. Section 5 lays down results and discussion. Conclusion, limitations
new agility
and scope of future study is covered in Section 6.

2. Review of literature
We performed a systematic review of the literature using the guidelines of Tranfield et al.
(2003) to identify the critical success factors published in the past literature. Some
breakthrough research in the field of digital supply chain management has laid the
foundation for this study. An extensive search was carried out using e-resources using
Scopus and Web of Science database. Extracted papers fell into three categories: (1) Digital
Supply Chain and its Applications (30 papers); (2) Application of ISM and TISM Approach in
Supply Chain Management (10 papers); (3) Application of ISM and TISM in Areas Other than
Supply Chain Management (20 papers). We carefully analyzed the papers that either
overlapped with each other and listed critical success factors or had an overlap with TISM
technique.
According to Wamba et al. (2020), agility and adaptability are direct functions of big data-
enabled dynamic capabilities supported by statistical analysis. Fifty percent of companies
see data analytics as prime technology capable of introducing change. It is further reported
that 42% companies mention Internet of Things (IoT), and 40% companies name cognitive/
artificial intelligence and machine learning as primary drivers of change. Johnson (2019)
defines the digital supply chain (DSC) concept as the development and implementation of
advanced digital technologies (Internet of Things, Blockchain, AI, machine learning,
predictive analytics, etc.) to improve traditional supply chains. The ultimate aim of a digital
supply chain is to provide opportunities for improved efficiencies, reduce redundancy, and
promote better profits (Buyukozkan and Gocer, 2018; Aslam et al., 2018). Mortson (2019), talks
about supply chain as a service (SCaaS) which revolves around outsourcing functions who
have already mastered economies of scale in digital technology. New digital and business
intelligence tools promise/show long-term potential. To achieve digital transformation and
enhance supply chain performance, Alicke et al. (2016a, b) in a Mckinsey and Company article,
suggested that next-generation supply chain representatives plant sensors in all components,
develop networks far and wide, automate processes, and re-examine everything to improve
performance and customer content.

2.1 Digital technologies and industry 4.0 effect on supply chain

Historically, disruptive technologies have always provided a platform for improvement;
technical progress has impacted almost every aspect of life. Disruptive technology is the key
to developing a new Intelligent Digital Supply Chain–Supply Chain 4.0 (Dubey et al., 2018,
2020, 2015b). Recent surveys (Hofmann and R€ usch, 2017; Gunasekaran et al.,2017; Choi et al.,
2018; Ben-daya et al., 2019) have sought to classify different advanced technologies and
determine how they impact supply chain management (SCM). Such technologies include Big
Data Analytics (BDA), advanced sensor processing systems, state-of-the-art robotics, Virtual
Reality (VR), cutting edge monitoring and tracking technologies, and 3D printing (Ivanov
et al., 2019).
Hofmann and R€ usch (2017) attempted to explain the opportunities the 4th Industrial
Revolution offered for enhancing logistics capabilities, and shed light on the benefits of
centralization, core-competency development, and quality. They further described the main
components of Industry 4.0 along with logistics–driven application model. They also
BIJ explained comprehensively future directions for Industry 4.0 in terms of Just-in-Time/Just-in-
Sequence and cross-company Kanban systems. Ben-daya et al. (2019) examined the use of IoT
and its implications in supply chain management (SCM) through an extensive review of
literature. SAP and UPS (the latter being an American package delivery and SC management
company) jointly developed a technology that empowered UPS to produce items directly at
distribution centers using 3D printing. This, in turn, helped achieve a faster, more efficient
and resilient SC (Ivanov et al., 2019).
2.1.1 Big data analytics (BDA). BDA focuses on extracting information from vast volumes
of data to promote data-driven decision-making. 5Vs related to big data have been identified
in literature – volume, velocity, variety, veracity and value (Wamba et al., 2015). Today,
roughly one in ten consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies has a cross-functional team to
build a digital purchase path. Cecere (2015) states that only 56% retailers have a perpetual
inventory signal, and that only 22% companies have invested in mining channel data using
Demand Signal Repository (DSR). Pharmapacks, a European packaging and drug
distribution platform, used the “Master Mind” pricing program to strategize promotional
content and boost sales. The prices update according to the time set in its algorithm, which
helps in deriving estimates about actual demand and inventory level (Ivanov et al., 2019).
BDA has probably been the most important field for the application of emerging technology
to SCM over the past decade.
Recent studies (Ferreira et al., 2015; Simchi-Levi and Wu, 2017) analyzed BDA’s
application to the retail market. The main challenges for the retailer are pricing and
predicting demand for new products, both of which significantly determine sales volume and
revenue. Retailers have used simple to advanced machine learning techniques to estimate
actual lost sales and predict demand for new products. BDA applications in SCM include real-
time traffic control, shop floor production, procurement procedures, omni-channel
promotional practices, routing optimization and constructive safety measures (Addo-
Tenkorang and Helo, 2016; Gunasekaran et al.,2017). Niesen et al. (2016) and Papadopoulos
et al. (2017) drew attention to how BDA could improve disaster-resistance and risk
management of SC.
2.1.2 Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0 represents smart networks with exchangeable attributes.
Industry 4.0 technology, along with the use of the cyber-physical framework, allows for high
customizations on assembly systems with versatile process design (Bag et al., 2018). This is
why considering supply chains as collaborative cyber-physical networks is essential.
Industry 4.0 embodies an intelligent manufacturing cycle where machines and products
network without human interference (Salam, 2019). Amazon, an American technology-driven
e-commerce platform, recently applied for a patent for an automatic packaging system and a
self-learning robot (Ivanov et al., 2019). Hofmann and R€ usch (2017) and Oesterreich and
Teuteberg (2016) provide proof of demand and product diversification, versatility in
production, shorter lead times, higher consumer sensitivity and better utilization of resources
using Industry 4.0 technology.
2.1.3 3D printing. According to Hoey (2018), the global demand for 3D printing would
touch $5.2 billion by the year 2020. These figures indicate the potential for growth in the
digital supply chain, particularly because 3D printing is in many ways lies on the top of the
hierarchy of digitization. Not only can this technology provide companies resources for fast
prototyping and small-batch production runs, it can also help pave the way for new levels of
product customization. Today, 16% of discrete manufacturers use 3D printing for
production-based processes. Feldmann and Pumpe (2017) and Holmstr€om and Gutowski
(2017) explained operational and SCM applications of additive manufacturing. These
applications ranged from spare parts logistics to the development of a global strategy for SC
production and sourcing. Integration of 3D printers in the production process to decrease
production rigidity, attain shorter lead times, pull off product personalization, and reduce
inventory is at the core of SCM additive manufacturing applications. Adidas (a European Digital supply
manufacturer of sportswear) has founded SpeedFactory which follows integrated innovative chain to unlock
workflow process using 3D printers to supply products that meet exact customer
specifications. Most of the tasks are performed by robots; this increases performance
new agility
quality and time to market (Ivanov et al., 2019).
2.1.4 Tracking and tracking systems (T&T). Track and trace is a method of identifying
current and past locations of a particular object or property, and is part of distribution and
logistics capabilities. It offers solutions related to the integration of tracking and tracing
systems. The main objective is to increase efficiency and visibility in the transport cycle. With
the help of innovative products like barcodes, RFID tags, NFC chips and GPS modules, all
concerned stakeholders in SC can receive precise and updated information related to their
vehicles, containers, packages and goods at any given moment. RFID is particularly useful
for inventory processes and material handling in warehouses, but as soon as the RFID-tagged
goods leave the warehouse, tracking becomes difficult. He et al., (2009) conducted research
which involved the creation of a new track and trace solution using RFID and GPS, both of
which are used to track vehicles (Shamsuzzoha et al., 2015).
RFID has significantly improved inventory accuracy and driven increased profits both in-
store and online. Retailers that maintain RFID beyond one year begin to explore more
advanced use cases including blockchain enablement and in-store smart technology (Rane
and Narvel, 2019).
The modern supply chain model has served us well and generated unprecedented wealth
and opportunities around the world. But in recent years, the system has been stressed by
pressures such as globalization, product complexity, reduced cycles of product development,
mass customization, diminishing natural resources and the pace of business change given
how the pandemic has disrupted the global supply chain let alone the woes faced by the
domestic players. The research gap identified from the above discussion concludes how none
of them have taken into consideration the effect of technological transformation on the
current Indian supply chain ecosystem while drawing out the research scope. Supply chains
are under pressure like never before and they need to adapt to the global disruption caused by
COVID-19. Being responsive and flexible to outmanoeuvre uncertainty in a world that brings
fresh challenges and opportunities every day is expected out of the supply chain leaders and
that is what we call an intelligent supply chain. So this study aims at proposing a framework
that highlights how the digital supply chain can help unlock agility through TISM and
MICMAC approach and better rely on the transformative power of data and digital
technologies (Eckstein et al., 2015; Roscoe et al., 2020).

3. Field of study and discussion on critical success factors

Farkas (2018) stated that 30% of supply chain leaders believed that they needed to respond to
customer demand for quicker, more reliable and newer delivery methods. In this day and age,
financial and economic conditions change quickly. Supply chains have to adapt to not only
progressive and dynamic customer requests, but also several other external disturbances
(Agarwal et al., 2018). Smart products, along with innovative data-driven supply chain
services, lead to paradigm changes in supply chain management which in turn lead to more
self-organizing and self-optimizing systems (Farahani et al., 2015). Farkas (2018) stated that
84% of supply chain professionals believed that big data and analytics would be “disruptive
and relevant” in supply chain strategy. By leveraging emerging DSC business models, supply
chains can enhance operational effectiveness and bring about major changes in the way they
function (Seidiaghilabadi et al., 2019; Altay et al., 2018). But just 4% of businesses use AI in
their supply chain. Through a literature survey, the present study identifies 12 factors critical
to the success of supply chain, and that enable the digital transformation thereof.
BIJ 3.1 Redesign Organization
Three of ten big corporations consider organizational structure as a significant barrier to
digitalization. It is also noted that global supply chain firms are considering themselves to be
digitally ready (Agarwal et al., 2018). Supply chain managers must, apart from cost-cutting, focus
on enabling new processes to gain deeper operational insights, achieve faster strategic
innovation, forge stronger customer relationships, and accomplish the integration of digital
solutions into the supply chain’s day-to-day operations (Pandey and Singh, 2016). Major
organizational restructuring is warranted for digitization and modern ways of working to take
place. It is important for firms to follow latest advancements, however, modern practices require
operational reorganizing to yield competitive advantages and benefits. (Farahani et al., 2015;
Gligor et al., 2015). To build firm value, managers must focus on not only cost cutting, but also
enabling new processes that generate opportunities and challenges for businesses (Parkhi, 2015).

3.2 Sales and Operations Planning strategies (S&OP)

Combining the entire supply chain network with creative technologies can not only boost
demand forecasting and promote collaborations, but also increase agility by 50% (Farkas,
2018). The high rate of Internet penetration has dramatically changed customer purchasing
habits and demand patterns, which in turn has put tremendous pressure on supply chain
managers (Agarwal et al., 2018). To determine the differences between supply and demand, a
thorough analysis of real-time production capacity, inventory data, and point of sale
repository is warranted (Thome et al., 2012; Jonsson and Holmstrom, 2016). Such analysis can
help realign processes such as timing of promotions, price changes and adding new product
lines. By 2020, 80% of all supply chain transactions are expected to take place through cloud-
based networks of commerce, making S&OP the supply chain’s most data-driven operation.
A poorly implemented S&OP process can produce disappointing results, but when done well,
it may provide major process improvements (Gezgin et al., 2017).
For example, Blue Yonder, a leading American supply chain management software and
consultancy company, has developed data-intensive methods of forecasting at the most
granular level, like regular SKU-level forecasts for different points of sale. It has significantly
improved predictive accuracy which has allowed a clearer understanding of the logistics
capacity needs of organizations and reduced inventory rates, obsolescence and stockouts.

3.3 Strategic sourcing techniques

One of the foremost activities in any organization today concerns the procurement of raw
materials and services required to transform sourced material into useful finished product
(Kaushik and Mahadevan, 2011). Corporate expenditures related to externally procured
goods and services may account for up to 70% of the purchase-to-sale ratio of any
manufacturing company (Lidegaard, 2013).
A systematic self-assessing process is vital to cost reduction and organizational
realignment. Hence, strategic sourcing – a process designed to purchase the best products
and services for the best value – is an important activity for organizational success (Yang,
2014; Kim and Chai, 2017). Sourcing needs to become a strategic process as operating most
optimally seems to be the only way to survival and growth in this era of globalization
(Ramakrishnan, 2018). The use of big data to uncover and interpret large hidden values may
lead to more positive outcomes (Biazzin et al., 2019). Successful implementation of sourcing
strategically may reduce overall costs, improve quality of goods and services delivered by
suppliers, and enable increased competitiveness.

3.4 Smart manufacturing(SM) process

Fifty percent of manufacturers find digital business planning essential for the transformation
of the supply chain. Current production facilities lack the knowledge to calculate and track
around the factory from real-time data (O’Donovan et al., 2015). They are devoid of data-rich Digital supply
environments in which information is transmitted, shared, and analyzed across networks to chain to unlock
generate manufacturing intelligence. Smart manufacturing (SM) is a concept used to enhance
manufacturing operations by integrating processes, linking physical and cyber capabilities,
new agility
and exploiting knowledge by leveraging big data (Moyne and Iskandar, 2017).
The potential benefits of manufacturing intelligence include process enhancements, mass
computing capacity, granular-level visibility, secure operational performance and
environmental effects (Brusset, 2016). Big data and analytics can improve manufacturing
significantly. The agricultural sector employs sensors and cameras to detect any anomaly in
the seed production process (Sperling et al., 2013). Besides, the creation of a 3D-printed
replacement component activated by vital information about the state of a machine may then
be delivered to the plant with the help of drone technology. Thus, average production levels
have increased by 50% due to timely response to process glitches.

3.5 Warehouse management

Nearly two-thirds (63%) of businesses use no technology to track the efficiency of their
supply chain. Warehouse management–which ensures that the company meets its
productivity goals–has been part of the supply chain to ensure smooth material flow
across channels at maximum speed with no or minimal interruptions. In the absence of a
robust business framework, firms would lack operational transparency, communication and
ease of collaboration with business partners involved in the business model. To survive a
volatile market environment, it is crucial to employ information-driven strategies
emphasizing cooperation between members (Biswas and Sen, 2017). A critical component
in the supply chain, Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) backed by analytics provide
businesses comprehensive warehouse process solutions which help increase operational
efficiency (Andiyappillai, 2019). For Prescriptive Analytics, data from processes such as
manufacturing, logistics, transport and warehousing, along with newly introduced methods
such as Cyber-Physical Systems in Industry 4.0, are used (Awwad et al., 2018).
Forklift vendors are mining applications in having the forklift truck function as a source of
big data log tracing all kinds of warehouse operations in real-time. More use should be made
of autonomous mobile robots to speed up labor-intensive activities. Robots may dramatically
increase the efficiency of the supply chain alongside powerful warehouse management tools.
Modern 3D designing can help replicate existing accessible warehouse space designs to
increase storage capacity and enhance productivity.

3.6 Logistics capabilities

Logistics capabilities provide advanced skills and expertise to an organization to conduct
logistics activities effectively. This is being demonstrated by the global fashion retailer, Zara
with process optimization achieved from 40 employees, 5 h down to 10 employees, 2h to
update its inventory with the use of RFID tags attached to every item of clothing. The
dynamic logistics and supply chain management of today calls for constant monitoring and
preparations for ever-increasing chains of shipment. This highlights the need for goods-
centric monitoring and logistics object tracking to improve visibility and control in logistics
operations (Shamsuzzoha et al., 2013). Logistics capabilities are crucial to meeting consumer
expectations and boosting business and financial performance (Shibin et al., 2017; Wu et al.,
2017). Through the use of analytics, logistics capacities can be significantly enhanced.
Tracking systems help identify shipment position and inform the customer well in advance.
Without a tracking system, it is almost unlikely to trace dispatched items; such items could
often be lost or stolen, and contribute to business loss (Shamsuzzoha et al., 2011). Recent
technical advancements include a complete solution architecture for a transparent and global
BIJ logistics supply chain track and trace network with integrated RFID and positioning system
(GPS) technologies (He et al., 2009). Such specialized skills allow logistics companies to deliver
packages with lesser distribution attempts (Ben-Chaim et al., 2013). This hybrid approach will
span different parts of the supply chain network (Shamsuzzoha et al., 2015).

3.7 Point of sale analysis

In a typical supply chain setup, demand information is transferred in the form of orders from
manufacturer to producer to supplier. Nonetheless, this order knowledge is skewed as we
pass upstream and popularly known as the “Bullwhip Effect” due to a large number of
intermediate partners (Biswas and Sen, 2017). To mitigate this impact and provide suppliers
with POS data, advanced analytics for customer-level understanding and company-level
optimization are incorporated. Big data sources in retailing (Bradlow et al., 2017) are now
being exploited for their potential to generate a complete view of customer buying behavior.
This might help suppliers in effectively meeting demand, and improve production
planning through better sell-through visibility, accurate determination of re-order factors, on-
shelf accessibility, and step-down of noise from demand trends and seasonality. Other selling
improvisations include tracking out of stock metrics, optimization of shelf-placement and
price markdown (Chakraborty and Barua, 2017).

3.8 Integrated financial services

The financial supply chain runs parallel to the flow of goods and information. It is similar to
all industrial supply networks, thus, its alignment with the physical supply chain is crucial
(Silvestro and Lustrato, 2014). In DSC proceedings, organizations currently perform process
and data consolidation through trusted third party organizations, usually trade finance
providers of banks. However, this process involves third party intermediaries. The need for
enhanced security, transparency, and low-cost transactions has led to the use of a new
technology called Blockchain. Blockchain is designed to address crucial and persistent
challenges through diverse and evolving global supply chains that have historically retained
centralized models of governance (Saberi et al., 2019). Special features of Blockchain include a
public ledger of proceedings without transaction party identities, public key infrastructure
(PKI) to inform counterparties about executable transactions, and the idea of the smart
contract (Korpela et al., 2017). Information technology-based cost savings allow more
information to be processed precisely and frequently from more resources across the globe.
When adequately automated, these intelligence flows eliminate the need for manual
documentation and so reduce human error.

3.9 Grievance redressal system

In order to streamline the grievance handling system in the company, leaders are seeking
technology platforms which will effectively enhance customer experience and deliver
superior business outcomes (Prajapat et al., 2018). The growing use of products and
services online has accelerated customers dissatisfaction with the specification, condition,
and planned usage of the products and services as compared to the virtual version.
(Choudhary, 2015). Customer grievances are a part of any business. Return of goods under
specific circumstances is accepted as part of business operations. Systems with the highest
quality management can also witness momentary lapses. When such lapses do occur and
are accompanied by customer complaints, the company must recall the products and
apologize. Doing so builds goodwill and strengthens customer relations. Therefore, there
should be a highly sensitive customer dispute redressal mechanism in operation.
Businesses popularly embrace AI-based chat bots to communicate with consumers, and
open tickets for issues.
3.10 Upskill labor Digital supply
Dubey et al. (2015a) stated that while talent was a crucial factor, growing competition and pay chain to unlock
levels led to a lack of supply chain talent (Gomez Cedeno et al., 2015). 54% of companies cite
lack of training in next-generation supply chain thinking as a significant challenge faced by
new agility
supply chain employees. 48% companies report finding employees with the right skills or
experience as a major challenge. Firms would do well to create new opportunities to integrate
people, technology and processes in innovative ways to fulfil the talent gap. Digitization
would also warrant the upskilling of workers to enable them to perform complex jobs using
modern technology.
Robots, along with other automation technologies, are gradually replacing human
workers performing jobs such as picking and packing, internal routing and product flow,
loading and unloading, etc. Hence, many previously complex and time-consuming tasks are
being performed by less-skilled workers. Skilling up current resources to become the talent of
the future is needed to bring in creative problem solving skills in addition to strong digital,
operational and domain expertise (Prasad et al., 2018). Further study is required in the area to
ascertain how best to recruit and train managers in these abilities to enhance organizational
success (Cousins et al., 2006).

3.11 Lead time reduction

Digital business planning tools have the capability to reduce the cost of product creation by
10% and new product lead times by 30%. As customers become increasingly sensitive to
time, companies must strive to keep costs down and make quicker deliveries. Lead time is the
lapse in time between an order being placed to the time the order actually arrives (K.A and
Shrehari, 2017; Makwana and Awasthi, 2017). Lead time awareness is critical as it enables
managers to track the product till the time it is delivered to the customer. Therefore, if the lead
time is more, solutions must be sought to reduce the period. De Treville et al. (2004), suggested
a method for prioritizing reduction in lead time in a demand chain improvement project. Lead
time uncertainty can cause inventory fluctuations, and strategies must be enforced to reduce
such variabilities (Heydari et al., 2009).

3.12 Customer satisfaction

Digitizing inventory and delivery processes might improve customer satisfaction by 2–3%.
Customers seek exceptional service and satisfaction in return for their money. An effective
supply chain management system that chooses the right approach and partners is able to
offer excellent service, transparency and visibility. Superior SCM skills show higher levels of
customer loyalty and shareholder interest than the industry average (Ellinger et al., 2012).
Customer needs can be satisfied through value chain flexibility, competence and capability
(Zhanq et al., 2006). Successful supply chain management not only directly refines operational
performance, but also indirectly improves customer satisfaction and fiscal performance (Ou
et al., 2010). Omoruyi and Mafini (2016) examined relationships between customer
satisfaction, supply chain management practices, and three input factors, namely product
quality, versatility, and product variety in small to medium-sized enterprises using
regression analysis. Another case study by el Shoghari and Abdallah (2016) sought to define
supply chain management and determine its effect on customer service; the study analyzed
whether effective management achieved customer satisfaction and led to increased market
share (profits).

4. Methodology
The flowchart (Figure 1) illustrates the technique and model adopted for analysis–a survey-
based approach to obtain expert opinion on conducting TISM analysis. Industry experts from
BIJ List out the Critical
Success Factors
Literature Review (CSFs) of Digital
supply chain (DSC)

Establish contextual
Expert Opinion relationship
Survey between variables

Develop initial
Develop a Structural
reachability matrix (RM)
Self-Interaction and final incorporating
Matrix(SSIM) transitivity

Partition the final reachability matrix into different

levels through level partitions method

Incorporate contextual
Expert viewpoint interpretation into the Develop digraph with
engagement model by developing direct and indirect
the Interpretive Matrix links

Figure 1.
Flowchart of the
methodology adopted Final Total Interpretive Structural Modeling for
– TISM approach implementation of DSC

Indian cities including Pune, Delhi and Bangalore were approached. Delphi method,
developed at the RAND corporation in 1950 and 1960s (Gordon and Helmer, 1964), was
employed. The Delphi method is mostly employed to forecast future scenarios. Rome and
Wright (2001) highlighted that this method was particularly useful when experts pertinent to
the study were situated in different geographical locations and unable to meet as one group.
Experts reply to multiple rounds of questionnaires; after each round, responses are
summarized and shared with experts. Delphi surveys differ from traditional surveys in that
experts are randomly sampled in the latter, while in the former, experts are selected on the
basis of their knowledge of the topic under study. The Delphi survey must ensure anonymity,
iteration, controlled feedback and statistical aggregation of group response (Rowe and
Wright, 1999).
This study has been attempted for two reasons. Kaup (2018) found that 67% of businesses
today consider the digital supply chain to be disruptive, and that India should not be left
behind due to a lack of substantial research in the field. Until recently, challenges in
infrastructure and logistics had a negative impact on India’s supply chain network.
Providers, producers and retailers have had to consider delays in the movement of domestic
products due to a complicated taxation system and transport routes that run more than
capacity, increasing overall expenditure. Liberalization of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
guidelines, introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST), and increased government
spending have spurred growth in the sector by providing new avenues for a slow but steady
transformation of India’s digital infrastructure (Mahadevan, 2018). India now ranks 35th in Digital supply
the World Bank Logistics Performance Index 2017, up from 54th in 2014. It is estimated that chain to unlock
India’s logistics industry will continue to grow steadily for the next five years by 10–15%
annually and remain relevant to the national economy. Data were collected through a survey
new agility
for about three days. We received 25 responses with all the required information from
seasoned supply chain experts with several years of experience. Telephonic conversations
were held with a select few after sharing the questionnaire to better understand the reasons
behind the interrelationships between selected factors.

4.1 Total interpretive structural modelling (TISM)

J. Warfield first proposed interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) in 1973. TISM originates
from the technique of ISM which is a specialized general-purpose research and decision
support tool offering a systematic approach to dealing with complex situations. It generates a
hierarchical flow of the case (or problem) at hand to establish the most important enabler to
the least (Warfield, 1974; Mazdeh et al., 2015). It acts as a foundation for other methods such as
Interactive Management Method (Shahabadkar et al., 2019). ISM is unique in that it creates
logical links between elements to generate a visual map representing a hierarchical view of
the system or problem at hand. Other methods generally break the scenario or problem down
to smaller parts and then build basic knowledge “lumps” without adequate reasoning and
analysis. Although the ISM approach is capable of addressing different management issues
through hierarchical representation, the methodology also has a few disadvantages (Dubey
et al., 2017). Sushil, 2012 revisited the ISM concept and modified the existing model to include
a logical interpretation of established interrelationships between variables. ISM interprets
only the nodes whereas the TISM framework interprets both nodes and links. Furthermore,
all transitive links are eliminated in ISM, whereas TISM can provide a better explanatory
framework with important transitive links. Hence, TISM has become the preferred technique
over traditional ISM and been applied to complex systems to generate meaningful results
(Behl et al., 2018; Yeravdekar and Behl, 2018).
In the following section, stepwise method of creating ISM as laid down by Warfield, 1974),
is given.
Step 1: Variables Identification and Definition
For the present study, several factors had to be finalized on the basis of literature review or
panel discussion (Kedia, 2013; Virmani, 2018). 12 supply chain CSFs were identified and
defined through the literature survey (Table 2).
Step 2: Contextual Relationship Definition

Defining the contextual relationship between the identified CSFs is central to the creation
of a hierarchical structure (Kedia, 2013; Virmani, 2018). Contextual links between CSFs are
discussed and interpreted here and shown in appendix with expert feedback.
Step 3: Structural Self Interaction Matrix (SSIM)
The below matrix shows the relationship between row variable i and column variable j. To
determine the existence of a relationship between any two variables and the corresponding
direction of the relation, a group of experts is questioned. Four symbols –V, A, O, and X – are
used to denote the type of relationship that occurs between any two given variables
(Sandbhor and Botre, 2014).
(1) V – In case i is impacting j but not vice versa;
 BIJ

Table 1.

various fields
Lists down papers

how TISM has been

years demonstrating

successfully applied in
journals in the last four
published in prominent
Sr No Author(s) and year Objective of study Analysis level Research methodology Setting key findings

1 Manjunatheshwara To identify the most important factors and Case study, Content A case study has been conducted to identify From the study, it was found that “Customer
and Vinodh (2018) determine the inter-dependencies of factors analysis, expert inputs, the most important factors and determine the Pressure,” “Government Regulations,”
with respect to sustainable development of qualitative framework inter-dependencies of factors in the context of“Competitiveness,” “Organization Initiative”
tablet devices sustainable development of tablet devices and “Technological Advancements” were the
strongest driving factors. Factors such as
“Environmental Impact,” “Energy Efficiency”
and “Opportunities to Upgrade” were found to
be dependent
2 Jena et al. (2017) To elucidate the methodology of total Literature survey and expert Analyze mutual dependence among inhibitors This study highlights the significance of TISM
interpretive structural modeling (TISM) in opinion, qualitative of smartphone manufacturing ecosystem for modeling inhibitors of SMED over
order to provide interpretation for direct as modelling development (SMED). Cross-impact matrix conventional interpretive structural modeling
well as significant transitive linkages in a multiplication applied to classification (ISM)
directed graph analysis is also performed to graphically
represent these inhibitors based on their
driving power and dependence
3 Shibin et al. (2017) Examine Sustainable Supply Chain Content analysis, primary In this paper, development of a theoretical Study findings suggest that top management
Management of SMEs using Resource Based and secondary data framework to explain sustainable supply can focus on improving SC information sharing
View and Institutional Theory collection, quantitative chain performance (SSCP) has been and Supply chain connectivity which may
analysis attempted. To test research hypotheses, a further help improve management, which in
survey-based instrument is used. The turn might help penetrate new markets
constructs were drawn based on extensive through better brand value. The importance of
literature review. Have used Warp PLS effective information sharing systems is also
version 5.0 which relies on the partial least explicitly proven by the analysis, and will help
squares (PLS) method to estimate the companies improve visibility, design robust
hypothesized relationships processes operational efficiency and
responsiveness and eliminate wastages
4 Yeravdekar and Behl The purpose of this paper is to explore factors Field visits, content analysis, The study uses Interpretive Structural Model It was observed that the variables behaved
(2017) leading to branding of management education qualitative framework (ISM) to ascertain the linkages between differently when studied from the perspective
in India variables, and employs TISM to validate the of private sector colleges and public sector
reasons for association. The variables were colleges; the former saw seven levels of
further structured for classification using arrangement while the latter witnessed only
MICMAC analysis four. Quality of Faculty and Research were key
areas of concern for private sector colleges
while infrastructure featured as a focal point
for those in the public sector

(continued )
Sr No Author(s) and year Objective of study Analysis level Research methodology Setting key findings

5 Yeravdekar and Behl The present study aims to develop a Literature review, TISM approach. The research also discusses The study accounted for 11 enablers and
(2018) conceptual framework using total interpretive experiential analysis, the reasons for inter linkages between discovered that facility given at school or the
structural model to develop a hierarchy of qualitative modelling enablers primary level is the key enabler for
enablers for commercialization of cricket commercializing the game. The study also
found that state-of-art infrastructure,
scholarships given to players, and motivating
incentives from the government were some
other important enablers for enhancing the
positive aspects of commercialization of the
game
6 Prasad et al., (2018) This study aims to present the link between a Literature analysis, The model is based on the integration of three This study provides evidence that perceived
set of technology adoption constructs that aim hypothesis development, adoption theories- technology acceptance usefulness, attitude, perceived behavior
at understanding the adoption of BT in supply sample survey, primary data model (TAM), technology readiness index control, and subjective norm are related to BT
chains collection, quantitative (TRI) and the theory of planned behavior implementation intention. The statistically
research model (TPB). Based on a survey of 181 supply chain validated model is found to have high
practitioners in India, the proposed model was explanatory power with independent
tested using structural equation modelling constructs explaining 68.5% variance of the
behavioral intention (R2 5 0.685); the study
hence contributes significantly to existing
body of research
7 Hasan et al. (2019) The purpose of this paper is to examine the Content analysis, For the current study, a qualitative technique Critical activity alignment of partners in CBJV
elements of asymmetric motives, i.e. initial qualitative, secondary named total interpretive structural modelling is an antecedent of CBJV motive, and minimizes
cross-border joint venture (CBJV) conditions research was used. Furthermore, for identifying the the number of asymmetric motives. Bottom
and relative partner characteristics in elements of study, SDC Platinum database level variables such as culture difference and
emerging nations was used relative capital structure are considered strong
drivers of asymmetric motives
8 Kumar and Sekar, The purpose of this paper is to present an Qualitative framework, A structural model of 24 barriers is developed “Changing governmental policies,” “poor
2020 analysis of barriers affecting the adoption of research based study through total interpretive structural selection of change agents and improvement
lean concepts in electrical and electronics modelling (TISM) approach teams,” “lack of top management commitment
component manufacturing understanding and support of the system,”
“lack of team autonomy,” “lack of flexibility
and versatility” and “lack of customer focus/
involvement” are found to be dominant
barriers on the basis of TISM study

(continued )
new agility
chain to unlock
Digital supply

Table 1.
 BIJ

Table 1.
Sr No Author(s) and year Objective of study Analysis level Research methodology Setting key findings

9 Behera et al. (2020) To identify different dimensions of retail Qualitative analysis, Descriptive research design, where relevant Intellectuality often led to established decision.
investors’ overall cognition To study the literature review, secondary dimensions of cognition are described as key Intellectuality can be developed through access
drivers of “degree of interest in investment” research drivers of change in the level of interest to information with mental reasoning,
focusing on investors’ cognition through Total investment by Indian investors processing and analyzing attitude to
Interpretive Structural Model (TISM) understand and interpret information
according to investment requirements of retail
investors
10 The purpose of the paper was to identify and Literature review, TISM is a methodology used to understand Social distancing and community
categorize the climatic, socio-biological factors qualitative framework the interrelationships between factors that consciousness (F5) had strong influence on
that influence the global super-spread of the affect the epidemiological characteristics of host behavior and number of contacts. Strict
epidemic using a theory building approach pandemic COVID-19 around the globe social distancing and proper health practices
could reduce the virulency and infectiousness
of COVID 19
Code CSF References
Digital supply
chain to unlock
C1 Redesign Organization Agarwal et al. (2018), Farahani et al. (2015), Parkhi et al. (2015), new agility
Pandey and Singh (2016)
C2 Sales and Operation Planning Agarwal et al. (2018), Thome et al. (2012), Jonsson and Holmstrom
Strategies (2016), Ivanov et al. (2019)
C3 Strategic Sourcing Kaushik and Mahadevan (2011), Lidegaard (2013), Ramakrishnan
Techniques (2018), Biazzin et al. (2019)
C4 Smart Manufacturing O’donovan et al. (2015), Moyne and Iskandar (2017), Sperling et al.
Processes (2013)
C5 Warehouse Management Biswas and Sen (2017), Andiyappillai (2019), Awwad et al. (2018)
C6 Logistics Capabilities Shibin et al. (2017), Ben-Chaim et al. (2013), Shamsuzzoha (2011),
Shamsuzzoha et al. (2013), He et al. (2009), Shamsuzzoha et al. (2015)
C7 Point of Sale Analysis Biswas and Sen (2017), Bradlow et al. (2017), Chakraborty and Barua
(2017)
C8 Financial Services Integration Saberi et al. (2019), Korpela et al. (2017), Silvestro and Lustrato (2014)
C9 Grievance Redressal Systems Prajapat et al. (2018), Choudhary (2015)
C10 Upskill Labor Dubey et al. (2015a), Gomez-Cede~ no et al. (2015), Prasad et al. (2018),
Cousins et al. (2006)
C11 Lead Time Reduction De Treville et al. (2004), Heydari et al. (2009), Raagul Srinivasan and
Shrehari (2017), Makwana and Awasthi (2017) Table 2.
C12 Customer Satisfaction Ellinger et al. (2012), Zhang et al., 2006, Ou et al. (2010), Omoruyi and List of CSFs and
Mafini (2016), el Shoghari and Abdallah (2016) relevant literature

(2) A – In case j is impacting i but not vice versa;

(3) X – In case both i and j are inter-related;
(4) O – When there is no relationship between the components.
For the element under consideration, the structural self-interaction matrix (SSIM) is prepared
by filling in group responses on each pair-wise interaction between elements (Sushil, 2012) as
shown in Table 3.
Step 5: Reachability Matrix (RM) and Transitivity Check

SSIM is used to develop the initial reachability matrix by following the rules shown in
Table 4. Every element will be represented by 1 for itself (Rajesh, 2017). Table 5 shows the

CSFs C12 C11 C10 C9 C8 C7 C6 C5 C4 C3 C2 C1

C1 V V V V V O V V V V V –
C2 V V O V V V O V V V –
C3 V V O O O O V X X –
C4 V V V V O O V X –
C5 O V O V O O V –
C6 V O V X V O –
C7 V V V A X –
C8 V O V O –
C9 V V V –
C10 X X – Table 3.
C11 X – Structural self-
C12 – interaction matrix
BIJ entry for the reachability matrix. The next step is to check for transitivity. If there is an
element A impacting B, and B impacting C, then the transitive rule says that A will be
affecting C, as shown in Table 6. Reachability and transitivity are the two fundamental
principles of ISM which contribute to the creation of different TISM levels (Yadav et al., 2015).
Step 6: Level Partitions of Reachability Matrix

The final reachability matrix obtained from step 5 is divided into different levels for each
factor on the basis of reachability and antecedent sets through a series of iterations called

(i j) entry (i to j ) relation (j to i) relation

Table 4. V 1 0
Rule for converting A 0 1
SSIM into initial X 1 1
reachability matrix O 0 0

CSFs C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12

C1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1
C2 0 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 1
C3 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1
C4 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 1 1
C5 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0
C6 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 0 1
C7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1
C8 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1
C9 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1
C10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
Table 5. C11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
Reachability matrix C12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1

CSFs C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 Driving power

C1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1* 1 1 1 1 1 12
C2 0 1 1 1 1 1* 1 1 1 1* 1 1 11
C3 0 0 1 1 1 1 1* 1* 1* 1* 1 1 10
C4 0 0 1 1 1 1 1* 1* 1 1 1 1 10
C5 0 0 1 1 1 1 1* 1* 1 1* 1 1* 10
C6 0 0 0 0 0 1 1* 1 1 1 1* 1 7
C7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 5
C8 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1* 1 5
C9 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1* 1 1 1 1 7
Table 6. C10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 3
Final Reachability C11 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 3
Matrix (indicates C12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 3
transitive relationship) Dependence 1 2 5 5 5 7 9 9 7 12 12 12
level partition (Sushil, 2017; Kumar et al.,2019; Khan et al., 2019). This partition is performed to Digital supply
consider level-wise location of variables. Tables 7–9 indicate different iteration and stages. chain to unlock
Reachability and antecedent sets are determined from Table 6. CSF’s reachability set consists
of the CSF itself and the other CSFs over which it may exert control. The collection of
new agility

S. No. Reachability set Antecedent set Intersection Level

C1 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1 1
C2 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2 2
C3 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5
C4 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5
C5 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5
C6 6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,9 6,9
C7 7,8,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 7,8
C8 7,8,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 7,8
C9 6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,9 6,9
C10 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 Table 7.
C11 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 Reachability matrix
C12 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 partition (iteration 1)

S. No. Reachability set Antecedent set Intersection Level

C1 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1 1 6
C2 2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2 2 5
C3 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5 4
C4 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5 4
C5 3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5 3,4,5 4
C6 6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,9 6,9 3
C7 7,8,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 7,8 2
C8 7,8,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 7,8 2
C9 6,7,8,9,10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,9 6,9 3
C10 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 Table 8.
C11 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 Reachability matrix
C12 10,11,12 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 10,11,12 1 partition (iteration 2–6)

Code CSF Level

C1 Redesign Organization 6
C2 Sales and Operation Planning Strategies 5
C3 Strategic Sourcing Techniques 4
C4 Smart Manufacturing Processes 4
C5 Warehouse Management 4
C6 Logistics Capabilities 3
C7 Point of Sale Analysis 2
C8 Financial Services Integration 2
C9 Grievance Redressal Systems 3
C10 Upskill Labor 1 Table 9.
C11 Lead Time Reduction 1 Final level of CSFs
C12 Customer Satisfaction 1 in TISM
BIJ antecedents is the CSF itself, and the other CSFs that could impact it. Then, for all CSFs, the
intersection of these sets is identified. The reachability and intersection sets are then
compared for all CSFs. After comparison, the CSFs whose reachability and antecedent sets
are same are assigned the top level, i.e. level 1 in the hierarchical model. After discarding the
CSF occupying level 1 from the remaining list, the procedure as mentioned earlier is repeated
to determine the following levels of other factors. The iterative method is continued until the
levels of all the factors are determined. Table 9 shows the final level for each CSF. These levels
help in the creation of the digraph and the final TISM model.
Step 7: Digraph Construction

CSFs are arranged and represented by nodes, and the links showing the direction of the
relationship between two factors obtained in the final reachability matrix. The level achieved
during level partitioning helps in assigning the levels for each element (Yadav et al., 2015). A
digraph with significant connections and relevant transitive links is shown in Figure 2.
Step 8: Interpretive Matrix

The digraph shown in Figure 2 helps in constructing the binary matrix (Table 10) with all
the direct and transitive links represented as “1”. This in turn helps in formulating the
interpretative model in Table 11 obtained by including the rationale behind the relationship
between factors as provided by experts (Kumar et al., 2019).
Step 9: Total Interpretive Structural Model (TISM)

Customer Lead Time

Upskill Labour
Satisfaction Reduction

Financial Service Point of Sale

Integration Analysis

Logistics Grievance
Capabilities Redressal Systems

Smart
Strategic Sourcing Warehouse
Manufacturing
Techniques Management
Processes

Sales & Operation

Planning Strategies

Figure 2.
Digraph (→ direct
links → transitive
Redesign
links) Organization
CSFs C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12
Digital supply
chain to unlock
C1 – 1 new agility
C2 – 1 1 1
C3 – 1 1
C4 – 1 1 1
C5 – 1 1
C6 – 1
C7 – 1 1 1
C8 – 1 1
C9 1 –
C10 –
C11 – Table 10.
C12 – Binary matrix

In the final step, the TISM model is built using relevant information in the interpretive
matrix and digraph, as shown in Figure 3. TISM model relation interpretation was written
alongside respective connections.

4.2 Graphical representation of each CSF’s driving force and dependence factor
Matrice d’impacts croises multiplication appliquee a un classment (MICMAC) analysis is
conducted to place the elements of the factor into four quadrants, each having their
functionality, as shown below. Each of the quadrant containing factors helps in determining
their driving and dependence power. This information is provided by the final reachability
matrix, where the row total is categorized as driving power and column total as dependence
for each factor. The graphical depiction of this idea is shown in Figure 4.
(1) Autonomous: CSFs with low dependency and moderate driving power.
(2) Dependent: CSFs with high dependency and low driving power.
(3) Linkage: high dependency CSFs with high driving power.
(4) Driver: CSFs with weak dependence and high drive power.

5. Results and discussions

The various success factors and relevant literature have been captured in Table 2. The
interrelationships between the CSFs were noted after a detailed survey was circulated among
experts. The six-level partitioning was done after taking into account reachability,
antecedent, and intersection set, as shown in Table 9. Finally, the digraph was constructed
with direct and transitive links, as shown in Figure 2. The first level was occupied by
Customer Satisfaction (C12), Lead Time Reduction (C11), and Upskill Labour (C10), followed
by Financial Service Integration (C8) and Point of Sale Analysis (C7). The third level
comprised Logistics Capabilities (C6) and Grievance Redressal Systems (C9). Strategic
Sourcing Techniques (C3), Smart Manufacturing Process (C4), and Warehouse Management
(C5) were on the fourth level. The fifth level comprised Sales and Operation Planning
Strategies. Redesign Organization occupied the last level of the digraph. The factor placed at
the bottom influences all other factors as we go up the hierarchy. It serves as the building
block for the entire idea at hand. Final levels indicated that customer satisfaction, lead time
 BIJ

Table 11.
Interpretive matrix
CSF C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12

C1 –
C2 A next –
generation
operating
model
improves
planning and
efficiency
C3 Sales forecasting –
helps in realizing
a strategic
sourcing plan
C4 Demand –
Management
drives
production
planning
C5 Sync inventory –
position and
sales targets
C6 Spend analysis Maximum Streamlines the –
helps in savings on order outbound
classifying the management process of
logistics for cost packing and
particular shipping
packaged goods
C7 – Reduces
discrepancy in
goods handling
processes
between sending
and receiving
points

(continued )
CSF C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12

C8 Integration of –
financial supply
chains with the
flows of physical
goods and
information is
critical
C9 Maximum Both tracking –
operation (RFID) and
flexibility tracing (GPS) in
transit systems
help in
increasing
security
C10 A technology– Insightful Newer –
driven approach decision from technology will
mandates highly POS system’s require skill
skilled labor data requires development to
training and remain relevant
expertise
C11 Helps mitigate Using POS data –
risks of running increases
out of inventory reaction speed
or having to
carry more
C12 User preference Improves –
prediction leads confidence and
to better trust
customer
relationships
new agility
chain to unlock
Digital supply

Table 11.
 BIJ

Figure 3.
TISM model
Customer Lead Time
Upskill Labour
Satisfaction Reduction
User preference prediction Insightful decision from POS
leads to better customer system’s data requires
Improves relationships training and expertise Using POS data increases
Confidence
reaction speed
& Trust
Newer technology will
require skill development
to remain relevant
Financial Service Point of Sale
Integration Analysis
A technology-driven
approach mandates
highly skilled labour-
Integration of financial supply Reduces discrepancy in goods
chains with the flows of physical Helps mitigate risks of running out of handling processes between
goods and information is critical inventory or having to carry more to sending & receiving points
compensate for unreliable suppliers
Logistics Grievance
Capabilities Redressal Systems

Maximum savings on Collaboration between tracking

Spend analysis of sourcing helps Maximum operation
order management (RFID) in warehouse and
in classifying the logistics for flexibility Streamlines the outbound
cost tracing (GPS) in transit systems
particular packaged goods. process of packing and
helps in increasing security
shipping

Strategy Sourcing Smart

Warehouse
Techniques Manufacturing
Management
Processes

Sales forecasting helps in realizing Demand Management drives Sync inventory position
a strategy sourcing plan production planning and sales targets

Sales & Operation

Planning Strategies

A next generation operating model

improves planning & efficiency

Redesign
Organization
 12 C1 Digital supply
11 C2 chain to unlock
10 C3, C4,C5 new agility
Linkage
9
Drivers
8
7 C6, C9
Driving Power

6
5 C7, C8
4
Autonomous C10, C11,
Dependent C12
3
2
Figure 4.
1 MICMAC analysis of
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 the CSFs of the digital
supply chain
Dependence Power

reduction and upskill labor could be achieved only as a result of the cumulative effect of all the
benefits offered by the transformation process.
After developing the digraph, experts’ opinions were taken into consideration to construct
the Interpretative Matrix. The number of possible comparisons is 132 [n * (n 1)], which has
been reduced to 18 as shown in Table 9. Finally, Figure 3 represents the TISM, which was
built with all validations in check. MICMAC analysis provides information about the factor
with the most driving power and the ones that are more dependent due to them being placed
in the respective four quadrants. The autonomous cluster does not contain any factor in its
quadrant. The dependent cluster includes Customer Satisfaction (C12), Upskill Labour (C10)
Lead Time reduction (C11), Point of Sale Analysis (C7), and Financial Service Integration (C8).
The linkage cluster contains Logistics Capabilities (C6) and Grievance Redressal Systems
(C9). Drivers cluster includes Redesign Organization (C1), Sales and Operation Planning
Strategies (C2), Strategic Sourcing Techniques (C3), Smart Manufacturing Process (C4), and
Warehouse Management (C5).
The success factors identified through the literature survey and consultation with experts
are inter-dependent. The ISM process was adopted to draw out hidden relations and construct
a structural framework. Figure 2 depicts digraph with direct and indirect links. Redesign
Organization (C1) occupies the lowest stage in the ISM model, and forms the central building
block of a digital supply chain. Therefore, reinventing the supply-chain organization, though
bound to be a slow and complex process, is the need of the hour. Redesigning the
organizational structural paradigm to represent digitization’s new ways of operating relies on
breaking silos between functional department and merging across verticals to derive
maximum output. The top-level consists of Customer Satisfaction (C12), Lead time reduction
(C11) and Upskill Labour (C10).
Figure 3 represents the conceptual framework based on TISM for the success of digital
supply chain management. Driving power and dependence of factors established the
direction of the relationship. Redesign Organization (C1) displayed a strong driving force and
may play an essential and strategic role in increasing digital supply chain adoption. Setting
up of learning and development programs, creating dedicated digital groups that drive
innovations and establishing venture capital investment funds that tap into external
organizations to access new technology are a few solutions that may be implemented to
BIJ enhance the efficiency of the digital supply chain. Practices should be evaluated on the basis
of their effects on these CSFs to strengthen the digital supply chain. Digital supply chain
business/technology leaders should objectively examine and assess any new initiative to
determine if its effect on consumer satisfaction has been positive by simultaneously reducing
its lead time of production. Addressing and identifying the skills required by people to do
their job through proper training and development initiatives also brings in new perspective
of business management capabilities.
MICMAC research also supports the above result because C1, as mentioned above, is in the
cluster “Drivers / Independents.” Included in the “Drivers” class are Sales and Operation
Planning (C2), Strategic Sourcing Techniques (C3), Smart Manufacturing Process (C4), and
Warehouse Management (C5), which show very high driving force (and low dependence). An
established S&OP plan and strategic sourcing will fix more accountability by identifying
mismatches between supply and demand. A smart manufacturing process helps in
optimizing the entire planning process and thus increasing overall profits. Further, data-
driven warehouse management systems help ensure that all items follow systematic
workflows, processes, and protocols as they flow through the warehouse from receipt to
shipment. To ensure long-term success in an emerging area like digital integration in the
supply chain, industry leaders should concentrate on the “Drivers” cluster. The MICMAC
analysis grouped the rest of the CSFs as “Linkage,” demonstrating the area’s partial driving
and partial dependence characteristics. This highlights the fact that several CSFs
cumulatively affect the performance of the digital supply chain. Therefore, for the digital
supply chain to succeed, joint endeavors on diverse fronts are needed. It is important to avoid
the common mistake of overcommitting to CSFs with higher dependency and less driving
power. Results will be less productive in the absence of foundational “driver” CSFs.
Therefore, to attain sustainable success of the digital supply chain, the industry should be
heavily focused on redesigning its traditional structure by entirely modifying their outlook
towards technology adoption.

6. Conclusion, limitations and future scope of the study

The digitalization of supply chain management would warrant and result in radical changes.
This paper sought to highlight some advantages and the significance of a digital supply
chain management system along with vital success factors, and how these factors could offer
firms a competitive advantage. MICMAC (cross-impact matrix multiplication applied to
classification) was used to determine the driving force and dependency of defined CSFs.
Applying emerging innovations such as big data, blockchain technology, and Internet of
things would lead to changes to the bottom line (Behl et al., 2019). Digitalization can enhance
communication and efficiency across the supply chain. The use of ground-breaking digital
technology would allow products and solutions to be streamlined, modularized, and
standardized. Companies will understand the importance of innovative business models,
creating added value for the product portfolio and achieving sensitivity to consumer demand
shifts. Hence, supply chain executives would do well to emphasize and evaluate factors that
drive success in supply chain management and yield superior outcomes.

6.1 Limitation
Despite of providing significant insight of the interrelationship among the success factors of a
digital supply chain, this study has few limitations. Since the entire discussion is based on
industry experts’ judgments, there exists a certain degree of subjectivism which leaves room
for debate. Further, this study is essentially qualitative; an empirical assessment could
provide better managerial implications with respect to the relationships between factors
considered.
6.2 Future scope of the study Digital supply
There may be several other components besides the 12 CSFs identified in this paper that chain to unlock
could be discovered and analyzed in future studies. Further research should also be done to
expand the existing conceptual structure of technology-based services to a statistical model
new agility
based on a robust evaluation criteria which does away with any of the degree of subjectivism
depending on the user’s knowledge. The model should be facilitated by interpretability as
required by the management to have confidence which will allow the effective
operationalization of the model.

References
Abdallah, A.B. and Nabass, I.H. (2018), “Supply chain antecedents of agile manufacturing in a
developing country context”, Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, Vol. 29 No. 6,
pp. 1042-1064.
Addo-Tenkorang, R. and Helo, P.T. (2016), “Big data applications in operations/supply-chain
management: a literature review”, Computers and Industrial Engineering, Vol. 101, pp. 528-543.
Agrawal, P. and Narain, R. (2018), “Digital supply chain management: an overview”, IOP Conference
Series Materials Science and Engineering, Vol. 455 No. 1, pp. 1-7.
Alicke, K., Rachor, J. and Seyfert, A. (2016a), “Supply Chain 4.0 – the next-generation digital supply
chain”, Operations, available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/operations/our-
insights/supply-chain-40–the-next-generation-digital-supply-chain.
Alicke, K., Glatzel, C., Karlsson, P. and Hoberg, K. (2016b), “Big data and the supply chain: the big-
supply-chain analytics landscape (Part 1)”, Operations, available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/
business-functions/operations/our-insights/big-data-and-the-supply-chain-the-big-supply-chain-
analytics-landscape-part-1.
Altay, N., Gunasekaran, A., Dubey, R. and Childe, S.J. (2018), “Agility and resilience as antecedents of
supply chain performance under moderating effects of organizational culture within the
humanitarian setting: a dynamic capability view”, Production Planning and Control, Vol. 29
No. 14, pp. 1158-1174.
Andiyappillai, N. (2019), “Data analytics in warehouse management systems (WMS) implementations
– a case study”, International Journal of Computer Applications, Vol. 181 No. 47, pp. 14-17.
Aslam, H., Blome, C., Roscoe, S. and Azhar, T.M. (2018), “Dynamic supply chain capabilities”,
International Journal of Operations and Production Management, Vol. 38 No. 12, pp. 2266-2285.
Awwad, M., Kulkarni, P., Bapna, R. and Marathe, A. (2018), “Big data analytics in supply chain: a
literature review”, Proceedings of the International Conference on Industrial Engineering and
Operations Management, pp. 418-425.
Bag, S., Telukdarie, A., Pretorius, J.H.C. and Gupta, S. (2018), “Industry 4.0 and supply chain
sustainability: framework and future research directions”, Benchmarking: An International
Journal, Ahead of Print.
Behera, Y.D.P., Sahoo, S.K. and Sahoo, T.R. (2020), “Risk-absorption: a study on the power enhancer of
cognition to reach a degree of interest in investment through TISM approach”, Risk, Vol. 29
No. 6s, pp. 61-76.
Behl, A., Rathi, P. and Kumar, V.A. (2018), “Sustainability of the Indian auto rickshaw sector:
identification of enablers and their interrelationship using TISM”, International Journal of
Services and Operations Management, Vol. 31 No. 2, pp. 137-168.
Behl, A., Dutta, P., Lessmann, S., Dwivedi, Y.K. and Kar, S. (2019), “A conceptual framework for the
adoption of big data analytics by e-commerce startups: a case-based approach”, Information
Systems and E-Business Management, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 285-318.
Ben-Chaim, M., Shmerling, E. and Kuperman, A. (2013), “Analytic modeling of vehicle fuel
consumption”, Energies, Vol. 6 No. 1, pp. 117-127.
BIJ Ben-Daya, M., Hassini, E. and Bahroun, Z. (2019), “Internet of things and supply chain management: a
literature review”, International Journal of Production Research, Vol. 57 Nos 15-16,
pp. 4719-4742.
Biazzin, C. and Castro-Carvalho, L. (2019), “Big data in procurement: the role of people behavior and
organization alignment”, Dimension Empresarial, Vol. 17 No. 4, pp. 10-28.
Biswas, S. and Sen, J. (2017), A Proposed Architecture for Big Data Driven Supply Chain Analytics,
Cornell University Press, New York, arXiv preprint arXiv:1705.04958.
Bradlow, E.T., Gangwar, M., Kopalle, P. and Voleti, S. (2017), “The role of big data and predictive
analytics in retailing”, Journal of Retailing, Vol. 93 No. 1, pp. 79-95.
Brusset, X. (2016), “Does supply chain visibility enhance agility?”, International Journal of Production
Economics, Vol. 171, pp. 46-59.
B€ uk€ozkan, G. and G€oçer, F. (2018), “Digital Supply Chain: literature review and a proposed
uy€
framework for future research”, Computers in Industry, Vol. 97, pp. 157-177.
Cecere, L. (2015), “Why are we letting digital marketers define the future world view of the supply
chain?”, Supply Chain News, available at: https://www.supplychain247.com/article/why_are_
we_letting_digital_marketers_define_the_future_world_view_of_supply.
Chakraborty, S. and Barua, K. (2017), A Proposal for Shelf Placement Optimization for Retail Industry
Using Big Data Analytics.
Choi, T.M., Wallace, S.W. and Wang, Y. (2018), “Big data analytics in operations management”,
Production and Operations Management, Vol. 27 No. 10, pp. 1868-1883.
Choudhary, S. (2015), “Consumer grievance redressal under consumer protection act 1986 with special
focus on medical services in India”, Available at SSRN 2612346.
Cousins, P.D., Giunipero, L., Handfield, R.B. and Eltantawy, R. (2006), “Supply management’s
evolution: key skill sets for the supply manager of the future”, International Journal of
Operations and Production Management, Vol. 26 No. 7, pp. 822-844.
De Trevill, S., Shapiro, R.D. and Hameri, A.P. (2004), “From supply chain to demand chain: the role of
lead time reduction in improving demand chain performance”, Journal of Operations
Management, Vol. 21 No. 6, pp. 613-627.
Dubey, R., Gunasekaran, A. and Ali, S.S. (2015b), “Exploring the relationship between leadership,
operational practices, institutional pressures and environmental performance: a framework for
green supply chain”, International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 160, pp. 120-132.
Dubey, R., Gunasekaran, A., Papadopoulos, T. and Childe, S.J. (2015a), “Green supply chain
management enablers: mixed methods research”, Sustainable Production and Consumption,
Vol. 4, pp. 72-88.
Dubey, R., Gunasekaran, A., Papadopoulos, T., Childe, S.J., Shibin, K.T. and Wamba, S.F. (2017),
“Sustainable supply chain management: framework and further research directions”, Journal of
Cleaner Production, Vol. 142, pp. 1119-1130.
Dubey, R., Altay, N., Gunasekaran, A., Blome, C., Papadopoulos, T. and Childe, S.J. (2018), “Supply
chain agility, adaptability and alignment”, International Journal of Operations and Production
Management, Vol. 38 No. 1, pp. 129-148.
Dubey, R., Bryde, D.J., Foropon, C., Graham, G., Giannakis, M. and Mishra, D.B. (2020), “Agility in
humanitarian supply chain: an organizational information processing perspective and
relational view”, Annals of Operations Research, in press, pp. 1-21.
Eckstein, D., Goellner, M., Blome, C. and Henke, M. (2015), “The performance impact of supply chain
agility and supply chain adaptability: the moderating effect of product complexity”,
International Journal of Production Research, Vol. 53 No. 10, pp. 3028-3046.
el Shoghari, R. and Abdallah, K. (2016), “The impact of supply chain management on customer service
(A case study of Lebanon)”, Management, Vol. 6 No. 2, pp. 46-54.
Ellinger, A., Shin, H., Northington, W.M., Adams, F.G., Hofman, D. and O’Marah, K. (2012), “The Digital supply
influence of supply chain management competency on customer satisfaction and shareholder
value”, Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 249-262. chain to unlock
Farahani, P., Meier, C. and Wilke, J. (2015), Whitepaper Digital Supply Chain Management 2020 Vision,
new agility
SAP SE, Germany.
Farkas, C. (2018), 15 Top Supply Chain Statistics — and the 5 Related Trends that Will Impact Your
Business, eAlchemy, available at: https://ealchemylabs.com/blog/top-supply-chain-statistics.
Feldmann, C. and Pumpe, A. (2017), “A holistic decision framework for 3D printing investments in
global supply chains”, Transportation Research Procedia, Vol. 25, pp. 677-694.
Ferreira, K.J., Lee, B.H.A. and Simchi-Levi, D. (2016), “Analytics for an online retailer: demand
forecasting and price optimization”, Manufacturing and Service Operations Management,
Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 69-88.
Gezgin, E., Huang, X., Samal, P. and Silva, I. (2017), “Digital transformation: raising supply-chain
performance to new levels”, Operations, available at: https://www.mckinsey.com/business-
functions/operations/our-insights/digital-transformation-raising-supply-chain-performance-to-
new-levels.
Gligor, D.M., Esmark, C.L. and Holcomb, M.C. (2015), “Performance outcomes of supply chain agility:
when should you be agile?”, Journal of Operations Management, Vol. 33, pp. 71-82.
no, M., Castan-Farrero, J.M., Guitart-Tarres, L. and Matute-Vallejo, J. (2015), “Impact of
Gomez-Cede~
human resources on supply chain management and performance”, Industrial Management and
Data Systems, Vol. 115 No. 1, pp. 129-157.
Gordon, T.J. and Helmer, O. (1964), Report on a Long-Range Forecasting Study, Rand Corp Santa
Monica Ca Santa Monica United States, Defense Technical Information Centre.
Gunasekaran, A., Papadopoulos, T., Dubey, R., Wamba, S.F., Childe, S.J., Hazen, B. and Akter, S.
(2017), “Big data and predictive analytics for supply chain and organizational performance”,
Journal of Business Research, Vol. 70, pp. 308-317.
Hasan, Z., Dhir, S. and Dhir, S. (2019), “Modified total interpretive structural modelling (TISM) of
asymmetric motives and its drivers in Indian bilateral CBJV”, Benchmarking: An International
Journal, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 614-637.
He, W., Tan, E.L., Lee, E.W. and Li, T.Y. (2009), “A solution for integrated track and trace in supply
chain based on RFID and GPS”, 2009 IEEE Conference on Emerging Technologies and Factory
Automation, IEEE, pp. 1-6.
Heydari, J., Kazemzadeh, R.B. and Chaharsooghi, S.K. (2009), “A study of lead time variation impact
on supply chain performance”, The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing
Technology, Vol. 40 Nos 11-12, pp. 1206-1215.
Hoey, B. (2018), 6 Supply Chain Digitization Stats to Know. Flexis - Blog and Newsroom, available at:
https://blog.flexis.com/6-supply-chain-digitization-stats-to-know.
Hofmann, E. and R€ usch, M. (2017), “Industry 4.0 and the current status as well as future prospects on
logistics”, Computers in industry, Vol. 89, pp. 23-34.
Holmstr€om, J. and Gutowski, T. (2017), “Additive manufacturing in operations and supply chain
management: No sustainability benefit or virtuous knock-on opportunities?”, Journal of
Industrial Ecology, Vol. 21 No. S1, pp. S21-S24.
Ivanov, D., Dolgui, A. and Sokolov, B. (2019), “The impact of digital technology and Industry 4.0 on
the ripple effect and supply chain risk analytics”, International Journal of Production Research,
Vol. 57 No. 3, pp. 829-846.
Ivanov, D., Tsipoulanidis, A. and Sch€onberger, J. (2019), “Digital supply chain, smart operations
and industry 4.0”, Global Supply Chain and Operations Management, Springer, Cham,
pp. 481-526.
BIJ Jena, J., Sidharth, S., Thakur, L.S., Pathak, D.K. and Pandey, V.C. (2017), “Total interpretive structural
modeling (TISM): approach and application”, Journal of Advances in Management Research,
Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 162-181.
Johnson, K. (2019), “What is digital supply chain management? supply chain management”, available
at: https://www.bitsight.com/blog/what-is-digital-supply-chain-management.
Jonsson, P. and Holmstr€om, J. (2016), “Future of supply chain planning: closing the gaps
between practice and promise”, International Journal of Physical Distribution and Logistics
Management, Vol. 46 No. 1, pp. 62-81.
Kaup, G. (2018), “9 eye-opening digital business planning and supply chain transformation Stats”,
Digital Supply Networks, available at: https://www.digitalistmag.com/digital-supply-networks/
2018/07/05/9-eye-opening-digital-business-planning-supply-chain-transformation-stats-
06178733/.
Kaushik, U. and Mahadevan, B. (2011), “Strategic sourcing: trends and emerging issues for research”,
Working Paper, 335, pp. 1-23.
Kedia, P.K. (2013), “Total interpretive structural modelling of strategic technology management in
automobile industry”, 2013 Proceedings of PICMET’13: Technology Management in the IT-
Driven Services (PICMET), IEEE, pp. 62-71.
Khan, M.I., Khan, S. and Haleem, A. (2019), “Using integrated weighted IRP-Fuzzy TISM approach
towards evaluation of initiatives to harmonise Halal standards”, Benchmarking: An
International Journal, Vol. 26 No. 2, pp. 434-451.
Kim, M. and Chai, S. (2017), “The impact of supplier innovativeness, information sharing and strategic
sourcing on improving supply chain agility: global supply chain perspective”, International
Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 187, pp. 42-52.
Korpela, K., Hallikas, J. and Dahlberg, T. (2017), “Digital supply chain transformation toward
blockchain integration”, Proceedings of the 50th Hawaii international conference on system
sciences.
Kumar, H., Singh, M.K. and Gupta, M.P. (2019), “A policy framework for city eligibility analysis: TISM
and fuzzy MICMAC-weighted approach to select a city for smart city transformation in India”,
Land Use Policy, Vol. 82, pp. 375-390.
Lidegaard, N. (2013), “The organization of strategic purchasing”.
Mahadevan, B. (2018), “India’s digital supply chains: connecting to the future”, Digital Transformtion,
available at: https://www.orange-business.com/en/blogs/indias-digital-supply-chains-
connecting-the-future.
Makwana, K. and Awasthi, S. (2017), “A case study on reducing in lead time by using value stream
mapping”, International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), Vol. 3 No. 12,
pp. 411-424.
Manjunatheshwara, K.J. and Vinodh, S. (2018), “Application of TISM and MICMAC for analysis of
influential factors of sustainable development of tablet devices: a case study”, International
Journal of Sustainable Engineering, Vol. 11 No. 5, pp. 353-364.
Mazdeh, M., Shafia, M., Bandarian, R. and Kahrizi, A. (2015), “An ISM approach for analyzing the
factors in technology transfer”, Decision Science Letters, Vol. 4 No. 3, pp. 335-348.
Mortson, M. (2019), “Preparing your business for the digital supply chain”, Oracle Supply Chain
Management Blog, available at: https://blogs.oracle.com/scm/preparing-your-business-for-the-
digital-supply-chain.
Moyne, J. and Iskandar, J. (2017), “Big data analytics for smart manufacturing: case studies in
semiconductor manufacturing”, Processes, Vol. 5 No. 3, p. 39.
Niesen, T., Houy, C., Fettke, P. and Loos, P. (2016), “Towards an integrative big data analysis
framework for data-driven risk management in industry 4.0”, 2016 49th Hawaii International
Conference on System Sciences (HICSS). IEEE, pp. 5065-5074.
Oesterreich, T.D. and Teuteberg, F. (2016), “Understanding the implications of digitisation and Digital supply
automation in the context of Industry 4.0: a triangulation approach and elements of a research
agenda for the construction industry”, Computers in industry, Vol. 83, pp. 121-139. chain to unlock
Omoruyi, O. and Mafini, C. (2016), “Supply chain management and customer satisfaction in small to
new agility
medium enterprises”, Studia Universitatis Babes-Bolyai Oeconomica, Vol. 61 No. 3, pp. 43-58.
Ou, C.S., Liu, F.C., Hung, Y.C. and Yen, D.C. (2010), “A structural model of supply chain management
on firm performance”, International Journal of Operations and Production Management.
O’donovan, P., Leahy, K., Bruton, K. and O’Sullivan, D.T. (2015), “Big data in manufacturing: a
systematic mapping study”, Journal of Big Data, Vol. 2 No. 1, p. 20.
Pandey, J. and Singh, M. (2016), “Donning the mask: effects of emotional labour strategies on burnout
and job satisfaction in community healthcare”, Health Policy and Planning, Vol. 31 No. 5,
pp. 551-562.
Papadopoulos, T., Gunasekaran, A., Dubey, R. and Fosso Wamba, S. (2017), “Big data and analytics in
operations and supply chain management: managerial aspects and practical challenges”,
Production Planning and Control, Vol. 28 Nos 11-12, pp. 873-876.
Parkhi, S., Joshi, S., Gupta, S. and Sharma, M. (2015), “A study of evolution and future of supply chain
management”, Supply Chain Management, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 95-106.
Prajapat, S., Sabharwal, V. and Wadhwani, V. (2018), “A prototype for grievance redressal system”,
Proceedings of International Conference on Recent Advancement on Computer and
Communication, Springer, Singapore, pp. 41-49.
Prasad, S., Shankar, R., Gupta, R. and Roy, S. (2018), “A TISM modeling of critical success factors of
blockchain based cloud services”, Journal of Advances in Management Research, Vol. 15 No. 4,
pp. 434-456.
Raagul Srinivasan, K.A. and Shrehari, J. (2017), “Applied procedures for lead time reduction: a
review”, International Journal of Engineering Trends and Technology, Vol. 43, pp. 169-172.
Rajesh, R. (2017), “Technological capabilities and supply chain resilience of firms: a relational analysis
using Total Interpretive Structural Modeling (TISM)”, Technological Forecasting and Social
Change, Vol. 118, pp. 161-169.
Ramakrishnan, D. (2018), “Strategic sourcing”, Available at SSRN 3481949.
Rane, S.B. and Narvel, Y.A.M. (2019), “Re-designing the business organization using disruptive
innovations based on blockchain-IoT integrated architecture for improving agility in future
Industry 4.0”, Benchmarking: An International Journal, Ahead of Print.
Roscoe, S., Eckstein, D., Blome, C. and Goellner, M. (2020), “Determining how internal and external
process connectivity affect supply chain agility: a life-cycle theory perspective”, Production
Planning and Control, Vol. 31 No. 1, pp. 78-91.
Rowe, G. and Wright, G. (1999), “The Delphi technique as a forecasting tool: issues and analysis”,
International Journal of Forecasting, Vol. 15 No. 4, pp. 353-375.
Rowe, G. and Wright, G. (2001), “Expert opinions in forecasting: the role of the Delphi technique”,
Principles of Forecasting, Springer, Boston, MA, pp. 125-144.
Saberi, S., Kouhizadeh, M., Sarkis, J. and Shen, L. (2019), “Blockchain technology and its relationships
to sustainable supply chain management”, International Journal of Production Research, Vol. 57
No. 7, pp. 2117-2135.
Salam, M.A. (2019), “Analyzing manufacturing strategies and Industry 4.0 supplier performance
relationships from a resource-based perspective”, Benchmarking: An International Journal,
Ahead of Print.
Sandbhor, S. and Botre, R. (2014), “Applying total interpretive structural modeling to study factors
affecting construction labour productivity”, Australasian Journal of Construction Economics
and Building, The, Vol. 14 No. 1, p. 20.
BIJ Seidiaghilabadi, F., Seidiaghilabadi, Z. and Miralmasi, A. (2019), “Identifying research gaps in supply
chain innovation”, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Transformation in Supply Chain
Management: Innovative Approaches for Supply Chains. Proceedings of the Hamburg
International Conference of Logistics (HICL), epubli GmbH, Berlin, Vol. 27, pp. 298-330.
Shahabadkar, P., Vanageri, A. and Shahabadkar, P. (2019), “ISM methodology in modelling the supply
chains–an overview”, in Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Manufacturing
Excellence (ICMAX-2019), pp. 294-302.
Shamsuzzoha, A.H.M. (2011), “Modular product architecture for productivity enhancement”, Business
Process Management Journal, Vol. 17 No. 1, pp. 21-41.
Shamsuzzoha, A.H.M. and Helo, P.T. (2011), “Real-time tracking and tracing system: potentials for the
logistics network”, Proceedings of the 2011 International Conference on Industrial Engineering
and Operations Management, pp. 22-24.
Shamsuzzoha, A.H.M., Ehrs, M., Addo-Tenkorang, R., Nguyen, D. and Helo, P.T. (2013), “Performance
evaluation of tracking and tracing for logistics operations”, International Journal of Shipping
and Transport Logistics, Vol. 5 No. 1, pp. 31-54.
Shamsuzzoha, A., Ehrs, M., Addo-Tengkorang, R. and Helo, P. (2015), “Tracking and tracing of global
supply chain network”, Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Enterprise
Information Systems, SCITEPRESS-Science and Technology Publications, Lda, Vol. 1,
pp. 46-53.
Shibin, K.T., Gunasekaran, A. and Dubey, R. (2017), “Explaining sustainable supply chain
performance using a total interpretive structural modeling approach”, Sustainable Production
and Consumption, Vol. 12, pp. 104-118.
Silvestro, R. and Lustrato, P. (2014), “Integrating financial and physical supply chains: the role of
banks in enabling supply chain integration”, International Journal of Operations and Production
Management, Vol. 34 No. 3, pp. 298-324.
Simchi-Levi, D. and Wu, M.X. (2018), “Powering retailers’ digitization through analytics and
automation”, International Journal of Production Research, Vol. 56 Nos 1-2, pp. 809-816.
Sperling, L., Boettiger, S. and Barker, I. (2013), “Integrating seed systems”, Planning for Scale Brief,
Vol. 3, pp. 1-32.
Sushil, S. (2012), “Interpreting the interpretive structural model”, Global Journal of Flexible Systems
Management, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 87-106.
Sushil (2017), “Multi-criteria valuation of flexibility initiatives using integrated TISM–IRP with a big
data framework”, Production Planning and Control, Vol. 28 Nos 11-12, pp. 999-1010.
Thome, A.M.T., Scavarda, L.F., Fernandez, N.S. and Scavarda, A.J. (2012), “Sales and operations planning:
a research synthesis”, International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 138 No. 1, pp. 1-13.
Tranfield, D., Denyer, D. and Smart, P. (2003), “Towards a methodology for developing evidence-
informed management knowledge by means of systematic review”, British Journal of
Management, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 207-222.
Virmani, N., Saha, R. and Sahai, R. (2018), “Social implications of leagile manufacturing system: TISM
approach”, International Journal of Productivity and Quality Management, Vol. 23 No. 4,
pp. 423-445.
Wamba, S.F., Akter, S., Edwards, A., Chopin, G. and Gnanzou, D. (2015), “How ‘big data’ can make big
impact: findings from a systematic review and a longitudinal case study”, International Journal
of Production Economics, Vol. 165, pp. 234-246.
Wamba, S.F., Dubey, R., Gunasekaran, A. and Akter, S. (2020), “The performance effects of big data
analytics and supply chain ambidexterity: the moderating effect of environmental dynamism”,
International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 222, p. 107498.
Warfield, J.N. (1974), “Developing interconnection matrices in structural modeling”, IEEE
Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, No. 1, pp. 81-87.
Wu, K.J., Tseng, M.L., Chiu, A.S. and Lim, M.K. (2017), “Achieving competitive advantage through Digital supply
supply chain agility under uncertainty: a novel multi-criteria decision-making structure”,
International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 190, pp. 96-107. chain to unlock
Yadav, D.K. and Barve, A. (2015), “Analysis of critical success factors of humanitarian supply chain:
new agility
an application of Interpretive Structural Modeling”, International Journal of Disaster Risk
Reduction, Vol. 12, pp. 213-225.
Yang, J. (2014), “Supply chain agility: securing performance for Chinese manufacturers”, International
Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 150, pp. 104-113.
Yeravdekar, S. and Behl, A. (2017), “Benchmarking model for management education in India”,
Benchmarking: An International Journal, Vol. 24 No. 3, pp. 666-693.
Yeravdekar, A. and Behl, A. (2018), “The unprecedented commercialisation of Indian cricket: a study
using total interpretive structural modelling”, International Journal of Services and Operations
Management, Vol. 31 No. 3, pp. 277-302.
Zhang, Q., Vonderembse, M.A. and Lim, J.S. (2006), “Spanning flexibility: supply chain information
dissemination drives strategy development and customer satisfaction”, Supply Chain
Management: An International Journal, Vol. 11 No. 5, pp. 390-399.

Further reading
Baweja, V., Get Point of Sale Data: It’s Not Only about Demand! Supply Chain Management, available
at: https://supplychainminded.com/point-sale-data-its-demand/.
Blome, C., Schoenherr, T. and Rexhausen, D. (2013), “Antecedents and enablers of supply chain agility
and its effect on performance: a dynamic capabilities perspective”, International Journal of
Production Research, Vol. 51 No. 4, pp. 1295-1318.
Dubey, R. and Gunasekaran, A. (2015a), “Shortage of sustainable supply chain talent: an industrial
training framework”, Industrial and Commercial Training, Vol. 47 No. 2, pp. 86-94.
Dubey, R. and Gunasekaran, A. (2015b), “Agile manufacturing: framework and its empirical
validation”, The International Journal of Advanced Manufacturing Technology, Vol. 76 Nos 9-12,
pp. 2147-2157.
Greedy, H., Bridging the Supply Chain and Logistics Skills Gap with Technology, available at: https://
www.invenio-solutions.com/blog/bridging-the-supply-chain-and-logistics-skills-gap-with-
technology.
Grimshaw, J., “What is digitisation in the supply chain?”, Supply Chain, April16, available at: https://
www.supplychaindigital.com/supply-chain-management/what-digitisation-supply-chain.
Kaplan, D. (2019), “Reskilling the workforce in the age of automation”, Supply Chain Dive: Operations,
available at: https://www.supplychaindive.com/news/reskilling-workforce-labor-age-
automation/554744/.
Maras, E. (2016), “How data metrics revolutionizes lift truck management”, Warehousing, available at:
https://www.foodlogistics.com/warehousing/article/12164137/how-data-metrics-revolutionizes-
lift-truck-management.
McDermott, Brigid (2017), “Improving confidence in food safety with IBM Blockchain”, Blockchain in
Food Safety, available at: https://www.ibm.com/blogs/blockchain/2017/09/improving-
confidence-in-food-safety-with-ibm-blockchain/.
Must-read, Smart Supply Chain Management Solutions for Business Processes Optimization, GMDH,
available at: https://gmdhsoftware.com/smart-supply-chain-management-solutions.
PANDAY, M.P.N. and Panday, M.S., “Research (review) paper: the global supply chain and
e-SCM”.
Ohuchi, A. and Kaji, I.K.U.O. (1989), “Correction procedures for flexible interpretive structural
modeling”, IEEE Transactions on Systems, Man, and Cybernetics, Vol. 19 No. 1, pp. 85-94.
BIJ Sushil (2018), “Incorporating polarity of relationships in ISM and TISM for theory building in
information and organization management”, International Journal of Information Management,
Vol. 43, pp. 38-51.
Wasuja, S. and Sagar, M. (2012), “Cognitive bias in salespersons in specialty drug selling of
pharmaceutical industry”, International Journal of Pharmaceutical and Healthcare Marketing,
Vol. 6 No. 4, pp. 310-335.
Appendix Digital supply
Data Collection
An initial survey was floated to industry experts before the final discussions where they were asked to chain to unlock
interpret the relationship between each CSF. Industries approached were that from oil and gas, new agility
information technology, financial services, beauty, ecommerce and others. Companies included KPMG,
Capgemini, NVIDIA, Accenture, VMware, Zomato and others. Senior Managers, Managing director, VP
– HR, Owner, Sales manager were among the rest to come afford and help me gather this data for the
research.
Company Name
28 responses

3
3 (10.7%) 3 (10.7%)
2 (7.1%) 2 (7.1%)
2

1(3.6%) 1(3.61(3.61(3.6%) 1(3.6%) 1(3.6%) 1(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%)

1

0
AIOHealthcare Fidelity Investments Indus Hair Extensi... Nomura Securities Thoth Consultancy Zomato
Berkadia HCL KPMG STARAPPS STU... Vidyaam skills & t...

Industry
28 responses

3
3 (10.3(10.7%)
2 (7.1%) 2 (7.1%) 2 (7.1%)
2

1 (3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%) 1(3.61(3.6%) 1 (3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%)

1

0
Animal Protection o... E commerce Healthcare Manufacturing Semi-conductor fb
Beauty Financial Services Information Techno... Offshore Oil and Gas Yes

Designation
28 responses

3
3 (10.7%) 3 (10.7%)
2 (7.1%)
2

1 (3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%) 1 (3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%) 1 (3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.61(3.6%)

1

0
Application Deve... COO Managing Director SME Senior Software... Vice President
Associate Consu... Electro Technical... Owner Senior Manager... State Outreach C... Stu...
BIJ The questionnaire is as follows:

CSF 1: Organization Rewiring * CSF 2: Sales and Operation Planning * CSF 3: Strategy Sourcing *

Sales and Operation Planning Organization Rewiring Sales and Operation Planning

Strategy Sourcing
Strategy Sourcing Organization Rewiring

Smart Manufacturing Smart Manufacturing

Smart Manufacturing

Warehouse Management Warehouse Management

Warehouse Management
Logistics Capabilities
Logistics Capabilities Logistics Capabilities

Point of Sale Analysis Point of Sale Analysis

Point of Sale Analysis
Financial Services Integration Financial Services Integration
Financial Services Integration
Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments
Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments

Labour Upskilling
Labour Upskilling Labour Upskilling
Lead Time Reduction
Lead Time Reduction Lead Time Reduction
None of the above
None of the above None of the above

CSF 4: Smart Manfacturing * CSF 5: Warehouse Management * CSF 6: Logistics Capabilities *

Sales and Operation Planning Sales and Operation Planning Sales and Operation Planning

Strategy Sourcing Strategy Sourcing Strategy Sourcing

Organization Rewiring Smart Manufacturing Smart Manufacturing

Warehouse Management Organization Rewiring

Warehouse Management

Logistics Capabilities Logistics Capabilities

Organization Rewiring

Point of Sale Analysis Point of Sale Analysis Point of Sale Analysis

Financial Services Integration Financial Services Integration Financial Services Integration

Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments

Labour Upskilling Labour Upskilling Labour Upskilling

Lead Time Reduction Lead Time Reduction Lead Time Reduction

None of the above None of the above None of the above

CSF 7: Point of Sale Analysis * CSF 8: Financial Services Integration * CSF 9: Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments *

Sales and Operation Planning Sales and Operation Planning

Sales and Operation Planning

Strategy Sourcing Strategy Sourcing Strategy Sourcing

Smart Manufacturing Smart Manufacturing Smart Manufacturing

Warehouse Management Warehouse Management Warehouse Management

Organization Rewiring Logistics Capabilities Logistics Capabilities

Logistics Capabilities Point of Sale Analysis Point of Sale Analysis

Financial Services Integration Organization Rewiring Financial Services Integration

Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Organization Rewiring

Labour Upskilling Labour Upskilling Labour Upskilling

Lead Time Reduction Lead Time Reduction Lead Time Reduction

None of the above None of the above None of the above

CSF 10: Labour Upskilling * CSF 11: Lead Time Reduction **

Sales and Operation Planning Sales and Operation Planning

Strategy Sourcing Strategy Sourcing

Smart Manufacturing Smart Manufacturing

Warehouse Management Warehouse Management

Logistics Capabilities Logistics Capabilities

Point of Sale Analysis Point of Sale Analysis

Financial Services Integration Financial Services Integration

Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments Continuous Tracking and Tracing shipments

Organization Rewiring Labour Upskilling

Lead Time Reduction Organization Rewiring

None of the above None of the above

 Each of the CSFs were in turn asked to be linked to the other CSFs. An initial insight was generated Digital supply
after setting a threshold of all the cumulative responses obtained for a particular CSF.
chain to unlock
new agility

Relationship Interpretation

CSF 1 : Organizaon Rewiring

28 responses

Sales and Operation Planning 16 (57.1%)

Strategy Sourcing 16 (57.1%)
Smart Manufacturing 10 (35.7%)
Warehouse Management 10 (35.7%)
Logistics Capabilities 14 (50%)
Point of Sale Analysis 7 (25%)
Financial Services Integration 8 (28.6%)
9 (32.1%)
Labour Upskilling 13 (46.4%)
Lead Time Reduction 13 (46.4%)
None of the above 2 (7.1%)
0 5 10 15 20

Corresponding author
Abhishek Behl can be contacted at: [email protected]

For instructions on how to order reprints of this article, please visit our website:
www.emeraldgrouppublishing.com/licensing/reprints.htm
Or contact us for further details: [email protected]